Barbour County index. [volume] (Medicine Lodge, Kan.) 1880-current, 1885-07-10
A PLUCKY WIDOW.
How She Bothered q Massachu-
setts Railroad Company.
Her Unavaiilng Fight For what She Claim
ed Was Law and Right-Attempts
to Carry Out Her Husbands
Last Wishes.

The town of North Brookfield entered
upon the new year of 1885 with q flourish
of trumpets to'signalizs the fact that they
no longer owed q dollar, and that within
ten years they had subscribed for and
built little railroad of their own of four
miles, thereby planting the town on the
main track OF the Boston & Albany Rail-
road. The time for paying this debt of
nearly SlOO,OOO expired q few weeks ago,
and the town was equal to il. Thus It was
that the town celebrated and felt glad, be-
ing the envy Of their neighbors, whom
with generous hospitality, they invited to
join in the Observance and participate in
the feast Of reason and flow of soul in the
Town Hall Large numbers came, and With
liberal applause beard the speakers re.
hearsing the virtues OF the town. But
from the midst Of all this merriment. this
town meeting celebration, one. well. known
figure was absent Although one Of the
oldest citizens and residents of the town.
Mrs Elizabeth Kettredge frowned upon
the construction of the new railroad.
which, she said, was built contrary to law
and right, and It would be her mission she
insisted, to prove that she was right, and
to uphold the stability OF honest sentiment
and statute law. Accordingly Mrs. Kit
tredse viewed the celebration in the most
serious mood. Her grievances against the
town was that she was obliged to paw a
share Of the taxes of the town to liuuidate
the railroad41ebt, while she Claims the debt
was controlled and the railroad built with
out warrant and without law.
In 1875, the town voted to raise 500. 900 to
build railroad according to law which
allowed towns to raise five per cent. of
their valuation for such purpose Soon
after this action was taken the law was
changed, and instead OF five per cent. two
per cent. was the amount allowed by law;
but the town had already taken advantage
Of the five per cent. law. Both Mrs. KIT.
tredge and her husband, who was then
alive, covered the case as well as thew
could by refusing to pay any taxes for the
new debt, and finally laying them under
protest. Mir. Kittredge did this year after
year until about thrse years ago, when he
died, and since then his widow has done
the sime. In 1890 Mr.. Kittrsdge brought
suit to recover the taxes which he had paid
under protest, but for some reason the
case, which was decided against him, was
not taken up to the Supreme Court, a
thing which he apparently made the am.
bition of his life. He had long cherished
the idea that some day he would be the in
Strument OF securing an opinion from
the highest court against the town,
and, disappointed and dying, he called
his wife to his bedside and made
two requests. One was that she
should prosecute the case where he left
of, and the other was that, around the
bleak and lonely spot where HIS bones were
placed, she should build strong enclosure
to protect it from the trampling of the
world, or, to use his cwn words, to prevent
him from being stepped upon when dead
as he had been while living. The aged
widow promised to obey, and to-day. en-
circiing the mound that rises over the body
of her deceased husband, is a strong GAL
vanized iron rod. The other request was
not SO easily fulfilled, but there was no de-
lay in beginning, and after three years.
taxes h'd been paid under protest, Mrs
Kittredge brought suit to recover.
Mrs Kittredge and her husband lived In
North Brcokfield for forty years, the own
ers of a farm OF one hundred acres. The
old man at his death was seventy six, and
his widow now is seventy-three. She is
of Proud and honorable ancestry, and
boasts that her father was Elihu Pond of
Franklin, who enlisted as a revolutionary
soldier when scarcely seventeen years old.
Mrs. Kfttredge now seems to feel that she
is fighting over again the battle of free.
dom. Last fall the widow took up the case
where it had been left off by her husband
and brought suit to recover the taxes of
lSSl-2-3, alleging the foregoing facts as to
the illegality Of the assessment. Up to tn
time that the railroad was built the ta ties
on her place amounted to about twenty.
dvel dollars, but subsequently they ia.
creased to double that amount. Besides
running the track through Mrs Kittredge,s
land and destroying q valuable wood lot.
the town raised the valuation of her acres.
all OF which has made her the more anx.
ious and persistent. The case was tried
and the verdict was awarded to the town.
1t was carried to the Supreme Court. and
from this court a rescript has been received
at the present session of the Superior
Court ffirming the decision of the court
below in favor Of the town. And from
this court also Mrs. kittredge appeals to
the bar Of public opinion, and here she
feels confident of q verdict She believes
she is fighting a good fight against the
power OF money, and that she must ulti-
mately win. Already 1t has cost her 81 900
in cash. The widow has not ripened In
her knowledge Of law on this case alone,
but has been in several other suits. She is
out of law NOW, however, for the time be.
ing. Mrs. Kittredge Is evidently woman
of education, and is looked upon in kind ]
ness by the people of the town. who say
that once she was q school teacher. Her
present ideas and notions are not in har4
mony with the majority, and she stands
to-day the best known woman in town.