The Saint Paul globe. (St. Paul, Minn.) 1896-1905, 1904-10-08
WILDER WILL BEFORE
THE SUPREME COURT
Attorneys Submit Argumentsln
Support of and Against
Its Validity

The final argument in the famous
wilder will case" was submitted to
the state supreme court yesterday aft
erneen. The case involves the char
liable requests of Fanny Wilder and
her daughter, Mrs. Cornelia Day Wild
er-Appleby, and more remotely that of
Amherst H. Wilder. amounting in all
to approximately $S,00O,0O0.
Henry D. Spencer and others, assert
ing that they are heirs to the estates
in dispute, asked leave Of the lower
courts to be allowed to intervene in a
friendly suit between the executors Of
the will of Fanny S. Wilder to settle
certain points at law. The lower court
refused the application, also holding
the bequest valid, and the case was
carried to the supreme court.
The terms of the will of Amherst
Wilder provide for the Incorporation
Of a certain organization under the
laws of the state, to be known as the
Amherst H. Wilder charity. This was
DONE Fanny S. Wilder then made a
large bequest to the corporation.
The question of the validity of the
will containing this bequest hinges on
the question of whether or not the be-
quest is in the nature of trust, and
therefore invalid under the law as laid
down by the supreme court in the case
of Shanahan versus Kelley, in which a
bequest "for the education of young
men to the priesthood" was held to
be vague and indefinite, lacking known
beneficiaries.
Argues Will Is Invalid
W. B. Treadwell, of San Francisco.
appearing for the appellants, contend
ed that the bequest of the Wilder char
ity was in the nature of such trust,
and therefore invalid, having no as
certained beneficiaries, and therefore
came under the ruling of the court in
the Shanahan case. He said that the
Wilder will was drawn with the in
tention of avoiding the possibility of
such ruling, by creating a corporation
whose members were. the executors and
their successors. He trusted, he said,
that the court would not allow the law
to be evaded by indirect methods when
it could not be eyaded directly, and
said that If that was allowed laws
would be farcical and courts power
less. The Wilder bequest, he conclud-
ed, was clearly a private trust for I'M
ascertained beneficiaries.
Frank B. Kellogg appeared for the
respondents in the opening, maintain
ing the validity of the will. He adj
mitted that the policy Of the law was
opposed to the carrying out of charita-
BILE requests by private individuals,
but favored requests where they could
be legally administered The requests
Of the will for the worthy poor and the
provisions of the will in their behalf
were to be carried out by the corpora
ton under the control Of the state.
Not a Private Trust a
He contended that the statute au-.
thorizing corporations to administer
beouests had been made a part of the
will, and that therefore it was impos-'
sible to predicate any private trust,
and that as long as the corporation
could receive the bequest, the testatrix
could give it. He reviewed the law in
such cases as could be found in the
Minnesota reports at great length TO
uphold this contention.
"When Mrs. Wilder made the be-
quest to the corporation he said, she
directed that body to do what the state
said could be done by it. In it's cor
porate capacity. 1t was not trust,
but an absolute bequest with no re-
strictions, but with certain trust fea-
lures, as held by the lower court. Ii
she had inadvertently created an IN.
valid trust then she gave it to the cor
peration without Said trust, making
special provision therefor"
Attorney Jared How compared the
corporation to the st. Paul Society for
the Relief of the Poor, and contended
that bequest to that society could in
no manner be construed as a trust, al
though it would eventually be applied
to the needs of the poor.
In conclusion he said that the be-
quest was made to the corporation to
be applied at its discretion, and that
the corporation might do with the be-
quest as it wished. The only limita-
ton was the authority exercised over
the corporation by the state by virtue
Of the articles Of Incorporation of the
corporation. The bequest, he said, was
not a trust, but merely conditional
gift. :,
The argument of Attorney Treadwell
in rebuttal closed the case, and the
fate of the great-Wilder charity for the
alienation of the sufferings of the
poor now rests in the hands of the five
| justices of the supreme court. A de-
cision is expected next week.
P,,n-aI. VHhila. IIsin0 KeroSena