The Barre daily times. (Barre, Vt.) 1897-1959, 1913-08-16
WIDOW is FIGHTING
FOR S75O,OOO ESTATE
German Wood Dealer Left Three-Q Quart
ers of Million to Emperor Will
liam for Strengthening Army
and Navy.

liam for Strengthening Army
and Navy.
Berlin, August Emperor William
will not receive without fight his in
heritance of $4,000 from Hermann
Knorr, the patriotic wood-dealer of
Kauschwitz, whose decease after be-
queathing to his majesty practically his
entire estate was reported last week.
The widow, who aserts that much of
real-estate speculations financed by the
money she brought to him as her dowry,
will contest the will, which assigns to
her merely the amount of the original
dowry and an annuity of 5000. All the
rest of the estate goes to the emperor,
ito be used in strengthening the army"
First estimates gave the value OF the
estate at only S250,000, the amount at
which Knorr had been assessed for tax
es, but later investigation showed that
far larger amount had been covered
up, to the incidental profit of his royal
residuary legatee. The widow, who att
er nineteen years of untroubled married
life finds the provisions of the will ex-
ceptionally hard, win be assisted in her
fight by zen near and needy relatives
OF her husband, who do not seem
filed with the enthusiasm for Ger
many's ornaments, of which represen-
tatives of the government and the pa
triotic parties made so much in the
recent debates in the Reichstag on the
military bills.
1t will be interesting in this connec-
ton to note whether the authorities viii
revise, in this case, the decision handed
down a few months ago in the case OF
a legacy to the city of Charlottenburg.
There a testator made the city his sole
heir to a considerable property. In the
course of the usual advertising for heirs
prescribed as a condition precedent to
the settlement of decedept's estate,
some distant cousins made their exist
anee known. All were needy. The pro-
vincial government refused TO consent to
the city accepting the legacy, on the
ground that the testator's relatives
must be provided for,
Two Cannons With a History.
Emperor William has just presented
to the city OF Emden two old rusted can
non, which recall an almost forgotten
chapter OF Germany's colonial history
and show that Germany was seeking it's
"place in the SUM- so far as African
colonies are concerned, over two cen
turtles before Agadir
The cannon were found on the site of |
an old fort, Gross Fredericksburg. on the |
Gold Coast of Africa, which was built |
for the defence OF the colony established |
there by the Great ElectOr in 1888. His |
ambition was to make Brandenburg the |
nucleus of the future kingdom OF Prus-
sia, rival of England and Spain as a |
colonizing power, and he sent out an |
expedition from Emden to establish a /
settlement on the west coast of Africa. I
Emden had at that time one of the best I
harbors on the North sea, and the select
or decided to make it the home port |
Of his colonial venture, as well as of his
modest little navy.
The undertaking, however, did not
prosper, and in l7l7 Frederick William
|, the father OF Frederick the Great, sold
the colony to the Dutch East India COM
pany OF Amsterdam 1t finally fell into
the hands of England through the Ash
antee war, about 40 years ago.
Places for Retired Officers.
Although Emperor William is not now
retiring so many officers, in order to put
men in control of the army, as
he did some years ago, the problem of
finding suitable positions for the re-
tired men is still a pressing one.
Retirements usually occur when the
officers are still in their best years and
still able to give twenty or thirty years
20 the chambers OF commerce of Ger
minister of war has sent out a circular
% the hcambers of commerce of Ged-
many, asking their cooperation in get
ing positions for the retired officers.
He claims for them special fitness for
positions of trust and personal respon-
ibility, and wherever ability TO manage
men, rather than commercial talent, is
equired.
Expressions on the subject by com
nercial authorities indicate consider
Ible doubt, in general way, as to the
illness of the officers for positions in
commercial and industrial undertakings.
{ is felt that most of them are too old
o adapt themselves to the untried cir
umstances of business life, while the
ceiling of superiority, cherished so fond
V by many army officers, will make it
Iifficult for them to work on a basis of