The morning call., 1894-04-25
Florence Blythe Is Sole
HeiresS
TO T. II. BLYTHE'S MILLIONS.
Judge Coffey Sustained by the
Supreme Court.
AFTER NEARLY FOUR YEARS
An Important Decision That Has
Been Awaited With interest by
Many Expectanf Claimants.

After term of litigation lasting nearly
five years the great contest over inc heir.
ship to the estate of the late Thomas II
Blythe has been finally determined. The
Supreme Court has decided that Florence
Blythe Hinckley is the rightful heir to the
four millions of accumulated property
and that all other claims to the estate are
barred through simple want Of lega
status.
The history of this case has been more
than extraordinary. Blythe was man OF
some prominence, of course, in this State,
but not until the day of his death was i:
ever supposed that through him would
arise one of the greatest lawsuits that this
vast continent has yet produced. That ii
is now practically settled is in itself a
refutatioA of the theory held by so many
that not during the present era would a
litigation so much resem bling the Chancery
suits OF old ever be brought to a close.
Thomas Ii. Blythe was a citizen and
resident of this State from August 81. 1855,
up to tie day of his death, on April 4, 1888.
Blythe dying interstate there was qres-
ton as to who was to be appointed TO look
after his property. Public Administrators
death his successor, the late James c.
Pennie. was chosen to fill the vacancy.
Pennies death last year caused the present
Public Administrator, A. c. Freese, to
step into his place and take charge of an
estate that by careful management has
been relieved from what looked like in
solvency at one time. until now it has
reached proportions that have excited a
bitter contest lasting over many years.
Then came the question of claims to this
vast estate. The most formidable of all,
and the one which ultimately proved sue
eessful, was tbs claim put forward on be-
half of Florence, at that time a very young
girl, who claimed to be the daughter of
Julia Ashcroft NEE Perry by Thomas H.
Blythe, who was said to have lived with
her for some years during his lifetime.
Her claim was to the effect that she was
the only child and daughter of Blythe,
that she had been legally adopted, and that
Blythe left behind him no wife. no father,
no mother, brother, sister. nor next OF kin.
save on ~ and except the claimant.
Other claims 10 the estate were brought
forward by the Williams heirs. The claim
of Florence Blythe being based principally
upon the assumption that Thomas ii.
Thomas II. Williams and was in reality OF
| Welsh origin, it followed then that claim
should be set up on behalf of so-called
relatives of the decedent as WILLIAMS.
whose claim might be proved Oh the fore
going assumption, with the sole exception
of the disproving Of Florence'S claim TO be
considered Blythe's daughter. These
claimants were called the Williams heir:
collateral.
Then there was the Blythe Company
whose claim furnished the opinion rem
dered in the Supreme Court yesterday
which opinion governed the whole of the
claims submitted. This claim set forth
that Thomas H. Blythe was one Thoma;
! Blyth, born of Alexander Biyth and Mary
Weaver Blyth. and baptized in the churcl
of st. Nicholas, Liverpool. 1t was shown
that TON Biyth." as he was called, lief
nome in 1888 and was never again heare
of; one witness testified that Blvth in 1873
promised that he would be in Californi;
before him. the witness. Unfortunately
1t was testified that this man was of darl