The Seattle post-intelligencer. [volume] (Seattle, Wash. Terr. [Wash.]) 1888-1914, 1894-10-11
eOR KENYON'S MONEY.
rntest Over the Rich Mans
Will Fairly Begun.
q COMPETENCY IN QUESTION.
S-esessants Claim He was I'm y ssupor
Whss He signed the wfI1-P1Iisn
EnJoiss Hoks Smith.

ne legal fight over the Kenyon will
- eommencsd in earnest yesterday be-
- Judge Langley and mis- jury Of twelve
- a. advisors, and the interest in the
-ustsr vas made manifest by the large at
s...xsnce OF spectators. The small army
.xhuysrs on each side went fully priraed
~xh iexs objections and the entire morn
= gas consumed over the question as TO
~hseh side should bear the brunt OF the
tettle. or in other words, the burden Of
.1of The contestants of the will claimed
- this should be put on the executors.
e onIy as to the execution OF the will
q: also - to the soundness OF mind OF
- tessator Judge Langley decided that
= harden of proof must rest with the
e.ssssssnts The will. he said. must have
s,<n sithes probatsd or rejected In order
shst any one could come into court and
etsees 70 IL. Whether the will II Ken
zvoa's or not, the contestants come In un-
der the record showing proof Of will
RI. Lindsay. for the contestants, made
sks opening statement TO the jury. calling
assension 20 the importance of the case
md the large interests At stake, the ques-
xson Ringing on the validity Of the will.
Il valid the will should be declared so
Without hesitation. The proofs TO be ad-
Il AGED to the contrary would be as follows:
81 Gardner Kenyon, when OF tender years.
sn adopted by Mary kelsey. a school
eschsr. When he was years old Mary
Xeisey married the father Of Watson w.
Moore. and the child was brought up In
fhas family. In that family were W. W.
Moore. Eugene NJ. Moore, Josephine NJ.
Moore and the adopted child. j. Gardner
Ksnyon. Kenyon remained until he was
u OF ~ years Of age, then went out into
he world for himself. becoming a ventril-
oqu!st snd sleight-of-hand adept and Civ
Ing sisight-of-hand performances. He
cane West . pioneer, became rich and
died leaving between $500 900 and 500, 600
n real estate in Seattle and umDoldt,
eoanty. Cal.
In this city he became involved In liti-
patton Is To his right OF possession Of some
tds iands. Over this litigation he became
nsrvous and worried almost to death; he
employed . number of lawyers and dis
charged them one after another. aud I'm
tIiy invited Watson w. Moore, then In
Nsw York, to come TO Seattle to
ssnduet his legal business. Moore came,
bat after . time here had trouble
With Kenyon. BY exposure and worry
tss deceased brought on q disease Of the
brsn, diabetes, commonly supposed to
b. Ia the kidneys. but really in the brain.
From tho brain the nervous system be-
came Affected, and the disease had taken
sdealh grip on Kenyon two years before
. death. As the disease progressed the brain
hecsme less capable and his moral nature
became elunted. finally resulting in dia-
b<tIc coma Just prior to bis death Ken
yon, while in conversation, would begin
On some topic, drop Ii, take up another.
faaily bringing the talk TO . wagon he
thought he had invented years before
The disease attacked first the lower part
oths system, then the nervous system,
then the liver. which by some occult
process made too much sugar.
The Sunday before his death Kenyon
entered drug store on Third street,
iaiksd incoherentIy. sat down to wait for .
ear and dropped of to sleep. He svoke.
then went TO sleep again. There were
ether instances Of distured mind. When
Kenyon was sick ]. II. kunxis was called
IL asa brother Mason and found Judge
Palmer there. kunxls had no idea the
viii was TO be made, but IL was. Ii took
tao and half hours to execute the docu-
nsnt, covering page and half. fnfor-
nation could be- obtained from Kenyon
only by questioning and by mods OF the
hsad. Kenyon spoke only In monosyl-
laelss. The will was prepared IN 40 ad-
joining room. then read TO the dying man
sad be was asked II IL was his will. The
witness will testify that Kenyon said
Yes, yes--that's-my-wiii you
haven The attorney gave
agraphIc description Of the effort made by
TIE diving man to sign the will. He COM
msnesd aud made fairly J. then @ in
Gardner was partially formed. then the
recollection of the man seemed TO leave
him and he lapsed into . state of coma
iasensible 10 all about him. Rousing HIM
SELF again. the dying man tried 10 finish
the signature. The result was Just 80 II
aspidsr had sped over the sheet Of paper.
The attorney then reviewed the pro-
visions of the will in detail and the evi-
denee by which their iniusiice and the
Rental unsoandness of the tsstator were
sought TO be shown. The will probated
vas not an expression of the dead mans
desires. bat the result of disordered mind
and morally blunted nature. kenyon
died two days after the execution Of the
viii La closing. Mr.. Lindsay said that
The lsgstes named in the will. Benjamin
henyen. Was in Canada.
Ex-senator John b. Allen made eocn-
Yer statement 10 the jury for the executors
aud Ia support of the viii as IL exists.
The dearest right Of man was TO dispose OF
bis property as he wished. Men generally
deferred making their wills 10 the end OF
bic. kenyon's property in Caiifornis was
valued 81 st0, 90, and had q mortgage on
IL of sl7,0o0 The Seattle property vas
nostgsged for soa,eo0 Kenyon had no
~Iis. no children lie was . ventriloquist,
Snowman. At the age of Is he visited
TIE home of BENJAMIN Kenyon; they be-
sasns friends. aud Kenyon took Benjamin
iaso partnership. and the tso Travelled,
giving representations He next took np
TIE relationship of Watson W. Moore 10
hsnyon. Moore asked Kenyon for basi-
asss- When Moore came 10 the Coast
Asayoa gave him some legal matters 10
attend -. but the result Vas unsatisfsc~
tory. Moore VAS ksnyon's sgent as 10
rents. hsayon was active snd aggressive.
nan Of strong will. who took charge OF
as own property and dad SO aRtiI shoTs
hne before his death. lie sas exact IN
AIS business transactions. exacting re-
~sps Tor every dollar paid eas lae
As5Fy that 4 aeeses affected the intelaect
sss strongly contested BY Mr.. Alien.
Asayon, he said, nad that disease for tso
or iarse years before his death. On bs-
ssnesg - 1870. he Was eonnnsa 10 hs
kesss; CD Monday be Vas Sisi'sd ey
lsieaas who talked with him. and found
Assl A. Intelligent as ever. On Monday ne
sas ted OF the fatal nature OF AIS disease.