The Wheeling daily intelligencer. [volume] (Wheeling, W. Va.) 1865-1903, 1866-11-09

6eINAuB lIehnnH.
which, lthe gentlemans says--I said 6v
which, II have bequeathed to her Ten
shares OF the bank stock of the North
Western Bank, DC - There is no al fIioui-
ty about It at all. / don't care
to which the "which'' refers. viii OF
codicil. The misfortune for the gentle-
man is, there is not a particle of proof
mere that Daniel SteenrOd ever made a
cOdtcil to any Will whatever save the
paper now before the jury dated 1862.
What want to say, further in that
connection Is that the recital in this
codicil here written by the hand of
George w. Thompson is exactly accord
ing to the fact touching the paper OF
1852. 1t was will and codicfI thereto.
1t had relation TO his negroes, and all
his negroes, 80 far as the testimony dis
closes; and 1t disposes of five. And es-
pecially IL had relation to Leanne. be-
cause IL bequeathed to her freedom. All
that is in the paper of 1852. But there
is no bequest in that paper OF ten shares
OF bank stock in the Northwestern
virginia Bank, or bequest to her in the
codiciI attached to it, dated 9th Noven-
bers 1868, of ten shares of stock. What
then! This man writing wills over in
ONO Tor his tather-in-laW, simply put
his foot in it again as he did when he
got up the notes requiring the surrender
Of all right in the trust estate before
taking anything under the will. He
made a recital which was supported by
nothing; which could not be Sustained
by living witness; which discloses the
fact that when Daniel Steenrod signed
1t he did not know any better than to
sign a recital which he did not know
was true. but which, had he known
anything, he must have known was not
true. He doubtless supposed 1t was all
right, If he supposed at a IL. The testi-
mony of his little grand child is that he
took 1t into the room and stayed some
time and came out and said he would
sign II. don't care If he said he would
write it. 1t don't alter the case. How
are they going to explain it2 There is
the tact-that paper made over in Ohio,
sent over by the wife of George Thomp-
son for Daniel Steenrod to sign. Why,
have not any doubt about the motive
OF 1t. Men are no6moved to acts of this
sort without motive. It was to silence
any complaint that this lady, Mrs. Ed.
ward Steenrod, might mako about the
wrong that had been done her children.
II was done in the hope, dou btlesS, that
by giving her the Thousand dollars in
slock-supPosing it to be Of par value
she would be content to be quiet. And
especially, coupled with the fact that
unless she took the provision made for
her, she should take nothing under the
will whatever; and If she did, she must
take it on the condition that she re-
leased all ground Of claim to anything
else ON the estate. And so it was with
her children.
But what next There is still another
codicil. And what is the proof and tes-
timony in regard to that? Why that
the very property disposed of by it was
the Buchanan estate-which Daniel
SteenrOd had purchased for the benefit
oIthe Feeney children-intended to give
it to them, and which was for their
use. To he sure he might have changed
his mind,-but the question / am try
ing to press on the attention OF this tt1ry
is that there is not particle OF evidence
he ever did change his mind. Why,
says the gentleman he signed the pa
per. Aye, sir, but you have the burden
of proof cast on you when that paper is
written by yourself and wholly unex-
planned, and written in your own in
terest; and you must show to this Jury
thar Daniel Steenrod himself dictated
the terms and conditions of this last
codicil by which George Thompson
takes an additional interest here to the
exclusion OF these Feeney children.
admit that all this law read here Iusti-
fles all the conclusions and presump-
tons of the law that the gentlemen in
sist on provided they go little further
back and prove Daniel Steenrod die.
tAted the terms. / know gentlemen
can say, 1t makes no difference If he
accepts them afterwards. / admit it
makes no difference If he accepted it,
If he did it intelligibly. But the bur-
den is still on you, when we have
proved these direct facts, to prove how
it came he did this and did understand
this whole transaction. .r.r.l. Il....
What does he do lRst2 Makes this
further cOdiCil to his will about six
weeks perhaps before he died: ~
In the further disposition of my estate. Il
Daniel Steentod, OF the county Of Ohio, do
make and declare this paper writing as a fur
Their codicil to my Will heretofore made since
which time have purchased tract OF land
lying next or across the creek from the place
which 1 purchased from the late Thomas
PAUL. ESD, this last purchase made by me be-
Ing from the Buchanan estate; and hereby
devise the same in equal shares and Interest
Emma Ii. Carter, and George w. Steenrod, In
fee, and yet to have and to hold the same %
the same trustees and uses and powers as my
other deviseS to my said daughters, as con-
taIned In u gOdiciI to my said will, Given
under my hand this 10Th day Of March, 1851,
That is proved and admitted to be in
the handwriting of George Thompson,
giving his wife an additional interest
in this estate, and depriving these Fee
ney children of the interest this old man
himself said he intended for them, ..E
Now in this state of the case, gentle
fhir in this transaction. The burden is
not upon us tOishOwI that Daniel Steen.
rod was imposed on and defrauded.
We have accepted our SHINE of that bur-
den, and have shown that this party
that takes the largest interest of his es-
tate in his own family has written the
substance of his whole will. He wrote
tho paper of lS62-codicils and every
thing in it; and the notes before you
will go with You to your room, because
they are put in evidenoe-all In the
handwriting of George Thompson and
nobody else. The point have been
urging on you is, Who teatifieS that this
old man dictated the terms of that pa
per to Thompson? Nobody. What
answer dogenilemen make to it? That
this old gentleman, Mr.. Jacob, testifies
TINT Mr.. SteenrOd told him these were
the terms and he wanted Mr.. Jacob to
copy it out; whereas, there was no evil
dence he had ever read them at all, or
ever even heard them at all. o, the
gentleman snyS, that is inferablo from
tue fuct he handed the instructions to
Mr.. Jacob. That depends on the
amount of confidence he repcsed in
George Thompson. 1t seems he had
great confidence. Surprising Thomp-
son had told him he had made an equal
distribution of the estate, and especial
ly that he had given the most to his son
George, and dealt equally with all his
children, is not there evidence before
the jury that he had such confidence in
his son-in-luw that he would believe
him and go there TO MIR. Jacob, us di-
rected, and tell him to write out the
will according to tho notes furnished
him2 No doubt of It at all. He had
full condolences in Judge Thompson.
The testimony shows he had; 1t shows
his admiration of him; that he cOnsid-
ers him an ornament to his house-and
doubtless, bV his talents. in some sense