Middlebury register. (Middlebury, Vt.) 1886-1937, 1913-01-17
ADDISON COUNTY COURT
Jury In Smith Will Case Disa-
srees-Purington Case on
Trial,

The Columbus Smith will case was in
the hands of the jury when our report
closed last week, and as then noted the
jury did not come in to report on Thurs
day night. They struggled with the
case until IL O'Clock that night in an
effort to agree but were unable to do
so, and at that hour went over to the
Addison House and went to bed.
Nothing was done in court Friday
forenoon except simply waiting for
report from the jury room, no court
cases being ready for trial. Early in
the morning the jury sent through their
officer, Deputy Sheriff Fred E. Rowley
of New Haven, a request to the court
to send them the will of 1897 and ,sthe
letters which had passed between Mrs.
Harriet j. Smith, then the wife and
now the widow of Columbus Smith,
and DR.. Walter d. Berry of Burlington.
This matter was discussed at length in
chambers. The jury came in at 10:30
o clock and announced that they had
been unable to agree. Judge Miles
then informed them that the court had
decided not to give them the documents
which they had asked for, as it was con-
trary to the practice in this State to
let the jury have such papers, and they
were sent out again to continue work on
the case.
/ At 3 O'Clock Friday afternoon the
Jury again came into the court room
and reported through Foreman Stowe
that they had not agreed and that there
was no possibility of an agreement.
Foreman Stowe said that the jury
stood exactly the way they had stood
the night before, which is understood to
have been eight in favor of breaking
the will to four for upholding it, AS
they had been out considering the case
for nearly "a hours and found no chance
to get together, they were discharged
by the court from its further considera-
tion and a recess was then taken to
O'Clock Tuesday morning.
From the amount of property in
volved this was the most important
/ case ever tried in the Addison county
cou.. :, and its mstrial means that the
case will have to be tried all over again.
presumably at the next June term. In
! the meanwhile there is no chance for a
compromise, as the property covered by
the will, now scheduled to figure up be-
tween 1920, 600 and $3.50, 600, is tied up
by the contest, and Mrs. Smith could
not buy the contestants off with any
funds covered by the will even if she
should desire to do So 1t is known
/ that she has ample funds in her own
right with which to effect a COM
promise if she should so desire and the
other side would consent.
The litigation so far has been very
costly and another similar trial of eleven
days duration will add largely to the
expense. And in case the will now at
tackled should be ultimately broken
there will still be complications. Mr..
Smith made a will in 1884 and on the
/ back of that instrument is endorsed
| this statement: Il revoke this Will, as
| have made two wills since" There
is lost will, understood to have been
made in 1896 as to the provisions of
which no one seems to have any ac-
curate knowledge and which, should it
be found, might supersede in law the
Will of 1897 and its codicils.
Under the will in controversy, Rufus
Wainwright (deceasedD and Thomas E.
Boyce were named as executors and by
one of the codicils the name of Harriet
j. Smith was added as eXecutrix. The
following were named as trustees in the
will of 1897 to see that its provisions for
doing something for suffering human
/ ity'' in the way of establishing a home
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