The Republican. [volume] (Oakland, Md.) 1877-current, 1877-03-24
A Kind Deeds Reward.

From a hint dropped by DR.. A. F.
Sawyer, of this city, a Chronicle reporter
yesterday crossed to the city over the
bay and CLEANED from reliable source
the following account of the life and
death of lone woman, who left to the
kind-hearted nurse who attended her in
her sickness an item of value that had in
it portion of million dollars 1t ap-
pears that Mrs. Maria Isabel Tonnes
came to this city from Tehama County
about twelve months since, and placed
herself under the professional care of DR..
Sawyer, and so remained, with beneficial
effects, until about six months ago, when
she changed her place of residence to
Oakland, and afterward lived at 615 Fiji
teenth street The climate on the east
side of the bay also appeared to agree
with the lady, and with each day her
strength grew, until about ten weeks ago,
when fatal fever was prevalent in Oak
! land. Mrs. Tonnes was attacked by a
typhus type of this destructive malady
and suddenly became quite sick, which
was soon learned incidentally, by her
neighbor Mrs. Isabella Butler, wife of
John S. Butler, an Oakland printer. Mrs.
Buffers sympathetic heart was moved to
do what she could for the stranger, who
had no one with her but housekeeper
and an adopted daughter of twenty
years, who is ailing and subject to fits.
Under Mrs. Buffers mnistering the lady
rallied materially, but only to announce
that it was temporary, and that she felt
she must soon die. At her request
lawyer was summoned, and her will was
] l., ~, H. !
grow worse, and finally died with
out leaving a known relative in the
world to mourn her loss. The dis
closing of the will, after death, revealed
the statement that Mrs. Tonnes had no
heirs or any known relatives, and, with
an undoubted appreciation of the Chris
tian-like interest taken in her welfare by
her kind neighbor, Mrs. Butler, be-
queathed to her all her real and personal
property, with the proviso that her
adopted invalid daughter Nellie Tonnes,
should be provided for and maintained
during her life out of the estate The
estate is also charged with the necessary
expense of keeping her lot in Tehama
cemetery in good repair. Mrs. Buffers
husband, John S. Butler is appointed by
the will to be executor of the estate,
without bonds. The estate of the de-
ceased consists of four thousand acres
of land in Tehama County, embracing
what is known to old Californians as the
; Rancho de Los Molinas, or Mill-creek
ranch, and is divided into two farms,
worth at least $40, 900; also two village
lots in the town of Tehama; horses, cat
! tie, and other live stock worth Sc 5000;
also the old homestead in Tehama, with
four acres of ground, valued at SIS 600,
together with house and lot in Oakland,
, worth $4,500, and other personal proper
ty valued at $4,000, making grand
total of Sal 900. Mr.. Butler went with
| the remains of Mrs. Tonnes to Tehama
and had them appropriately inferred in
her cemetery, and returned yesterday
with the following sketch of the life of
the deceased: Mrs. Maria Isabel Tonnes
was born in Santa Barbara in 1922, and
when twelve years of age removed to
Monterey, where she resided until she
married the late A. G.. Tonnes, in 1874
r In the following year her husband OBJ
g tanned from the Mexican Government a
4 grant of land in Tehama County, and he,
with his wife, settled on it in 1916. At
I this time there was no families in that
+. part of the Sacramento Valley, except
| that of William B. Ide, and Mrs. Tonnes
S was, perhaps, the second lady resident
. within the present boundaries of Tehama
County. She and her husband lived in
+ an adobe house until 1852, and then
. moved into more modern house which
t was on Elder Greek, where they resided
e until 1870. They afterward built one OF
a the finest houses in Tehama, in which
+ they lived until the death of Mr.. Tonnes,
3 few years ago, They left no children,
n and no relatives of the family are known
n to exist.-,San Francisco Chronicle.