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Newspaper Page Text
TRUTH SOMETIMES D.OES PROVE A GREAT DEAL STRANGER THAN FICTION HERE IS AN INSTANCE BY JANE WHITAKER Truth is indeed" stranger than fiction, and this is a tale which, had it been submitted as fiction to a magazine, would have been rejected as too highly improbable, ,yBt-ijrunraveled itself in the very prosaic surroundings of the Chicago police station. Last Saturday night a jnan by the name of Reugg presented himself, with his wife Daisy, and complained that two people with whom they were living at 507 North State street had threatened them with a revolver. The police brought in the other couple, a man who calls himself John Schuhman, and Katy Schreiber, 25, who was living with him, also Katy's two children. , And then the queer story was told to an almost incredulous court Katy Jived until January 9 last in Newark, New Jersey, with her hus band, whom ;Bhe calls "Pa," probably because he is the father of her two children and certainly not because of his age, which is only 32. Quite a little time ago, staid married life palled on Katy, and she looked around for an affinity. She found John Schuhman, who was at least in an equal position with herself, as he had a wife arid two children. Also he was the prospective father of a third. Now Katy had a friend, the said Daisy Reugg, and Katy says Daisy told her that she, too, had a clandestine lover. Whereupon Katy resolved up on a very unique affinity-moon. She took $351 she had saved out of money "Pa" had allowed her for household expenses, and she instruct ed Daisy to buy herself some suit cases and any slight finery which ap pealed to her, and to meet Katy and her affinity in New York, where the soulmates would take a train for Chi cago at Katy's expense. Daisy cheated. She appeared at the statipn ail right, and she had with her twgrsuitcase she had bought out of Katy's mpney,-but she did not have her alleged affinity. Instead she claims Qie" niari with her is her hus band. ButlCaty was game. With her two children: 4nd Schuhmann and Daisy and her .husband, the affinity-moon traveled io Chicago and located itself at the State street address, where Katy generously gave the.Rueggs the front room and took the' rear one for herself, her two children and her af finity. Things went on quite merrily while Katy's money lasted. Nobody thought about the 'morrow. Neither did anybody go to wdrk. They just enjoyed themselves. Schumann's wife wrote pleading, tearful letters begging him to return. His sister said she was working and scraping to get him his warfare, but Schuhmann stayed on. Then the money gave out and starvation faced the six. To be sure Schuhmann pawned Katy's watch for $3 and her we'dding ring for $1.50, but that did not .keep hunger pangs from attacking their stomachs. Then Katy wrote to "Pa" and ask ed him for some money. "Pa" wrote back begging Katy to return and all would be forgiven, and he enclosed $30, but before the money arrived, Ruegg, grown desperate, is alleged to have carried two butcher knives into the apartment of Katy and her affinitv and threatened to carve them up unless the wherewithal for food was forthcoming. . So, when the $30 was received, Schuhmann invested soine of it in a revolver and a box of cartridges. and made counter threats. Bpth the men.have been sent to the Bridewell. Mrs. ReuggTwho seems