The San Francisco call., 1895-10-07
TO DEFEND THE LUX WILL.
Some Allegations That Will Be
Made by the Accused
EXECUTORS.
THE POWER BEHIND POTTER.
If the VIII Holds Good the Con-
testant VIII Lose His Be-
quest Entirely.

Jesse SletOOQ fOIJer ana Cne interests
that lie behind him have had their say in
in the petition for the revocation of the
last Will of Mrs. Lux, the mother of the
person whose name appears as petitioner.
Now the other side is beginning to talk
and will before long file an answer to Jesse
Sheldon Fotters petition that promises to
be quite as interesting in its way as have
been the sensational allegations of the
plaintiffs.
To begin with the other side, represented
by Attorney Delmas as counselor for
Thomas B. Bishop, the respondent, claim
that Henry Miller is the moving power in
this suit; that Jesse Potter is but the
mouthpiece, and is permitting himself to
be put forward merely for the purpose of
retarding the long overdue settlement of
the Lux estate.
Jesse Potter's allegations that his mother
was of unsound mind at the time she made
the WILL and that she was influenced un-
duly by Mr.. Bishop and her niece, Mrs.
Lewis, are denounced as pure fabrications
that will be readily disproven.
1t is pointed out, too, that by this action
OF Jesse Potter, he has recklessly placed in
jeopardy his entire interest in the estate,
and that should his contest of the will fail
he will be thrown upon the charity of the
executors, whom he now seeks to dislodge.
For there is very clear and plainly stated
provision in the will of Mrs. Lux which
declares that whoever among the heirs
and legatees seeks to contest the document
shall thereby forfeit their share of the es-
tace, which shall "forever lapse and be
null and void"
And to substantiate their claim that
jesse Potter is not acting for himself alone
in the case that is now fairly opened, the
respondents point out that the petitioner
himself has nothing to gain by the setting
aside of the will, under the terms of which,
it is said, he and his only son were most
literally provided for, the will giving to
the father the entire income from the vast
estate, excepting the $250,000 bequeathed
to charity.
Each and all of the accusations con-
tanned in that petition signed by Jesse
Potter are unqualitiedly false in every par
ticular," said Thomas B. Bishop yester-
day. "There is not one word of truth in
any one of them. Mrs. Lux was one of
the clearest-headed women who ever lived.
No woman was ever more competent to
make will than she was on the day that
the instrument was signed. She knew
every word OF its contents, and every
clause in it was an expression of her
wishes.
"She understood every word of it per-
fectly and absolutely, and in every partic-
ular it was her will and not that, in the
slightest respect, of any other person. She
was woman no one could influence or
control in her judgments. In that respect
she surpassed any other woman 1 ever
knew.
'Her will is very simple in its general
provisions. After giving, according to my
recollection now, about $3.50, 600 for chari-
ties and for the benefit of some of her kin,
she beqeathed outright the sum of $100, 900
to her son, Jesse Potter, together with all
the income from the entire property as
long as he lived.
Upon the death of Jesse Potter one
bird of the estate is to be held in trust
or his son, one-half of which is to be paid
him at his majority and the remaining half
when he should be 80 or 80 years of age-I
do not now recall the exact age. Another
third of the estate is to be divided among
surviving relatives or their heirs, and the
last third is reserved for founding an in
dustrial school.
"She also directed her executors, pend
ing the settlement of the estate, to make
the most liberal provision for her son and
her grandson, giving them power, if neces-
sary, to mortgage the entire estate III order
to provide for them.
"Of course we shall fight the petition
filed by Jesse Potter. 1t is false in every
respect and when the time comes we will
prove that"
There is great deal more claimed by
the respondents than Mr.. Bishop is will
ing to say at this time, and it is more than
likely that before the case is heard in court
even, there will be some very interesting
developments. 1t is asserted by the pro-
ponents of the will now sought to be
broken that the present suit has been in
stituted merely to postpone and prevent,
if possible, the hearing of the suit recently
entered in San Mateo County by the ex.
ecutors of the Lux estate, demanding from
Henry Miller speedy settlement of the
one-third interest in the firm of Miller &
Lux, which comprises the total estate be-
queathed by the will, which its chief
beneficiary now seeks to invalidate.