The morning news. [volume] (Savannah, Ga.) 1887-1900, 1888-04-28
A LAWYERS YARN.
How a Long Search was Brought to an
End Through an Accidental Clue.

End Through an Accidental Clue.
From, the WASHINGTON Star.
A member of the bar of the District a
few days ago remarked to a reporter: ut is
not always that the greatest results are
obtained by the greatest efforts. 1t seems
to ne that what success l have had in my
profession is due to small things, may say
accidents. The greatest events in history
have, III many instances, the slightest
causes. The cackling of goose, it is said,
saved Rome, and the playful description of
little girl written by my mother has
recently led to the perfection of a title to
property here and the fall of good fee in
my lap after | had worked several months
for it and was about to give it up"
Let us have your story" said the re-
porter
"Well, " replied the barrister, "a client
came to me some fifteen or eighteen months
ago and stated that he had recently learned
that he had not full title to the lot on
which he had erected his family resideI &c,
and on which he had expended several
thousands of dollars. He had bought the
lot some years ago under the impression
that all the heirs in whom the title then
was had signed the deed. 1t had, however,
been ascertained that there should have
been seven heirs to sign the deed, and at the
time of his purchase it was thought the
seventh was dead. When he had learned
from some of his neighbors that there were
seven children in the family owning the lot
he had made endeavors to get a clue to the
absent one, but had failed. He gave me all
the information he had obtained, and
closed the interview by offering me fee of
$500 to ascertain the Whereabouts of the
missing one. l took the case and studied
over the name of the family till | had it
indelibly fixed in my mind. l found some
friends of the family, but the immediate
members had deceased or moved away from
the district, and the nearest relatives could
give no idea of the whereabouts of the miss
ing one. To write to a brother or sister
would have been to apprise them of the
importance of the inquiry. They would
likely have communicated with the lost one
and high price would have been asked for
quit-claim deed. l don't know how many
letters | wrote. Every time l saw the name
of the family mentioned in a newspaper |
wrote to ascertain If it was of the Washing
ton family. Finally | learned through one
of the replies that lady of that name had
married gentleman in the writer's town
some twenty years ago, but was not then
living there. Then her married name took
the place of the family name in my mind,
and as we lawyers say, the hunt was com
menced de nOUo But with the new name |
met with no better success. | thought once
| had found the lady in Pennsylvania, at
another time in Kentucky, then in Georgia,
but each time | was doomed to disapoint-
ment, and for some months had given up
the job, although had not so informed my
client"
MY mother and l." the lawyer con-
tinued, 'were always confiding, and, NAV
say, that it was through filial affection the
discovery was made. My mother recently
paid a visit to a city not $50 miles distant.
where we formerly lived, and while there
she wrote me long letter. In it she wrote
at some length describing a beautiful little
girl of eight or ten years who was also Wis
iting the place. In my reply l asked nv
mother the name of the beautiful child
The next letter from mother showed that
she had not lost interest in the child, and
when l read the name given fairly Jumped
for it was that of the missing heir for whom
| had been searching. In addition to her
mothers married name she bore as her mid
die name that of the old Washington family
" 18th this clue, l soon ascertaned the ad-
dress of the child's mother and wrote to her.
but the letter was returned to me. |, how
ever again wrote mother and learned that
the missing heirs new address was town
in Georgia. l then wrote 10 a lawyer there,
who found her, and the result was that she
made a quit-claim deed to me for one
seventh interest in the property, the CON
sideration being several hundred dollars.
Then my client received a transfer from
me, cheertully paying the $500, besides a
fair profit on what | paid. Thus you see
the accidental meeting of the child by my
mother led to the discovery of the missing
heir, and had it not been for mothers letter
to me my client would likely continue to
hold a clouded title, and | would have been
out several hundred dollars