The Topeka state journal. [volume] (Topeka, Kansas) 1892-1980, 1918-03-26
White Wife Must Live With Her
Negro Husband.
Judge Carver Refuses To Grant
Mrs. Kelly Divorce.
MARRIED q YEARS AGO
Children Testify to Trouble at
Court Hearing.
Atty ConteRded Social Stand
ing Removed Divorce Grounds.

The white wife of william j. T
Kelly. a we'll known Topeka negro.
failed today in obtaining divorce
from the man she had lived with for
twepty-three years, who is the father
of Her six children. Judge Robert ID.
Carver in the first division of the dis
trict court denied her petition, after
listening to testimony which occupied
nearly the entire morning. Three 9TH
er Petitions have been filed by Mrs.
Kelly in the last two years but were
withdrawn following a settlement of
differences between her and her hus-
BANG.
After Judge Garver's ruling. Mrs
Kelly declared hotly she would never
lives with her husband again. She
charged that he married her twenty
three years ago under pretext of be-
ing an Indian and that the day after
the Marriage the fact of the negro
blood running in his veins was re-
vealed to her when she called on his
mother. This statement, however. was
not made in open court and the race
question was not mentioned openly
during the progress of the trial.
Kelly Hotel Waiter.
Kelly has been a waiter in Topeka
hotels for years and has saved suffi-
Gent money to purchase a small home
at 623 Locust street The two older
boys are going to high school and in
a Kansas City newspaper. The cross
strain in their blood shows plainly in
their dark hair and brown faces.
Kelly was a waiter in the old Cope
land hotel and his wife washed Silver
ware there twenty-three years ago
when he met her, according to the
story she told today. He is not a full
blooded negro. his sons told attorneys.
The eternal mother-in- law question
precipitated trouble in their home two
wife persisted in keeping he- mother
at the house and the mother-in-law
persisted in trying to rule the house
hold, he claimed. Every time he
either ordered or threatened to kick
the mother-in-law out of the house,
his wife brought divorce suit against
him. Kelly asserted.
Mrs. Kelly told the court her hus-
band had cursed her and struck her
once. Retaliatory tactics pursued by
her included grabbing gun and
threatening to shoot him, she adj
mitted.
Not Grounds for Divorce.
w. Z. Atchison. attorney for Kelly,
while decryilIg the cursing given to
his wife by Kelly, declared that the
woman showed by her past action that
size was not member of th= highest
social set, and that in certain social
circles" striking and beating were not
sufficient grounds for divorce.
Judge Carver ruled that Kelly
should not be separated from his wife
ana the children he had reared and
provided a home for in the last TWEEN
ty-three years. Further reports of
trouble, however. might cause a diff
ferenf- ruling, he intimated.
Robert Kelly. 16-year-old son, re-
fused. to repeat curse words he de-
clare6 his father had shot at his
mother in the last two years since
there has been trout BILE in the house
hold Repeated orders from Judge
Carver to answer questions finally
hrouSh. acquiescence along with tears
from the boy who is a sophomore in
the high school,.