The Washington times., 1922-02-18
AWAIT NEW
ARRESTS IN.
TINY RENO
More Alleged VioIators OF Per-
jury Law Expected to Be Held
In Alexandria Divorce cabal.
BY HARVEY l.. COBB.

Times Company
With the arrest yesterday of
Mary l.. BagRett, "Divorce Queen"
Of Little Reno Of the East, on
charges Of perjury in making false
affidavits for members Of the di-
vorce ring, additional arrests of
other Aexandrians were predicted
today. -.-.....- -.
The arrest Of Mrs. Bskxett, who.
according to the records, has sign
ed hundreds of depositions that
divorce seekers have resided at her
house for more than q year, and
were known to be Of good char
acter, ETC., was accepted in Little
Reno" as q matter Of course. fol-
lolwing the expose.
After Higher.Ups.
Caustic comment. however. was
expressed by citizens Of Alexandria,
who are more or less familiar with
the workings Of the divorce ring,
that the first arrest in the scan-
dals of Alexandria should have been
of "a woman who has been made
the tool of corrupt lawyers" Mrs.
Baggett's Arrest, however, was eK-
pected in connection with the pros
ecution Of the expose Sue to the
great number Of dispositions which
she made, swearing under oath the
divorce seekers lived at her house
for more than one year.
Upon payment of a price Mrs.
Bapgett made a practice OF sign
ing dispositions, swearing to the
residence at her house OF non
residents, 1t is charged.
A receipt was given this writer
upon payment of $50 for one years
rent, with the understanding that
the divorce queen Of Alexandria
would go into court and under oath
make a deposition that he had lived
at her house for one year.
The fact that the writer had
never seen her before she signed
the receipt and accepted the $50
was Of minor consideration.
vorce queen" has been set for 8
o'clock next Tuesday morning, when
1t Is expected she will be held for
the action Of the grand jury.
Ten Years Is Penalty.
Perjury, the charge under which
she has been indicted, Is punish
able in Virginia by confinement in
the penitentiary from one to ten
years. Under the law members Of
the divorce ring who procured Mrs.
Baggett to make the dispositions are
equally guilty Of subornation Of
perjury and face the same punish
ment.
According to the records OF the
Alexandria divorce court, presided
over by Moncure, the following
Alexandria attorneys names are
shown as representing the plaintiff.
wherein Mrs. Baggett made de-
positions:
Budwesky & Davis, the unchal.
by Mrs. Baggett as my boys"
whose offices are in Judge Mon
cures home: Charles Henry Smith,
a member Of the Virginia legislature
and known as the Grown Prince"
at the Moncure divorce court; r. B.
Washington, who ranks second in
his success as a divorce lawyer, be-
ing outclassed only by the Divorce
Kings, in the number OF DEGREES OBJ
tanned; Howard w. Smith. the COM
monwealth attorney, and personal
counsel Of Moncure in civil suits;
Smith and Wools, and two or three
other Alexandria lawyers whose
names appear in the record, but
not an excessive number Of times
like those named.
In tomorrow's Washington Times
will be published a partial list OF the
names Of Washington divorce seelS-
crs who gave as their legal residence
the home Of Mrs. Baggett, and for
whom Queen" Baggett, according to
the records and sworn testimony,
made dispositions that she had known
them for q period Of years and that
they had lived In her nine-room house
for more than one year preceding the
filing Of the divorce.