The Portland daily press. [volume] (Portland, Me.) 1862-1921, 1889-05-23
CHARGES AGAINST A MAINE GIRL.
Harriet Hubbard Aver Says Blanche
Willis howard ConspIred.
A Strange Lawsuit In a New York
Court Room.
Miss Howard Seems to be all Right
and Mrs. Aver a Little Off.

NEW YORK, May 22.-The strange case Of
Mrs. Harriet Hubbard Aver, who believes
that her daughter, son-in-law. his father and
Blanche Willis Howard, the well known
authoress, conspired 10 defraud her OF her
property, even resorting to oyerthrowing her
reason by means Of drugs, is the talk of the
town. Miss Howard has Mrs. Ayers daugh-
ter In charge in Europe, hence her connec-
tion with the case.
In the Court of Common Pleas. special
term, Tuesday, two actions were begun by
Harriet Hubbard Aver against James NJ.
Seymour and Allen l.. Seymour, his son,
treasurer and assistant treasurer Of the firm
of which Mrs. Aver is president. known as
the Recamier Manufacturing Company. One
suit was for an injunction to restrain the de-
PENDANTS from voting on certain shares Of
stock in the company. and the other to cause
them to make an accounting of funds which
they are alleged to have misappropriated.
The complaint alleges that Mrs. Aver was
was taken i'll in the fall of 1885, and went to
Germany. On returning here in February
last the defendants, she says, conspired
against her to obtain possession of her stock.
endeavored to destroy her health and reason
PENDANTS make general denial. Everybody
connected with the case seemed cool yester-
day, with the exception Of Mrs. Aver. In
the morning she called on her lawyers, Olin,
pale. She would not say anything about
certain letters. which are said to have been
written by Ter younger daughter, now under
the care Of Miss Blanche Willis Howard at
Stuttgart. In one letter Margaret wrote to
her sister, Mrs. Seymour, that when Mrs.
Aver was at Stuttgart she washed her face
with some preparation to make herself 'as
white as DEATH" In another she says that
everybody is trying to help her mother get
over the dreadful habit which makes every
body hate her."
The lawyers in the case took to talking
yesterday, and one Of Mrs. Ayers counsel
said that James M. Seymour had been a life
long friend of Mrs. Aver. She went abroad
In 1888 on account Of 0verwOrk and 1t was
there that the Seymour men and Miss How
ard conspired. Mr.. Seymour lent Mrs. Aver
$4,000 when the Recamier Cream Company
was organized and took stock as collateral.
La her absence Mr. Seymour got into. her
ceipts and sent forged dispatches to her in
Europe to keep her there. 1--WE have proof"
said Mr.. Montgomery. from Seymour's side
that Is just as strong against him as that
which we have from Mrs: Aver herself"
company in Park Place. He was apparently
unconcerned and was going on with his du-
ties as assistant treasurer Of the company.
There was a conspiracy" he said, 'and
that was to cure Mrs. Aver Of the alcohol
habit. We entered into It and persuaded her
to go abroad for treatment. But it's abso-
lutely false that attempted to persuade her
to take bromide of lithia, and her own daugh-
ter will swear that she never left any papers
In box. which she says stole. The truth
Is, that Mrs. Aver Is not responsible for this.
She was not responsible for her actions be-
fore she started for Europe and the trustees
had to meet and take action about her prop
erty. That was the way in which came
to be made assistant treasurer Of the COM
pany."
The New York Herald hints that Mrs.
Aver, in her remarkable charges against
Miss Howard. her own daughter, her daugh-
ter's husband and her daughters husbands
father, is impelled by the evil effects of an
Herald says: zone good thing about the
extraordinary STORY brought to light by the
suit Of Mrs. Harriet Hubbard Aver against
james M. Seymour is that it will probably
impress upon the public mind the fact that
there is great danger In the continued use of
the drug sulfoual. The average man and
woman are aware of the dreadful enslave-
ment that succeeds persistent resourse to
opium, chl0ral, ether and other commonly
known opiates and anasthetics. But sui
fonal is comparatively strange word. The
mention of 1t does not make one watchful.
And yet this drug is one OF the most ter
rible OF slave masters. Like chloral, it
tempts its victim with relief from care and
with sweet repose. At first it is a good
friend, bringing comfort and consolation.
Then 1t annoys. like an acquaintance who
persists in coming without being invited.
Finally it develops into a sleepless demon,
who tortures his prey until death comes to
the rescue. Sulfonal has its place in medi-
cine and plays its proper part in allaying
subtle disorders, but it Is not to be used ex-
cept with great caution. The trouble about
such matters Is that the evil qualities of
drug do not become notorious until the num-
Der Of its victims is so great that there is
general outcry. Cocaine was for a long time
lavishly employed to ease pain regardless Of
the frightful consequences. Ordinary peo-
pie supposed it to be an innocent medicine.
The warning came only when hundreds Of
lives were wrecked"