The Jersey City news. (Jersey City [N.J.]) 1889-1906, 1898-09-24

ALL IN ONE HANDWRIT ING
Expert Testimony in the
Muller Will Case Taken
Yesterday.
JAKE BRETzFELDT's EVIDENCE
He Wrote the Document and
Signed His Fathers Name
as Witness.


the probate Of the will of their mother,
who was the wife Of Franz Muller. who
committed suicide at the Hotel Washing
fore Judge Blair in the Orphans Court
yesterday afternoon.
The testimony was Of very interest
ing character. and divulged the fact that
the will which is being contested was
not only written by jacob Bretzfeldtr but
that that same individual also signed the
testator's name as well as his own, ana
his fathers as witnesses.
Counsellor John l. Weller represented
the appellants and ex-Judges Paxton and
Hoffman appeared for the administrator
with will annexed Of Franz Muller.
Jocab Bretzfeldt was the first witness
called He testified that in company with
his father he visited the home of Mrs.
Muller on September Is, and at her re-
quest drew up the will which left all her
estate to her husband, Franz Muller ex-
cept "a .bequest OF SO each to her sons by
a former marriage. Ferdinand and Henry
Seichter
Witness testified that at the time of the.
visit Mrs. Muller was in bed and was held
up by two women while she held the pen
and he signed her name to the will.
Bretzfeldt testified that he heard Mrs.
Muller say that she had two sons, but
did not want them TO get any of her
property. She wanted her husband TO get
it all. The reason witness signed Emilio
Mullers name to the viii was because
she said she could not write and did not
want to make her mark.
Bretzfeldt could not tell the exact loca-
tion Of Mrs Muller's house.
.Don't you know you were never there?"
II was there, responded the witness.
where was Mrs. Muller?''
s1n bed"
"Don.t you know she was not sick until
last March,
@Dont you know there were no women
there at all?p
There were two women who helped her
up from the bed
Here witness illustrated how Mrs. Mul-
Ter had taken hold of the pen while ne
held the viii ON a book and wrote her
name
.why did you not write in your natural
hand?''
II did,
difference in the formation Of certain LETT
ters in the body Of the will and the sig
nature of the testator, and asked witness
the reason for it.
II suppose it was because she held the
pen. replied Bretzfeldt.
You also signed your fathers name as
a witness?'
ssYes, he told me to-
YOU swore before the Surrogate that that
you had stood by and seen him sign II
r4f m her
Counsel then read affidavit made by
witness to Deputy Surrogate sMoody az
the time of offering the will for propate.,
Bretzfeldt said that the paper on whlch
the room in which Mrs Muller was.
Did you not take paper ape from the DIS
trict Court?' asked Weller.
mo" replied the witness but Mr.
Muller often had business there and he
may have taken it,
..Why did you sign your fathers name
small and your own large2
II expected that question. ! don't know
why did it, except that my father wrote
'sDid you not tell Henry F. seeberger
that you had nothing to do with the
signing of Mrs. Mullers name to the
Il may have told him that, because
saw YOU there and wanted to keep you
from doing this dirty, ifnderhand work,
sThen you lied when you told that
'.Why?''
Because knew what subterfuges you
We're resorting to.
Nelson If he had found any paper in yous
favor among. Franz Muller's effects
witness the said he had told number of
people i'll jest that Muller had left him
IBID 'Did you tell Thomas Wright that?e
..,t's ..,TSv5ls likely did.
II was being guyed about it and told
estate D 5assss ass pFshSs sh yda 5e sf saP r is is VIE VIE
died?''
Why didn't your father sign his own
s'aIie sHe asked me to do it for him.
Did Mrs. Muller m make any effort TO
"a II Won't Won say She did; she had hold Of
you have been convicted of crime?"
"The records show that.
You served timer
tiary.
tWel. you handed IN your resignation
and it was accented?
Don't say | was disbarred when ! re-
signed remarked Bretzfeidt evidently
satisfied at the correction.
Counsellor Weller then moved that ne
probate Of the will be submitted. He sag
iCf
not comply with the law and therefore
ii was no will. "Assuping Bretzfeidt's $
testimony to be true he said Hthe tes-
tator shows Mrs. Muller made no effort to
sign her name and therefore the viii II
not valid.
Ex-Judge Hoffman opposed the motion.
He said that the question was whether
the testator purposed TO sign her name
or make some mark by which the VIII
could be identified. He argued that the
testimony proved that she had
Judge Blair denied the motion.
Ferdinand Sechter. Mrs. Mulier's son
nv 4 former marriage testified that he
was cigarnaker and had always paid
his mother his wages. He denied that
feldt said she made the will. He Identified
several letters. one of which was written
shortlv before Mr. Mulers DEATH in
which she stated that she had left Franz
Mllller q life interest in the estate. which
was IA reyerf to her sons at his death.
He said his relations with his mother
were pleasant up TO the time of her dea1h.
Seichter in reply TO Judge Blair,s ques-
tions. testified that he first learned Of he
him "a copy OF IL. During the testimony
Seichter frequently termed the will "a
fnraed Will Judge Hoffmann took ex-
ssf1sISon Ia his calling ii such. The letters
Identified by Seichter as his mothers
handwriting were aftefWards used as
sfsndar,s by Professor David N Car
vslho who was called as witness on be- !
&ounselor edward *. Acker. of New
YoiM. Identified the original VIII OF Mrs
5Sass and sisnetl BY tl4ree Witnesses III |
that Will Mrs. Muller left her husband ]