Tulsa daily world. [volume] (Tulsa, Indian Territory [Okla.]) 1905-1919, 1917-11-11
WOULDN'T BE NON-EXlSTANT T
Woman Twice Dead" Three Times
Alive, Gets Her Dover.

A rev days ago a check for n
goodly amount was sent To Mrs. Mar
garet Smith OF Sacramento, Cal. Ii
represents her dover interest In sew
eral valuable properties in this city,
and she has been paid the same sum
for number OF years
Behind this prosaic fact OF trans
fer OF certain sum OF money lies
an unusual romance and. In the
language OF one of the justices OF
the United States supreme court.
which body heard the matter, one
OF the most Interesting cases that
ever came before that tribunal
Mrs Smith has been declared alive
by the courts no fewer than three
times and twice they decided that
she was dead-probably the only
woman In this country to enjoy this
distinction.
She comes from long lived family
which has resided in Reading ever
since It's first settlement Nearly thirty
years ago, when she was past 40 years
OF sge--she is now 7O-she was a
widow, Mrs Margaret Cunnius. and
tirtng Of the humdrum life in this
community she decided to travel "A bit
and started out TO see the country
She had relatives here, but she failed
to communicate with them and finally
their correspondence fell off alto
gcther She was not heard from for
some years and the money. represent
ing her dover interests in certain
properties, began To accumulate. In
Sacramento she was married and is
now Mrs Margaret Smith.
Various circumstances led to the
belief that she was deed There was
nobody who believed to the contrary
ara proceedings were started to settle
mp the estate, so that II could be dis
tributed 20 her nearest OF kin.
The first chapter In this strange
story then became public when appli-
cation was made 90 the Berks county
orphans court, which in due time de-
clared her dead. That apparently set
tied It, but just about that time, TO the
Of lawyers, witnesses who had
testified that they believed her de-
ceased, her heirs ana the p1Lllc gen
orally came word from Sacramento
that she was tlioroly alive and she
wanted II no other way
She engaged counsel there and In
Reading, and prepared To put up
strong fiRht-and a long one it proved
to be
Many affilavits were taken in sac
and i'm this city after which
Mrs Smith appealed TO the common
pleas court of this county, which de.
cided that she was "aliye." An appeal
10 the superior court resulted in q
similar decision, but the end was not
yet. The case was next taken to the
supreme court Of this state when,
after long consideration, took the same
view as the orphans court-that she
was legally dead" the very much
alive.
She had then been declared dead"
twice and twice "allve," and she was
not satisfied, because under the deci-
sion Of the state supreme court she
was barred from the enjoyment of the
dover rights In the Reading properties
which belonged to her ancestors.
Her next step was to appeal to the
United states supreme court and the
justices were more than usually in
terested In the recital of the woman's
fight for her rights and the romantic.
pathetic and sympathetic details that
1t involved. The decision was I'm her
favor-that she was "alive"-and no
one has since arisen to dispute that
Her dover money is regularly sent to