Rutland weekly herald. [volume] (Rutland, Vt.) 1859-1877, 1866-08-09
lrrom the Buyalo EIpress,l
That English Estate.
ANOTHER HEIR TO THE THIRrY.FIvE MIL.
LIONS.

For some weeks past the interests of |
the whole country have been excited by
paragraphs in the papers, relating to a |
fortune of $50, 000,000i In England, said to |
have fallen TO Mr.. Halsey Church of |
Stockbridge, Mass, and by him turned
over TO his daughter and her husband, q |
mechanic named Eli Walker, residing in
Hartford, Conn. We shall probably as
tonishlour readers this morning by in
forming them that the claims of Mr.,
Halsey Church and of his daughter,
Mrs Eli Walker, have been completely
overturned, and that the real heir to this
vast piece of property is an old resident
of Erie county, who for thirty years has
been living upon modest farm within
sixteen miles of Buffalo. The Monte
Christie thus suddenly elevated to rank
among the Rosthschilds and Astors is
Mr.. John Church, of Westphalls, in the
township of Aurora.
A week ago Saturday last, as Mr..
Church was reading the Christian Ad-
vocate, to which he piously subscribes,
his eye fell upon one of the paragraphs
10 which we have alluded, and his sys-
TEN, we suppose, must have been slowly
electrified by the intelligence it bore to
him. In the name of Mr.. Halsey Church
he recognized that of a younger brother,
for forty years never seen nor heard
from. Forty years ago, it seems, this
John Church, now nearly eighty years
of age, left his family relatives in East
! Haddam, Mass, under some Circumstan-
| ces of disagreement which prevented any
/ after communication, and emigrated to
- % No
! York. Never afterward heard from by
his younger brother Halsey, the latter
! long ago resigned himself to the COnviC-
! ton that death had left him (Halsey)
! alone, the. solitary representative of the
| family of Church. Thus persuaded, he
| very naturally assumed to himself the
! vast English inheritance which turned
up last fall, as awaiting the heirs of his
! deceased father, and being too feeble
| withal to undertake the acquisition OF
the property, turned it over to his daugh
| ter and her husband with a power of
attorney to proceed in his name. The
latter, employing exGov. Thos. Seymour
| of Connecticut, as their legal adviser,
| had satisfied themselves as to the eX-
istenCe Of the estate and the sureness Of
their title, and were just on the point Of
proceeding to England, assisted by a
subscription of means from their friends
and neighbors, when their hopes and
their plans were ruefully frustrated last
week.
For thirty years, as we have said, Mr.
John Church has been living at West
phals, on little farm of % or 30 acres,
worth, at the utmost, no more than ST.
900 or $4,000 contented no doubt with
his possessions, and never dreaming Of
wealth, beyond the little to be gathered
from his scanty acres. His first glimpse
of the gorgeous vision which such fig
0res as $350O0000 summon up, was
caught, as we have said, week ago last
Saturday. The Monday following, ad-
vised and prompted by some of his
neighbOrs, Mr.. Church came to this city
and that evening took passage upon the
cars, bound for Massachusetts. Four
days ago his family received letters from
him announcing the complete success OF
his mission. Mr.. Halsey Church has re.
/ COgnzed him as his elder brother and
the rIohtful heir to these S35 100000,
and the Walker family had abandoned
their proposed visit to England after a
frutleSs attempt, through Gov. Seymour,
to obtain power OF attorney from him.
What his next step will be we cannot
say. The age Of Mr.. Church will nm
doubtedly prevent his visiting England
in person. but some of his family may
be expected to make the journey soon.
Mr. Church has two sons and five
daughters living, all married except one
! OF the latter. The oldest son John
Church, Jr., living at Grit1iu's Mills, has
two young children. The youngest son
Chauncey Church, whose wife is the
daughter of Dr. Bishop Of Golden, lives
at Westphalls and has one young son
OF the daughters, the youngest, Lucy
is the wife of Mr.. Gilbert Brown O
Aurora. The next eldest daughter, Mis-;
Angeline, is the unmarried heiress. The
third daughter is Mrs Z. H. Mcneil o
this city. formerly of Lancaster. and one
of the remaining daughters IS also, We
believe, a resident of Buffalo. OF the
fifth daughter we can give no informa
: | ton.
: The great fortune OF MIR. Church con
sists in the main, we understand, o
British Government securities, but in
cludes two large estates on the Thames
uOG NGl1 ulSGduL 4lOln LpuOOh IL hG
scends from great grandfather Of Mr.
Church, and has been held for many
years past by an elder brother of Thoma;
Church. his father, WHO came to thi>
q. country some time in the last century
The late possessor died without heirs
and his S35, 100000 have been patiently
: waiting for several months for the Amer
lean descendants of Thomas Church tt
; present themselves.
= Mr.. John Church has our best anC
: most disinterested wishes. May ht
J bring the whole pile out of John Bull;
l reluctant clutches, barring the few mil
l lions which the lawyers must, OF course
cut up between them, and like sensi
d BILE man and patriotic citizen, may h
: plant the undivided whole of it in Fri
! County.
/ The New ORLEANS RIoT.-W. H. c
King, editor of the New Orleans Times