Los Angeles daily herald., 1888-12-02
JESSE HOYT'S WIDOW DEAD.
A Remarkable Will Contest Re
called.


called.
Helen Maria Hoyt, the widow of Jesse
Hoyt, died recently at her home, 81 Wes
Forty-eighth street. Her death recalls
the strange circumstances surrounding
the history OF her millionaire husband,
OF his will, and the attempts to break it,
and on the peculiar facts regarding the
relations of his heirs.
Jesse Hoyt died on August Is, 1892 al
81 West Forty eighth street. He haC
some years before engaged in the grain
trade in this city, and had invested q
great deal of his wealth in Northwestern
railroads. He was practically the builder
of the Flint and Pere Marquette road in
Michigan, and was large stockholder in
the railroads of Ohio, Wisconsin and
Minnesota. Besides, he had large in.
terests in the lumber districts of Michi-
gan. His wealth at the time OF his death
was over $S, 100000.
The will of Mr.. Hoyt was filed on Au-
gust 20, 1882. In it he left $50 900 to his
confidential clerk, James w. Jackson !;
from $500 900 to 5000, 900 each to his
living brothers and the widows and
heirs OF his dead ones; the use, during
life, of 81 ,250, 900 to his wife, and the
use of the same sum to his daughter,
Mary Irene Hoyt. The $2, 500 900 of the
last two bequests were to be divided
among his brothers after the death of
Mrs Hoyt and her only child, Mary
Irene.
Uu October 80, 1882. Helen Maria
Hoyt and her daughter appeared by
counsel before Surrogate Rollins with a
petition for decree to compel the execu.
tors OF Jesse Hovt's will, Samuel N.
Hoyt, Alfred NJ. Hoyt and James w.
jackson, to advance to the two women
enough money to pay their living ex-
penses. The petitioners alleged that
after the death of Jesse Hoyt they had
been left by the executors without
means of support, and that they were in
debt and had no funds with which to ex-
list. Roscoe Conkling was their
counsel and Elihu Root appeared
for the executors. Mr.. Roots
answer was that the women were
entitled to the income of $2,500,O0O
only, and should be compelled to prove
that this amount had produced any in
come before they could claim anything.
Counsel maintained, finally, that ines-
much as Mr.. Hoyt's liabilities had not
as yet been met, no income had accrued.
Eventually, however, the executors were
ordered to advance the women $3.50 0
each. This decision was made on Nov
ember 9th, the petitioners adding to
their request the claim that Mr.. Hoyt
had been unduly influenced by his
brothers in the drawing up of his will.
In the meantime Mary Irene Hoyt,
the daughter, had been confined in the
Friends Insane Asylum, Philadelphi
since June, 1882. On Tuesday, February
27, 1888, an application was made before
Judge Friedman, Supreme Court, Cham
bers. for an order directing Drs. Solver
H. Talcott. II. B. Millard and George
Dillon to show cause why they should
not produce the certificate on which Miss
Hoyt was committed. 1t was claimed in
the application that she was being wrong
fully and illegally confined by her
uncle, Samuel N. Hoyt, and that she
had been locked up in an insane asylum,
while her father was ill. for the purpose
OF preventing her from seeing her father
before he made his will On March 9th
1883, DR.. Dillon made affidavit that he
had never before Supreme Court, Cham
bers, signed any certificate with DR.. Tai
colt. On March 18th, however, it was
proven that the certificate had been
signed in the Superior Court, and the
motion was withdrawn, the moving party
being condemned to pay $40 costs.
Soon afterward Miss Hoyt was dis
charged from the asylum and went to
454 Lexington avenue to live. Then
began series Of strange actions on the
part of the young woman, which
seemed to support the theory that she
was insane. On October 8, 1884. she
was before Justice Power, at the York
vile Police Court, for drunkenness and
disorderly conduct. She had been in
the habit Of visiting her fathers grave
at Woodlawn once a week, and the day
before had begun to abuse a policeman
without cause. She was arrested and
was fined $40 and costs. On October 16,
1885, she almost caused little riot on 4
Harlem train from the Grand Central
station. She had bunch of flowers,
which she intended to place on her
fathers grave. While on the train she
attacked young man because he had
not offered her his seat. She Was finally
put off the train.
These vagaries led to a disagreement
with her mother. On August 3, 1887,
Mrs. Hoyt applied to the Supreme
Court to have her daughter declared
irresponsible on account of her being
addicted to the use of Intoxicating
liquors. Miss Hoyt was represented
by Frank j. Dupignac, and the latter
addressing the Court, said: "Unless
all calculations 60 amiss regarding
Miss Hoyt's case, the most pronounced
efforts will be made to show that the
young lady, far from being voluntarily
addicted to the use of alcoholic stimu-
lants, has been the victim protracted
conspiracy, and has been Systematically
drugged for the purpose of producing
hysteria, and even mania, in order to
prevent her from being active in the
contest of her fathers will"
Since that time Miss Hoyt has disap-
peared, only to be heard from again in
New Jersey and latterly in Canada,
where she INDUCED in further eccen-
tricties. Her mothers death leaves
$l,250,000 to be divided among Jesse
HnVt'l hrnthoro I'M Nri h1na