The Middlebury register. [volume] (Middlebury, Vt.) 1850-1882, 1880-04-02

subsequent proceedings by The other
heirs were purely personal matters
with which respectable newspaper
has nothing TO do. IL Is sufficient TO
say that Mr.. Knapp was not in any
way responsible for them. But Tie
Journal, having got hold of the story
of their doings, and learning that Mr..
Knapp had something TO do with il, rs
usual 'went of at half cock" without
waiting 10 hear both sides of the story.
All they cared about il was that il alp
peared to be good chance to injmc
Mr.. Knapp. In their comments upon
IL they added n mysterious allusion TO
the settlement of the estate of the late
ID. L. Sturtcvant of Weybridge, with
the intent TO cause people 10 believe he
had done something improper in that
case. In their last issue, being obliged
10 publish the statements of G.. S.
Wainwright and j. M. Slade, cxoner-
ating Mr.. Knapp, they endcavored to
break the force of the letters by a lame
explanation of how they came by the
alleged facts they had published. II
must be said that in the case of Mr..
Slade, who had acted as attorney for
Mrs. Sessions in preliminary matter,
VI.
he had been led to believe by some one
sided statements that Mr.. Knapp had
exceeded his duty as Judge of probate,
but We learn from him that he made
no statement to the Journal man as TO
any facts in the case, but on that excif-
able young man rccliing the awful sto-
ry as it had formed itself to bis vivid
imagination, Mr.. Sladc told him that he
did not know as he had heard the truth
in the case, and advised him to wait
until he knew little more, which sem
siblc advice was wasted, as the Young
man never docs such things. Mr.. Slade
afterward asccrtaincd the facts of the
case, and thereupon exonerated Mr..
Knapp of ahy wrong or impropricty.
G. S. Wainwright, the executor of the
will of ID. l.. Sessions, who therefore
may be presumed to know the whole
state of the case, makes q similar stat.
mcnt. We do not know whether Mr..
Knapp requested these men to write
their statements to the journal or not.
The journal says he did, and to the
critical eye of the Journal man there is
apparently something grossly wrong in
q man doing such things to protect him
self against unfounded ISLANDERS, while
to that imagination which is SO striking
a feature of the young gentleman there
appeared vivid picture of both Mr..
Slade and Mr.. Wainwright overawed
and cowcd like babies by Mr.. Knapp
into making favorable and therefore
false statements of the latter's connec
ton with the matter. Nevertheless il
is quite probable that the public will be
persuaded that neither MIR. Slade nor
Mr.. Wainwright would put their names
to statement which they knew to be
false. The Journal says it also got IFS
statements from i. ID. Ellrcdge, A. p.
Tuppor and Chae. M. Wilds. TO any
one familiar with the relations between
these lawyers and Judge Knapp there
is something not little ludicrous in
this innocent avowal. We do not
think either of these men would give
currency to known false statement
unfavorablc to Mr.. Knapp, but having
heard a one-sidcd and Incorrect story
it is doubtful if they would endcavor to
mitigate to any extent its force against
Mr.. Knapp. Now that the facts are
known, we should be happy to have
the journal secure their signatures TO
an affirmation of their belief of the cor.
rcctncss of its first account.
The journal says the letters of Mr.
Sladc and Mr.. Wainwright should bc
read carefully, that there is in them
''no contradiction of its statement
only that it might have misunderstood
some of the minute particulars of lust
how and why the facts rs stated Wero
DONE" This is amazingly impntlcpt
even for the journal man, inasmuch as
the letters arc an utter contradi ction of
the Journals statement, so far as il af.
fccted Mr.. Knapp unfavorabIy. The
assertion that ''if we have made anv
mlsstatcmcnts VIC have done so min
fnntinnally, for rro havo ueed o,u Ius,,
endcavors to have them correct" is re-
lrcshlng, in view of the fact that the
journal waited only to hear what was
to Mr.. Knapp and iumpcd
at chance TO iniure him. One is de-
lighted TO learn after this that "tbc
journal is intended as q newspaper in
the highest sense of the word, and NOT
as promulgator of strife and neighbour
hood broils.'
Before publishing the letters of Mr..
Wainwright and Mr.. Slade. the ,Jonr.
nal man took them to the above named
attorneys and "they expressed the ut
most surprise that Mcssrs. Sade and
Wainwright should write such state.
mcnts as they make in this issue. They
also say that Knapp made most seri-
Gus departure from the dignity dcvoly.
ing OH the judge of probate in issuing n
writ dcpriving the widow of her goods.
linus acting the part of attorney"
ms last statement is one which we
douot IL the attorneys made, inasmucb
as Mr.. Knapp neither issued writ.
nor was the widow deprived of bcr
goods. Mr.. Wainwright, as arbitrator.
had charge of the division of the goods
not provided for in the will, and IL is
likely that he saw an equitable division
OF them made. 1t may have been i'm.
prudent in Judge Knapp that he con-
sentod 10 make out the papers in tho
case, simply because of the chance il
gave some liar Interested in ininrino
INN to claim that he was acting as
an attorney for some of the parties
This is all the foundation afforded for
the attack upon him.
we here append copy of commun-
icaiion sent TO. the journal last week.
which that newspaper in the highest
sense OF the word' did not see fit to
publish:
MiDDLEnURY, W., March "a, 1880.
Editor Journal
DEAR SIR;-In your issue of March
l9th notice you criiicisc Judge Knapp.
and refer to some difficulty in the Set
tlement of the estate of ID. =. Sturtc-
want. ! was administrator of that es-
tate, and somewhat conversant with
The process of settlement, and | have
yet TO hear that there was any reasona-
BILE dissatisfaction with Mr.. Knapp on
the part of any party concerned. Il
think in his connection with that case
there is no occasion for criticisms of
any Kind. Yours, &c.
SAMUEL JAMES.
Nnnyfrr hnxxx-