The San Francisco Call. Newspaper, January 11, 1896, Page 16

16 THE SAN FRANCISCO CALL, SATURDAY, JANUARY 11, 1896 MRS, DAVIDSON HELD FOR TRIAL Judge Campbell Makes a Strong Arraignment of the Defendant. THE OVERMAN LETTERS. Mrs. Tunnell Declares They Are Forgeries and the Work of Mrs. Davidson. A BOSTON WOMAN A VICTIM. She Entrusted the Sum of $4800 to the Custody of the Alleged Blackmailer. | the worse they benave the more they ple | | | | | ments of & dissipa | some help for t} have no knawledge of criminally. em and do still. They were near and dear iriends to me and to each other. I have known Mattie in Spokane, Tacoma and San Francisco, and she kept the best of company. She rented rooms of Tespectable neighbors ot mine in Spokane, We were often together during the week and attended two or three services together on Sundays. There are ny false statements made in the papers 2 1 have longed to correet, but my t wrongdoing, friends have advised me to write tono one, not | even my children. A way has just presented itself to write this without leading the reporters to this place, and I must say, with Paul, itis a_small thing to be judged by . but I am sure 1o one who know Lelieve the state- ed landlady, who says I owe Toom rent, or aLy one else who says I am_even tainted with spiritunlism or any other ism. 1f 1 had ot dreaded publicity and suffered | in silence another wolt in sheep's clothing wonld have been behind the bars in_the per- son of J. Knudson, who. like Mrs. Davidson, d self-righteousness in publ and testimonies and restaurant tables. That book says yon shall know them by their fruits, not words.” Mrs. Eaton was attracted to Mattie and has always told me to give her n sing invitation to visit her, even if 1 could ompany her. If the dos sent mor did not it. Sofietimes he gave me poor. 1 believe 1 was the most Lie gave me at & time. 1 never hinted it wes wanted, but he offered it voluntarily when 1 would relate some sad case of destitution Mes. M. F. Tu THE PRISONER HELD. reading the Bible at LL. | Mrs. Davidson on the Stand Again. Testimony Regarding the Lost Mrs. Baddin. Judge Joachimsen’s courtroom was the scene terday of the continua tion of the hearing of the charge | of extortion against Mrs. Mary Abbot | Dayidson by Rey. Dr. C. 0. Brown. Mrs. Davidson has been held to answer | Campbell called for order at 1 Judge P. M before the Superior Court to the charge of | only fifteen minutes after the time set. Rev. Dr. C. O. by rred extortion Brow pref hile friend of the ly that she ell, the e oner, declares positive! has no knowledge of the lations exist! and Dr. Br the emphatic sta ng tween Miss Overman wn. at the letters Overman to purpe vure and sin h in is the situation of the Brown-Davidson scandal as it stands to- day. Oneof the two women who It was claimed could, in all probability, have ned the charges made by Mr ecting the moral of the regational Church, ent in which she ex In Tur CALL of yesterday Mrs. Tunnell ted henticity of | sideration of the record from Salem, Ma: | reciting the con The first matter to come up was the con- tion and sentence to | thirty months’ imprisonment on a charge | of embezzlement of Mrs. Mary A. David- 4 illicit re- | gon But before argument on this subject | was begun ex-Judge Louderback asked the | the man Jett she de- clares that Mrs. Davi an accom- | plished for “T beliey ber 27, ult.,” she son was a Christi rwhelming evid ome out thatshe is the most consun 1 ever known. | completed | overruled the object hes this with | defendant to take the stand for further cross-examination. Her counsel objected on the ground that the prosecution had her cross-examination on Judge Campbell, however, n of the defense, and Mrs. Davidson resumed the stand. Attorney Lioyd’s assumption that the record from Salem, M showed the defendant’s conyiction was objected to by Thursday. | Attorney Gallagher on the ground that the record had not yet been made a part | of the evidence, and he intimated quite angrily that Lloyd was talking for the benefit of the audience present and the | general public. After considerable argument counsel for the prosecution admitted that the offense mentioned in the record was not a felony under the statutes of Massachusetts, and 50 could not be used to impeach tle cred- ibility of defendant. troduce the record for the purpose of cross examining the witness upon it, but of this privilege he was also deprived on the show. ing that the record which had been pro- cured by Deacon Morse for use in the pri ent case was mnot properly attested, as it lacked the certificate of the presiding mag- istrate of the Superior Court of Massachu- sett Louderback then resumed the cross-ex- amination of the Gefendant by asking her what was the character of her *physical G. W. WILDERMAN, PRESIDENT OF TIVE SOCIETY, WHO TESTIFIED BLANK APPLICATION OF THE WORLD’S MEMBERSHIP CHRISTIAN CO-OPERA. HE GAVE MRS. BADDIN IN THAT ORGANIZATION. THAT Sketched in court by a “Call” artist.] I believe Mrs. Davidson is a dangerous person, and I trust she will be placed where she will not have another oppor- | tunity to ply her nefarious business by playing on the credui and unsuspecting.”’ Then Mrs. Tunnell tells a remarkable story. She briefly recounts her acquaint- anceship with the principal witness in the case, and repudiates absolutely any knowl- edge of money given to Miss Overman, or 1 fact any‘hing which reflects on that voung lady’s character. Tte court proceedings and other inter- esting developments in the case will be found below. S s g ARE THEY FORGERIES? Mrs. Tunnell Declares the Overman Letters Were Never Received by Her. VISALIA, Can., Jan. 10.—As promised in last night’s dispatch, Mrs, Tunnell kept her word and granted an interview to THE Caun representative to-day. After a short conversation Mrs. Tunne!ll agreed to re- duce her statement to writing, and did so, us follows: To the Call: Last evening 2t 7 o’clock, when the first intimation reached me were leiters published from Miss Overman to me, after a heasty nce at the fac-simile of y of the innocent | | th that there ! part of one letter, I said it looks like her writ- | ing, and & few sentence believe they were, cerned, for si letters, und fin read tome led me to A thief ora foiger is con- ce thel time Thave read the in them another evi Mrs. Davidson is an accomplished The letters as pu‘lished were ne the 1 ger. received days the devil was to be transformed into an angel of light and deceive if possible the very elect. 1 believed up to Friday, December 27th ult., that Mrs. David- son was a Christian. = then the over- whelming evidence came that she was the most consummate hypoerite I had ever known. Language fails {0 express iny contempt for one who_ uses religion as a cld I believe Mrs. Davidson is a dangerous person, and trust she will be placed where she will not have another oprortunity 10 ply her nefarious business by playing on the credulity of the iunocent and unsuspecting. I have known by me. In attie long and well and have also kuowu Dr. Brown for a year or two and | back to Mrs, and mental her testimony. ach,” as she described it in Stie replied: T would like to define it, but I cannot tell. Louderback—What was the disease? Witness—It was a rush of blood to the head. Anything else It uffected my nervous system and caused my blood o supperate unequally. It worked on my nervous system, and was probably brought on by hard work, Did it come on in 18747 e about the is Tush of biood continued until 1 presume it did, more or less. Did you have that rush of blood on and off, or was it one continuous rush? Iknow that it made & blank of my mind. Will you giveus the name of your physi- cian? 1 can't tell. Tam only trying o tell the truth. Yo are a pious woman and— Gullagher—Don’t insult the woman. have no right to insalt her. Louderback—What was the name of your physician? itness—I do not know. Do you know whether you did or did not have & physician for that fush of blood? An object ion was made and sustained. Did you havea physician at any time while | while you' were troubled with blood 7 1 don’t know. the rush of Did you go to the Centennial in Phila-| delphia? [ don’t know anything about it and have told you it was & blank, and I shall stick to it. iave not you told people that you did go to Centennial? 0. During these vears that you say were such a blank did you give birth to a child ? 1 know nothing, sir. Did auybody tell you to repeat those words? 1do not know. Did you ever obtain $4800, or any other sum of money, from Sarah Jine Stevens in Boston? Mrs. Sarah Jane Stevens is a dear friend of miue and she piaced in my hands some money at two different times. 1did not give a re- ceipt. She gave it to measa loan. I took it as & loan because I preferred to take it that way. —Have you a daughter? have no knowledge of & daughter. k—Did anybody ever tell you that Witness Louderbac you had a son or daugliter? No, sir, 10 oue ever told me. This language doesnot'insult me. 1 understood your doings yesterday when you were asking me about whet that paper (meaning the Salem News) contained. 1would like to’ have that paper. It interested me very much. About that $4300. Did yom ever give it Stevens? I have cver held them in high | by long pravers | But ‘he asked to in- | A You | MR 17 C. E. THURSTO) | i 2 APPEARED ON THE TERDAY. [Sketched in court by a “Call” artist.] | | _Inarguing on an objection made by the | defense, ex-Judge Louderback said condition of m uent and prior nts | | We can what took e subse | mental condition whi 9 recollecting anything. The | ot ed a sum of mon | published in the Boston pap It also told of how she carried on other freudulent from r of how she idulently was transac- tions. We want to show that she was in jail, and that perhaps her husband was in jail. ~ We want to show that her statement about the | bank is not true, and that she nas been sailix a piratical craft all this time. | The objection was overruled and witness answered as follows: I think you had better ascertain from Mrs. Stevens. he cour t—Can you answer the guestion, on? ness—I did ; all that the lady desired, and still hold as much as I want of i Louderbac ou havn't returned any part | {of it. Why don’t yougive a truthful answer? | Gallagher—We object to counsel insulting the witness. | The court—I am of opinion that the witness is evading and will ask her to answer the | question. | _ Witnes: . Stevens gave me that money. She was my friend. She offered me the money | and I took it and agreed to pay her a low rate | of interest. I pmid ber the interest, but not not the principal. She has not asked for it. Louderback—Have you read an article in the | Boston Traveler of January 1, 1896, charging | you with having swindled Mrs! Stevens out of this money? Witness—N | her the money. Did you not write her & letter about De- | | cember 10?7 An objection to the introduction of this newspaver account was sustained and the witness was then excused. The defense then called Alfred J. Clode to the stand. He testitied that he has lived at 35 South Park since last August; | that he arrived in this City about that time; that he had formerly lived at Seattle | and that he had met a Mrs. Baddin on the | steamer Umaiilia the latter part of July on la voyaye to thisCity. On being asked | to give a description of her he gave one | that tallies almost exactly with thatgiven by the defendant when on the stand Thur: day. He further testified that she had two childrer with her, a boy of 8 and a giri 4 or 5years of age. He further testified thathe | | saw her again at Lilienthal’s hop ranch | near Pleasanton, Alameda County, last Oc- tober. Some unimportant cros: min | tion followed, when witness was excused Mrs. C. E. Thurston was next called. | She testitied that she lived at 802 Jefferson | street, Oakland, and has lived there for | three montbs; that she formerly lived in | San Francisco; that she knew Mrs. Tun- | t nell, Mattie Overman and Dr. Brown. She | | then stated that the first time she met Dr. | | Brown was at a hotel on Market street, | { between Sixth and Seventh, and that he was accompanied by Mattie Overman and | a Miss Ashbury. A determined efforc was | | made by the prosecution to bring out the | substance of conversations had by witness | with Miss Overman and Mrs. Tuanell, but | it was frustrated by the rulings of the | | Judge, who sustained the objections made | by the prosecution. G. W. Wilderman, She never asked me to return president of the | World’s Christian Co-operative Society, testified that a Mrs. Baddin, accompanied two children, had made application to | join the society on the 23a of August, 1895, but had never paid the $2 Tee to make her amember. His descrintion of her tallied | with that given by Mr. Clode. He stated { that she was seeking employment and | } rave him to understand she had come irom Tacoma, and that if she failed to find employment in tke City she would leave town. On the application being examined by Attorney Lloyd he claimed the signa- | ture was 1. E. Baddin and not J. E. Baddin. Ernest Simpson, City editor of the | Chronicle, testified 'that Mattie Overman, | | early in September, came to the Chronicle | | office to sell a story for $1000, but he was | prevented by the objections of the prose | cution from telling the nature of the story. Detective Seymour was called in rebut- tal by the prosecution and related his un- | successiul search for Mrs. Jane Elizabeth | Baddin in the neighborhood of Sixth and Bryant streets and Fourth and Mission streets. He failed to get even a trace of her, he suid. He further testified that he was searching for Mrs. Davidson for the purpose of arresting her from the 22d of | December till the 28th, the day of her | arrest. This closed the case, so far as testimony is concerned. Judge Louderback opened the argu- mgdm. and in the course of his remarks said: This is a most extraordinary case in some re- spe A person comes intd court to have a blackmailer punished. If Dr, Brown had let the maticr pass he would have secured silence, buthe had the moral courage to deiermine that this thing must be put & stop to. He said: It is my duty to prosecute this woman,” and comes here with that moral courage for justice against this woman. his woman says she went to Dr. Brown as iriend. Do you think that any sane man who had done what was charged against Dr. Brown in this case would have had his friend arrested? What motive in God’s world—what motive would Dr. Brown have to arrest this defendant for blackmail? She told Dr. Brown and then wrote it down that she was the agent for Mrs. Baddin. Her defense that she acted as the friend of Dr. Brown is founded on s hood. In the capacity of agent for Mrs. Bad- din she 100k that mosey. There has been the most deliberate perjury in this case. This woman's defense is founded on absolute falsehood. Youn never heard of a biackmailer that would not lie under oath. That is the very essence of their business. Let us take that picture. What does her cross-examination show? She had the audi- X l { at the business. city to state under oath, “Icannot tell whether that is my picture or not.”” And she had the audacityto state that she bad a breach in her physical and inental sy ) from 1874 to 1886, and don’t know whether she ever gave birth to & ehild or he don’t claim she was in an insane as orever had a physician or took me : Dr. E told a plain, straightforward stateme e truthiul stalement of a man who had the great moral courage to arrest & woman wh Attorne; ccurse of his a to cast scandal upon him. le followed, and in the iment said : for the other side has stated it took 10 have this woman arrested. I would like to call one instance to his attention. While the doctor was upon the stand his attcrney said he was restrained by the rules of evidence from answering certain questions we asked him. No sane man would have d what the doctor did on the 22d of November. He believed the statement of the defendant and knew that it was not false. The doctor acknowledged his guilt by paying this mone At this thrust at the prosecuting witness, a peculiar smile was seen to play about the lips of the defendant, who sat just back of and between her two attorneys. Continuing, Attorney Guiifoyle sai The whole case is this. It is & matter of veracity between a minister of the Gospel and this woman. I claim that that man who would 1y & trap for the widows and daughters of his congregation is not to be believed. Applause followed, which was summar- ilv checked by tne Judge, who exhibited considerable anger at the unseemly demonstration. I claim that the conduct of the doctor dur- ing this case shows that he was guilty. and I claim that his conduct in parting with his $500 was not the courage of & man who could ve his innocence. He was afraid that the noised abroad and that would be the arrest of this woman and her convietion and punishment would vindicate him. That is his position. If he was the innocent man the counsel claimed he would have thrown his whole life open and would not have been afraid to testify as to what the secret was he | was afraid of. Attorney Guilfoyle followed closely the line of argument that his colleague had traveled. ~In conclusion he said: Would an honest man permit himself to be shut off from testifying to the truth? Counsel for the other side siic he did not want to pun- ish this woman, but wanted to support & prin- ciple. The principle wes to prevent the whoie truth from coming out, to prevent an investi- gation into the life of this prosecuting wit- ness. Reuben H. Lloyd made the closing argu- ment. He said It has been asserted here that Dr. Brown has two or three lawyers. That is not true. Dr. Brown did not empioy me. He had no means to employ me. 1t is not necessary for me to say who émployed me. Iam here on behalf of the people. I am not here to pander to the people who come here to hear the salacious de- tails which were expected to come out. I haye an utter contempt for these people (taking in the whole courtroom with a sweep of his eyes). That is what they are here for. They have no interest in this case. They have no interest in the good of the community. I amnot here to vander to that clement. We are not here to iry the doctor. Thereis a forum to try him. This woman is now before her forum. I am here to try this woman. I am here to show that this woman is guilty of this crime, a crime greater than murder. Counsel then made a reference to the first demand for $1000, which Dr. Brown had testified the defendant had made. This elicited from the defendant repeated utter- ances of “That is a lie.” When a reference was made by Mr. Lloyd on the value to the doctor of his character the defendant disdainfully \n an undertone remarked for the evident benefit of the spectators, *“'Umph! ’Umph! character!” Lloyd denounced Mrs. Baddin as a myth and claimed that the entry in the book of Mrs. Davidson showing that Mrs. Baddin had made a purchase there on the 10th of December, 1895, was unreliable and un- worthy of any consideration, as it bore evidence of having been manufactured for use in this case. Continuing he said: Defendant showed herself a shrewd and in- telligent witness. Sheis eviaently an old hand No one but an oid hand could have go.e on the stand and done as she did, No virgin witness could do that. She isan old warrior, as your Honor must be aware, from your experiénce with criminals. Referring again to the question of the doctor’s alleged misconduct _Attorney Lioyd plainly intimated that Dr. Brown has decided to ask for an investigation by his church people when he said: “There is a proper forum for that, and it will be heard there, too.” Quite a rivple of langhter was created by the counsel’s reference to the peculiar loss of memory by the defendant in saying that there was a rush of money in her pocket simuitaneously with the rush of blood to her head. Judge Campbell immediately on the con- clusion of the argument delivered his de- cision as folloy In this case it is my duty under the code to first find whether ornot a crime has been com- mitted as charged in the complaint, and then, if1find that crime has been committed, to go fully into the evidence and see whether there is suff the ci leni cause to find detendant guilty of rime charged in the compluint. I have given a great deal of time and thought to this case, for [ don’t believe I have ever had a more important case than this before me. ‘e testimony in the case shows that the money was received by the defendant from compiaining winess, how defendant re- ved it, uid it s clear t0 my.mind that she to the docior to extort this 0 1d received the money. The money that the complaining witness lost iswmere trific. She comes into court to make ber defense and she attemvts to teke his good name. Itls a matter of record that all bfu:x. [ mailers try to blacken the characters of the | men who wiil not submit to their demands. 1 don’t know of any more detestable erime than | that of blackmail. Iwant to encourage men | 10 come into vourt with these cases. The only | testimony that tends at all to smirch the char- | acter of the complaining wirness is that which | the defendant herself gives. Her manner | shows that she is a woman of rture, of edu- | cation and refinement, but she has perverted | that education to a dangerous busin: What | a jury would do I cannot tell, but if any twelve | wen can listen to her story and not convict | her | cannot understand, for it is plain that she extorted this $500, and there is nothing | leit for me to do under the law but to hold her | to answer before the Superior Court. 1 there- | fore hold her to answer to the Superior Court | with bail at $5000. i e HER BOSTON RECORD. Mrs. Davidson Said to Have Se- cured $4800 From a Confi- dential Friend. | The Boston Traveller, under date of Jan- | uary 1, gives the following interesting story concerning the woman who was yesterday held by Judge Campbeli to answer before the Superior Court to the charge of extor- tion: | Mrs. Mary Davidson, who is under arrest in | San Francisco for alleged blackmail upon Rev. C. 0. Brown of that City, had an interesting carecr in Boston, and managed to get consider- able money from one person at least beiore she left the city. She was a member of Rev. Nehemiah Boyn- tow’s flock at the Union Congregational Church on Columbus avenue, and later be- came prominent in Dr. Lorimer's congrega- | tion at Tremont Temple, where she was appurently ~deeply interested in Sunday- school work. 7This was during 1890 and 1891. She used to room on_ North- ampton street, at the South End, in 1890, aud at ths time soid starch for a living. She used to carry about a satchei containing her stock in trade, and managed, through her elo- | quence, not only to sell considerable starch at | & profit, but made several valuable friends. | Among them was Mrs. Sarah J. Stevens, an old lady o1 80 years, who lived at 172 Northamp- | ton stree Mrs. Stevens became deeply interested in the plausible Mrs. Davidson and her religious work. The women became very intimate. Mrs. Davidson, who professed extreme piety, frequently used to cull on her friend and pray | with her.” They prayed for most everything. Mrs. Stevens had considerable money i vested in bonds, and when they were called in | and paid Mrs. Davidson learned of the amount | of ready cash possessed by her new friend. Then shie began to talk about going into the dressmaking business with a_Mrs. Brown, and finaily ioduced Mrs, Stevens to lend her $2800 on her note at 4 per cent. The note was made payalle iu ten years. A 'place was secured on Tremont street, opposite the Commou. | Then Mrs. Erown heard something about Davidson, and refused to become asso- ciated with her in business. Mrs. Davidson owever, persuaded Mrs. Stevens that she was ail right, and went into business on her own | account. Soon she needed more money, she said, and borrowed tbe remainder of Mrs. Stevens’ cash, $2000, also on & ten years' note, this time for 3 per cent interest. Iriends of Mrs. Stevens remonstrated with ber, but she remained loyal to Mrs. Davidson, evidently being persuaded that the woman was above reproach. A Mrs. Wilson of Salem, Whois now living with Mrs. Stevens in het | Northampton-strect home, was particularly averse to the intimacy with Mrs. Davidson, but could do nothing to break it up. Mr. Gibson of Lawrence, Kans., a brother of Mrs, Stevens, who came to Boston for the Grand Army ceiebration in 1890, met Mrs, | Davidson, and went home convincea that hi sister had found a good triend in Mrs. David son. Four years later he was compeiled to come here again to call for his sister, who had become a confirmed invalid, and has since re- mained with her. Mrs, Davidson went to Chicago in 1893 to the World's Fair, and then to Sun Francisco. Her payments of the intereston the notes have been few and far between, and she still owes considerable on that account. She has written some very flowery letters, however, and here is one of them : SAN FRANCISCO, | De S. Gilson, Boston—DEAR Six come letter is most gratefully d as it has been so long since I heard from our dear Mrs. Ste: | i | the'ea | manner made her in | self Davidson at Albany, N. Y., writes the fol- lowing letter to Chief Crowley: January 1, 189 Chicf of Police, San Francisco, Cal.—DEAR Se: i have been importuned by the police of this city for information in reference to one Mary A. Davidson,and have turned over to ther @gphotograph of her and such informa- tion as whs in my posses lat z Some time in 1886, whi the Massachusetts distri put into my hands to investigate ih_which she | was involved. I found that she was & swindler to the extent of some several thou- sends of dollars. | She suddenly disappeared, and it was some | months before I was ablé to locate her. I | finally found her at Albany, N. Y., ana brought her back on a requisition. Sheé'was arreste: svember 17, 1886, committed to the Salem Jailon capias, and tried at the Junuary term 1887. Shewas convicted of selling mortgaged property and sentenced to thirty months in the House of Correction, which she served. At the time she wasarrested | knew her well, had been in and out of her store a great many times and done business for her. She denieil | all knowledge oi me—denied that her name was Mary A. Davidson, but said it was Mary | Sturgis. She kept that up duriog the whole | time to the day of her rentence, claiming that her whole past was a biank to her; she had no | record of it,ete. | At the time of my inve: ner whole history. In & very dangerous wor i No eredence should be placed upon anything she says, when she is directly interested. I should be very glad to render you any as- sistance in the matter [ can, aud if it was nec- essary and I could get. released from my duties, 1 would come to_identify her and give what- ever testimony I could in the matter, for ex penses. Very truly yours, JOSEPH Deputy State Fire Marshal. The Boston Standard under date of De- cember 31 contains the following concern- ing Mrs. Davidson: Mrs. Davidson, who is under arrest at San ancisco on the charge of extortion preferred igations I looked my judgment sh , uniworthyzof belief. Smaw, | | by Rev. C. 0. Brown, pastor of the First Con- tional Church, is not known to the Boston gregi poli A stant Inspector Dugan has in his collec- tion of criminals, however,a portraitand de- suription of her.’ She is wanted in Lynn for disposing of mortgaged property. Sho has @ husband.in Lynn, and a father and sister in Bucksport. Me., her native place. She has turned out to be a confidence womean of no small pretensions. Her escapade in San Francisco has had the effect of calling public attention to her again, and the police of the | State remember her as & “bird” in her business. | Standard reporter called on Chief Wade of State police to get some facts about her. The Chief had not eharged his memory with | Mrs. Davidson’s record, but referred the news- | peper man to State Officer Shaw, who is now in | the Fire Marshal’s office. Mr. Shaw has her record down about as fine as could be desired. | “Oh, yes,” said_he, ““I know Mrs. Davidson | very well.' She has cut quite a conspicuous | figure in Ler time. She came trom Bucksrort, Me., where she married Colonel Blood during part of the war. She was & remarka- bly beautiful woman, and Colonel Blood was & strikingly handsome man. It was said that they were the handsomest couple that ever left | Maine. Her husband either died or was killed during the war. “Mrs. Blood went to Washington, where she Dbecame a hospital nurse, in which calling, it is said, sne was very successful. Her quick ob- | servation and her gentle touch and kindly | luable us a nurse. She aiterward married Davidson in Maine. “After the war she moved (0 Lynn, where she went into the music business. She hada store | in 0dd Fellows’ building, Market street. Sh dealt largely with Oliver Ditson & Co., and 00k pialios from them, the firm holding a ease of the instruments.’ She became involved | and & keeper was put in her store. All atonce | she disappeared, leaving her creditors in the lurch to the amount of several thousand dol- lars. “Her sudden disappearance caused the im- pression that she had committed suicide. The case was put into my hands and I fizally located ber in Albany, N. Y., where she was engaged in soliciting 'insurance under the name of Mar; She isa woman of great resources, well educated, has a fi nmand of laneuage and is calculated to ingratiate he into the good graces of the best cireles of | society. | “While in Albany she made the scquaintance | of & Mrs. West, secured a room at her hou and became nlmost as one of the family. Sturgis. 1 ALFRED S. CLODE, A WIINESS WHO THE MYSTERIOU [Sketched in court yesterday by a “‘Call” artist.] TESTIFIED TO THE EXISTENCE OF S MRS. BADDIN. vens and you are so kind totell me so much about | her. The dear Lord knows us all and what is best | for us, and very soon he will bring us together | in his blessed kingdom, if we are faith- | ful to our covenant vows. Of course, I cannot be unmindful of my obligations to our dear Mrs. Stevens, but [ dia not hear from you and greatly wondered why vour reply was so long delayed. I thought of everything, and last I prayed about it, that the Lord would let me Know some way. Somy praver is heard,and she still lives and does not suffer, and I_am so glad. How I would love to come In this afternoon and bring some ripe strawberries, so plentiful in the market here, and new oranges and fresh flowers. My Lome is just opposite the Common, where bunches of calla lilies are in full bloom, aud the grass s so green and sweet just after the morning. The weather is cooler to-day than usual, but like many of our days in June way back | East.” Still I love the East best, with its snow and | cold winters, because T love the people best there. | There Is 50 much evil here and excitement to | distract the mind. Now as to the balance due | from the bank, you can present it when they get | ready to pay if, and it cannot be far oft. I will inciose fifty ' dollars (50), sand to make things as T once spoke of doing—I will | send you more next month, and with God’s ielp may I prove my gratitnde to the dear loving friends, as well as to our Heavenly Father, | who helped me in my hour of need. My love God knows is in my heart for her, and Dbegs to express itself according to the means of his grace, who will bless her for Ler kindness to me. With much love to her and & blessing upon you ali, Iam yours, MRS. MARY A. DAVIDSON. The letter was addressed to Mr. Gilson, care of Mrs. Stevens,at 172 Northampton street. The bank referred to js the Second National, whose president, Mr. Beal, is the receiver for | the Maverick 'National Bauk, in which Mrs. Davidson claimed ~she’ deposited | most of the money she borrowed from Mrs. Stevens, and which she lost temporarily through the failure of that bank, It “appears, however, that her de- posit was only about $750, much of which has been paid ini the usuel dividends to depositors from time to time. There are & few more divi- dends to be paid, it is understood, and the last one of these has been assigned by Mrs. David- son to Mrs. Stevens in payment on the back in- terest on the notes. Mr. Wiliiam Avery Carey of 23 Court street has the matter in charge as Mrs. Stevens’ at. torney. Mr. Gilson called at The Traveler office this morning. He said that he feared that his sister wonld never get back her money, but thatif the interest was paid promptly it would be of great service to her. He finds it hard to believe that Mrs. Davidson meant to deceive Mrs. Stevens. | He wrote to San Francisco several times, be- ginning last winter. His sister has not heard from Mrs. Davidson for some time. She then wrote that “for various reasons” she had changed her address, which used to be | Ellis street, San Francisco, and hed not re- ceived any letters from the East, The interest on the money amounts to $160 & year, but that sum fails to materialize from Mrs. Davidson. Neither note is due until after 1900, so shrewdly did Mrs. Davidson fix things with | her aged friend. | Joseph E. Shaw, who arrested Mrs, secured an indictment against her and gota requisition for her, and in_company with an Albany officer visited Mrs. West's to make the ! arrest. 'Not being sure that Mary Sturgis was the woman I wanted, I secreted myself and had ihe Albany officer send for her. so that 1 could see her without being seen, and in case she proved not to be Mrs. Davidson, the other officer could make some excuse and we would Tetire. As soon as Isaw her I knew she was the woman [ wanted. When I introduced my- self and told her my business, she indignanily denied that she was the woman, and said that she had never seen me before, although 1 was well acquainted with her. “‘I brought her back; she was tried and con- victed and sent to the House of Correction for two years. When she found that her denial of her identity would not work, she claimed that she bad been the victim of a sunstroke, and thai from thattime her mind had been s biank, She did not know that her name was Davidson, and failed to recognize all her old acquaint. ances. She claimed that everything in Lynn was strange and new to her, and that she had never seen any of the people with whom she had been dealing for years. I remember having her in the Marshal's office when & well-known lawyer, and one witl; whom she was well acquainied, came in. He walked up to her and spoke to her, calling her by name. She looked up in well-feigned sur rise and said, ‘I beg your pardon, sir, but I have no recoliection of having met you biiore.’ When he told her he was Mr. Niles of Niles & Carr, whohad done so much business for her. she said in contemplative tone, ‘Niles, Niles: really, sir, you must be mistaken. 1 have no knowledgeofyou: h, she is a sleck one, and ne 1 watching she can get.’ ads a1l the = FRATERNAL COMMENT. The Occldent Scores the Women in the Case—Jewish Times Wants an Investigation. The Occident, the organ of the Presbyte- NEW TO-DAY. Good Shoes Well made, made for comfort— made like hand-sewed — these are Goodyear Welt Shoes. Both sexes wear them. All shoe mer- chants sell them. Millions sold every year. GOODYEAR SHOE MACH'Y CO,, BOSTON J | Davidson, w | charges ag rians on the coast, comments @pon the Brown-Davidson case as follows: It scems necessary that The Occident, gg(l.{.:g especially to Christiun people, should speak now, though at the beginning of the gase, OF what the daily journals call the HOhATEH Scandal” in San’ Francisco. We “r‘e’udga caution and without & \'m(;em{:l‘clg PrajuCRe the results. On last Sainrday we L - C. 0. Brown, D.D.. pastor of th 1st Longr:; gational Church of this City, cuuse_mhgerrra_l of a rs. bavidson on the charge of blackma/l, Several women thus far in the case l’:"“%ln. come prominent before the public. This Mrs o professed to be acting in behal anded and secured money of another, and dex from Dr. Brown to prevent the publicity of sudal, appears, as Some one it, to be ‘“too good to be she’ is pious =and righteous s. and though an aged woman and clligent, has a penitentiary record i ottier of this cluster, the heroine, is a young_woman, divorced, with an unsavory record in Washington, who while re- ceiving ihe friendship of Dr. Brown is credit- ably said to have offered for sale to one of the morniug puvers en implicating article, Still another is n woman pronounced in the afidavie of & reputable attorney,a blackmaller. Sti another, an_Adventist evangelist, voluntarily £0es 1nto print as a friend of the others and shrewadl, in the professes no shame in_publicly stating that she knew of the scandal and narrated {8 1 months before at her dining-table, there was present at least one man who Was 10t of her family. B Such are the women who thus far have ape veured in connection with this sensation. We nuy hope that Dr. Brown's good name, which tofore has not been tarnished, will escape his snare. Lhe Jewish Times and Observer says: The proper step to clear himself of such grave st him is simply to demand an immediate investigation in his church cons cerning the truth of the serious accusation against him. Going to the Police Court and rying to convict the woman_does not clear of suspicion in the eyes of the public. It a _jury will convict her of blackmail d send’her to the penitentiary, but let the whole matter be sifted in his congregation for the purpose of finding out whether there ex- s any cause for blackmailing. We advise the reverend gentleman to demand of his flock an. immediate and impartial investigation for the burpose of establisk scandalous affair ng the moral side of the DINOAD HAS WITHDBAWN Change in the Aspect of the Union League Election of Officers. The Nominating Comm:ttee Will Meet To-Morrow Noon and Name a Substitute. At the regular meeting of the board of directors of the Union League Club yester~ day afternoon a letter was read from Gene eral W. H. Dimond which changes some- what the aspect of the situation inthe league regarding the election of directors and officers which takes place next Tues | day. The letter reads as follows: AN FRANCISCO, January 10, 1896. Iion. us, President Union League Club—D: Although I have received no official notice of having been placed on the regular ticket as a candidate for director of the club, I am formed that such action wag taken, and that my friends have also kindly mentioned my name in connection with the en iile deeply grateful for the intended honor, I desire to withdraw from the ticket in favor of has in the past been enabled jon to the interests of the t wishes for th: future success of Iam very trul ours, W.'H. Drvoxp. The withdrawal of General Dimond leaves General Friedrich, the present tirst vice-president, as the only candidate in the field for president. The nominating committee will meet to- day at noon, however, and name a substi- tute for General Dimond. i it T e Jerome Fargo's Estate. The will of Jerome B. Fargo was filed fog probate yesterd He left all his estate to his children, Jennie Eliza Fish, Fannie Josephine Rose and Lulu Serah Bonestell, His executors are Calvin F. Fargo and Earl A. Fargo, and they are directed to compromise ell demands and are given power to handle the estate as ydeem best. The estate is supposed to be worth about $200,000. e R=ASONABLE, Tapid, relisble printers and binders. The Mysell-Rollins Co., 22 Clay. * the leagu HE WILL PLAY THE STEINWAY PlgNll SHERMAN, CLAY & (0, Cor. Kearny and Sutter Ss,, Pacific Ccast Representatives. ABNOLUTE AUCTION SALE. ON ACCOUNT OF RETIRING FROM BUSINESS I WILL OFFER THE Entire Stock and Fixtures —O0F—— COLONEL A. ANDREWS The Diamond Palace, 221 Nontgomery St, COMMENCING THIS DAY Satnrday, Jannary 11, 10:30 AN And Continuing Daily until all s aisposed of, the stock consisting of The Finest Precious Stones, Waiches, Jewelry, Silverware, Etg. Sale absolute without limit or reserve to close the business. JOHN H. FRENCH, Auctioneers