The Omaha
M'
ISS LAURA. STALLO, daugh-
tor of Edmund K. Stallo.
granddaughter, of the lato
Alexander McDonald, of Standard
Oil and Cincinnati,, and also -a $10,--000,000
heiress, Is an extremely mod
ern young woman; She likes to bo
tho first to use any now Invention, lo -
adopt any jyjw fashion. There is no
tolling what unusual thing Bho will ,
do next. But when she broke her on-
gagement to Jefferson Patterson
Crano, son. of Joseph Crano, multl-
, millionaire of Dayton, Ohio, by wire,
"
Miss Laura Stallo and Her Unfortunate Fiance, Mr. Jefferson Pat
terson Crane From a Photograph Taken Just Be
fore She Sailed to Buy the Trousseau.
less, even hor ultra-modorn friends In
Paris thought that sho carried her
modernity to an extreme. Was there
ever any thing so cruel?
The announcement that she would
marry young Mr. Crane on Juno 23
had already been published In the
papers In Paris and in this country,
Tho happy lover sailed on tho Im-
riArntnr nnrlv In Wnv n loin hid
charming fiancee, who was. In Paris
completing her trousseau and bidding
farewell to her many friends there.
The plans, for tho wedding were all
mado. It was to bo celebrated In
Cincinnati; thero wore to bo eight
bridesmaids and two flower girls.
John Patterson, of Dayton, one of
the foremost men of this country,
and an adoring uncle of tho groom;
had already bought them a splendid
houso In Dayton and father Crano
had settled a largo fortune on his son,
i Everything was ready for tho re-
turn of -the bride. "Jeff." being a do
Xoted lover, cabled his inamorata
Chat he was loavlng on tho Imperator
to bring her home.
The first three days out 'Mr. Crane,
ho Is as good a sailor as he la a
lover spent happy hours walking (he
decks or sitting in his steamer cbair,
ever dreaming ot his meeting with
. .his love and of the marriage only six
short weeks away.
He refused all invitations to tango
or trot. - He wanted- to stay ,by his
''lonesome,'.' tho .bolter, to think o't his
future bliss. ' , 7 ! ' ' "
When the orchestra tho morning of
the third day out Insisted on playing
"1 Wonder "Who's iKIssIng Her Now"
Jeff stamped tho deck Indignantly.
The words of he Bong did not fit In
with his thoughts at all. '
Every onco In a while he would
atop at tho wireless room; ho was in-
torested in tho 'apparatus' that mado
travelling on tho! water so compara-
tively afo. In. fact, he 'seriously
" thought of wirelessing' his distant
brldo'-tp-be, but something medo him
hesitate: ' ' r ' . : : '
It may havo been tho words of the
song, it may have been telepathy or
just indigestion; but something' sud
denly made him think ot other men
to whom his fiancee had been en
gaged or who had boen openly do
voted to hor. Ho counted them.
"I am tho fifth," ho muttered.
"Well, there's luck In odd numbers,
and, anyway, the wedding day's
been made publlo and the cake's
made. Wish that old band 'ud stop
its Infernal racket,"
"Sssh crack crack ssss," sputtered
tho wlrelesB. '
"A message for .you, Mr. Crane,"
said a deck steward In his starboard
ear, "It's Just como Jn."
Business ot looking puzzled and
carelessly tearing open the blue
envelope. "
"Am solas to marry Prince Itoaplg
lloal. See letter mailed to London to.
day. - ' . LAUIIA
No, Crane did not swoon. He
swore; swore It could not bo true,
swore at the wireless, swore at the
band.- '
"Hope It Is not bad news," mur
mured the deck steward.
"Br, that depends on bow you look
at It," muttered Crane. "It sounds
bad to me," and off he stalkod to his
stateroom.
Tho remainder of that voyage was
a horrid nightmare Co devoted Mr.
Crane. He railed at fate and at tho
Princo. Ho -hoped, pubcoosclouBly,
Sunday Bee Magazine
ext," Said Fickle Miss
Stalio, the Standard Oil
Hopes
and Taking
Prince Ros
i
piguuai a
A
The Princess' Murat and Her
Prince. The Princess Is
Miss Laura's Sister.
that his uncle would not take tho
Dayton house away from Jilm and
that his father would still loavo that
goodly fortune ln'bls namo. ' In overy
way possible ho tried to heal his
broken- heart and to see tho bright
side of the horrid episode.
men he received Miss Stallo's" lot
ter on hlB arrival in London, ho read
It many limes'. But tboro was no
Mr. Nils Florman, Who, After
Being Jilted by Both the Stallo
Heiresses, Found Another
Heiress Who Married Him.
getting away from it. The wireless
had told tho truth. His Laura was
positively going -to marry the. Princo.
"If she had not boen able to reach
me by . wireless perhaps she would
havo repented; oh, these, detestable,
modern Inventions," was poor Joffs
plaint.
And so nald Miss Stallo's Paris
friends and her happily married sis
ter Helene.
"Why be bo hasty, Laura? Remem
ber you havo already changed your
mind four times. Better wait and
eeo 'Jeff' onco more, before breaking
things off. And even if you don't
change your mind again, it would bo
kinder to explain things and let him
down easy. Don't use that horrid
wireless. It Bputtera so," urged her
sister, the Princess Murat,
"Rut what are Inventions for If not
to be used?" asked Mlas Stallo, "and
anyway, why prolong the agony. I
always break off an eugagoment as I
would cut off a leg, were 1 a surgeon;
a quick, clean stroke Is always kinder
to the er victim." .
And bo sho wirelessed the Impera
tor, completely spoiling Jeff's ap
petite for tho last three days of his
voyage.
Copyright, 1H, by
- M
m mm mw.MW
mW k Jw
Heiress, Killing in
Mid-Ocean Her
V
Fifth Fiance's
-5U110
sisters havo Ion
boon interesting to
Amorican and Euro-
ropean aobloty. Their
mother was a daughter
of Alexander McDonald,
a wealthy Cincinnati rep
resentative of tho Standard
Oil. When Bho mailed Ed
mund Stallo her father settlod
a fortune on her and when hor
children wero born ho promised
that his millions would bo willed to
them. The mother died, and three
months later tho father marled tho di
vorced wife of Dan Hanna. The grand
father took the two girls, who wore
In their early teens, to his great ,
mansion In Cincinnati, and finally
adoptod them.
When Mr. McDonald diod all his
fortune, was left to his boloved grand
daughter, Tho millions had shrunk
from twcnty-tlve to ouo and a half,
but the shrlukago did not affect their
social successes. They como to Now
York nnd Immediately were besieged
with offerH ot matrimony. Tho first
man to attach hlmpolf to their train
wns Ilenry Duggoldi n blithesome
young Westerner, whoso father had
Btruck it rich In oil in Texas.
His attentions speedily centred
themselves on Laura. That they wore
engaged was firmly believed by their
friends, and oven Sister Hclono nd
mlttod that "It" looked serious.
This engagement, or "rautus' agree
ment," wad broken by the heiress
while aha was motoring through Cal
ifornia, just' two months after sister
Helena admitted Its seriousness. With
this affair as a starter, tho elder Miss
Stallo speedily developed much dex
terity Jn handling her "victims." in
succession, during the following three
years, she disposed of tills Florman,
Henri Harnlckel, Henri de Slncay
and half a scoro of other moths who
fluttered about Tier. Florman nnd Do
Slncay have .since married, and Har
nlckel Is engaged to Katherlne Force.
"It Is perfectly wondorful how
Laura can switch Crotn ono man to
another and get away with It," said
tho Princess Murat when she was In
New York last Fall. It was during
tills visit that Laura's engagement to
young Crane was announced. So sure
was the heiress that this tlmo she
was caught "for good" that sho had
her picture taken with her llanco.
Er, by the wny, sho regrets this very
much Just ndw.
What is it that makes Miss Stallo
so difficult to manage matrimonially?
Is Bho hard to suit? Did sho find
that, on long acquaintance, theso men
did not measure up to her precon
ceived standards?. Has sho tin Ideal
man? Or In it that a man, onco ac
quired, Kpeedlly becomi wearisome
to hor? Who can toll?
Lot usgltmpse rapidly through the
histories of her various love affairs.
Henri do Slncay, a young Frenchman
of wealth and position, bored her hor
ribly after threo months' devotion.
The only reason she over gavo for
breaking with him was' that who dl-1
not like tho color of his hair nnd tho
way ho frequently told the same Joko
two and throe times over. Ho upeed
lly fell In lovo with Marie Logan, a
granddaughter of tho late General
John Logan, and Is as happy ns can
bo, and so Is Marie.
NHb Florman had engaged himself
to Helene Htallo, only to find that he
really loved Laura. Helene cast him
off, and later, when her wounded
vanity was soothed, Laura permitted
herself to become engaged to him. At
the end of six months the engage
ment was oroKen, Laura merely say-
Am 'm3:k
K l:r dm
the Star Company, Great Britain night neserved.
Miss Laura Mc
Donald. Stallo, the
Changeable Standard
Oil Heiress Who Is
the First Girl to Use the
Wireless to Jilt a Fiance.
lng that she had found out that she
did not loyo him.
"And never, never will I inarry a
man I do not love," sho averred only
last month after breaking off with
Crane. "It I was standing at tho altar nnd
discovered that I did not lovo thu
man at my .side I should turn and
walk out of tho church." -
"Well, breaking nn engagement by
wireless, after the date Is Belt led and
your trousseau bought Is almost as
bad ns leaving him nt tho church,"
reproachfully answered her good
friend, tho Countess de Lubersac.
Florman, Do Slncay, Duggbld, Crano.
Wero thero others? Indeed, yea.
Thero was Henri Harnlckel, who
basked In tho light of her bluo eyes)
for two months, only to ho cast Into
putcr darkness with tho blighting
knowledge that he, too, wearied Minn
Stallo because ho talked only ot her
Belt and stocks, and bonds! "And I
am not. jntorcsted In myself nor In
Wall Street," came sweetly over the
telephone the day Bho decided that
Harnlckel was Impossible
Iblo as a hus-'
to Miss Force.
Dana.
Ho Is now engnged
Mrs. John Jacob Aster's sister, and
is extravagantly nnppy.
"Will the Princo Francesco Ros
plgllosl be ii bio to hold this flcklu
young holreas' heart?" asks Porta,
Xew York and CInelnnntl.
Time alone will tell. He Is partly
American, and the part haughtily
Italian.. The Itosplgllosls nro nn Im
portnnt family, ono of .distinction and
wealth. Throe other princes of the
house have married Amorican girls,
ahd tho wives have been treraon
dously unhappy.
"It Is on tho knocs of the gods,."
tho futuro princess Is reported lo
havo said when her sister, the Prin
cess Murat, nsked her If sho expected
to bo happy. Paris also asks this
question, and several others as well.
Having been "nearly married" five
times, what 1ms this fickle maid done
with tho flvo trousseaux? Has she
acquired n new .one eiirh ,tmo she
decided to marry, or docs she have a
"stock" trousseau which Is ready to
wear whonover .she decides to turn
"nearly married" Into "wed at Inst?"
Paris would dearly lovo to know
the fate of (ho wonderful lingerie
which tho PrlncoKs-to-bo, ordered six
months ago, when she was positive
that she would marry "Jeff." "I won't
want a wholo lot," she Cnfldod lo
the Countess do Lubersac. "You see.
I havo a wholo lot leftcr, that Is,
you see, I already have ome things."
'Nov, Paris takes this to mean that
when Miss Stallo marries the Prince
6ho will hnvo In her trunks lingerie
and negllgeos that wero ordered,
well, that were meant to grace th
figure of Mesdames Florman, Har
nickel. Do Slncay, Duggold and
Crane!
"Lnurn Is too thrifty to discard her
two last trousseaux, anyway," soya
Mr. Jefferson Patterson Crane, at
last reports, has given orders that he
will never again receive, open or read
a wireless telegram.
II im I "WW," f I U . , . "rn...
Building a Railroad tiiith
Cannibals in "Juju-land"
NEW railroad is being con
.strutted by tho British
through tho territory of Nj
gcrla, In West Africa.
It will penetrate the region known
as "Jiiju'land," ho called because" the
Inhabitant! were long enthralled ny
a horrible Idol known as 'L6Vi& Juju,'-'
white flesh Is tho finest kind ot
rflce. ... ' .i '
,U will do built by cannibal nn
tlvcs who hnveAhown. themsolves the'
tnM,t lWM. " 5? w
workmen.. It will open up tho last
region of Africa where white men
havo not yet settled.
The new llnp Into Nigeria will be
K!Q titles In length and will take
four or five years to build. It will
cost about $15,000,000. It Is bolng
built by the Colonial government,
of which the head I Sir 1 KrederlcX
Lugard, Tiro country wblQh is to bo
opened up Is rich In Ti'ulro oil nnd
coal, which tho British expect id
yield a handsomo revenue On the
money Invested In the road.
Fifty thousand natives have been
hired for tho work of .building tho
road. Thoy will work under the dl
rectlon of BrJtlsh engineers ,end.
foremen. Doubtless ome Americans
will be associated with, the enter
prise. These natives of Nigeria are noted
for their obstlnato cannibalism.
Although tho practise has been sup
presxed wherever possible, by tho
British offlclalH, the Nigerians. In the
depths of this wild country frequent
ly find nn opportunity to Indylgc in
their peculiar taste. They attack an
Isolated village, destroy the houses
nnd feost upon tho Inhtibiyuita.
Sometimes they tuke "their victims
to a lonely part of the forest, keep
them In a corral and fatten them up
for a great banquet. Several times
the white men have accidentally,
tumbled upon the hiding-place of
these destined victims of tho canni
bal. Many explorers nml scientists have
asserted that the cannibal tribes of
Africa were more lndustrlouH, cour
ageous and Intelligent than their In
nocent neighbors. The brutal and
unscrupulous exploiters of the Conco
Free State, under King Leopold, took
?.n hnT. I...T a1 ?y etmplp?rg
cannibals to lead and drive tho other
X V lrffi-iX enco5n8l,can;
nloallsm and offered portions of hu-
... ... i
Pag
ft-
253?
man flesh ai a reward for bringing
in Inrge quantities, of rubber. .
The white engineers and workmen
will hnvo to guard themselves care
fully, for the cannibals believe that
whlto flesh .U the greatest kind 'of
meat. By catlug It they imagine that
they will rtcqulro tho cleverness and
other qualities of tho deceased per
son. Very few natives aro daring
enough now to attack white men, but
there is no knowing what they .might
do in a moment of excitement.. Half
"dozen white men in a JunglaBOp
'!,ttat,on- .
Danger from lions nnd other wild
animals will bo very .great, 'During
tho building ot the Uganda railway
hundreds of laborers wero -carried off
by Hoot, nnd In recent months the
boasts havo walked Into railroad cars
and snatched off defenseless travel
lers. "In Nlgerin Hons are oven morenut
raerous than In Uganda. Their rtumt
hers depend largely on tho arabunt of
food they enn find. Elands, ante
lopes and other game ot various sizes
aro Munbundant Jn Nigeria that tho
Hons find Inexhaustible food. Some
times ns many ns fifty, or sixty Hons
lurk In n patch of Jungle n few acres
In extent, near a drinking . place
whero the food unjranls gather.
The new railroad will run along
tho river banks and will crois; the
favorite hunting places of the Jhjns.
There will bo u tremendous disturb
ance among the animals. s
Twenty miles from the now 'har
bor of Port HarcoUrt Is tho gloomy
forest where the hideous Idol' "Long
Juju" formerly held sway.
In the heart of the forest there
wa a great pool of black water. At
ono end of tho pooj wns it temple and
upou tho bapks stood the houses ot
tho so-called priests. In tho temple
stood tho Idol known as Long Juju.
When n mnn vntt accused of any ac
tion by another he wan taken to the
temple and compelled to plunge luto
tho pool.
If. ho was Innocent ho wns a'e to
.swim away. If ho was guilty-ho.
sank,- no matter how good, a swlm
mer he was. It Js said that the
priests kept an aquatic monster la
the water that t;clzed tho victims by
,tho legs nnd drugged them down nnd
devoured them.
This devilish cult supported an Im-
monso-number of prlesfj. EveryTm
mnM ha k(.0m , i.lv.'.r
mSB;
OB;
w . . ULjliUniLLlI ii. I f. mi
shns of victims were sacrificed erery
vear.