Evening journal., 1889-05-14
THE GAINES HEIRS WIN.
Heavy Award for Contestants
in the Case.
THE ROMANCE IN THE CLAIM.

Mrs. Gaines Grounds for Settling Up the
Claim Was That She Was the Child OF
Gen. Clark by Secret Marriage--Gen-
eraI Washington News
WASHINGTON, May 14-The United States
supreme court, in an opinion by Justice Brad
ley, awarded the executors Of the will of
Myra Clark Gaines the sum Of $4,000
against the city Of New Orleans for the use
Of property sold by the city but recovered by
Mrs Gaines after long litigation. The iudg-
ment Of the lower court awarding the exacu-
tor SlSO0O0,00O for the use of the unim-
proved property sold by the city was not
concurred in.
A Very Interesting Case.
This case has been the most interesting, the
hardest contested and the most prolonged
known to the judicial history OF this country.
Over thirty years ago Justice Wayne, Of the
United States supreme court, said that when
the historian Of the American bar should !.
come TO write up the case 1t would be regis
tered as the most remarkable in the history
of cur courts. The case had then been b.
fore the supreme court five times in one form
or another and has now been decided as many
times again. y
Decision Follows Decision.
The first suit ia the case was brought by
Mrs Gaines then the wife of Gen. Whitney,
in 1884 and since that time decision has fol-
lowed decision in regard to il until it has be-
come byword that there was always a
Gaines case pending. This first suit sought
TO recover what is known as the Evariste
Blanc tract, in New Orleans Blanc bought
the tract for about a, 500 from the executors
of Gen. Daniel Clark, a prominent citizen OF
New Orleans He sold it and some other land
TO the city Of New Orleans for $45, 900, and
the city subdivided the tract and sold II 10
number of persons for between 100000 and
500, 600, agreeing TO defend all questions OF
title, Mrs Gaines having few months before
claimed IT,
Romance OF the Claim.
The grounds on which Mrs Gaines set up
her claim were that she was the child Of Gdr
Clark by secret marriage between him and
Zulime Carriere, a woman well known in the
city, and that Gen. Clark had left later
will than the one under which the property
was sold. This secret marriage formed tho
axis on which the litigation revoved, and the
case was fought with bitterness by both sides
1t was NOD until few years before the war
that Mrs. Gaines was finally declared to be the
legitimate child as well as the lawful heir Of
Gen. Clark Even then the city ofNew Orleans
did not surrender, and after the war Mrs.
Gaines was compelled TO bring a suit for
damages. In 1881 the circuit court Of the
United States for the louisiana district gave
Judgment in her favor for 81, ,925 ,667, and 10
is on appeal from this judgment that the
present case was decided
Fighting to the Very Last.
The present case, il is generally conceded,
exhausts al the resources OF the law, and is
regarded as final settlement of the htiga-
ton. Mrs. Gaines fighting to the very last
for her rights, is dead, and 80 it is believed
are all her immediate relatives except her
daughter-in-law, Hattie Ia Whitney, in
whose name as Administrative Of the estate
Of Mrs Gaines the case stands on the court
docket
The Award.
The award of 81, 925, 667.S SO made to Mrs.
Gaines by the circuit court was made up of
two parts. The first part was for the amount
of $500, ,707. 92 which represents with interest
judgments obtained by Mrs. Gaines in suits
brought by her against over 400 persons who
occupied the improved part of the estate sold
by the city. The court, in its opinion, allows
Mrs. Gaines this amount with interest at 5
per cent from 1881, the date the Judgment
was awarded by the lower court.
A s1.34s, ,059.0I Claim Disailowed. I
The second part Of the Judgment was for
81 ,34s, $50 81, and was based on an estimate
Of what the unimproved part Of the estate
would have yielded if judiciously and provi-
IDENTIFY looked after. The master who made
up the Judgment took the price the unim-
proved ground sold for in 1887, when a real
estate craze prevailed in New Orleans, ana
computed interest thereon at per cent,
with interest on interest, found that this
amount should be allowed as the revenues
that should have been received from the un-
improved part Of the estate The supreme
court disallows this award Of 81, ,S4s, $50 81 on
the ground that it was based ON false prin-
ciples.
WIN Make Known Their Grievances.
| WASHINGTON, May 14-A hearing will be