The Topeka state journal. [volume] (Topeka, Kansas) 1892-1980, 1916-10-26
A Friend Offers to Marry Girl
and Bring Peace.
FAMILIES MUST DECLARE TRUCE
William Woods. "GOOd Fellow" "
Says He Is Willing.
Court to Wait on the Assault
and Battery Charge.

Just to show that he's good fellow
and doesn't mind a little thing ike
that, William Woods today offered to
wed 16-year-old Mary Adams and as
sumo responsibility for an unborn
child, providing that by that act he
could square everything up between
the Adams and Reed families. He Of
fered his good services to Hugh Mac
Farland, probate judge. The accept
ance of the offer is hanging fire.
Mary Adams is the girl whose faith
er, accompanied by Repps Read,
father of 16-year-old Eugene Read,
attempted to engineer a wedding be-
tween Mary and Eugene Tuesday night
at the office of ]. P. Williams, justice
of the peace in Oakland.
The personally conducted wedding
tour from North Topeka to Oakland,
hastened by a gun in the hands of
either the elder Adams or the elder
Read, was a fizzle. Gene Read
baked. He declared it would take
more money than the banks of To-
peka held to make him willing to wed
suit of the wedding trip was the
issuance of complaint against the
elder Read sworn to by Eugene Read,
his son, charging him with assault and
battery.
Young Read shocked county Off
Gals with his story when he declared
that his father Repps Read, is respon-
s1ble for the condition of little Mary
Adams and that the father was trying
to shoulder the blame onto him.
License Is Revoked
Following this charge the Read and
Adams families were taken into the
probate court Wednesday afternoon.
The first official act of Hugh MaeFar-
land. probate judge, was to revoke the
marriage license he had issued for
Eugene Read and Mary Adams, upon
the request of the fathers. Adams
was told to bring it to the court house
and when he failed to produce it Judge
MacFarland told him to let no grass
grow under his feet while he was 90
ing back to North Topeka after it.
Because of the Vawter-Curran case
IN the district court the county attor-
neys force has been unable to make
any further investigation into the
charges made by young Eugene Read
against his father. The matter will be
ter case is concluded. Officials have
simply been sitting tight and were
wholly unprepared for the visit of the
mysterious Woods today.
woods didn't seem to know much
ABOUT the Adams or the Read families
"Stt' "4liAlIS " take a cnance.
If 1t will settle ell this trouble - he
said, I'll marry the girl.
Willing to Help.
NO, he said, in reply to o1es-
tion' Il have had -nothing to do with
the girl and am not responsible for
her condition but if it will help anv
ana let everybody out of trouble I'll
marry her.
Woods declared that he was not
even In Topeka during the early
spring and summer when it IS alleged
Mary Adams got into trouble. He said
ne was working at Eskridge early in
the summer and then went to Wa
1go. mego. Now he is working in North
1t was not possible to tell Woods to-
DAY whether his marriage to the girl
would end the trouble Nothing will
pc done until the hearing of the as
sauit and battery charge broueb+
against Repps Read by his son. Offi-
Gals believe things may develoD in
that hearing which may shed some
light on the whole situation
The prospect of delay did NOT an
pear TO bother the self-sacrificin.
WOODS. He said he'd be back again
and see how things come ont "
Woods is apparently about 40 va.rs
Oh age and said he had been married
once. maj iAeo