Ottumwa tri-weekly courier. [volume] (Ottumwa, Iowa) 1903-1916, 1904-03-19
Has FILED PROTEST
JOSEPH 3. eossAeE WILL CON.
TEST THE WILL OF LATE
MRS. LUCINDA LEWIS.
Contestant Charges That Testator
. Was of Unsound Mind and Was I'm
duly Influenced at Time of Execut-
ing Will-contestant Grandson.

South Dakota, claiming that he
and Mrs. Matilda Caroline Hedrick are
the sole heirs at law, yesterday at.
ternoon at 3:45 o'clock, filed in the
district court a petition protesting
against the admission to probate of the
will of the late Mrs. Lucinda Lewis.
According to the will the property is
divided into seven equal shares to be
distributed to Mrs. Matilda Caroline
Hedrick. the only surviving daughter.
five grandchildren, the children Of
Mrs. Hedrick and the contestant JOS
eph B. Gossage, grandson, the only
surviving son of another daughter OF
Mrs Lewis.
The will be contested upon the
grounds that the testator at the time
of the execution of the will was Of un-
sound mind and was unduly Influenced
by Mrs. Hedrick and her five children.
The will against which the protest Is
filed was executed January 26, 1894,
court March 2, 1904, accompanied by a
codicil executed January 10, 1899.
In his petition of contest Mr.. Cos
sage states that Mrs. Lewis passed
away February 20, 1904, that she left
surviving her as sole heirs at law, him
self, Joseph B. Gossage, the son of
Martha Ellen Gossage, daughter Of
Mrs. Lewis, and Mrs. Matilda Caro-
line Hedrick, another daughter Of Mrs.
Lewis.
The petition represents that at the
time of her death Mrs. Lewis was 80
years of age, that at the time of MAX
ing the alleged will and later of the
codicil the testator was of unsound
mind by reason Of the infirmities of
old age. that she was weak in body
and mind and did not possess sufficient
mental capacity to make a valid will.
! The petition also represents that both
the will and the codicil were procured
| to be made and signed by the said
Lucinda Lewis, through and by the un-
due influence exercised over the ties.
tator by Mathilda Hedrick and her five
children Howard l.. Hedrick, Kate M
Laid, Charles M. Hedrick, Harry M
Hedrick and Carita McCarroll, benefl.
Charles under the alleged will and co.
dicil. The petition states also that
each and all of these proponents, col
lectively and individually, have for the
1 last twelve or fourteen years exercis
1 gu Oil lAluOllCC ONCl IAS LSpld
tor, guiding and directing her as to
what she should do. what disposition
Eshe should make of her property anG
I controlling all Of her acts; that some
one of said proponents and sometimes
more than one of them was. constant
i ly with the said testator and never al
j lowed her to get out of their sigh
and kept constant guard over her tc
prevent her from communicating witt
\ her friends and relatives; that the!
took advantage Of her feebleness anC
weakness to procure her to make the
i will in controversy
The petition further states that thu
proponents about April 5, 1900
through their influence over the tesla
tor induced her to distribute to then
in money and property the sum o
S20,OSS, giving to each of them So
348 in money and property. That con
testant happening to be in Ottumwa a
that time was allowed by them tn
! sum of $2,648 which he took fearin
that the entire property of the tesla
tor would be squandered and dispose
!. of.
Upon these grounds the contestan
} declares tlat the will ought not to b
, admitted to probate and he asks tina
: it be denied end that judgment TO
costs be rendered.
The Will.
By the provision of the will tn
homestead property of Mrs. Lewis OF
West Fourth street, and one-third o
all real and personal property is givel
.. to Mrs. Hedrick The remainder o
! the estate is bequeathed to the grand
children to be divided equally between
them. Alvin Gossage, now deceased,
!, brother of the contestant, is to be cor
sidered as one of the grandchildren il
!. the division and share equally wit
the others. Mr.. Gossage, who is cor
testing, is not mentioned in the will.
). The CodiciI.
In the codicil all the provisions G
the will are set aside and the entire es
tate is to be divided in seven equa
shares, to be divided between Mrs. Ms
tilda Hedrick, Howard Hedrick, Kat
, M. Ladd, Charles M. Hedrick, Harr
NJ. Hedrick, Carita H. McCarroll an
Joseph B. Gossage.
5 A Hard Fought Case.
The prominence of the parties cor
4 cerned in the case make it one of espe
t cial interest. 1t is certain to be Ion
and hard fought contest.
. Of South Ottumwa relatives an