The times. [volume] (Washington [D.C.]) 1897-1901, 1901-04-27
Towns ARREST ORDERED
Charged With the Maladministr a.
tiOn of an Estate.
Report of Louis A. Dent, Special
Auditor, on the Guardianship Case
"A Discrepancy of About Twenty
Thousand Dollars Said to Exist.

| Auditor, on the Guardianship Case
"A Discrepancy of About Twenty
Thousand Dollars Said to Exist
Louis A. Dent, Register of Wills, APP
pointed special auditor in the settlement
| of the estate of the late Warren Jesse
Lown. in speaking of the stewardship of
William c. Lown, guardian of the minor
children OF w. ]. iown, says: THE his
tory of this guardianship exhibits one of
the grossest instances of misconduct,
Misrepresentation, and maladministra-
ton"
Proceedings in the matter of the settle
ment of the estate were commenced in
December last by the children of Warren
Jesse Lown, who. through James F.
Scaggs and Henry X. Beck, as counsel,
called upon William G. Lown, their guar
dian, for an accounting. AS the result of
the investigation ordered at that time, on
Thursday last Justice Cole directed the
United States marshal TO arrest Lown for
contempt of court in failing TO obey an
order of the court directing him to pay
5000 to his former wards and to place
him in jail until he shall purge himself of
contempt.
Lown has not yet been taken into CHS
tody by the marshal. 1t is said that he vs.
not in this jurisdiction.
In the petition filed some time ago by
Jesse w. Lown and others it was allegs d
that William G.. Lown, their guardian,
had rendered no account during the en-
tire eight years of his guardianship, that
he had devastated the estate, and that
the property in his hands as guardian
had been neglected and mismanaged. In
response to an order of the court, the
guardian filed an account in January last
showing a balance due the minors
amounting to 900 to which twenty-one
exceptions were filed by the attorneys for
the wards to the effect that the guardian
had collected large sums which he failed
to charge himself with in his account and
had charged the children large sums not
expended 10y him, and had generally pad
ded his account. The case was referred
to Mr. L. a. Dent. as special auditor, to
hear testimony and to state the accounts
Of each of the wards.
Several weeks ago the court removed
Mr.. Lown guardian on the application
of one of his wards.
The report of the Auditor is very vol
luminous, covering seventy type-wTitten
pages. II shows that the late Warren j.
LOwn left an estate consisting Of $4,000
worth of personal property and seven
houses besides some unimproved property
and large farm i'm Maryland. The rem
tai value of the real estate is said to have
been about 81 900 per annunl.
The Auditor, after disaliowing large
sums, claimed to have been expended by
the guardian and charging him with still
larger :1ums, of which no return whatever
was made, finds that the aggregate sum
due the wards amounts to So. IA. in ad-
ditiQn to certain stocks, bonds. and jew
eiry. appraised at 81 465 an aggregate of
IS, Sl9. or nearly $4,000 more than the
amount returned by the guardian in his
account to the court.
The Auditor recommends that the
guardian should be compelled to pay the
costs of the court proceedings. the pen
allies ana costs connected with the sale
Of the real estate by reason of his neg
lcCt to pay taxes. and the costs of the re-
pairs occ5sioned by fire in one of the
wards houses, on which he had failed to
renew the insura nce.