Evening star. [volume] (Washington, D.C.) 1854-1972, 1909-08-23
MONEY GOES TOCROWN
Another Blake Estate Covered
Into British Treasury.
ARE NO LEGAL CLAIMANTS
Revives Old Story of the Famous
Blake Millions.
ROMANCE OF TWO WINDFALLS
Most Recent Decedent a Distant
Relative Of Capt. Robert Dud-
ley Blake's Wife.
ARE NO LEGAL CLAIMANTS
ROMANCE OF TWO WINDFALLs
Special Cablegram 10 The Star.

Special Cabegram 10 The Star
/ LONDON. August pa very curious
story attaches to the announcement that
another Blake fortune has fallen to the
British treasury by the death of Fred X.
/, Blake of Broadfield Lodge, near Crawley,
who died May 6. intestate, and bache-
Tor. without known relatives. Although
this estate is not so large as the more
famous Blake millions which have inter
ested SO many. it reaches the respectable
total of S215,0Oo. 1t is certainly curious
that this interstate should be related to
the famous Mrs. Helen Blake, whose
fortune also went to the crown
/ The romance of these two WindfallS
begins with Gen. Robert Dudley Blake,
son of Gen. Sir Francis Blake. second
baronet, who belonged to an old North
umbrian family They held Twissel Cas-
lie. in Durham, and Tilmouth Park and
Seghill, in northumberland, and were
very rich. While he was a captain in
the army, Robert Dudley Blake met in
| Dublin beautiful Irish girl namen Helen
Sheridan. the daughter of country
Ischoolmaster. He fell in love with her,
had her educated in England and mar
ried her in Lamarkshire in 1919. Their
only cnli0 Oieu IN INFANCY
Cen Robert Blake inherited great
wealth from his father, and left it all TO
his widow when he dId in 1860 In the
same year his brother, Sir Francis Blake,
third barOnet, died without legitimate Is
sue, and the baronetcy became extinct:
Sir Francis also left considerable proper
ty to his sster-in-law. Mrs. Helen Blake.
This lady died at Earlscourt Terrace in
| 1876. at the age of seventy-sIx, without
making will. Her real estate was worth
/ he
$4,000 more.
Seized by the Crown.
/ The whole of the personal estate was
seized by the crown and next-of-kin ad-
vertised for. But no one of the claim
ants who came forward from Ireland and
from America could satisfy the court of
chancery that they were next of kin, and
S12O 900 having been spent in costs. the
personal estate, amounting to SICOO3O,
| remained in the hands of the crown. In
the district of C1anmorris, Ireland, there
are still Sheridans who claim to be re-
lated to Helen Blake but they are too
| poor to push their claims.
| The second Blake intestate comes
| in this way: Sir Francis Blake, the
third baronet. had several natural chill
| dren to whom he bequeathed consider
| able sums at his death in 1860. One Of
| them was Fred X. Blake. who has just
i
| officer in the army and was never see
| in the north of England, though he
| owned the Seghill estate of 400 acres.
| on which the Laycocks work their col
/ liery. There was a rumor on the Tyne
side that some poor relatives intended
| to claim the personal estate, which j.,
valued at S215.00O, but nothing has
| been heard of it in the courts. and let
tiers of administration of his property
I have been granted to the solicitor to
| FL that
/ office for the use of his majesty. The
Seghili colliery and the landed estates
pass to the kinsman of the deceased
Sir Francis Blake, first baronet of the
| 1907 creation whose family bought the
Seghill Park and other northumberland
| estates from the crown when Mrs
Helen Blake died intestate. Altogether
the crown has reason to be grateful to
| the Blakes for their 'windfalls-
An American Claimant.
/ The principal American claimant to
| the Blake estate was Daniel Sheridan
He was born in Ireland and was
brought up with his cousin. Helen Sher-
| idan. His father. Daniel Sheridan the
elder. and her father, James Sheridan
| the schoolmaster were brothers. The
cousins were pIayfellows. and Helen
| who grew up to be a beautiful girl
was apprenticed to a dressmaker IN
| America 1t was while on her way to
and from the dressmaker's shop that
| Helen Sheridan met and captlVated
/ Capt Robert Dudley Blake, then a
handsome young officer of the ORA
| eoons. uuartered in Dublin. Their mar
| rage followed as stated. His friends
| disapproved of the union. and Capt
| Blake and his bride emigrated to Ohio
| where they ran a large dressmaklng
business with capital which Capt. Blake
| provided.
While they were living in America Capt
| Blake came into considerable property
from his father and uncle, and they
looked up his wife's cousin, Daniel Sher-
4 idan, who was then living in Illinois,
| farming. Their only child had died IN
| infancy, and Mrs. Helen Blake wanted
| Daniel Sheridan to allow one OF his
| daughters to come and live with her as
companion. This he was not willing to
do, and he never saw his cousin again
| The Bakes returned to England and, after
her husbands death, Mrs. Helen Blake
| lived and died at Earls Court. Next OIL
! kin was advertised for by order OF the
court of chancery, as she had died in
testate.
Expectations Not Realized.
| Daniel Sheridan came to England abou,
1850 in order to claim his share of the
..Rlake millions" He left behind him a
farm of several hundred acres. some
| cattle and a petroleum well. He was
then man of about seventy, and. after
q visit to Dublin to procure certain doc
uments. he went to lodge at the house
nj a widow in London Mrs. Plush, who
lived in Milbank street opposite the
house Of lords. His story and his papers
satisfied her, and he lived for four years
at her house, running up long bill fol
lodgings, in the expectation that he woulc
come into the fortune.
II was pathetic circumstance that
while the old man was vainly fighting
for the fortune letters came from his sol
and daughter in Quincy, H., asking
| whether lie had forsaken them, and as
| Stunning that he was living in luxury on
| the wealth of Mrs. Blake. The old man
! VAS very secretive, and would never lei
| them know the truth, nor would he re-
| tnrn without his wealth to America.
| IFS my money, he would protest
| land am not going back without it.
The difficulty appeared to be to obtain
| the requisite evidence to prove the re-
| lationship. In any case. Daniel Sheridan
| never obtained the money from the
| crown. and about 1890 he had to move
| into St Georges workhouse, taking his
Papers with him. He took his discharge
one day, saying he would go pea picking
| and for year or so Mrs. Plush lost
sight of him. Then one day all hel
| friends began sending her copies of
newspaper article: From Poverty to At
huence; Daniel Sheridan Comes Into His
Immense Fortune--s2, 800, 000.'
tt +be Uorkhouce