Omaha daily bee., 1922-02-15

20 the Brown divorce suit has stuf
Mrs Irene Loemis Brown. the Met
odist minister's wife, into the fir
formal statement she has issued sin,
she sued Rev Edgar Merrill Brow
for divorce a month ago,
The sIatment. made through h,
attorney, Clinton Bronze. censuf,
the Methodist official for sfrayin
his powerful influence against her.
She declares the bishops stat,
ment issued Monday Is unfair an
unjust
No Answer Filed.
She denies that she avoided
meeting with him IN Des Moine.
that she desired to escape the oh
legations OF a ministers wife or tina
She was aeiuated by mereenary mo
iiyes-all OF which, she says, tn
bishop asserted.
A lifetime OF church work il
Omaha is offered as proof that he
friends cannot be misled by an,
such statements, even though the,
emanate from Bishop Stuntz. th,
statement sets forth.
Yesterday was the last day Rev
Mr. Brown has in which 10 make al
answer TO his wife's petition, charg
ing cruelty. At ?, no reply had beer
filed in the Office OF the clerk OF III,
court.
The Statement
Yesterdays statement by Bishop
Stuntz, branding Mrs. Edgar Mer-
rill Brown as one actuated by mer-
cenary motives and a desire to es-
cape the obligations of a minis
ter's wife in connection with her
suit for divorce, now pending, will
have no effect here upon those
who have known Mrs. Brown
since childhood, nor do believe
1t will have any effect with those
persons who have been familiar
with her work in church circles in
Omaha.
Mrs. Brown was born and
reared in Omaha, has lived here
all of her life. has been educated
in the Omaha public schools and
has been closely identified with
church work in this city ever since
her childhood.
"Al those who have known her
and come in contact with her,
know that Mrs. Brown is excep-
tionally devoted to church work,
to which she has given large
part Of her time, both before and
after her marriage to Mr.. Brown.
Not to Be Misled.
No one who has had an oppor-
tunity to observe her life and her
work in Omaha will be misled by
the suggestion that her action in
suing for divorce was the result OF
a lack of sympathy with her hus-
bands work as a minister or be-
cause of a bequest left to her by
her grandmother, but inasmuch as
the statement issued by Bishop
Stuntz is an alleged statement OF
fact and that it was issued by
ti,ad person to brand her, it pos
sible, ,before the public as a wom-
an utterly unmindtul. OF her re-
sponsibiiiies as a wife, | desire,
on Mrs. Browns behalf, to state a
few facts regarding Bishop Stuntz
activity in this proceeding prior to
the issuance Of his statement.
I'm the third paragraph of the
statement issued by the bishop he
saws that he has personally made
every effort by correspondence
and by attempts to see MRS.
Brown at her brothers home IN
Des Moines to bring about re-
conciliation, but that for some rea-
son he was unable so to do.
No One at Home.
"The facts are that on January
Is Bishop Stuntz communicated
with Mrs. Brown by letter, and
within few days thereafter was
himself in Des Moines, and at that
time called at her brothers house,
where she was then staying.
None of the members OF the
family happened to be home at that
time.
"Inasmuch as Mrs. Brown had
no knowledge that Bishop Stuntz
was in the city, there is no merit
contained in the bishops intimation
that she deliberately sought to
avoid an interview.
mot finding anyone at home,
Bishop Stuntz then left his card at
a neighbor's house, but lett no in
formation as to where he might be
found
"When the card was delivered
to Mrs. Brown, upon her return to
her brothers. home in the evening.
she communicated the fact to her
brother, Walter T. Loomis. who
Immediately called by telephone to
the two leading hotels in Des
Moines in an effort to locate the
bishop, and found that he was not
registered at either of these hotels.
Calls Pastors Home.
"He then called up the home OF
Rev. Mr.. Stotts, pastor OF the
Methodist church. and was in !.
formed that Rev. MIR. Stotts was
attending conference at the
church.
HE then got in communication
with the church by telephone. and
was advised by some person who
answered the phone that Bishop
Stuntz had left Des Moines that
evening for Oskaloosa.
mo further attempt was made
by Bishop Stuntz to communicate
with Mrs. Brown.
Mrs. Brown then wrote letter
to the bishop, which letter was
dated January 81, and was in an
swer to his letter Of January Is.
Letter Was Forwarded.
This letter was forwarded to
me. and l personally delivered it to
the bishops secretary at his OF