The San Francisco call., 1895-07-30
ANNA HATHAWAY ESTATE.
Her Brother Will Make {
Strong Fight Against Its
Disposition.
Charles Barrow Claims That 1t Was
Through Him His Sister Got
Her Money.

Charles Barrow, one of the brothers of
the late Anna Hathaway, who bequeathed
nearly all of an estate worth between $780,
600 ana $4,000 10 the First Unitarian
Church and members of the congregation,
has set out to make a stubborn fight for
what he thinks are the rights of himself
and his brother and sister.
Mr.. Barrow, the contestant, claims
among other interesting asseverations, that
it was through him that the sister and her
second husband, Hathaway, made nearly
the whole of the fortune of which the
former died possessed.
The contest is very interesting. Mrs.
Hathaway died on or about the 2Sth of
December last, aged 20 years. Ever since
her husbands dea tn, which occurred about
three wears before, she had boarded and
lodged by herself. In the language of the
contesting brothers complaint, she be-
came interested in religion about year
prior to her death. She was a constant
attendant on the services at the First Uni
tartan Church and received much kindly
attention from the pastor, the Rev. Mr..
Stebbins and several members of the con-
gregation.
Some time prior to her demise, so the
complaint relates, she was induced to move
from where she had been boarding with
old friends for some time, and take rooms
IN lodging house on Sutter street. After
she had become comfortably ensconced in
her new quarters she received redoubled
attention from her church friends.
When she died it was learned she had
left her two brothers and one sister $500
each and to her mother the income on
$1,000, the principal to revert to the di-
yorced wife of one of testatrix's brothers
on the death of the mother, who is over 80
years old. The rest of the estate was be-
queathed to comparative strangers, among
the twenty or thirty legatees being the
Rev. Mr.. Stebbins $1,000, the church of
which he is pastor similar sum, to c.. a.
Murdoch $4,000, and to the others sums
ranging from 500 to $5000
Charles Barrow, who brings the contest,
is nearly 20 years of age and was at one
time an extensive mine and mill owner in
Siskiyou County. The principal ground
of his contest is that of undue influence.
Before bringing the suit he received letters
of guardianship from the Probate Court as
guardian ad Item of his aged mother. He
says that number of years ago, when he
was more prosperous than he now is, he
assisted his sisters husband, Hathaway
and furnished the latter with information
whereby he made over $4,000 which at
the time constituted the bulk of their for
tune It is his intention to carry the case
10 Tie ulRucSI COuIGS anu Iudh6 lHG leSd-
tees show their right to the estate or COM
pei them to step aside and let it go to the
heirs-at-law. He claims that his sister
was easily Influenced, and in support of
his assertion sets forth that prior to her
death her numerous new-found friends
were in the habit of going to her for small
sums without security-securing them vir-
tually as gifts-runnIng all the way from
$40 to $500.
To this is supplemented the statement
that Mrs. Hathaway was persuaded to sell
a piece of property on Sutter street for
SIC, 900, and that she received out of that
amount only $14, 600. And of that $14, 900,
it is further alleged, she had but few hun
dred dollars left at the time of her taking
off. This is mentioned as having a con-
frmatory bearing on the assertion that she
gave sums of money 10 any and all of her
friends who might need it and had the
nerve to make the demand.
Z. ]. Prindle, who represents G. A. Muir
dock and several of the other legatees,
based his demurrer and motion for dismis-
sal on the ground that as long as the
mother of the testatrix is alive brother
is not the proper one to bring the contest.
The mother has guardian, who, being
satisfied with the income of $4,000, did not
elect to bring suit.
The contestants attorneys-W. T. Bag
gett, w. H. Llnforth and II. III. McPike-
claim that contestants appointment as
guardian ad htem meets and nullifies the
objections of the legatees. The motion for
dismissal was hotly contested.