The Scranton tribune. [volume] (Scranton, Pa.) 1891-1910, 1898-09-03

: Unless another interruption occurs
next Tuesday will witness the opening
of one of the most important trials
that has of recent years occupied the
attention of the United states circuit
court in this district and one which
will doubtlessly be famous for years to
come for the Vigor with which the OPP
posing sides will contend.
1t is the equity suit in which sixteen
alleged first cousins of the late Judge
John Handley are trying to possess
themselves of the residue of his estate,
a matter of nearly 100000 when 1t
becomes available, twenty years hence.
Leaving out the minor gifts, Judge
Handley's will bequeathed specifically
$2J0,000 to the City of Winchester to
build q public library: $4,000 to st.
Patrck's orphan asylum and $4,000 to
the House of the Good Shepherd. 1t
then went on to direct that certain
coal and lumber lands in Virginia and
West Virginia should be marketed and
that the proceeds should go to the City
of Winchester. st. Patricks Orphan
asylum and House of the Good Shep-
herd in the proportion of 80 1-3 per
cent. each. Whether this was to be
applied to paying the specific bequests
or to be considered an additional be-
quest is a disputed matter.
Judge Archibald decided that it was
TO be considered in the light of an ad-
ditional bequest. in an opinion deal
ing with the income tax feature of the
case, but the claimants contend against
his finding and will have the United
States courts pass upon it in dispos-
Ing T the present case.
THE REsIDUARY ESTATE.
Even though these revenues from
the southern coal and timber lands
should be doCreed to be additional
special bequests there is still large
residuary estate well worth fighting
for How much it amounts to is not
known by the claimants, but it is un-
derstood that the Scranton real estate
holdings form the bulk of it,
The claimants, to summarize, want
the whole estate with the execution of
the original specific bequests to Win
chester, the Orphanaee, the House of
the Good Shepherd and the minor ones
10 servants and the like. but if the
court decides that the disputed clause
means that the Virginia coal and tim
Der land revenues are an additional
specific bequest, then they want the
Scranton real estate and whatever 9TH
er residue the estate may develop at
settlement.
The item covering the residuary es-
tate reads as follows:
Item-All the rest and residue of my
estate l give, devise and bequeath to the
city of Winchester, Virginia. to be ac-
cumulated by said city for the period of
twenty years. The income arising from
said residue to be expended and laid out
ir said city, in the erection of school
houses for the education of the poor.
After securing from court a decision
as to what part of the property was
specifically bequeathed-whic of
course under the law they cannot
claim-they will proceed to prove
their kinship and make demand for the
residuary estate on the ground that
the city of Westchester can not legally
be the residuary legatee, the law and
the conditions of the will prohibiting
it.
GROUNDS OF CONTENTION.
The grounds Of this contention as
alleged in the bill are substantially as
follows:
!. The city of Winchester has not the
corporate capacity to take the said be-
quest or devise in trust in its favor, or
TO administer the same upon the uses
mentioned: it being a municipal corpora
uon, and the purpose to which the said
bequest is to be devoted, not being ger
main to the functions of said corpora
ton, or. TO the purposes for which it
was created.
2. The objects or purposes and the par
f1rf.,. f,,,o ,l.,,l
visions OF said residuary clause are un-
certain and underlined.
3. The said residuary clause is in re-
straint OF the alienation of real prop
erty and ir suspension of the absolute
ownership of personal property for a per-
iod longer than is allowed by the statute.
In nutshell, they contend that there
is residuary estate either large or
small; that the City of Winchester is
prohlhlted from becoming the residu-
airy legatee and that they being next
or KIN must be substituted for the CITY
ot winchester as the residuary legatee
The seventeen alleged first cousins
or the decedant are Henry Handley, of
Tacoma, Washington: Martin Hand
ley and Margaret McCulloch, of Saw
anndh, n. Y; Henry Handley, of
South Butler, n. y; Patrick Murphy,
OF Togus. Maine: Margaret Colburn,
or BallyGarron, Kilmuckridge, County
wexford, Ireland, John Handley, Bal
iyhublock, County Wexford, Ireland:
Bridget Handley and Anastasia Hand
ley, Ennlscarthy, County Wexford
ireland; Eliza Ellen Sinnott, Ballygur-
TN, County Wexford, Ireland: Eliza
Sanders. Birkenhead, Cheshire, Eng
land: John Handley, Isle of Wight,
England, ana Margaret Boothby, liv-
erpool, England.
OTHER FIRST COUSINS.
Four other first cousins of the whole
blood" Thomas Murphy. Of Dublin;
Margaret Murphy OF Dalkly Mary
Murphy. OF Carey and George Murphy.
OF Bailygarron, refused to join in the
suit.
OF course, the executors Of the es-
tate are stoutly denying that these
twenty FIRST cousins OF the whole
blood" are relatives of any kind of the
late Judge Handley and will present
depositions taken by themselves in
Ireland 10 show that Judge Handley
was not the lazy lout ct Johnnie
Handley that ran away from his home
in Euniscarrhy half century ago to
seek his fortune in America.
The claimants, on the other hand,
say there will be 10 difficulty about
proving kinship: all that remains to
bh settled is as 70 how much OF the
sStata is cesiduary or in other words.
theirs.
The case has its humorous feature
like every other story. The claimants
say that 1t was how the famous blank
schedule A" was drafted BY their
cousin John with a view OF providing
lie al