Newport weekly independent., 1903-01-02

Mrs. U. $. Grant left an estate valued at S243.00O, to be equally divided between her four children.
 The various courts at Cleveland. Ohio, were forced to adjourn for several days on account of the scare ity of fuel.
 Thousands of cattle are reported to be starving to death on the range in northwestern Colorado on ac- count of the cold weather.
 Z. K. Greening, postmaster at Cornland, H., shot and killed him self when asked by a post office in- spector for S1 HOO that should have been in the post-of1ice funds.
 A dispatch from New Marghe- tan, Russian Turkestan. reports that the earthquake at Andiian kill ed 2,500 people in and near that city and destroyed 16,000 houses.
 Governor-elcct Bailey of Kansas is in d peck of trouble, due to a fake perpetrated by a newspaper friend. This friend published an item stating that the newly elected chief executive was dcsirous of be- coming a benedict, and for several weeks he has been receiving daily cart loads of proposals from many section of the country. He has been compelled to employ an assistant secretary to answer these letters, and has also given out a statement to the press, praying that no more such missives be sent him.
 During binding snow storm a freight and passenger train on the Grand Trunk railroad collidcd near Wanstead, a small station not far from London, Ont. Twentv-cight passengers were killed outright. and about thirty injured. The rcspon- slbility for the accident has not been definitely fixed, but it is believed to have been due to telegraph op- orator, who gave an order to the freight to pass No. ,, the Pacific express, at Wanstead, and failed to duplicate the order and give a CODY of 1t to the conductor and engineer of the express. Instead of this the conductor of the express had a clearance order, telling him to run right through. The freight train stopped at Wanstead to sidetrack and was telescoped by the express. The blinding snowstorm which was raging rendered objects invisible at the distance of few feet.
 The question of the effect of mur- der upon life insurance policy. when issued upon the life of the murderer, has been passed upon by the United States supreme court in an opinion delivered by Justice Brewer. The case in which the opin- ion was delivered was that of $. M. Burt vs. The Union Central Life Insurance Company. W. F. Burt. of Travis county, Texas, was the name of the man insured His pol icy was made payable to his wife, Anna NJ. Burt, and in case of her death to his executors. During the first year Bllrt's wife died, and he afterward was charged with her murder and found guilty and exe- cuted. Afterward the heirs of the estate made an effort to collect the policy, but the insurance company resisted payment. The lower courts, including the court of appeals for the Fifth circuit, sustained the pro- test of the company, and the SUI. preme court affirmed the decis. lon of the court of appeals, holding the policy invalid on the ground that to sanction payment under the circumstances would te contrary to public policy.
 Mathew Keith. an Indian Terri tory farmer, was drowned near Vii ,fita while saving his wife. In crossing stream his wagon was upset and both were carried down stream. Keith succeeded in saving his wife but went under himself
 Near Liberty, Mo-. Joe Foley shot and killed Mrs. J. B. Wilson and with the same weapon. a shotgun, blew his head off. Foley. who was