The morning news., 1897-01-16
DYES FORTUNE.
Fraud Charged Against the Lawyers
For the Heirs.

FOr the Heirs.
From the Atlanta (Ga) Constitution.
In the bill filed by Judge ]. N Worley
and Hon. T. w. Rucker, against Congress-
man W. NJ. Howard, Judge Hamilton Nc
| Whorter, George Grogan and John 2.
Shannon, fraud is alleged in obtaining the
signatures of the negro children of George
w. Dye to an agreement whereby each of
the five lawyers who defended the will
were to receive $1,000, and the two exec
utors 5000 each as an extra compensation.
Tney allege that the fees were exOrbitant,
and that the executors were entitled TO
nothing outside of their legal commission.
George w. Dye was an old bachelor who
had eight illegitimate children by negro
woman, who had herself been a slave in
the family. Two of the children were
born before the war, and at the time of
the death of Dye in the fall of 1898 all of
the children then living, seven in number,
were of age. The one who died left two
children, who were living at the time OF
Dyes death. Dye left a will in which he
bequeathed his entire estate to these chill
dren with the exception of $4,5OO in Spe-
cial legacies He left $1,000 in cash to his
nephew, w. II. Hawkins, who lived in
OglethoTpe county; $3.50 to Rev. j. II.
Grogan who was named in the will as
one of the executors, and the interest on
$1,000 to his brother, Martin Dye, for life,
the remainder to these negro children.
Martin Dye has since died and the $1,000
has been divided among the children.
The estate of Dyl was worth about S0
600 in cash, notes. land and personal prop
erty. 1t consisted in $4,000 cash, $13,60O
in land and 1000 in solvent notes-S19,0O0
of the cash was found al his house, $9,1
was taken from the bank in Augusta, and
the balance was realized from the sale of
cotton.
Rev. ]. H. Grogan and H. K. Gardner
were named as executors. They filed the
will for probate in the ordinary's Office
of EIbert county, and a caveat was filed
by the heirs at law. The case was first
tried before the ordinary, who sustained
the will and appeal was taken by the ca
veators to the superior court. At the first
trial Judge Hamilton McWhorter presided
and the jury made a mistrial. At the sec
ond trial Judge McWhorter had retired
from the bench and became one of the at
torneys for the will and Judge Seaborn
Reese presided. The jury sustained the
will at the second trial, and an appeal was
taken to the supreme court. The decis-
ion in the lower court was affirmed, set
ting up the we'll
After the judgment of the supreme court
setting up the will, suit was filed by the
state and county for $4,000 back taxes.
This suit was defeated by the executors.
Judge Hamilton McWhorter, Congress-
man w. M. Howard, Mr.. George c. Gro
. L T.
shannon were the attorneys for the will
Before the litigation was finished Executor
Rev. ]. II. Grogan died and his son, George
c. Grogan, one of the attorneys for the
Will, was appointed executor to fill the
vacancy. An agreement was obtained by
the attorneys for the will from the bene-
ficiaries, allowing the lawyers 5000 each
and 5000 each to the executors for extra
compensation out OF the estate S95, 900 in
cash went to the lawyers for the will and
the executors, in addition to the legal COM
mission allowed the executors.
These children have now employed coun-
sci and claim that they have never receiv-
ed a cent of the $4,000 left from the estate
of Dye and that they have only received
the land, amounting to 200 acres, and
valued at $12.600. They also admit that
$lU,000 insolvent notes was exchanged for
1000 acres of land, which they also re-
ceived, making in all 3,700 acres of land
received by them, valued al $23600. The
land, they claim, was bought from one of
the executors.
They charge that the agreement should
be set aside, and that the executors and
attorneys should be required to refund to
them all except reasonable charges. They
claim that the attorneys and executors re-
ceived all the cash from the estate, and
that nothing was given them, except the
land.
Judge P. P. Profiitt is not party to the
suft, as he has already been settled with
by the attorneys representing these chill
dren of Dye.
All the defendants are prominent peo-
pie, and among the foremost attorneys in
the state. The contest in the case prom
ises to be one of the most hotly contested
cases that has ever been tried in the
state.