The Wenatchee daily world. [volume] (Wenatchee, Wash.) 1905-1971, 1909-12-23
WAR OVER VAST DUNSMUIR ESTATE
INTO COURT OVER PROPERTY
VALUED AT BETWEEN $15,OO0,-
900 AND $2O,OOO.OOO.

| d. ~.
the greatest will contests ever fought
out in America is expected to come to
trial here some time within the next
two or three weeks. The contest is
between the heirs of the late John
| Dunsmuir and James Dunsmuir, who
has just retired from the post of
| lieutenant governor of British Column
| bia A fortune valued at between
! 100000 and s2O,OOO,OOO is in
volved in the fight.
Mrs. Joan Dunsmuir was the widow
of Robert Dunsmuir, who made a
| colossal fortune by developing the
| family coal mines at Nanaimo, on
Vancouver island The coal depos-
its were not only of great extent, but
of excellent quality. So superior was
the Vancouver article that it was
| able to go down to San Francisco,
and, handicapped by a hostile tariff,
practically put the United States coal
out of business. 1t was exported to
Japan, and wherever it came in COM
petition with other American or
English coal, it more than held its
own. When Robert Dunsmuir died,
twenty years ago, this great export
trade in coal had attained huge pro-
portions 1t had demanded fleet of
/ vessels and several lines of railway,
all of which were owned by the coal
magnate, and by him bequeathed to
his widow.
Mrs Dunsmuir decided to put
James. the elder son. in charge of
the actual mining work and all the
business which arose on Vancouver
island, while Alexander, the younger.
went to San Francisco to see to the
distribution of the coal in its chief
market. Later Mrs. Dunsmuir sold
her interest in the entire business
to James and Alexander. Less than
two months later. on January 81.
1900. Alexander Dunsmuir died in
New York His will left all his
property to his brother James. Now
other members of the family of the
late Mrs. Joan Dunsmuir have sued
James Dunsmuir. alleging that he
his brother. obtained the Dunsmuir
estate from their mother by false
representations, having prevailed up
on her to sell them the estate, in
Guiding the Vancouver Island coal
mines, the Esquimault and Nanaimo
railroad lands. steamers, etc, for
100000, when its value was, they
! assert, fully SIS, 100000.
This is the second time that James
Dunsmuir has been called upon to
protect his ample fortune against an
action at law. The first suit was in
stituted by Edna Wallace Hopper,
whose mother had married Alexan-
der Dunsmuir in San Francisco only
short time before his death The
widow outlived her husband only a
few months, and suit was then
brought by Miss Hopper to recover
share of the great fortune left by her
stepfather. Her contention was that
will leaving his entire fortune to his
brother, was not of sound mind, he
having been on the verge of delirium
tremens at the time and quite in
capable of sane action.
After long and sensational trial
, Mr.. Justice Drake of Victoria decid-
ed that the will must stand. Miss
Hopper. the plaintiff was far from
satisfied with this decision. and car
ried the case from court to court un-
| til it reached the privy council On
August 6, 1906, the judicial commit
tee of the privy council recommended
the dismissal of the appeal and the
actress was thereby finally barred
from handling penny OF the DunS-
muir millions. Whether the present
contestants will be more successful
in their efforts to wrest a part of the
great fortune fro mthe hands of the
former lieutenant governor of the
province is a question in which all of
western Canada is displaying a keen
interest.