Evening star. [volume] (Washington, D.C.) 1854-1972, 1907-05-12
Defense Of Former Speaker by
James 7. Dubois.
DENIAL OF CHARGES MADE
Saws Statesman Was Blackmailed Out
Of q Fortune.
SWORN STATEMENT Is QUOTED
Positive Assertion That Deceased Was
Not Father Of Katharine Liv-
ingston Williams.
WORN STATEMENT Is QUOTED

James T. Dubois, law clerk of
the State Department, as executor
of the will of the late Galusha A.
Grow, formerly Speaker of the
House of Representatives and at
one time mentioned for the presi-
dency, who, it is declared, was
b1ackmailed out of considerable
fortune during the last year of his
life, today made public statement
tending to show the innocence of
Mr.. Grow of the charges made
against him.
Mr.. Dubois statement follows:
"a sworn statement in the form of an
affidavit by Mr.. Grow was found after his
death in a closed envelope and addressed
to me as executor of his will, setting forth:
Galusha A. Grow of Glenwood, Susque-
hanna county, Pa, being duly sworn, doth
depose and say: That he is not the father
of Katharine Livingston Williams, now
the wife of George X. Williams; that he
knows nothing whatever as to the said
katharfne's parentage, except what he has
been told; that in the summer Of 1885 Mrs.
Augusta II. Cloney showed him an instru-
ment in writing signed Kate Burke" in
which she released all claim to her daugh-
ter Kate, If Mrs. Cloney would adopt her
as her child; that the said Kate referred
to in said writing is now the wife of George
K. Williams; that the said written instru-
ment was delivered to said Katharine Will
liams short time after her marriage to
said Williams; that the said Katharine in
April or May, 1905. told deponent she had
destroyed it; that at the time this writing
was delivered to said Katharine Williams
deponent again read it, and it was the same
instrument shown to deponent by Mrs.
Cloney in 1885; that the said deponent fur
Their says that he never had any acquaint-
ance with Kate Burke aforesaid, and knows
nothing whatever about her except what he
has been told
THE affidavit was subscribed and sworn
to the 31st of October, 1905, before v. Bige-
low, notary public, Fifth Avenue Hotel,
New York.
Was the Soul Of Honor.
'aThe words in the af1idavit were those Of
a man who was the soul of honor and Of
truth, and no other words need be written
to convince all right-thinking people of his
innocence of wrong, but yellow-minded
space writer's have flooded the country with
such tumble Of falsehood and truth that
feel compelled to speak on the subject.
II desire to treat this matter In the same
kindly and considerate spirit that charac-
terized GaIusha A. Grow In all his relations
with mankind. Galusha A. Grow Is dead.
and he died of a broken heart. He is dead
and cannot speak to silence the yellow
tongue of Islander which tends to cloud a
great name. won by fifty years of devotion
to public duty and the rights of man. He
is dead, and to me, his confdant and exc
cutor. has fallen the duty of righting a
grave wrong that has come to his memory
through yellow minded space-writers, who,
If they had told the story honestly, would
have left h Is honored name unframed.
"In November, 1908, Mr.. Grow teIegraphed
me to come to Glenwood. Pa. where he
had resided for seventy-two years.
promptly responded and upon my arrival
he informed me that he was practically
pennifess, that he could live but few
months at most, and. with impressive
pathos. added: I hope you will see that I
have a decent burial
GAS he spoke he was stretched prone
upon bis couch, and looked very feeble and
haggard. I asked him how he lost his for
tune, and he told me the following story.
some of which was in manuscript. and 1t Is
now In my possession.