The Stourbridge Observer, Cradley Heath, Halesowen & District Chronicle.
Stourbridge, West Midlands, England, 1876-07-01 00:00:00

IN RE THE WAINWRIGHT TRUST
FUND.

The above case came before Vice-Chancellor Sir R.
Malins, in the High Court of Justice (Chancery Divi-
sion), on Friday in last week, upon petition for an order
for the investment of the funds collected by the Rev. A.
Condor, of Middleton, Sussex, for the benefit of the
widow and children of the late Henry Wainwright.
The petition stated that some time in 1875 Henry
Wainwright was convicted at the Central Criminal
Court of the murder of Harriet Lane, and thereupon
sentenced to death, which sentence was shortly after.
wards duly carried out. Henry Wainwright left a
wife and five children, aged respectivlly twelve, eleven,
nine, seven, and five years. The petitioner having in
the course of his profe-sional duty become acquainted
with Henry Wainwright, and Elizabeth, his wife,
and her family; and after the conviction of the said
Henry Wainwright, believing from the high private
character of Elizabeth Wainwright,'and considering the
misery to which she and her children had been
reduced, that this was a proper case for sympathy and
charity, he wrote to the various metropolitan news-
papers, stating what he knew of the antecedents of
Henry Wainwright, and Elizabeth, his wife. Through
tne same medium he solicited subscriptions from the
public, and the result of his efforts was that subscrip-
tions amounting to £1,255 4s. id. were sent to him,
and the amounts were duly advertised in the news-
papers. All the moneys so subscribed were duly paid
by the petitioner into the London and County Bank itn
his name, and formed a fund known as_ "..The..11704-
wripht. Viliv.l22,..stnilvs alnwright and in di,charge of
expenses incurred, was held by the petitioner as
trustee for the said Elizabeth Wainwright and her
five children. The petition then set forth that early
in the present year Elizabeth Wainwright and her
family were reduced to great distress, and that in
order to relieve her the petitioner paid over to her
out of the fund the sum of £3OO. Oct payment of
the money the question was raised whether the peti-
tioner was justified in paying any part of the fund
to Elizabeth Wainwright alone, having reeard to
the fact that the money was subscribed for Elizabeth
Wainwright and her children jointly. The fund was
contributed by about 1,100 persons, residing in various
parts of the United Kingdom, whose subscriptions
were in many instances sent anonymously, and the
petitioner was therefore unable to ask the consent of
the contributors to the course he had pursued. After
payment of the costs of advertising, &c., the sum of
939 17s. id. now stood in the petitioner's name in the
London and County Bank to the credit or the Wain-
wright fund. The petitioner now submitted that the
most beneficial disposition of the fund would be to pay
over to Elizabeth Wainwright a further rim of £lOO
for the purchase of necessaries for herself and her
children, and to invest the balance in the purchase of
some freehold or copyhold houses for Elizabeth
Wainwright for life, with remainder to her children
absolutely. To this proposal Mrs. Wainwright had
given her assent, and the petitioner proposed that the
property should be vested in three trustees, to pay the
annual income to Mrs. Wainwright for life, and after
her death to her children surviving.

Mr. Glasse, Q.C., in support of the petition, which
was unopposed, said: The question in this case is what
is to be done with the subscription received for the
benefit of Mrs. Wainwright and her children. The
trustee is the rector of the parish in which she lived,
and he, of course, cannot take upon himself to say how
the money is to be applied.

- -
The Vice-Chancellor: The subscription amounted
to over £1,200, and she had, I see, £3OO. She is, I pre-
sume, a respectable woman.
Mr. Glasse : Yes, and supporting her children. We
have got more than £9OO left, and the trustee proposes
to pay £lOO to the widow and to transfer the balance to
three trustees and to the lady herself, for investment
In public stocks, government securities, freehold, copy-
hold, or leasehold property, or stocks, or shares in
public companies, the object being, of course, to make
the most of the fund. The income, it is proposed,
shall be paid to the widow for life, and on her death
should be held in trust for the benefit of such of the
children as should attain the age of 21 or marry.
The Vice-Chancellor : It might be desirable to apply
a portion of the money in apprenticing some of the
children, or in providing in some way for their
advancement in life. The settlement should be made
as simple and inexpensive as possible.
Mr. Glasse suggested that the settlement should be
made by the order.

The Registrar of the Court (Mr. Leach) informed
the Court that it was the practice to make a settlement
by the order only in cakes whtre the fund was in
court.

Mr. Glove said the fund was contributed by 1,100
persons, or thereabouts, residing in different parts of
the country, and in the majority of cases the subscrip-
tions were sent without name or addresses and it was
impossible, therefore, to consult the wishes of the
donors.
The Vice-Chancellor : It is clear that the money
was sent for the benefit of the wife and children, and
the Court has the power of saying what is best for
their benefit. The children have every disadvantage
to contend with, and I think the trustees should have
power to make provision out of the fund for their ad-
vancem-nt.

Mr. GlaFse : If your lordship makes a declaration
to that effect it will be a settlement without expense.
Mr. 'Wilkinson appeared with Mr. Glasse for the
trustee.

The Vice• Chancellor made the order according to
the prayer of the petition.

The RESOURCES of the MERCANTILE
MARINE FOR NAVAL PURPOSES,

Tho following is an extract from a leader in The Time: on
a lecture, recently delivered by Mr. Brattey, at the United
Scrr.e3 1-I,Btltutlun, on the Resources of the Mercantile
Marine for Naval Purposes :

. . . The question for consideration really is
whether the fleets of our great ocean Companies
could be rendered available for purposes of attack or
defence; and, in the event of the reply being in the
negative, whether they could at least be rendered self-
protecting, so that the trsific they carry on wouli
be left undisturbed, without any necessity for with
drawing ships of war from their more legitimate pur-
poses in order to employ them in convoy duty.
The steamers of the Mercantile Marine possess one
enormous advantage over many of those which have
been built for warlike purposes in the simple fact that
they are primarily ships, ad not ocean fortresses.
They have been so built as to secure the highest rate of
speed which is compatible with their capacity for
freight; and they all carry enough coal fora long voyage
under steam alone, at the highest rate of speed of which
i battivref pable. Mr. Bra,sey gave details of the per-
).YOP4Ol,. °tithe Atpamers of the Atlantic Lees, and
n 350 miles
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