Aberdeen herald. [volume] (Aberdeen, Chehalis County, W.T.) 1886-1917, 1908-08-06

The publication in the Herald
last week of the story of the robbery
of Widow Stevens of her share of her
deceased husbands estate smoked
Attorney Abel out, and evidently cut
a swath into that $4,000 he is cred
tied with saying he would spend to
re-elect Judge Irwin, Judging from
the activity of the Abellrwin papers
in Hoquiam since, one of which, it
is said, was able (AbeD to make a
payment of 81 900 on linotype ma
chine the day after Abel's visit to the
Harbor cities. 1t is the purpose of
newspaper defenses of the looting
an imbecile widow; to the weakness
of the position taken by Abel in de-
fense of that shameless wrong, and
to the fact that they constitute a
virtual plea of guilty.
In the Washingtonian of Sunday,
appeared a communication, written
by Abel, signed "Justice" Gle in
advertently omitted the prefix 'in'O
devoted to abuse of the editor of the
Herald, with the evident intent to
divert our attention from the ques-
ton at issue-the fitness of Judge lr-
win for the superior bench-to per-
sonal matters We positively refuse
to to be so diverted. The Herald has
but one object in view just now, and
that is to inform the people of Che
halls county of the manner in which
the superior court has been conduct
ed for some years past, that they may
be fully informed as to whom they
are voting for next month, and, we
may say here, that the Stevens case
is but small starter, that the records
of the court are full of similar do
ings, many of them involving much
larger sums of money.
Not to be accused Of lodging any
thing from w. II. Abel, we will say
that after election we shall be
charmed to go into personalities
Will HILL, anu SOIpoiC ehC iSSOi No
of each, both as men of honor and as
democrats. Such matters affecting
him personally as appear now are
necessary to show his reputed con-
troll of the court-a control that he
himself has exploited to large finan-
cial profit, and which is the cause
of the revolt against Judge Irwin.
We print below the entire article
in the Grays Harbor News, which
was entitled Judge Irwin Fully
Vindicated," and request its careful
consideration.
"A representative of this paper
went to MontesanO to investigate the
case of Catherine Stevens against
Scott Stevens and w. II. Abel, to as
see what foundation, if any, there
was for the publication in the Aber-
deem Herald of the story that Cath
crime Stevens estate had been rob-
bed and that Judge Irwin was in
strumental in securing that result.
THE court files We're not in the
clerks office, and we were informed
that the same were in possession of }.
G. Cross, of Aberdeen, who presum-
ably had them out to furnish data
for the Herald However, we gain
ed the following facts:
'Thomas stevens died number of
wears ago, leaving widow and a
number of children. Scott Stevens
one of the children, was appointed
administrator, with f. f. Boner as
attorney. The estate was all settled
I'D except a contract with John Stew
ems. which could not be closed be-
cause the time had not expired. Later
all of the heirs, including Cathrine
Stevens, conveyed their interest in
the land to Scott Stevens; the attor-
news representing the parties were j.
p. Bridges and A. NJ. Abel. 1t is
this conveyance by the mother to the
son. Scott Stevens that was later
claimed fraudulent.
"Ouite a time afterwards, w. II.
Abel sold to Scott Stevens a quarter
section of land on the Columbia riv-
er, and took in part payment mort
gage upon the Stevens farm for $3,-