, 1881-04-17
A SINGULAR SUIT,

| 4 Daughter Sues Her Mother for Money
Left Her by lover Who Perts1cd on
the IlI-Fateti Steamer I1yenin: Star.
Special DL2atch to The Chicago Tribune.
P1IlLADELr11A., Pa, April 1G.-A love
story with Il lfc-insurance premium as the
sequel Of the loss Of the lovers life at sea
was told by witnesses in a Philadelphia
court to-day. In 1865 John Truro, young
man, was paying attention to 4 girl named
Anna Wright, who lived with her mother III
this city. Truro found it necessary to go to
New Orleans and he took passage from New
York in the ill-fated steamer Evening Star,
which went to the bottom Of the sea OIL the
Florida coast, with the loss of nearly every
soul on'board. Before departing for New
Orleans, however, Truro took out all acci-
dent policy Of $4,000 in the North American
Transit Insurance Company, which at that
time had an Office OIL Walnut street. The
policy only cost Truro $40, and he had it
made payable to Miss Wright, to whom he
gave it before his departure for the Southern
city. lie WAS never aftcrwarl heard OF. The
young lady sought to collect the money, but
the Insurance Company resisted, on the
ground that there were no proper proofs that
Truro had perislled, as some OF the passed.
gers and crew Of the Evening Star had
been picked up. Miss Wrlglt's law
yer, Henry Il. Edmunds, heard that
Truro and one of the officers of the
Evening Star had been seen c1inging to n
spa, and that the officers had been saved.
But he was unable to find the man. Time
drifted on until the summer of 1sG7, when
Alr. Edmunds was travelling in Europe. lie
had landed at 1lavre, and was Willing away
little time, lettering about the quays in that
port, when he saw man approaching,
smoking cigar. Mr.. Ednunts pulled out
a cigar and asked the stranger in French for
Il light. The man acqriesced in broken
French, when Mr.. Edmunds dropped that
language and tried the man in English
which the stranger spoke tluently. They
chatted Il while, when Mr.. Edmunls from
remark dropped was astounded to find that
this was tile very person he had been looking
fors SO long. Further questioning brought out
the fact that this identical person was the
companion Of Truro, on the broken spar
of the Evening Star, and he told how they
had tloated for hours clnging to that forlorn
hope, when Truro, exhausted by hunger,
thirst, and exposure, had tainted and gone to
the bottom. The lawyer held his peace aud
ascertailed that tile stranger was all officer
OH ship at that moment lying in Hayrc,
bound for New York. lie kept watch of the
matter, and when the ship arrived III New
York the officer was subpnnaed. his tcsti-
mony taken, the missing link restored, and |
presently the money WIS collected from the
Insurance Company. Not all Of it, how |
ever, for the Company gave up
the ghost. Deducting the expenses and |
fees, the sum nettcd $1,000, which WAS |
dnIy paid to Miss Wright, now, however,
Mrs. Davenport, for she had in the interim |
married a baker named Davenport, and the |
couple are now living ut Fortietl1 and |
Market streets. Mrs. Davenport. it appears,
gave the money to her mother for safekcep- |
Ing, aud that is the last she saw of it. She
says that her mother, after repeated de-
tnands, refused to return it, and finally she
was obliged to bring suit, and this was what
brought the parties into Judge I}iddle's
court Mrs. Wright, who lives ut Furtie,h
and Aspen streets. claimed Il right to retain
Tue money, alleging that Truro gave her the
policy because she hal lent him 5000.
which lie had not repaid. The Jury in a
short tine decided III favor of Mrs. DayeIl-
port, and gave her a verdict for $500.