The Anaconda standard. [volume] (Anaconda, Mont.) 1889-1970, 1898-05-01
ARE UNABLE TO AGREE
The Jury Reports in the ALL
port Will Case.
STOOD SEVEN TO FIVE
The Jury Wa Out Twenty-Four Hours.
They Said There Was No Use for
Further NEUTRALITY-SUSPICIOUS. Pc
culiar circumstances.

Special Dispatch to the Standard.
Boulder. April 3.-The jury In the ALI
port viii case appeared In court before
Judge Smith this afternoon and stated
that they were unable to agree. The tria,
lasted three days. beginning Wednesday.
Evidence introduced other than that here
tofore reported I'm the Standard was by
Judge Parker of the district court of this
district: J. c. Sloss of Madison county.
and +. G.. Berendes of the Bank of Bould-
er. These testified that they believed
from a long acquaintance with the hand
writing and the signature of John ID. ALI
port that the signature to the will was
genuine. The character of these witnesses
had n great Zeal to do In forming opin-
ions among the jurymen. and probably
more than offset the deposition of the
Chicago Expert on handwriting. and the
experts. Hill. Chivers and Eddy. who
were brought from Helena, and testified
that they believed the signature to be a
forgery. A portion OF the testimony that
the proponent and defendant hoped to
Introduce was not allowed by the judge.
that of Mrs. Sloss and James Wall. The
character of their testimony would have
been that Airport told them he had made
a will. This was quite a severe blow to
Mrs. Kelley's side OF the case. as 1t would
have been very important In connection
with the other circumstances The jury
was out about "A hours, and in response
TO the heterogeneous of Judge Smith,, the
foreman said that IL was the opinion OF
all of them that there was no use for
further deliberation-that they could not
agree. on their first ballot there were
seven who favored the genuineness of the
will and its admission to probate: five
who believed II a forgery and would not
their opinions.
A somewhat peculiar circumstance con-
nected with the case developed at a late
hour OF the trial. Among the exhibits
offered by the defendant was "A bunch of
% checks of Allport's hat had passed
the banks. and on which the sig
natures were admitted to be genuine.
They were submitted to show the simii-
arity of his genuine signature to that on
the will offered. The signature on the
will ended with an up curve from the st."
and of all the other genuine signatures
offered I'm evidence there were but three
showed the same kind of a curve.
on the testimony of Mr.. Berendes.
the last expert on handwriting, IL was
shown that on two of those signatures an
curve to the final - had been added
since the original was written. The dis
covery was made by the attorneys for
the plaintiff at the last moment and very
tie was made of IL i'm the evidence.
though the opposing counsel made many
insinuations i'm their addresses to the
jury. counsel for the plaintiff claiming
1t was lone by the same party who
the will. and for the purpose of
making them look more like the signature
to the will: counsel for the defense called
to the fact that the signatures
had been examined by all of these SCI
experts" and had been discovered
only at the last moment; that il might
have been done In the court room this
accompanied by fierce and -contemptuous
at the opposing COUNSEL.
1t seems quite unfortunate that the
rase was not decided. as 1t was very ex-
pensive to both sides. and IL looks as
hough the entire estate of John ID. ALI
port might he used up I'm court expenses.
As to the value of the estate. IL depends
on the value of the Minnie Heaiy
In Butte, which IL. of course, prob
ematical.
Judge Smith returned to Helena this
evening.