The Washington times., 1920-11-14

vwTHEN the smoke from Harry Thaw's
w pistol. which ended the life Of
w Stanford White fourteen years ago,
cleared away there remained cloud Of
scandal which lowered over the head Of
Evelyn Thaw and has followed her relent-
cessly like curse ever since.
Whatever she has done, whichever way
she turned. misfortune has overtaken her.
Unfortunately" said Evelyn Thaw the
other day, II was born with pretty face.
This gave me honorable employment as q
photographers model, to be sure. but It
also brought that human vulture into my
nfe-Stanford White. Young, beautiful,
unfamiliar with the ways OF the world,
drifted along as the petted plaything Of
those two rich, influential, resourceful.
worldly wise, sensual men-stanford
White and Harry Thaw. When my hus-
hand killed White that July evening on the
Madison Square Roof Garden the dreamy
illusions Of my young life were instantly
dispelled. was only sixteen. walked up
to face a hard. cold, resentful world. I
know now the meaning of the Bible truth
that The wages Of sin is DEATH"
When, arrer two years of uncertainties.
was left to her own resources, with
Earry Thaw definitely imprisoned in an
asylum for the insane, Evelyn, stripped of
every shred Of that intangible thing known
as woman's reputation" and stamped
with the sins of White and the crimes of
Thaw, started out to shape new career
for herself.
Tsthought the world would forgive me
and let me win myself into its confidence"
she says, "if It saw that intended to live
down my girlhoods past and prove myself
worthy Of the regard anyone who tries to
make an honest. industrious living de-
serves. But was mistaken
Just the other day Evelyn, now the d.
vorced wife Of Jack Clifford, the dancer.
was compelled to drop out of the cast Of
play in which she had been given the
stars part because the audiences would
not forget that she had been the sixteen
year-old girl who had been the plaything
of Stanford White and for whom Harry
Thaw had killed the architect. And those
affairs had occurred fourteen years ago.
"The way of the transgressor is hard"
says Evelyn, but do not think It ought
- be filled with such stumbling blocks a.
I'VE strewn my path since that day when
che public at large first heard existed
the morning after the murder on the Madi.
son Square roof. have honestly tried to
make good In the public eye. But what.
ever I do, wherever I 60, whomever love
and whoever loves me-always the spectre
Of Stanford White and his studio and the
ew.ng in which he rocked me to thought.
.essness, and the shot fired by Harry Thaw
and the gruelling to which District Attor.
ney Jerome subjected me-these things
stare at me from every vantage point at
every step I take to live down the past.
There seems to be no mercy for memo
letting of bygones be oygones."
The play In which Evelyn was & be
starred this season was a very good play,
according to the critics who saw It and
reviewed It. It opened In Washington,
d. c., and was booked for tour Of the
smaller cities of New York State, after
which It was to open on Broadway for q
metropolitan season.
The part assigned to Evelyn, who was
announced on the programme simply as
"Miss Nesbit," was that Of a demure '1it-
tie sister," whose faith and loyalty saved
the hero from the snares laid for him.
There was nothing In the part to suggest
the young woman OF the world such as
Evelyn Thaw was at sixteen years OF age.
None of the lines or situations reminded
the audience of her own past life. But
those audiences did not seem to care for
Evelyn Thaw in any sort Of part, even
in a play which they enjoyed enthusias
tically.
In washington, when the play opened
the newspapers spoke favorably Of the
play, but regretted that the man,c OF
Evelyn Nesbit appeared on the programme
In Harrisburg, Wilkesbarre and Ithaca,
where the play went after its Washington
ensagement. the newspapers regretted