Encyclopedia Titanica

THREATENED BANKER BELL

New York Times

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Mrs. H. C. Gage Arrested---Said He Kept Her Out of Washington Society
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Special to The New York Times
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WASHINGTON, March 11---Through the instrumentality of Charles J. Bell, a banker, and a cousin of Alexander Graham Bell, the inventor, Mrs. Harley Calvin Gage, 57 years old, who has a home in Dupont Circle, one of the best residential districts of Washington, was sent to the Covenant Hospital for the Insane to-day. Mrs. Gage is said to have threatened repeatedly that she would kill Mr. Bell because he had been the means of keeping herself and her daughter Margaret out of social circles.

Mrs. Gage and her daughter came here from New Jersey about eight years ago and established themselves in their present home. The daughter was placed in a seminary here, and Mrs. Gage endeavored to break down the portals of society. She seemed not to have enough money to meet the demands of society, but presently she mailed, together with her cards, a little booklet containing a family tree, which purported to show that her family and that of her husband traced back to Charlemagne and to several Spanish Kings.

Mrs. and Miss Gage were always seen at White House affairs, and other semipublic functions but they were not admitted to society, and presently, it is said, Mrs. Gage began to make threats against Mr. Bell. No longer than a few weeks ago Mrs. Gage held a consultation with the Superintendent of Police concerning the difficulties which she said she had with Mr. Bell, and she was advised at that time to cease making threats against the banker. She persisted, however, it is charged, and recently Mrs. Bell insisted that her husband take steps to protect himself.

Mrs. Gage was taken into custody to-day and was held in $1,000 bail on the charge of having made "threats to kill." She will be kept in the asylum for thirty days and if at the end of that period she be adjudged insane by a Marshall's Jury she will be returned to the institution. If it be decided that she is sane, she will be tried on the charge of having made "threats to kill" Mr. Bell.

Miss Gage sent a telegram to-night to her uncle, Wilbur A. Mott of Newark, N. J., asking him to come at once or to send assistance.

Mr. Bell is a neighbor of Mrs. Gage's, but he declared that he had no idea why she picked him out as the one responsible for the failure of her assault on society.

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Encyclopedia Titanica (2004) THREATENED BANKER BELL (New York Times, Tuesday 12th March 1912, ref: #3341, published 3 August 2004, generated 6th December 2024 08:29:17 AM); URL : https://www.encyclopedia-titanica.org/threatened-banker-bell.html