The herald., 1896-12-19
AN OPINION BY JUDGE CLARK
Semi.Annual Report Filed BY the County
Auditor
The VaIenzuela.tiguera Case still Attracts
Attentio1
A Judges Commissioned Herald
Damage Suit-Complaint Against
F'ilio Luchetti-Suit Over
Boundary Lines.

The case Of Isabel Spencer against
Anna P. Spencer, in which from 100000
to s150,000 is involved and certain sensa-
tional charges made, was called yester-
day in department four, before Judge
Van Dyke.
On June 5th of last year Ambrose H.
Spencer died intestate and worth, SO the
plaintiff alleges. ABOUT s100. 900. Two chill
dren were left as offspring of a previous
marriage, Eva and James G.. Spencer.
The interests of these two children have
been assigned to plaintiff as against the
defendant, who is the widow of Ambrose
H. Spencer.
L. F. Moss represents the plaintiff and
f. H. Lamme is defendants counsel.
Yesterday when the case came to trial
Mr.. Moss made epresentation tha- in
asmuch as he had been very seriously
indisposed he had retained the services
of ]. Swannick as associate counsel. He
had been compelled. however, to take
rest from business and had not been able
to instruct him in the details of the case,
which was intricate in both law and fact,
and for that reason he asked that the
case be continued for ten or twelve days.
Defendants counsel objected, alleging
that one witness was present from San
Francisco and that this was the second
time that he had been brought down.
After a prolonged discussion the court
continued the trial of the case until jan
uary 5th on the understanding that the
plaintiff pay $50 to defray the travelling
expenses of the witness from the north
A check for that amount was drawn by
Mr.. Moss and the matter ended for the
time.
The story as told by the plaintiff in
her complaint is romantically strange in
its various phases.
1t Is claimed that before her marriage
to the late Ambrose Spencer the defend
ant Anna P. Spencer, conceived plan
by which to get hold of the old man S
money While he was old she was wo-
man of great force of mind and charac-
ter: youthful. robust and passionate,
and in every way possessing attributes
in marked contrast with those of the
aged husband. who was retiring and
timid. Becoming addicted to the NOR
phne habit the young wife encouraged
him in it, and oft times administered it
to him. AS might be supposed under
these circumstances old man Spencer's
will power sank to the zero point, and he
became utterly subservient to the will
and control of his young wife.
d
power of her husband to a state of alb
solute insignificance, it is claimed that
the wife, with the proclvities of the
Lucrezia Borgia order, proceeded to car
ry out her plan of obtaining to her own
use the husbands fortune. She forced
and compelled him to deliver to her all
his personal property and convey to her
much real estate of which he was pos
sessed at that time.
", ,1otv oil nho fhof I've
| Anna Spencer was guilty of "acts of in
fidelity, and particularly guilty of a
! shameful liaison and frequent adulteries
| with one Newton, married man, to
such an extent as to cause separation
! between said Newton and his wife, re-
| sulting in divorce between them" Mr..
| Spencer had some suspicion or knowl-
edge of his wife's wrong doing, and such
| knowledge, together with old age and
| the morphine habit, broke him down Sc
completely that he took his own life in
| June. 1895. At least that is what the
plaintiff claims, but the court ordered
| the paragraph referring to the alleged
infidelities stricken out as being scan
dalous and. presumably. not strengthen
| ing the legal points involved.
From the very first the case has been
| complicated and there We're two amend
ed complaints filed. and two amended
answers. AS might be supposed, such q
series of allegations as indicated above
are not unchallenged. The defendant
makes general denial and says that the
property of her late husband came into
her possession in a perfectly legitimate
| way and in strict accordance with just
ice. Also that she used every menas OF
persuasion to restrain her late husband
from the habit he had contracted of TAX
ing morphine, and that all and each Of
the allegations preferred are false and
| utterly untrue.
The purpose of the suit is to compel the
defendant to give an accounting of the
rents, issues and profits Of all the lands
described as held by Ambrose Spencer
subsequent to his death; that it be held
by the court that all lands received by
the defendant from him be held in trusI
for his heirs; that all gifts and convey
ances be declared null and void and can.
celed.