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^PRIL 20, 1898.NUMBER 40.ROSA TO GET NOTHINGTHE DOCTOR GETSTHE DIVORCEClouser Divorce Suit Decided at Last and in the Doctor’s Favor — No Surprise.The Clouser divorce trial began its fourth day Thursday, and it retained its interest for the spectators who crowded the jury box, the clerk’s and sheriff’s desks and the front seats. Much of the evidence was of a kind that appeals to the lovers of what is called “spicy.” Rosa Clouser, the defendant, was accused of things which could neither be proved nor denied without resorting to language that is unprintable but is consideredentertaining by court-room habitues.It was a bad day for Rosa’s side of the case. Wednesday her attorneys proved by her relatives that her reputation was good. Thursday Mr. Hindman proved it was bad.It is now up to the judge to weigh the evidence and decide whom are to be believed—the relatives, who naturally know nothing about Rosa’s reputation, or tha fellows who are familiar with the seamy side of life, as they would ha*c to be to know anything about the people who dwell there.In the testimony of the defendant Wednesday afternoon under the vigorous cross-examination of Attorney Hindman, it was brought out that most of the courtkg between Rosa and the doctor was done at. the home of Rosa’s aunt, Mrs. Leonard Shick. Rosa’s mother did not object to the courtship. The doctor suggested that the disparity of their ages was too great, but Rosa thought different. She had written in her letter proposing marriage to the doctor that she was 18 years of age. Touching on Rosa’s generous spirit in spending the doctor’s money it wa*i elicited that she had bought a bill of chinaware at one of the groceries amounting to $100, and an underskirt for $15. She was not in the habit of asking the price of anything. She did not know that the doctor had a stroke of paralysis. She did not say to anybody previously to the separation that she contemplated eloping with Brady. The defendant made an exceptionally good witness, being calm and self-possessed under the most trying circumstances. Once or twice during the afternoon she became very emphatic in her denials. She remained on the stand until about 4 o’clock.Charles Baldwin, superintendent of police, followed the defendant. He testified to Rosa’s good character and her reputation for chastity. He said an attorney for the doctor was in Muncie some time last February and made a proposition to him to have a policeman detailed on the Clouser case get testimony against the defendant. Mr. Baldwin refused to allow any policeman to have anything to do with the case but tpok the attorney to a man who agreed to watch Rosa and get all the evidence possible against her. The amount offered the detective for the work was $50. It was not satisfactory. The price demanded was $250.George Ball, a Muncie policeman, testified to substantially the same things as Baldwin. It is said that Mr. Ball was at one time engaged to Rosa, but this was not a matter of evidence.Mrs. Lily Barnhouse did her sister’s cause very little if any good at all. She testified to the good moral character of her sister, and denied the allegation of the plaintiff that Rosa had offered $100 fora toy ship at Marion while she and Rosa were on a visit in that city. She had written the letter to Rosa informing her that her grandmother Miller had had another hemorrhage and was in very poor health. This is the letter that Rosa tried to convince the doctor Bhe had received when she got the one from John Colvin, “a sil?y country boy” of Shidler, as Rosa styled the unsophisticated youth, who had enough presence of mind to get out of the country to escape being subpoenaed on the trial, On cross-examination the witnesses testimony was badly shattered Two letters were produced and she got so badly mixed tbat she confessedthat she did not know which one she had written. One had -been written by Attorney Hindman and at first she positively identified it as the letter she had written. She denied that she liked to flirt, that her husband hadthreatened to shoot another man through jealousy of her and that she had asked a certain person at Chesterfield to introduce her and Rosa to some young men.Mrs. Barnhouse was the next witness. She had fainted the day before on account of palpitation of the heart. Ralph Gregory asked her if she thought she could go through the ordeal. Her voice was low and weak. She said she thought she could. She knew little abou■ the court-hip of her daughter and the doctor. Although she thought the difference in the ages between them too great, the plaintiff thought they would be happy. He told his prospective mother-in-law that he only wanted Rosa to be a lady. She would not h;ive to work and would always have suff icient money to supply every need. The doctor told her he was worth $100,000 and thought with that amount he could take good care of her. During one of her later visits to the doctor acid Rosa, she said the doctor told her that Rosa had flirted with young men at a foot ball game. The doctor further said that he believed Rosa was enceinte at the time time they were married and he*thought this was the reason Mrs. Barnhouse was so anxious to have her marry. On cross-examination Mrs. Barnhouse forcibly informed Attorney Hindman that she thought her palpitation of the heirt would not trouble her while he was questioning her. She several times lost her temper and accused the lawyer of being dull of comprehension. She confessed that she had stood by and permitted the county clerk to enter the wrong age of her daughter oc the marriage record.Thursday the attorneys for the defense ran down the story that one of the doctor’s witnesses had boasted that he was maxi ft g money out of his testimony, but they gained nothing by• ^their effort. Alfred Beaver, a lad not yet out of his teens, was reported to have said tbat he had made $2 out of the doctor and he expected to make $10 more. Placed on the witnessstand Thursday, young Beaver easily dis-* posed of the theory that he had been bribed and showed that his language had been misconstrued. He admitted that he had said tbat he expected to make some money during court but he claimed that all the money he expected to get was that which is usually paid to witnesses for court attendance. William L. Shick and Elmer Heiney. who had heard Beaver’s remark, were called to the stand to impeach the boy, but their testimony was not incompatible with Beaver’s explanation.The reputation witnesses were unfavorable to Rosa. Policeman Adam Deam of Muncie swore that Rosa’s reputation was bad. So did Fred Kuback, Mrs. Kuback and Dora Miller. Mrs. Rebecca Sailors didn’t know what the defendant’s reputationwas. But C. E. Helm, of Muncie, told a most damaging story. He swore that he attended a picnic and saw Rosa in a little thicket about 300 feet from the crowd. Her clothes were disarranged and she was in a compromising position with Secretary Ball of the Muncie police board, who yesterday swore that the girl bore a good reputation,Mrs. Kuback swore that she and Rosa once attended a dance on the spiritualists’ camp ground at Chesterfield and that Rosa wanted her to introduce her under an assumed name to a man named Runyon. She did so, but she gave Rosa’s right name, which made her very angry.Dr. Clouser’s greatly overestimated*wealth was investigated on the witness stand. H. B. Smith, Grant Lupton and Recorder Fleming knew nothing about how much he was worth. The doctor himself swore that he owned several notes and mortgages to the value of $8,000, besides real estate and town property. He had sold 151 acres of land to the Hartford City Land company foi $200 an acre. He left the idea that his wealth was short of $40,000.Mrs. Clouser again testified that she never told Miss Miller or Misa Pixley that she was marrying thedoctor for his money; denied the Pix-■ -■ - - -_________ ■■ i ,i i i ■Concluded on eighth page.
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Hartford City Telegram
Hartford City, Indiana, US
Wed, Apr 20, 1898
Page 1
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Anne A.
MD, USA 22 May 2020
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