Twenty Years a Detective 7

Twenty Years a Detective 7

DESERTS WIFE AFTER THE FIRST DAY.      "There I slept the first night, and the next morning I      was on my way to Cleveland, and started a nice practice      with the $150 I had left. I paid the balance to my friend,      Badillo, and inserted an 'ad.' in the Plain-Dealer.      "I had two answers to my 'ad.,' and selected a Mrs. Moore,      a nurse, and a Mrs. Kreidman. I got from the nurse $100,      and was making love to Mrs. Kreidman and Mrs. Moore, when I      got a letter from wife No. 3, with whom I corresponded all      the time, telling her I traveled for a firm.      "So I left, and forgot that I left in Cleveland a paper      under the tablecloth which had my address in Brooklyn. One      morning (ten days after I left Cleveland) two detectives      came to the house in Brooklyn and arrested me. As there      was no bail for my offense (obtaining money under false      pretenses), I returned to Cleveland a week later, and there      I married a bad woman in jail, Mrs. Kreidman.      "She gave $200 bond, but I left her four days after, as she      was a bad woman. I slept one night at her house, and three      days after I went to Chicago and went to see a matrimonial      agent at 55 Washington street. IDENTIFIED IN CHICAGO; WEDDING STOPPED.      "He introduced me to a nice Jewess, and her father gave me      $400. I started an office on Fourteenth street, when a man      from Philadelphia recognized me, and told her father, a rag      dealer, that I was a married man, named Hausen, just in      time to prevent the marriage.      "I left Chicago as Dr. Weston and went to St. Louis, where      I started an office in Olive street as Dr. A. Dresser, and      there I advertised and selected from a number of letters      that of a farmer's daughter that had $1,000, and married      her (Katie). Six days after I left her and left America and      went to Roumania, and married a girl, a Jewess, in Pitest,      and lived in Roumania as Dr. F. A. Shotz.      "Happy six months; I got 3,000 francs, and we left for      Germany. There we had a quarrel, and she returned to her      parents." Dr. Witzhoff further states that the number of all the girls and women he merely promised to marry and secured money from would reach over one hundred. One of the women Witzhoff married lived in Chicago, Ill. May 13, 1903, John J. Marietta (alias Homer C. Reid, Harold C. Mills, A. S. Anderson, C. H. Huston, C. B. McCoy, H. C. Jones, Harold C. Reed) was arrested through exposure by Laura E. Strickler, a beautiful young girl from Cincinnati, Ohio, who boarded at the Young Women's Association, Chicago. She had been lured to the Newport Hotel, 73 Monroe street, where he proposed marriage and attempted liberties. Miss Strickler became frightened, jumped from the second story window and was badly injured. Marietta married no less than six women, three of whom, Sophia Headley, Marie Butler and Flora Beals, appeared in court to prosecute him September 28. He was convicted. Judge Brentano's court of bigamy, and given five years in the Joliet penitentiary. [Illustration: TITLES ARE CONSIDERED GREAT ORNAMENTS "For as it was in the beginning, the American girl came over and energetically pursued the Lords."] [Illustration: (Men appealing to lady sitting on chair)] Marietta said he secured most of his wives through the marriage agency. Mills said to Miss Headley, after meeting her the second time: "How anxious are you to marry me? Make me an offer in cash of the sum you are willing to settle on me." "Three thousand dollars," she answered. "All right," he replied, "but you know I am from Missouri, you will have to show me." She gave him the $3,000 and they were married. At the time of his conviction Marietta had in the bank $25,000, said to have been secured in the above manner. [Illustration: (Man and two women in fancy clothes)] BREAKING INTO THE NOBILITY. HOW TITLED RAKES USE THE AGENCIES. The marriage bureau is not a distinctly American institution. They know the animal in Europe, only there the operators refer to themselves as marriage brokers, and are decidedly more careful than their American prototypes to steer clear of crime. The idea of marriage broking has thoroughly permeated the effete nobility of Europe. The broken-down "nobles," out at heels and buried under a mountain of debt, look to America for a rich heiress to whom their titles may be sold. For many years they looked to the brokers on their own side of the water to provide them with golden girls; but of late years they have been mixing with the American Matrimonial Agencies, sometimes to their sorrow, as attest the case of Count Larisch. WOES OF COUNT LARISCH. The story of the attempt on Count Larisch is not an unusual one. Briefly, the count, who is an Austrian, but who has estates in Prussia, was anxious to replenish his treasury by marrying an heiress. A syndicate composed of the men now under indictment, it is said, financed him. He set out to marry the daughter of Faber, the multi-millionaire pencil manufacturer of Nuremberg, giving his notes for $50,000, payable upon his marriage to Fraulein Faber. The venture was a failure, for Fraulein Faber did not care to become Countess Larisch. The noble fortune-hunter then went to America in quest of a bride. Whether it was on his own account, or under the auspices of another marriage syndicate, does not appear, though it is hinted the latter is the case. In any event, he was successful, and married Miss Satterlee, of Titusville, Pa. On his return the members of the first Faber syndicate demanded payment, and presented a note purporting to have been given by Larisch without the qualification that it was payable only after his marriage to the pencil manufacturer's daughter. Larisch, regarding the Faber affair a closed incident, and declaring the note presented a forgery, refused to pay. The matter got before the public prosecutor and the expose resulted. LORD BERTIE CAVENDISH--CHAMPION MATRIMONIALIST. Oct. 24, 1905, Miss Gladys Simmons, Hot Springs, Ark., married Lord Bertie Cavendish after two days' acquaintance. He represented himself to be of noble birth, son of the late Marquis of Queensbury, and to have immense possessions in South Africa and Mexico, which he was unable to obtain on account of his banishment from England for serving against the British in the Boer war, due to the activity of British army officers against him. Miss Simmons' mother received information that her son-in-law's name was not Lord Bertie Cavendish, but Douglass. By photographs and further investigation his identity was established as that of an adventurer. Following is a partial list of his wives, several of whom have asked the court to grant them divorces:      Miss Louisiana Hobbs, Lambert Point, Va., near Norfolk.      Mrs. Mabel Duncan, Denver, Colo.      Mrs. Scott, South Bend, Ind.      Mrs. Beatrice E. Anderson, Fort Worth, Texas. MARKET FOR AMERICAN HEIRESSES. There has been more than one similar scandal involving members of the high nobility and rich American girls. It will be remembered last year there was a stir created by The broadcast announcement that Prince Hugo Von Hohenche-Oehringen, Prince Heinrich Von Hanan and Baron Berhard-Muenhausen, accused an Englishman, O'Brien, who was alleged to be the agent of Berlin marriage brokers, of attempted blackmail. [Illustration: IDLENESS, TITLES, MONEY, UNHAPPINESS, NOTORIETY, DIVORCE] Among the Americans whose names are said to be on the list of this marriage syndicate, without their personal knowledge or consent, are the Misses Angelica and Mabel Gerry, the Misses Nora and Fannie Iselin, the Misses Adeline and Electra Havemeyer, Mrs. Lewis Rutherford Morris, formerly Miss Katherine Clark, daughter of Senator Clark, of Montana; Mrs. Francis Burton Harrison, formerly Miss Mary Crocker, daughter of Mrs. George W. Crocker; Miss Dorothy Whitney, the Misses Beatrice and Gladys Mills, Miss Gwendolyn Burden, and the Misses Florence and Ruth Twombly. GOVERNMENT OFFICIALS ROUSED TO MANY FRAUDS BY THE MATRIMONIAL AGENCIES AND BUREAUX THROUGHOUT THE COUNTRY, "AGENCIES" TO PUT UNDER BAN THE SWINDLING OPERATIONS. MRS. JENNIE SCOTT, ARRESTED BY POSTAL INSPECTORS, TELLS SECRETS OF HER MATRIMONIAL AGENCY. The second blow has been struck against the affinity trust, of Chicago, and the second member of the alleged trust in Chicago, Mrs. Jennie Scott, a woman of many aliases, by Postoffice Inspector James E. Stuart. This woman was arrested at her home, at 214 Thirty-second street, her "Cupid shop," where she received thousands of letters, descriptions and photographs of affinity seekers from all over the United States and Canada. She received them in the name of "Glinn's International Corresponding Association," to join which from $2 to $5 was drawn from each affinity. Thousands joined. SAME LITERATURE USED AS IN MARION GREY CASE. Postoffice Inspectors A. E. Germer and Frank Sheron worked up the case against the woman and discovered that the same literature was used by this woman as was used by Marion Grey, convicted for the misuse of the mails in operating an affinity matching business at Elgin. There were some changes, however, in the method. This is shown in the literature sent out by this woman. Her literature explains to the affinities that the business is absolutely honest and above board, and must be kept so. Under "special reduced rates," she drew in hundreds of women clients, many of whom sent in their pictures. [Illustration: MRS. JENNIE SCOTT] [Illustration: TYPES OF "AFFINITIES" FOUND BY MARION GRAY, SKETCHED IN COURT WHERE BEAUTY IS ON TRIAL] Mrs. Scott operated also at 2208 Wabash avenue, where she had a room for receiving mail. She was known not only as Mrs. Scott, but as E. L. Glinn, Mrs. Jennie Call, Mrs. A. M. Harvey and Mrs. E. L. Glinn. She lived on Thirty-second street, with her young daughter. CLIENTS ALL WEALTHY; TAKE THEIR WORD FOR IT. Almost every client on the books of this marriage-fostering concern claimed to be worth from $5,000 to ￡1,000,000 sterling. Many of them were alleged to have large incomes. Some were said to have children and are not to be divorced, but still seek life partners. WITNESSES NEED A SHEPHERD. Then, from among the queer little party huddled together on the benches at the rear of the big court room--a helpless, shepherdless flock--Mr. Shirer began to call out his witnesses. First of the hungering souls who sought life companions through Mrs. Scott came Mrs. Mary Quinn, of Trenton, Ill., a short, dumpy little person of about thirty-five or forty, who was chiefly remarkable for the white hat she wore. "I saw the ad.," she whispered--it was with the greatest difficulty that Judge Bethea induced her to talk so she could be heard ten feet away--"and I answered it. They sent me back a circular and a photograph of a nice-looking fellow who was said to be rich. "I sent my $2 and wrote that I would like to get into correspondence with him. They sent me back word that he was corresponding with another lady just then, and didn't want any more names at present, but there was another one just as good. NICE LETTERS LACK RICH TONE. "I corresponded with him until three weeks before I remarried my divorced husband, last December. He wrote very nice letters, but he certainly didn't sound rich." "You got what you asked for, didn't you?" asked Mr. Murphy. "Oh, yes, I guess so; I'm not complaining." The uncomplainingness of the alleged victims is the odd feature of the case. [Illustration: JAIL FOR CUPID'S AID Marion Grey, Pretty Love Broker, Who Was Sentenced to a Year in Prison] Dr. Montgomery Porter, a graduate of the University of Arkansas, came all the way from his home in Pine Bluff, to say that he had answered one of Mrs. Scott's advertisements but had not paid the $5 fee, "which she charged the men members." Porter C. Dyer, a graduate of the Ohio State University, who lives in Austin, O., said that he paid the fee and was disappointed, "because the names sent were not those of refinement and culture, as promised in the circulars." Mrs. Flora Scott, a restaurant keeper at Middleport, O., tall and not particularly stylish, couldn't recall what any of the circulars said, but she was quite sure she hadn't landed a rich husband yet. SOUTHERN BEAUTY SENDS $2. The handsomest of the witnesses was Miss Avis Christenberry, a stately brunette from Memphis, who rather liked the looks of the rich young man's photograph used for bait and sent in $2. "They told me he was corresponding with some one else just then," she testified, "and I corresponded with two substitutes, but they didn't entertain me much." Wilson Schufelt, a real estate man, said that he had rented the matrimonial headquarters to "Mrs. A. M. Harvey" for a mail order house business. Mrs. Harvey got her mail under the names of Glinn and Hill, and when the postal authorities became interested in her she told Schufelt that her name was Jennie Scott. At her home, 214 East Thirty-second street, she is known as Mrs. Jennie Call. She was indicted under the name of Glinn. It was testified by E. J. Beach, superintendent of the Twenty-second street sub-postal station, that the matrimonial agency received from 50 to 200 letters every day. She was arraigned before Judge Bethea and found guilty, on April 25, 1908, and was sentenced to one year in the House of Correction, and was fined $500. THE HORRIBLE GUNNESS FARM. THE RIPENED FRUIT OF THE MATRIMONIAL AGENCY. But the giant blossom of this plant of hell is not bigamy, not swindling, not desertion; it is murder, wholesale, ghastly murder. For it is the matrimonial agency, nothing else, which is directly responsible for the unbelievable horrors of the Gunness Murder Farm, at Laporte, Ind., the revelation of the existence of which shocked the entire civilized world as it has not been shocked since the time of the Borgias. This wholesale murderess invariably lured her victims to their fate through advertisements in a "matrimonial paper," or through an agency. She would insert the usual stereotyped "ad." of the wealthy widow lady who desired a mate, but always a mate with money. Always being able to produce proof that she was well-to-do, it was an easy matter for her to persuade her victims to visit her at the Laporte farm. She invariably stipulated that they should bring a substantial sum with them. Arriving at the Gunness farm, the prospective suitors were invariably impressed with the evidences of wealth and luxury. After a stay of a few days, during which time the cunning murderess would find out how much money her victim had, and whether he could immediately procure more in the form of cash, the victim would be invited to supper and his food drugged. He would then be escorted to his room, where he would soon become unconscious. Chloroform was then administered, the body hurled through a chute to the basement, where it would be dismembered and placed in a gunnysack. The sack would then be taken out and buried in a convenient spot on the farm. It was an inquiry from the brother of one of the victims, Andrew Helgelein, which revealed the whole horrible affair. [Illustration: THE DEATH HARVESTER. A Crop on the Gunness Farm.] It is estimated that this woman, through the aid of the matrimonial agencies, murdered more people than any other human being that ever lived. She exceeded the records of the Benders, Holmes, and even those arch-assassins of the middle ages, the Borgias. LOMBROSO DISCUSSES MONSTER. Dr. Cesare Lombroso, of the University of Milan, the world's greatest criminologist, in discussing this woman, said:      "In general the moral physiognomy of the born female      criminal approximates strongly to that of the male. The      female criminal is exceedingly weak in maternal feeling,      inclined to dissipation, astute and audacious, and      dominates weaker beings sometimes by suggestion, and at      other times by muscular force; while her love of violent      exercise, her vices and even her dress, increase her      resemblance to the stronger sex.      "Added to these virile characteristics are often the      worst qualities of women; namely, an excessive desire for      revenge, cunning cruelty, love of dress and untruthfulness,      forming a combination of evil tendencies which often      results in a type of extraordinary wickedness. Needless      to say these different characteristics are not found in      the same proportion in everybody. One criminal will be      deficient in intelligence, but possessed of great strength,      while another, who is weak physically, triumphs over this      obstacle by the ability with which she lays her plans.      "But when, by an unfortunate chance, muscular strength and      intellectual force meet in the same individual, we have a      female delinquent of a terrible type, indeed.      "In short, we may assume that if female-born criminals are      fewer in number than the males; they are usually much more      ferocious.      "What is the explanation? We observe that the normal      woman is naturally less sensitive to pain than a man, and      compassion is the offspring of sensitiveness. If the one be      wanting, so will the other be.      "We also find that women have many traits in common with      children; that their moral sense is deficient; that they      are revengeful, jealous, inclined to vengeances of a      refined cruelty.      "In ordinary cases these defects are neutralized by piety,      maternity, want of passion, by weakness and an undeveloped      intelligence. But when a morbid activity of the psychical      centres intensifies the bad qualities of women, and      induces them to seek relief in evil deeds; when piety and      maternal sentiments are wanting, and in their place are      strong passions, much muscular strength and a superior      intelligence for the conception and execution of evil, it      is clear that the innocuous semi-criminal present in the      normal woman must be transformed into the born criminal      more terrible than any man.      "What terrific criminals would children be if they      had strong passions, muscular strength and sufficient      intelligence; and if, moreover, their evil tendencies were      exasperated by a morbid intellectual activity! And women      are big children; their evil tendencies are much more      numerous and more varied than men's, but generally remain      latent. When they are awakened and excited they produce      results proportionately greater." LIST OF THE VICTIMS. Below is given a partial list of the victims of this inhuman monster, as it appeared in the Chicago American, Sunday, April 26, 1908: PARTIAL CATALOGUE OF MRS. GUNNESS' 180 VICTIMS.      1. Max Sorenson, Mrs. Gunness' first husband--whom she      poisoned.      2. Peter S. Gunness, second husband, whom she killed with a      meat axe.      3. Her infant child, whom she strangled to death.      4. Miss Justina Loeffler, of Elkhart, Ind., believed to      have been married to Johann Hoch and sent by him to Mrs.      Gunness to be murdered and buried.      5. Olaf Limbo, Norwegian farm hand.      6. Ole Budsberg, a hired man, from Iola, Wis.      7-9. Three well-known men of Fort Wayne, Ind., who have      disappeared in the last two years.      10. A horse trader from Montana.      11. Jennie Olsen, eighteen years old, adopted daughter of      Mrs. Gunness.      12. Henry Gurholt, left Scandinavia, Wis., on March 12,      1906, saying he was going to marry Mrs. Gunness.      13. George Bradley, forty years old, of Tuscola, Ill., went      to La Porte, Ind., October 20 of last year.      14. Olaf Lindboe, farm laborer, of Chicago, employed by      Mrs. Gunness.      15. Lee Porter, of Bartonville, Okla., quarreled with his      wife and answered one of Mrs. Gunness' matrimonial "ads."      17. Crippled man from Medina, N. D.      18-20. Three children of Mrs. Gunness killed or burned in      house--Myrtle, aged 11; Lucy, 9; Philip, 5.      21. Body of unidentified woman found in ruins of burned      house.      22. Strange baby left last fall by man and woman, as told      by Ray Lamphere, arrested as accomplice of Mrs. Gunness.      23. John O. Moe went to La Porte from Elbow Lake, Minn.,      day before Christmas, 1906, with $1,000.      24. Armat Hartoonan, wealthy Armenian rug merchant of      Binghamton, N. Y., who went to La Porte in 1906 in answer      to a matrimonial "ad."      25. Charles Neuberg, of Philadelphia, took $500 and went to      visit Mrs. Gunness in June, 1906.      26. George Berry, of Tuscola, Ill., went to work for Mrs.      Gunness July, 1905. He took $1,500, expecting to marry the      widow.      27. John A. Lefgren, aged forty-eight, disappeared from the      Chicago Club, and is believed to have gone to Mrs. Gunness'      farm.      28. E. J. Tiefland, retired railroad man, of Minneapolis.      29-30. A Los Angeles college professor and wife--names not      yet ascertained.      31. Andrew K. Helgelein, Aberdeen, S. D., ranchman, the      last victim, whose fate led to the discovery of Mrs.      Gunness' crimes.      32. Charles Edman, farm laborer, from New Carlisle, Ind.      Took $3,000 in savings to Mrs. Gunness' home.      33. Frank Riedinger, young German farmer, of Delafield,      Wis., went to La Porte in February, 1907.      34. Babe seen by a neighbor, Mrs. William Diesslen, which      afterward disappeared.      35. Unknown young woman visitor, seen to go to Gunness      house; never accounted for afterward.      36. Unknown man, a widower, and his young son, went to Mrs.      Gunness' house a year ago--never seen again. One of the      bodies found on farm was that of a small boy.      37-57. Twenty-one babies entrusted to Mrs. Gunness' care      while she was running a "baby farm" on the outskirts of      Chicago all disappeared mysteriously.      57-180. Other unknown men, women and babies, who went to      Chicago and La Porte homes of Mrs. Gunness, and were never      seen again, are estimated to bring the grand total of      victims up to 180. This, then, is the crowning work of the matrimonial agency; this horrid burying ground of dismembered bodies, this ghastly charnel pit on an Indiana hillside. By their fruits ye shall know them. In the dread Gunness Farm behold the ripened fruit of the matrimonial agency. [Illustration: RIDES OUT OF THE CLUTCHES OF MATRIMONY] [Illustration: She Steers Him Straight for the Lily Pond.] IN LIGHTER VEIN. The Funny Side of the Matrimonial Business. There is necessarily the amusing side in all this miserable trading upon the affections of fools. Some of the letters sent in to the matrimonial agencies are little less than "screams." Imagine, if you can, a big, husky farmer, a collarless, coatless son of the Utah deserts, gushing forth that he "could live and die on love." Think of a staid and sober trained nurse who has arrived at the ripe age of forty pouring into the ears of the matrimonial agent that she "wants a man who is a flower," and also saying confidingly that she believes that she requires a few more years in which to prepare for the "solemn step." One who is 39 and dark, blushingly admits that she is a "young girl" of loving disposition, and, since love is the destiny of us all, prays for a husband of fifty or thereabouts. One who describes herself as "lively and frolicsome" frankly admits that she is out for the money and can get along without the love end of it at all. It is needless to say that this letter comes from the Pennsylvania Dutch regions. Here are a few of the gems: COULD LIVE AND DIE ON LOVE.           Huntsville. Utah,           Dec. 27. 1902.      MRS. ELLEN MARION.      Grant Works, Ill.      My Dear Lady:      I wish to beg your pardon if I appear rude in trying to      personally introduce myself, but allow me to assure you      that I am sincere in my quest for a kind friend, and it is      nothing but the purest and holiest motives of the human      heart that prompts the intrusion.      I saw your advertisement in the Valley Farmer, and in it      I seem to behold the image of an ideal lady, who is well      worthy of the highest esteem and admiration from a true      gentleman, and how happy and thankful should the man be      who is so fortunate as to captivate the love and heart of      so noble a prize. Among many others your advertisement to      me seemed to be the most suitable and impressive. While it      would not be within good taste to express a great love for      you at present, yet I believe that I could come as near      living and dying on love as the next one. My object in      writing you is to find if there should be a chord within      our natures that could be touched mutually to harmonize      with the word love.      I have been married and know of the joy and happiness of a      kind and loving companion. Two years ago death robbed me of      my greatest prize in life. Since then I have been baching      it. I am tired of roughing it alone, and if there were only      some one to meet me with a kind smile of approval I could      work much harder and be a better man for it, and I do most      earnestly and sincerely solicit your correspondence with a      view to closer ties should our natures prove congenial.      Should you feel inclined to favor me I would certainly feel      highly flattered. NOT A FLIRT.      Please do not rank me with the ordinary flirts and      adventurers, for I assure you that I am honest in my      intentions and would not mislead or advise anyone      wrongfully. My age is thirty-seven, height five feet nine      inches, weight 175 pounds, have a good moral character      in every respect, honest and industrious, without any      bad habits, total abstainer from liquor and tobacco,      move in the best society, am of a quiet, kind and loving      disposition. Home is the dearest place to me on earth and      I know how to make it happy. I can appreciate and know the      real value of a kind and loving wife, and the dear lady      that becomes my wife will find in me a true and honest      husband, a kind and loving companion, one whose greatest      aim and object will be to make his home and loved ones      happy.      To you the above may have a smattering of self-praise and      flattery, but the facts are wholly true, which I hope in      due time will be fully demonstrated. Should you wish to      hear further from me I shall be quite pleased to furnish      any information desired.      Anxiously awaiting your acquaintance, I am,           Yours sincerely,           JENS WINTER.      With best wishes and compliments of the season. [Illustration: AROUND THE CLOCK WITH A "HOME HUSBAND"] LOVELORN WAILS. I want a man who is a flower, with love and affection oozing from all its petals. Maybe, however, I need a few more years' preparation for the most solemn of steps--matrimony. I admire a man of good physique, kind, gallant, conscientious, of good morals as can be expected nowadays, home-loving, and fond of children.--Application for a husband from Catherine M. Barnes, trained nurse, aged 40, Indianapolis.        *       *       *       *       * Love is the destiny of us all. At times it seems it is going to side-track and pass us. Therefore, I ask you to help me to find a handsome man of 50 or over who has some money and can make more. I am a young girl of loving disposition; do not powder, except on special occasions; can cook, and know how to dress on nothing or little. I want love and fidelity. Do not send me the name of any traveling men. I am 39 and dark.--Miss Ella Miller, 837 Spring Garden street, Philadelphia.        *       *       *       *       * Introduce me to a widow with money who wants a good entertainer and honest man. I have no funds, but don't tell her that. I play, sing and recite well.--Adam Werker, Glen Ellyn, Ill. HER IDEAL HUSBAND. "My ideal must be tall," suggests Miss Mary Hester, from Wayland, N. Y., "and a gentleman in every sense of the word. He must be of good standing socially and morally. He must be of temperate habits, kind, generous, affectionate, devoted--a man of ability, who would be a companion socially, intellectually and morally to a true, pure, devoted wife." She says she would ask for no more. [Illustration: (Letter, first part)] [Illustration: (Letter, second part)] [Illustration: (Second letter, first part)] [Illustration: (Second letter, second part)] [Illustration: "READ US 'BOUT WHUT DE FOLKS IN PITTSBURG AN' NEWPORT IS UP TO."] [Illustration: "I'D RUTHER BE MARRIED TO A WOMAN WHO WAS REFORMIN' THINGS OUTSIDE DE HOUSE DAN IN HIT."] THIS ONE IS REAL FRANK. Here is another letter from Reading, Pa:      Dear Sir: I notice by Sunday's paper that you are looking      for a wife. Now, strange to relate, I am looking for a      husband. I don't know what your requirements are, but I do      know mine, and the chief ones of them are money, a good      home, less work and worry, and happiness. If love comes,      too, I shall not object, although I have lived long enough      to realize that there can be a sort of lukewarm happiness      without love.      Be that as it may, I judge my capacity is sufficiently      large to satisfy the sort of a man I judge you to be. Now,      for the next item of importance--myself. I am tall and      slender, five feet six inches high, and quite "figuresque,"      as one of my girl friends tells me. I am of the      Irish-American type; hair medium in shade and profuse as to      quantity; deep-set, very bright gray eyes; good carriage,      on account of which strangers often consider me haughty--an      entirely erroneous idea.      Am of a lively, frolicsome nature. I am full of fun, and      no matter how black things are I always find something      to laugh at. I am twenty-three years old, and decidedly      domestic, that being, in fact, my only accomplishment. I      am artistic only along some lines; have no musical talent      and am not an artist, but I love both devotedly. Am very      practical, in fact, and a good housekeeper. There is lots      more I might tell you, but we will call this enough for the      present. Should like to know something about you, and hope      you will be as truthful and frank as I have been.           Sincerely yours,           MARY ANDERSON. ONE OF THE LUCKY ONES. A Matrimonial Agent Captures a Rich Husband and Retires from Business. Mamie Marie Schultz, a matrimonial agent, outwits the police and postal authorities after being raided and broken up, moves to other quarters, continues business, finds a rich man seeking a wife among her patrons and marries him. September 11, the German-American Agency, run by Mamie Marie Schultz, 3150 Calumet avenue, was raided by Detective Wooldridge, the literature seized and destroyed. Mamie Marie Schultz was fined $25 by Justice Hurley. The evidence obtained was submitted to the postal authorities for action. Mamie Marie Schultz fled to Oak Park, where she continued her matrimonial agency. After she moved to Oak Park she was notified "by order of the town board" to vacate, but she laughed at the order and enjoyed the newspaper notoriety she attained, for it only increased her business. It is said she made thousands of dollars out of her matrimonial agency. With a stealth that is characteristic of his art, Cupid has accomplished what Oak Park officials had been trying to do for two years. He has closed out the Oak Park matrimonial agency by making a victim of his promoter in that vicinity, Marie Schultz, manager of the matchmakers' concern. The postmaster, United States marshal and several of the town officers yesterday received letters signed "Mrs. J. D. Edwards," announcing that Marie Schultz "had been caught in her own net" and had deserted the village for a "palatial" home in Seattle, Wash., where her new husband, J. D. Edwards, is a wealthy lumber dealer. SWIFT COURTSHIP BY EDWARDS. Edwards, it is said, arrived in Oak Park on Tuesday, and after a whirlwind courtship this "Lochinvar who came out of the West" had won the whole matrimonial agency. "Marie," the name in which all her extensive advertising was done, has defeated the officials of Chicago, Oak Park, and even the United States postoffice inspector, in every effort they made to suppress her enterprise. To Postmaster Hutchinson she wrote requesting that all letters addressed to the agency be returned to the writers, as she didn't "want any more of their money." The postoffice force was burdened with the task of mailing back to some 500 lovelorn men and maidens the letters which had accumulated in "Marie's" postoffice box. But the bleatings of the overgrown calf from Utah, and the wails of the maiden lady who desires a "flower" for a mate are both eclipsed by the mushy outpourings of a Chicago business man. This fellow evidently possesses the artistic temperament. Not only is he moved to write prose poetry, "to bay the moon of love," but he insists on inserting illustrative sketches of an ardent wooing. He has forged the white heat of his passion, which evidently puts Ella Wheeler Wilcox at her fiercest to shame, into pictures. Here we behold him, hand in hand with his beloved, under the kindly stars. There, more prosaic, it is true, but still quite passionate, is the drawing room scene, with the lady seated on his knee. Behold the works of genius when love impels.