The Baltimore County union. [volume] (Towsontown, Md.) 1865-1909, 1885-02-21

friend, Mr.. Cuttings. He took afIeetionate
leave of his father at the railroad station in Ball
timore, wrote him two kindly notes from New
| York, and another board the steamer after he
| had sailed, After he arrived at Kreutznach, in
| Germany, where he went to take the baths and to
be treated for the disease from which he was suf-
fering, he told his courier and attendant that he
had made deed of trust of all his property to his
| father explained to him its character and effect,
and said that his reason for making it was that he
realized his inability to manage his property him
| self. It thus appears he cautioned by his
father as to the irrevocability of the deed, and
advised by him to consider the matter deliberately
| There were no misleading representations made
to him, nor any erroneous opinion given as TO MS
| rights, was done in the case OF wheeler Us
| Smith, Ho1. So Nor was there any conceal
| ment of the amount and value Of the property
| which belonged to him. The real estate OF his
| grandfather had been valued and divided by com
mssioners. He had made himself familiar with
that proceeding, had obtained and examined the
| book in which the division was recorded, and
knew perfectly we'll what was coming to him from
| that source. His father was the executor OF the
will and the inventory of the personal estate and
his accounts as executor were on record IN the
Orphans Court, and open to his inspection, so
that there could be concealment as to that
estate. He therefore had access to every possible
source of information on this subject that could
be afforded.
But this account of the transaction would be
incomplete without noticing the letter of DR..
Bucker, and the effect it had upon him, about
which SO much was said in argument.
1t appears that he had for some time been under
treatment for syphilis, and was then suffering
from q severe development of that loathsome
disease in its secondary form. DR.. Buckler, who
had been his physician and knew his condition in
this respect, was also the physician for the young
lady he was about to marry, and knew her well.
Learning that this marriage was about to take
place, the doctor, having first consulted with DIR.
Mckenzie who fully concurred in his view Of the
matter, wrote the letter in question in order to
bring about postponement of the marriage until
the complainant should be thoroughly cured of
this disease.
In this letter the doctor, after stating that he
had heard the complainant was about to marry q
young lady for whom the writer had always felt
the kindest interest, says to him: al am more
than surprised that you should, in the face of all
that have said to you on the subject of your
contracting a marriage in the present state of
your health, take such step. You certainly can
not be aware of the untold misery you about
to inaict upon innocent and unsuspecting
man, to say nothing of the wretched miserable
offspring such an alliance will certainly be pro-
ductive Of" He then says he cannot believe the
father of the young lady ais aware of your con
to your union, and a friend of his and a well
wisher of his daughter 1 shall certainly deem it
my duty to waive all professional confidence and
write to him at once, and inform him promptly
upon this subject, if you persist in your determine
ton. Had you consulted me, and seen me when
you were contemplating this marriage would
have insisted upon your delaying it until this
fearful poison of syphilis was entirely eradicated
from your system. 1t is not too late now, hope,
for me to warn you against taking this criminal
step. You must come and see me at once, and if
you do not, tell you very frankly 1 will either
see the young ladys father or write to him. and
aequaint bin with every particular concerning
your present state of health" This is the letter.
and it is proper to say in regard to it that it
meet the approval of every right-minded man, the
then condition of the complainant being unques-
tionably such the letter states it to have been.
The communication of this foul and poisonous
faint to pure wife and innocent offspring is a
thing not to be thought of without shudier, and
these eminent physicians were clearly right in
thus interposing to prevent the preparation of
such an outrange.
| But with the writing and sending of this letter
Mr.. Williams, the father, had nothing to do.
Shortly before this he was informed for the first
time that his had this disease, and, of course.
| concurred in the views of these physicians that
the marriage ought to be prevented. The plan
! then agreed upon, and in which he acquiesced,
was that the physicians, or one Of them, should
| see the father of the young lady in person and
inform him upon the subject. This plan was
afterwards changed by the doctors without his
knowledge, and the letter to the complainant him
self written instead. The father testifes that
be had not the slightest idea that any such letter
was to be written, and DIR. Buckler swears that
Mr.. Williams had nothing whatever to do with it.
The effect of the letter, as might have been ex-
pected was to excite the complainant, and to
create in his mind an apprehension that the father
or brothers of the young lady would inAict per-
sonal violence upon him if his condition was made
known, as the doctor had threatened, but it COM
municated nothing that was new to him in regard
to his health. He knew perfectly well what that
was. He had been repeatedly warned that he was
in no condition to marry, and had been advised
by his physicians to leave Baltimore and go to
the baths at Kreutznach, which were celebrated
| for the cure of this disease. He was no doubt
much frightened when he received the letter and
whom he brought it to his friend Cuttings and
| asked his advice as to what he should do. When
Cuttings told him he thought it was evidently
written by friend who had his interest at heart,
| and that every word in it was true, he said IRE
ferring to the lady'S family they would kill him
if they found out the condition be was in. After
| some further conversation, and after he had ex
pressed his determination to execute deed of
trust and go away, and Cuttings had told him he
better take it quietly and think the matter over,
he suggested an expedient which he thought
would relieve him from the difficulty, which was
this: He declared that the young lady had often
told him that if he made deed of trust of his
property she would not marry him, and then said,
~ will tell her. father made me make this deed Of
trust, and now have but S400 year, and if she
is willing to marry me, will marry her." Git
tings then asked if it was possible that he was
going to tell her such lie about it, that he
had been forced to make the deed, and he again
said be would make it all right with her; and it
appears he did so, for on his return from Europe,
in the following September, the marriage took
place. and before this case was brought to a hear
ing in the court below, his wife had borne him
child.
No doubt, the letter fastened the execution of
the deed and it is true that his state of fear and
alarm continued after he had executed it. and in
duced, in part, his speedy and secret departure
from Baltimore, and the adoption of the indirect
route he took to reach New York. 1t is also true
shat the position in which he found himself placed
was delicate and difficult one, but it is equally
true that this difficulty brought about solely
by his own wilful misconduct, and not IN the
slightest degree through any connivance, in
huence agency of his father, and, IN fact, the
testimony entirely fails to show that Mr.. Will
lams did anything he ought not to have done, or
failed to do anything father ought to have done
under the circumstances attending this transac-
ton. The complainant was quite capable of act
ing for himself in the emergency. What he did
was the result exclusively of the suggestions of
his own mind, and there nothing irrational
in it. 1t is manifest from all the testimony that
his motive in executing the deed was first and
mainly to carry into effect his long cherished pur
pose of placing his property beyond danger of loss
through his own reckless dissipation, and, sec
ondly, because he thought the deed, would be the
means of breaking off or postponing his marriage,
and would at the time prevent q disclosure
If the state of his health, which he was naturally
most anxious to conceal. Being thus capable Of
thinking and acting and being ready and prompt
to act, there was no such empowering weight of
terrifying circumstances surrounding him, and
brought about by the receipt of this letter. as will
Justify court of equity in pronouncing the deed
not to be the act of free agent and least of all is
there any proof that it was procured through
fraud or undue influence on the part of his father
or any one else If these views are correct, little
need be said as to other criticisms of this deed
The fact that it contains an irrevocable power of
attorney adds nothing to its force or effect and
requires no further notice. In some of the author
tiles absence of power ofrevocation in salutsry
settlement has been relied on as circumstance
creating suspicion of unfairness or undue influences
but such power would have been out of place in
tb;s daad haoousa mild ha We ted the