The herald., 1897-01-23
ANOTHER WILL CONTEST
Over the Estate of Sonora
Conception Alaniz
MADAME CASENAYE THE SOLELEGAIEE
Rouses the Opposition OF the
Entire Family
PATHOS IN EXCELSIS
The Lachrymose Habit Of Barthelman
Gone Into Fully
And Medical Experts Pass Opinions on Hypo.
thetical Cases
Taylor, the Amateur Detective in the
Smith Divorce Case. Released by
Rouses the Opposition Of the
Entire Family
The Lachrymose Habit Of Barthelman
Gone Into Fully
And Medical Experts Pass Opinions on Hypo.
theticaI Cases
Taylor, the Amateur Detective in the
Smith Divorce Case. Released by
Habeas Corpus-Buchanan of the
Same Ilk Also Released

same llk Also f1eledSeQ
Is it possible that the last will and
testament of any deceased individual
| can be made to stand? That is legal
| counudrum.
| 1t is an old saying that a coach and
six can be driven through the best will
that ever was drawn, ana in the light
Of what has befaller the wills of numer-
Gus legal luminaries, who might have
been supposed to have been fully aware
of the quirks and bubbles of the law.
it seems as If there exists much truth
in the saying.
| Yesterday contest was inaugurate6
in department two before Judge Clark
and jury, having for its purpose the
| breaking of the last vii. and testament
of Sonora Conception Alaniz. who died
| in this city on July II, 1886. having con-
siderable property, consisting of about
| s10.080 in the bank and certain residence
property on Crocker street, the estate
being valued in the petition at $4,000,
but estimated by the contestants at
| $50, 900.
The disputed will was filed for pro-
! bate by Sonora A. Conception W. de
Ruoio, who is named as the executrix.
and by it's provisions the entire estate
isgiven to Sonora Cayetana Alaniz de
| Casenave, a niece and adopted daugh-
| ter of the deceased. One dollar apiece
was left to all the other nephews and
nieces. and these determined to have
a crack at the old lady's ducats, and
| filed their contest.
LEGAL COUNSEL GALORE.
And now what fat picking for the
| lawyers! Juan J. b. B. Lelong and Vic
/ tor Lelong are represented by Appel G.
Whitney Juan Bautista NJ. Lelong by
Charles w. Chase, Esq. Maria Luisa
| Begue and Dorotea Alaniz Pool by r.
L. Horton, Esq. On the other side j. H.
| Brousseau, Esq, represents the inter-
ests of Madame Casenave. the benef-
ciary under the will, while H. F.. Cor
don, Esq. and D. Mcdonald. ESQ.,, ap-
| pear for the proponents.
The grounds of contest are peculiar
| to the lay mind, for they seem to in
| clude so much. Al kinds of charges are
| made. and while under one averment
| one thing is alleged in the very next
| this may be contradicted and another
and altogether different state of things
alleged. The Donna Conception was an
aged lady of "A y5ars when the will was
drawn on June q, 1895, which the con-
testants allege is not her will at all.
That it was never subscribed by her,
nor by any person with her authority;
that the name of Conception Alaniz was
not signed in the presence of the per-
sons purporting to be the attesting wit
nesses. nor was the signing or subscrip-
tion acknowledged by the decedent to
! the witnesses. This is qualified some
| what by the contestants saying that a.
! the time of subscribing or aoknowledg-
| ing the document the testator did not
declare to the attesting witnesses that
the document was her will; that there
never were two attesting witnesses to
the will, and that the names subscribed
never We're SO at the request of the tes-
tatrix.
Growing exuberant under the number
and variety of objections the contest
ants further allege that for four years
preceding the date of the will the Donna
| Conception was of unsOund mind and
Incompetent being weak and debilitat-
ed in mind and body and quite unable
| to transact any business whatever
Also. that the will made subscribed and
acknowledged in the presence of COM
petent witnesses-thus conceding what
heretofore had been specifically tanied
! was made by decedent whel c,oS free
! from undue influence. and atel she
was subject to and under III control
| of Cayetana Alaniz de Casmave and
Conception w Rubio, the sole dev;see
and legatee of the Will.
CONSPIRACY AND FRAUD
Long prior to 1890. it is claimed Caye-
tana and. Pierre Casenave conspired to
defraud the decedent of her property.
| and contrived to have her deed her
property 10 Pierre Casenave. and he
in turn decided it to his wife Cayetana
!
to the courts, where it was determined
that for a number of years, and on ac-
count of the confidence, esteem and af-
fection for Cayetana, her aunt had
decided to her adopted daughter and her
husband her property in trus and al
loved them to manage her estate. They.
taking advantage of the situation had
designed to cheat her out of S23 600 by
inducing her 10 make over the property
by deed Of gift. This state of affairs.
| il IS claimed. continued to the time of
the old lady's death.
Being very old SO feeble as to be
confined largely to bed, and illiterate
rot understanding English, it is con-
tended that the conditions of the will
were not properly read to her but that
it was represented that the estate would
be proportiorately distributed among
the heirs, and being unable to read. of
weak mind and under coercion, she
signed the document.
The contestants get another slap at
Ma adlame CassnaNe when they allege
that she poisoned the mind of her aunt
against the other members of the ia M
irl and caused her to look coldly upon
them
All these allega lions appear as mesh
es in the legal dra agnet, and if one line
Of charge does not serve to k-oot
chunks out of the will, then probably
another line will In this way it is pos
sible, under the law. for the contestant.
to suppose one state of facts in one ale
cation and suppose Just exactly thc
reverse in the next allegation.
HARD SWEARING ANTICIPATED
Naturally, to sustain such widely di
versified charges, many Witnesses will
be required. The contestants, it il
said, are ready TO call about ninety
all of Whom Will uncer oath swear It
certain facts, and the defense Will pu
forward about half that number, wht
VIII most pertinaciously swear to fact
exactly opposite to the contestants