The new Northwest. [volume] (Portland, Or.) 1871-1887, 1880-06-03

gle Instance in Mrs. Greenwood's whole
life is shown where Mrs. CliDe's will
prevailed over hers, or indeed where
she was influenced by any one. She op-
posed her will to Mrs. Cline's at the ex-
ecution Of the will, on the question Of
the amount of legacy (SlOO) to be left
to William and Eliza, and every feature
oi the days transactions shows her clear
mind and resolute will dominant and
unfettered. Can any intelligent voter
see any want of "free agency" on her
part or any evidence of the will Of
another which she was powerless TO re-
sist? The suggestion Of the Court, that
adding the certificate Of the two physi-
clans to the viii, to the effect that they
had examined her and found her Of
sound mind, is badge OF fraud, as being
unusual and Indicating the "compune-
tious visitings that walt on contem-
plated wrong" has in it o trifle more
rhetoric than sense. She knew, as all
persons know, that more law suits arise
from wills than anything else aud that
it was necessary TO make it "good aud
strong' because William was very
litigious and had been noising it around
that she was not in her good senses. So
far from furnishing evidence that it was
not her will, it affords the highest proof
that it was not only her own real will,
but that she desired to secure it beyond
all hazards against being broken. No
presumption, either, Of her being weak
minded can be drawn from this circum-
stance. for the physicians are themselves
In court as witnesses, and swear most
satisfactorily to her capacity.
The above is all we have space for con-
cerning :he facts relating to the testi-
mony, but enough is given to show the
drift OF the entire proceedings. The
very best and most honored men Of Sa-
lem, including E. \. Cooke, the Nc
Cullys, Mr.. Shaw, Mr.. Patton, the Kin
neys, and many others, including the
two physicians who had testified to
Mrs. Greenwood's sanity at the time Of
making the will (men who had nothing
to gain-not even a $1,000 contingent
feel, were unanimous in their opinion
concerning the old lady's soundness Of
mind; and the entire evidence on both
sides proves her to have been wholly
unsusceptible TO "undue influence" from
any source, and yet this is the very pre-
text upon which the will was broken, a
pretext which p. p. Prim has yelled
with a specious gauze with which he
has hoped to blind the honest intelli-
gence Of the people by calling it legal
decision And this, too, in spite Of the
direct evidence that during the years
prior to making the will the plaintiffs
were in daily communication with Mrs.
Greenwood, while Mrs. Cline, the great
bugbear Of the learned Judge, was far
away In Kalama, struggling to support
her family in spite of her husbands un-
fortunate speeulations, by which he and
she had become insolvent. She did not
once see her mother from May 3, 1872,
till the will was made, October u, 1872.
The evidence of undue influence oper-
ating on Kelly and Prim is made glar-
ing and shameless by comparing the
false assertions in the opinion of Prim
with appellants brief and with the real
facts Of the case. That opinion copies
In a diluted form the plaintiffs brief,
and falsifies and distorts the evidence
with such reckless vigor as to show
within Prim's mind the "eompunctious
visitings that wait on contemplated
wrong" SIT is an opinion as Is at opin-
ion"-one of the most illogical, ram
bling, confused, incoherent and distorted
defenses Of judicial outrage In the annals
Of equity Jurisprudence. 1t reviews no
testimony, reasons on nothing In the
case, except where it attempts, with
vindictive Stiffness, as a salve to Judi
cial conscience, to impute perjury TO
Mrs. Cline, and dogmatically asserts as
established what common dscency re-
quires Judge always to logically dem
onstrate from the evidence. The studied
length of Prim's opinion; his sneaking
omission of MeCurdy's evidence, and
that of other witnesses; his willfully gar
bled, distorted, false statement Of the
facts; his partisan tone throughout, and
his false application Of the law Of the
Gardiner will case, are all parts Of the
same transaction, and point infaIlibly to
the use of undue influence upon the
Court. In the language Of the syllabus:
"Fraud aud undue influence are not or
dinarily susceptible Of direct proof, and
in a majority OF the cases can only be
inferred from the nature Of the transac-
tIon, from the documents, from the re-
lation Of the parties and their conduct"
The poisoned chaliee Is commended to
Prlm's own lips.
Voters Of Oregon, are you prepared, in
the face Of facts like the above, 10 cast
your suffrages to continue men in power
who have proved themselves the corrupt
and willing tools Of equally corrupt and
designing clients? Do you not see that
your own rights are In jeopardy? And
will you not help those who have no
vote by which to overthrow the usurp-
ing power of unjust judges, to unbeuch
these robbers of dead mothers graves ?
Excuse US II our language seems severe
We cannot command words to express
our thoughts one-half as strongly as the
iniquity Of the Greenwood will case de-
mands.