Ellsworth American. [volume] (Ellsworth, Me.) 1855-current, 1907-01-16
THE HERITAGE e
THE ELLIS ESTATE

iiS pdEldiiy Duuu, ue touh luto MS
service Dora Laraway. aged twenty
two her duties being that of com
panion. He promised to leave her
something in his Willie was rich-but
died without having made any will.
Meanwhile Dora. who had endured
him for ten years, had passed out of
her youth and found herself on the
world for living. The disposition of
Ellis property promised to be peculiar.
A wife. a child. brother or sister
would have inherited it all under the
law. Ellis had had only one child-a
son-who had gone to the Spanish
American war and was on the list of
killed in the fighting before Santiago.
There being no near relative to inherit
the Ellis estate, it was pounced upon by
remote cousins.
Claimants came in great numbers
from far and near. There was no una
nimity between them, each striving to
make his or her own claim paramount.
Dora Laraway was inclined to put in
claim for services, but was advised
that such claim would not hold good In
law.
Among those claiming share of the
estate was middle aged man VIII
called himself Leonard Ellis. He hai
come from South America, where h.
lived, and. as no one had ever heard of
the deceased having a relative in that
faraway country he was looked upon
with suspicion. He seemed rather discon-
certed at the clamor of claimants and
apparently disinclined TO enter the lists.
The reason for this was apparent
when he was asked from what Ellis he
had descended. He named Leonard
Ellis. captain in the Revolutionary
war The cousins hunted the matter
up and found that the said Ellis hac
never been married.
Since none of the claimants wished
the care of the deceaSed's house and
household effects, or, rather, since they
all wished to go in and appropriate the
effects, it was agreed that Dora Lara
way should remain in charge. Mean
while the cousins were busy hacking
at the Ellis genealogical tree. each
desiring 10 cut off for himself the big
cept Leonard Ellis. who since the dis
covery that his ancestor had died child
less, or. worse that he was illegitimate
had taken a back seat among them
Once, and only once, he ventured t.
open his mouth. Then he proposed
that in view of Dora's services to the
deceased and the promise that haG
been made her one-eighth of the estate
be signed to her His proposition was
met with such a torrent of abuse.
especially coming from one whose
claim was fraudulent, that the poor
man was abashed. But when ii be
came known that the deceased had en-
bodied his intention to Dora in letter
there was hush among the claimants.
and she was considered as one whose
claim should be bought up. When,
| however, Dora made no use of the evi.
dence she possessed the weathercock
shifted again. and it was limited among
them that the letter was forgery
Dora herself admitted that she had
been advised by the stranger Leonard
Ellis not to press her claim. This move
on the part of one who had he been q
legitimate descendant from the man
he claimed for a progenitor would have
come in ahead of them all puzzled
them, but when it was announced that
Leonard Ellis had taken up his quar-
tiers in the house that had been occu-
pied by the deceased all recognized tn,
fact that some coup d'etat had been
sprung on them.
1-;tI
came an invitation from Leonard Ellis
to each and every one of them to meet
him the next evening at the house an
interest in which they all claimed
when he would display a genealogical
tree that would settle all dispute with
regard to the Ellis property. All ac-
cepted and were ushered into the
drawing room, where the tree" was
hung on the wall. Mr.. Ellis advanced
to the map. holding a cane in his hand
for pointer. The Ellis whose name
stood first and from which all the rest
on the tree were descended was Sam
uel Ellis, father Of Captain Leonard
Ellis and Edward Ellis the GRANDPA
ther of the deceased. Beneath the
name of the deceased was Captain
Leonard Ellis
Cousins" said the expounder, point
ing to this name, Edward Ellis had
son who was named for Captain
Leonard Ellis, who heads this tree. He
went to the Spanish-American war,
having quarreled with his father who
wished him to remain in business,
which he disliked. He became cap
tain and was enormously reported kill
ed. Taking advantage of the error to
remain dead man to his father tenn
porarily, he went to South America.
where he has since been engaged In
coffee planting. He put of declaring
himself longer than he had intended
and at the time Of his fathers death
was on his way home. He found a
babel of claims for bis fathers estate.