Montour American. (Danville, Pa.) 1866-1920, 1902-11-06
SOME ODD
TESTIMONY


last week, are people from Connecticut
and have nothing to do with the
Case heirs" in Pennsylvania, who
are still in the contest.
The Plain Dealer says: Two thous
and four hundred acres of land mostly
in the city of Cleveland are what the
lawsuit now ON trial in the United
States circuit court involves, accord
ing to a statement made yesterday by
one of the attorneys OF course he
was referring to the suit involving the
Case estate. There was mile of land
between st. Clair and the lake and
1, 900 acres III Brooklyn and RoCkpOrt,
most of which is in the city now and
which belonged to Leonard Case.
The most remarkable testimony Civ
en- yesterday was that by two sisters,
Emily Spicer, aged sixty four, and
Theresa Stiers, aged siXty-twO. these
two sisters are grandchildren of a sis
ter of Abiel Case, the man who is
claimed to be the same as Leonard
Case of Cleveland When little child
Ien they lived in Columbus, but in
the year of the great cholera cpl
demic, which they think was III 1913,
they, with their parents, fled from
the scourge, going first to Worthing
ton, where they found the disease just
as bad. Then they travelled about the
state and finally started by stage coach
for Connecticut. There they visited
their relatives and finally, to use the
words of one of the sisters, they struck
across the Hudson river, went over
the mountains and finally came to
Buffalo. From there they came to
Cleveland and became the guests Of a
man whom they called their Uncle
Leonard. He, according to their belief,
was the same as their uncle Abiel
They said they stayed while here in a
house from which they could see the
lake Their uncle they say, was
lame man, who wore a full beard and
to be past middle age. He
was very rich, they said, and owned
a great deal of land He was known
here as Leonard Case.
Mrs. Spicer since her arrival in
Cleveland has been shown the place
on Rockwell street now known rs the
old Case homestead, but she says that
was not the house she visited when
she was little girl. 1t is said by the
attorneys for the plaintiffs that the
house she visited stood about where
the city hall is now.
But they had seen their uncle be-
fore the Cleveland visit and each of
the sisters told of a visit he made to
Columbus in 1913. Mrs. Stiers was
then little less than three years old,
but she told the court that she remem-
bers him we'll.
My mother" she said, used to
call him Abiel and he told her that
he had changed his name to Leonard
and she must not call him Abiel "
Il was a very little girl" she con
tinued, ''and was running about the
place baIefooted. Uncle Leonard
noticed a mark on my leg and spoke
of it as the Case mark. He told my
mother he would remember the child
rem with the Case mark. -
Mrs Stiers said at that time he
spoke of his first wife as Chloe Thorn
as and spoke of his son Selam, whom
he had left back i'll Connecticut This
is exactly what the plaintiffs claim,
the two Cummins brothers who are the
leading plaintiffs, being direct de
scendants of Chloe Thomas by her
marriage with Abiel Case, and Chloe
Thomas having a son Selam. Both of
the sisters say that Abiel, or a. they
knew him, Leonard Case, wore full
beard and that he was short heavy
man who walked always with a crutch
or cane and sometimes with both.
A third witness who the plaintiffs
claim, establishes directly the identity
of Abiel and Leonard Case is Cyrus
Chambers. He worked on a railroad
in which Leonard Case was interested
between Cleveland and Columbus now
part of the Big Four road and while
working for it he met Mr.. Case, who
came to look over his work. After
ward he ran an engine on the road
known as the Leonard Case engine.
Once when il Cleveland and out of
work he says Leonard Case asked him
to come to his home and while there
he learned from Mr.. Case that ne had
first wife in Connecticut and that
he had Il son Selam, by that wife
Andrew Jackson Case was another of
the Connecticut Gases sworn. He is
seventy three years old and came from
Connecticut when he was boy sixteen
years old. He met an uncle, Abiel
Case, here in Cleveland, but was not
allowed to testify as to what he had
heard as to the identity of Abiel and
Leonard Case.
Hiram Thompson, a grandson of
Chloe Case, was also put on the stand,
but the judge cut off his testimony as
to what he knew OF the identity of
Abiel and Leonard Case After these
witnesses had been produced the case
for the plaintiffs was closed and the
attorneys for the defense Immediately
moved that the court direct Il verdict
for them. That motion was under
consideration when the court adjourn
ed.
If that motion is overruled the de
fense, it is understood will under
take to show that Leonard Case, the
Cleveland Millionaire, was Penn
sylvania man and had no connection