The weekly democratic statesman. [volume] (Austin, Tex.) 1871-1883, 1875-07-01

In the rear yard Of a large livery stable,
in Thirteenth street, near University place,
in deep, sunken stone vault, lies the body
of Jacob ]. Arden, once a prosperous
Knickerbocker farmer A plain stone siaD
living fat on the ground, upon which the
flth ard litter OF the stable have accumu-
lated. is all tbat marks his grave. His farm
extended from what is now Fourth Avenue
nearly TO Sixth Avenue, and from Eleventh
street to Fourteenth street. He had also
pastures between the modern bounderles oil
Sixth and Eighth Avenues, and Thirty-hrst
and Thrty-tbird streets, and owned other
properly in Manhattan Island. Ills home
stead stood In Thirteenth street, between
Broadway and University place, until about
forty wears ago, when it was torn down.
Mr.. Arden died in 1901, leaving a wife
and one son, DIR. Jacob s. Arden. His will
provided that the property should always
be held by the Arden family, and while
his wife and son were permitted to use it
during their lives they were debarred from
selling it, and in the event of his sons
dying without heirs the property was to fall
TO John Summers, n nephew Of the testator.
DIR. Arden married, and Mr.. Summers, think
ing that his chances Of inheritIng tue estate
were slight, sold out his prospective title to
DIR. Arden for $4,000.
Then Mrs. Jacob ]. Arden, regardless Of
the sapularions Of the will, began TO sell
the lands at prices that attracted ready
buyers. She also mortgaged large part
: Of the property to John Jacob Astor, Judge
James Roosevelt and Others, and at the ex-
pirations of the mortgages Astor and Roose-
welt foreclosed and took possession of the
land. Judge Roosevelt had house on the
property at the Zinc Of his death.
nr rIn It.I "a
mother u year later, leaving to her own
family the remnant of the property that she
had not sold or mortgaged. TO the widow
Of her son she left not shilling
This arbitrary disposal OF the property in
defiance Of the conditions OF the will was
81 Of course not satisfactory TO the relatives of
Jacob j. Arden, and they took steps to re-
cover their lands. They instituted suit
IN 1925 against the purchasers of the LAND,
and employed Col. Aaron Burr as their at
torney. Col. Burr was confident of success,
but his efforts were frustrated, as one of the
heirs, John Brown, upon whose energy and
wealth the prosecution depended, fell dead
in the court room in u fit, and his wife re-
fused to carry the suit further, and the
other claimants were not able to press the
case. Then it rested for years.
The suit was renewed in 1854, and tried
Judges Nelson and Emmett in September
1855. Ex-Chief Justice Bronson, ex-Judge
Beardsley, William Curtis Noycs aud Hon.
Levi Chatield were attorneys for the prose
cution. The judges, one of whom then
lived in house on the disputed property,
decided against the heirs, but required that
the case should be taken to Washington, as
it was Of too great Importance to be settled
by him. The case slept in the District
Court for three years without result, anG
the plaintiffs charged that their attorney
had been bought of for $3.50, 900. The sui
is again to be vigorously prosecuted by Tho
heirs, through Rcbecca Rowland, the last
living niece of Jacob J. Arden. The prop.
erty is valued at more than $50, 900, 900.
Jacob j. Arden's will ordered that his
tomb IN Thirteenth street should always bt
kept by the family us a burial place, with
the right of way to its portals. The patti
that now leads to it is the hallway for livery
horses. The bodies OF Arden's two ser
wants, one u negro and the other an Irish
man, who saved the life of his master in the
Revolution, lie with his under the neglected
stone slab. -Ne,o York Sun.