The Jersey City news. (Jersey City [N.J.]) 1889-1906, 1893-02-25
Henry C. Adams Put in a
Bad Light by Chancellor
McGi11's Gordon Will
Decision.
THE ALLEGED WILL REJECTED.
Proponents Will Appeal-Adams'
Impeachment and Expert Testi-
mOny Influenced the Court.

Chancellor McGiil has decided that the
alleged will offered for probate by Henry
c. Adams of Woodbridge as the testa-
ment of George P Gordon, the printing
press inventor and manufactures. Is q
forgery. The decision has been fled at
| Trenton.
Gordon was millionaire when he died,
in 1873 His will made in 1873 was rejected
by Surrogate George B. Albeit in Brook
lyn, because Of a technical irregularity,
and the estate was partitioned
between Gordon's daughter, Mary Agnes
Gordon, and his widow. Gordon lived
for many years in a fine residence at
Woodbridge. near Railway. and for few
yea rs before his death he also had cost.
ly house on Columbia Heights, which is
now part of the estate. Henry G.
Adams lives on farm worth S32, ,000. ad-
| joining the Gordon place at Ridgewood.
which is now owned by Mr.. Savage.
A FORTUNATE ARTIST.
| After the PARTITION of the estate, Mary
Agnes Gordon travelled in Europe, ac-
| companied by her maid, Pauline Teresa
| Reitz, recently of Fort Lee. She died in
| Switzerland and bequeathed all her prop
| erty TO Samuel Ruyssenaers, of Holland,
| an artist whom she met in her travels
| excepting "a small bequest and soma
! bric-a-brac and jewelry 10 her maid. This
will was offered for probate In New York.
| and was contested by kindred of the tess
| tator. Its litigation has been held in
| allegiance pending the result of the con.
test before Chancellor McGill.
ADAMS STORY.
Henry e. Adams swore that when he
read of the litigation over the will OF
Mary Agnes Gordon he remembered that
| in 1868 he drafted will for George P,
| Gordon, and that Gordon left it in the
| Adams house at Woodbridge. He
| searched and found it, and very soon af.
ter brought it to Chancellor McGill.
| The will was in brown envel.
parchment paper. Chancellor McGiil
broke the seal. The document was
dated July 25, 1868. It named Henry C.
| Adams ds administrator, and had the
| names of his father and two brothers,
| who were dead in 1891. as witnesses. I5
| gave the widow moderate bequest and
| the daughter less than she received by the
Surrogate's partition. Adeline J. Gordon,
| the sister, and Albert Sydney Doans, OF
! Railway, the nephew of Gordon, were
generously treated. 1t was considered
| Significant that the will directed that the
| Adams farm be purchased for an extern
sion of the printing press factory.
AN INTERESTING OLD MAN.
Henry Z. Adams Is u lawyer. and al
author of law books. He formerly lived
and ptacticed law at Fort Plains. n.
Y. He is well advanced toward eighty,
| but his faculties showed no sign OF decay
during the trial. He is tall and well pro-
portfoned and his long. white flowing
| hair and Intelligent impressive face make
him picturesque figure.
THE TRIAL.
The trial began in May last and with
| occasional APPOINTMENTS occupied the
| Chancellor's attention during the sum-
| mer and in September. Ex-Mayor Gilbert
| Collins was chief counsel for the pro-
| ponents Adeline J. Gordon, Albert sgd
ney Dosne and others, and was
asber able UorPln m,sr ana
| New York led fierce fight for the obs
! iectors. Mr.. Van Wyck, who married
| Gordon's widow, Lenora NJ. Van Wyck
| and Samuel Ruyssensers. Mrs. Van
| Wyck died two years ago, and her hus-
,,1 band inherited inherited her her. property by
| lyn, who divided the Gordon estate. and
! Mr.. Savage, whose title to the Gordon
farm was at stake. joined forces with the
| objectors. William I. Day was the spec
ial attorney of Samuel RuYssenaers. and
| General William F. Albeit appeared for
William w. OId. the executor of Mrs,
| Van Wyck's will Barker Gummere
was associated with the objectors.
| Much expert testimony was taken on
both sides. The obiectors brought ex-
perts who swore that the Adams will was
written with iosine. an ink Invented in
1888, tive years after the date of the will.
| The veracity of Henry G. Adams
was impeached by several wit"
nesses from Fort Plain, notably
| by Judge Fisher who swore that Adams
reputation for veracity was bad when he
| lived in Fort Plain thirty years ago, but
nothing very damaging was specifically
shown against the old mans character.
TF7 OPINION.
| Chancellor Nc, llI's opinion is long ana
able. He thinky that the with was copied
in 1879 from the genuine, but defective
Brooklyn will. The language is largely
| identical. The Chancellor finds that
Adams would derive about 5000 year
| from his interest in the proceeds OF
| the farm If it should be sold according to
| the will. This is a small incentive, ths
Chancellor admits. but it might bs snf-
| ficient to man. of frugal habits.
Henry C. Adams is said to
be very frugal. The Chancellor
| was influenced by the impeachment
of Adams, although the proponents
| brought many witnesses who certlned TO
| their complete faith in his good character
| The expert testimony in reference to the
iosine ink also had weight with tina
Chancellor.
MR.. COLLINS WILL APPEAL.
| Ex-Mayor Gilbert Collins said today
| that he had conferred with the pro-
pUucAIo cdu az apPOoA w wv OON.n "a
| Errors was decided upon. Mr.. Collins
| believes the will is genuine. He could
not believe that ADAMS would have
| laid so deep plan of forgery for $500 a
year because the old man has thousands
of dellars in his fathers estate invested
| in New York which he could take at any
| time. But from Quixotic regaId
| for the wish of his father who
desired that the New York property
| should remain intact, Henry G. Adams
| has kept his hands from W hat is his own
| to this day. He has II per cent interest,"
in his, fathers estate. The
most plausa0ls theory of forgery,
| Mr.. Collins thinks, is that Adams drafted
the will for Gordon in good faith IN 1858,
| but that 1t was never signed until Adams
| heard of the contest in New YORK.
Weather indications.
WASHINGTON, Feb. p, 1885,. Weather ind.