The Saint Paul globe. (St. Paul, Minn.) 1896-1905, 1904-04-29
EARLY DECISION IN
WILDER WILL CASE.
Judge Bum Is Expected to De.
eide Upon Validity of In
Strument Monday.

OunSG OullH now mas the w llQ6f VIII
case under advisement. His decision
will be announced on Monday morning,
or perhaps before; and it is expected
that when it does come it will decide
finally the validity of Mrs Fanny S.
Wilder's will, and the legality of the
charitable trust provided for in the
wills of Amherst H. Wilder and his
wife and their daughter, Mrs. Appleby.
The case is before the court on the
motion in intervention on the part Of
the claimants as heirs of Mrs. Fanny
S. Wilder, and that motion must de-
pend upon the validity of Mrs. Wild
er's will
Frank B. Kellogg expressed the one
desire and expectation that is unani-
nous among the numerous conflicting
interests when he said yesterday in a
hnal address to the court:
is the will of Fanny S. Wilder valid
or invalid on its face; that is the ques-
t1On we all want answered."
After four days of argument in which
nVe attorneys of recognized ability in
testamentary law have participated, the
case was submitted to the court just
before o'clock yesterday afternoon.
Owing to the peculiar intricacies of
the case itself the situation among the
many attorneys concerned is peculiar,
ana While all the others are arrayed in
one common cause against the counsel
for the preSumptive interVenors, there
are many points upon which these 9TH
efs are at variance among themselves.
AT no time has this been more strik-
1ngly brought to notice than in the
presentation of the case to the court
yesterday afternoon.
Mr.. TreadweII Explains.
Mr.. Treadwel, of counsel for the pe-
tluoners in intervention, in his closing
address, said that he could not see that
the court need at this time pass finally
upon the validity of Mrs. Fanny S.
Wilder's will. He would desire that it
should do so; but could not see that
the court must take such action at this
time. He said that in his belief prima
facie showing of plausible and reason
able ground would be sufficient to en-
title the intervenOrs to come into the
case, and the court could competently
find that the claimants presume to have
an interest and may have an interest,
and leave the main question to be de-
cided later.
Mr.. Kellogg, representing the trustees
Of the Wilder charities. said:
I concede the jurisdiction of the
court to decided the validity of Mrs.
Wilder's will, as 1T stands in the way
of these parties. Is the will Of Fanny
S. Wilder valid or invalid on it's face, is
the question we all want answered.
We have made the argument here that
Will determine the validity of every one
of these truths, and can speak for the
representatives Of the trustees under
the Amherst H. Wilder will, the trus-
tees under the Fanny S. Wilder will,
and three out of the four of the trus-
tees under the will of Mrs. Appleby in
saying that we are willing to submit
that nl10Ctinn RI "a n h IL
Valid or Invalid.
There was no dissent from this an
nOuncement, and Mr.. Kellogg proceed
ed to say that there was one question
upon which all of the different inter-
ests, even including the intervenors,
and with the single exception of one of
the executors under Mrs. Appleby's
will, were willing to enter into a Stip-
ulatiOn. He explained that in the will
of Mrs. Wilder there were a number
of specific individual legacies to indi-
viduals, amounting in all to $4,000,
and he believed all of the interests
were willing and in fact DESTROYS that
these should be paid at once and that
the court should so order He said he
believed that all except the one ex-
ecutor of Mrs. Applebys will would
stipulate that these legacies might be
paid
Jared S. How said that, as the rep
| resentatives of the executors of the
Amherst H. Wilder will, he and Judge
Otis could not agree to stipulate away
any legal rights, but would abide by an
order of the court.
Bell Speaks for Trustees.
G. n. Bell spoke for himself and
Victor M. Watkins, as trustees of the
Wilder charity, and said they would
| not enter into any stipulation that
should not be agreed to by all. There
was no stipulation when the attor-
neys dispersed.
The original action of Victor M.
Watkins eft al. against Charles Bigelow
ct al. would come up for hearing, in
the natural course of the calendar, on
Monday morning. Several members
Of counsel for the different interests
expressed a willingness to await the
convenience of the court If it should
the motion to intervene, but Judge
Bum replied that he believed he had
| this case pretty clearly in his mind
and it would not take him long to
| come to a decision 1--WE will take up
| the case at IL o'clock on Monday,
gentlemen" said he in settlement Of
the question.
The. case of Watkins ct al. against
| Bigelow ct al. involves only the will
of Amherst H. Wilder, and it's original
| purpose was to secure the courts con-
| struction of certain of the provisions
| of the will relating to the charitable
| devise. The motion to intervene, how
ever, called into question the will of
| Mrs. Wilder, as the claimants could
| have rights under Mr.. Wilder's will