Los Angeles herald., 1891-05-27
PRINCESS HATZFELDT
She Owns the County Jail
Property
And the South Wing Of he
Court House,
Together With Her Sisters and Her
Brothers.
President @. p. Huntington, as Tru$ee,
Will Have the Claim Prosecuted
The Facts of the Case.

| Her Highness the Princess HatzRldt
and her brothers and sisters own the
Los Angeles county jail, and the sd nth
wing of the new court house. What is
more Her Highness intends to take pos
session of her property, and to this end
the machinery of the law is about I'd be
set in motion.
Here's pretty state OF things. HeIe's
how de do. The case will be contested
Of course in the courts, but there seems
to be very little doubt but that Prssi-
dent G. P. Huntington, of the Southern
Pacific company, as trustee for the Spd-
dard heirs, ,sof whom Princess Hatzfeldt is
one, can show clear title to the property
and will either take it or force the Gty
to buy it from him at fancy figure.
Who is responsible for this blundbr
Quien sabe. There have been sev{ral
abstracts made of the title, and these
have been approved by the superviI Iors
and the district attorney. Like most of
the blunders by which the public suffers,
the responsibility will doubtless be
shifted from one to another, and no one
will be held responsible.
The property involved consists of $50
feet, beginning on the Fulton block line
and running north on New High street
that distance, and extending clear back
to Broadway. AS stated above, It in
cludes the land on which is located the
county Jail and the south wing Of the
new court house.
Attorney @. G. Stephens ascertained
the defect in the county's title to this
property, and he and Judge Bicknell
have been retained by Mr.. Huntington
to prosecute the claim. The story in
brief is as follows:
The county's title to the property in
question was derived by deed from
the city. The city had years ago granted
portion of the land now occupied by
the new court house to Alexander Bell
for residence location. Mrs. Bell did
not like the place and Bell decided it
back. 1t was claimed for time that
he had decided it with a condition that
it was to be used for school purposes or
revert to his heirs, but the deed does
not show this, and this story is denied
by Ex-Governor Downey who was wit
ness to the transfer. But be this as it
may, by some error, Bell in transferring
the property back to the city included
in the deed property which he did not
own, but which was portion of the
Stoddard property. The Stoddards
formerly owned large section of the
block, and now own the northeast cor
ner of Broadway and Franklin street.
Mr.. Huntington's first wife was sis
ter of Mr.. Stoddard of the San Antonio
cafion, who is the father of Princess
Hatzfeldt and father of Mr.. Hunting
toms two nephews, the Stoddard boys,
who are railroad men on the Yuma di-
vision of the Southern Pacific road, and
of Mrs. 1. w. Lord. Mrs. Huntington
at her death left Mr.. Stoddard a life in
terest in the Los Angeles property, with
a reversion to Princess Hatzfeldt and
the Stoddard boys and girls at his
death.
The attorneys for Mr.. Huntington, the
trustee for these heirs, claim with con-
siderable reasons that their title is COM
plete. The county, it is understood,
claims that the statute of limitations
will cover the matter, but this is open to
doubt; and the chances are excellent
that through some official stupidity the
county will be put to great loss and
trouble. The intrinsic value of the land
itself is about $3.50, 900, exclusive of any
claims for rentals that may be made,
and exclusive of the value of the build
ings.