The Salt Lake herald. [volume] (Salt Lake City [Utah]) 1870-1909, 1889-05-22
MRS. AYERS MONEY.
An Interesting Account Of the
l. Attempts Against Her.
SHE WAS POISONED IN GERMANY,
SO She AIleges-Roger A. Pryor VIII Try to
Prove that the Plaintiff is
Fraud.

NEW YORK, May -I.-4u Jhc tOuiI VI
common pleas, before Judge DAILY, there
was begun yesterday what can scarcely
fail to become a cause cclebre. It is a case
which treats not alone OF conspiracy, but
fraud, forgery and perjury, and does not
lack allegations Of attempted murder.
These startling accusations made their APP
pearance hidden beneath a simple mo
ton to render an injunction permanent.
The plaintiff was Mrs. Harriet Hubbard
Aver. a woman wei known in this city, as
well as in Chicago, her former home; and
the defendant was James NJ. Seymour,
Wall street man of the banking house Of
Seymour, Baker x Co,
Mrs Ayers motion was one to make per
1aaueut temporary injunction restraining
Seymour from exercising any rights TO
ownership in the ReCamler company stock,
while Seymour was 20 set aside the com
plant in the action brought by Mrs. Aver
Tor an accounting The reading of Mrs
Ayers collection OF affidayiJs is presented
by her lawyers. DIN and Fox, created
tremendous sensation.
Mrs Ayers counsel claimed that in pur
surauce Of u conspiracy to rob Mrs Aver
OF her stock. to destroy her reason and
place her in an asylum for the insane, ult-
,H,ately to secure her whole property, her
Hfe had been endangered, her health per
mauenty wrecked and business IrreDarably
injured.
In answer to this, James Seymour. assis-
taut treasurer of the Recamier Manufac-
turing company, of which Mrs Aver IS
president. and A. Lewis Seymour, treasurer
of the company, entered through their
counsel ROdger 4. Pryor and Edward H.
Cahil, entered a general denial, they ig
nOred almost exclusively accusations as TO
Illegal holding OF stock, but asserted in
their answer that Mrs. Aver was an ire
spOnsible immoral and disSipated person.
After vainly attempting to hold the de
PENDANTS to the question OF stock, Lawyer
DIN read a portion Of the testimony given
by James NJ. Seymour before the LithO-
graphing company last October IN which he
swOre he owned no stock in the Recamier
company. The plight of General PrEor at this
point was lumcrouS. Your HONOR he said
81 never heard of that before. Er--er-possi-
bly, it can be explained" and with that he
left the court room.
At this point OliH, with his uplifted hand
in the face of the younger Seymour, referred
to him as a fOrger liar, thief and conspir-
itOr. and as an answer, the young man, who
turned a shade winter than before, hastily
left the room without u word.
Upon the conclusion Of the reading
of ). the afidavits Roger A. Pryor
a%ered upon lOrg 3i5ClrSive argument
Upon the technical issues involved in the
two motions.
In her complaint. Mrs. Aver says that
A. Lewis Seymour married her daughter
Harriet Aver, November Il, 1888. He now
acts as trustee and treasurer of the Reca-
mier Manufacturing company. She is
president. his father James NJ. Seymour,
assistant treasurer.
Prior TO April l. ISL, the complaint says
that Mrs. Aver was engaged in the manu-
facture of proprietary articles, the recipes
Of which she was the sole owner.
The business promising to be profitable,
at the suggestion of James NJ. Seymour,
of the Wall street firm Of Seymour, Baker
& Company, the Recamier Manufacturing
company was formed. The capital stock,
consisting of 1000 shares of the par value
of $50 was issued to her for the purchase of
the recipes, trade marks and for the bust
ness.
As working capital Mrs. Aver advanced
s. 900 to the company. James M. Seymour
loaned 8, 900, which she put into the COM
pauy, the agreement being that she was to
Aepay Seymour, giving as security 49S shares
OF the capital stock. Seymour specialized
in Wall street for Mrs. Aver. From time
to time he reported large sums placed to
her credit and that the profits applied to
the reduction of the loan of $1,000.
In May, 1888, Mrs. Aver was taken sick.
Ia June she removed to her summer resi-
Ssence at Mont Clair, n. J. Last December
she sailed for Europe to visit her youngest
daughter, Margaret, at Stuttgart, under
the care of Miss Blanche Howard.
The complaint reads as follows about
May, 1855. as the plaintiff is informed and
believes, the defendants, James NJ and A.
Lewis Seymour, conSpired with other per
sons, to the plaintiff unknown, to obtain
possession of the plaintiff 5 stock in said
corporation and exclude the plaintiff
wholly. For this purpose, continuing to
the present time the defendants conspired
to destroy plaintiff s health and reason and
have plaintiff rendered or considered in
sane and unfit to manage her own affairs.
in pursuance of this conspiracy James
NJ and A. Lewis Seymour administered
and caused to be administered in New
York, and at Stuttgart, dangerous drugs
and excessive quantities of bromide of
lithia and sulforal.
1.-THE defendants endeayored to persuade
plaintiffs daughter that plaintiff was in
sane, and falsely stated that physicians
had stated she was insane; and that she
was informed by cable OF all movements Of |
plaintiff and that the letters and tele-
grams to plaintiff in Europe were false"
Subdivision of the complaint says: 1.-THE
defendants sent a forged telegram purport-
ing TO be signed by E. B. Grubb."
The complaint charges James NJ. Sey-
mour with robbing the plaintiff and alleges
that during December, 1888, James NJ. Sey-
mour fraudulently obtained access to the
residence of plaintiff and opened her closet, |
trunks and bags flched her letters and re
ceipts.
Accompanying the complaint are the aft
alavits of Mrs. Aver, Amelia Fuller, her
Nlsundress; Lima Raymond, maid; Dr.J. w. |
Pinkerton, of Mont Clair That of Lima |
Raymond is interesting, as it treats of the
alleged attempt at poisoning.
Miss Raymond accompanied Mrs. Aver !
to Europe in 1888. The affidavit reads: |
I'VE reached Stuttgart December %. |
Christmas, Mrs Aver told me she had de-
cided to try DR.. Teuffels treatment for in
somania for a week The following day
she began treatment. Miss Howard told |
me that she was responsible to DR.. TeHffel,
. and | would have TO obey her. Miss
AHewar' gave Mrs. Aver medicine
Miss howard told me the medicine was
sulforal. One evening, between 10 and
II O'clock saw Miss Howard give Mrs.
Aver this medicine three times. She
mixed two powders at a time for a dose
with water. l asked her to show NE how
to prepare them in case | should need to
give them. She mixed two together to
show me- The effect upon Mrs. Aver
was first nauseating, then Supplying and
very weakening NAfter the third day she
became entirely unconscious and remained
so for twelve days. It'waS Impossible to
arouse her. For ten days | could not move
her sufficiently to change the linen. She
was much of the time delirious, imagining
herself at Mont Clair, and talking as If at
H.ese places. Several times during these
twelve days found Mrs. Aver totally un-
conscious on the floor, where she had
fallen from the bed. begged Miss Howard
A hermit me to remain with nv mistress,