Burlington weekly free press. [volume] (Burlington, Vt.) 1866-1928, 1920-05-13
MRS. WELLS OLD WILLS.
DISCUSSED IN COURT.
In a COdicil to One, Anna Wells
Sykes Was Disinherited but
Codicil Was Later Cancelled
Edmund c. Mower, One of
Executors, Testifies


Wells before the last will of October.
! 1917. entered into the contested will
case Thursday In connection with the
/ testimony of Judge Edmund c. Mower,
who drafted the three previous Wills
for Mrs. Wells. These wills were made
1 in 1907. in 1913 and in 1915. respec-
/ lively. Mr.. Mower lid not have the
/ original of the will of 1907, but had
/ found what purported to be a copy of
it. In this WILL Mrs. Wells had given
! the house on Summit street to Anna
and the children to occupy. In the will
OF 1913. there was some change In the
/ provisions relating to the occupancy
of the house. When she came to make
the will OF 1915. Mrs. Wells had come
to the conclusion that Anna would not
! want TO live in the house and 1t was
I not given to her.
Attorney Clarence u. Cowles who
drew the last will for Mrs. Wells. was
on the stand all the morning yester-
day and for n few minutes in the af
ternoon. He continued his testimony Of
| the day before relative to the papcrs
which had been produced containing
memoranda of interviews between Mr.
/ Cewles and Judge Mower and between
Mr.. Cowles and Mrs. Wells concerning
the will During the examination, Mr..
NpWleS reau the letters Wnlcn were
written between him and Mrs. Wells
concerning the will.
| Mr.. Cowles testified Thursday that
he had advised Mrs Wells to burn i'm
! the presence OF witnesses. the will
| which she had made previous to that
! which he drew for her. Mrs. Wells as
| scented to this. according to the wit
ness. and named Mrs. Fred kimball and
Mrs Frank Parker as the witnesses In
whose presence the will would be burn
ed. Evidently Mrs. Wells did not carry
out this intention. however as the
will is still In existence and in court.
Mr.. Brown. cross examining for the
contestants. called attention to this
will OF 1915. attached to which was a
codicil disinheriting Anna Wells sykes,
and asked Mr. Cowles if he had no
ticel that the codicil to this will had
been cancelled. while the body of the
will had not been cancelled. Mr.. Cowles
, | replied that this seemed to be so.
Judge Mower, who took the stand
during the early part of the after
noon is one of the proponents in the
case being an executor Of the estate
of Mrs. Efffie +. Wells. AS secretary
of the board of directors of the Bur
lington Trust company. and trust Of
ficer of the company, Mr.. Mower be
came intimately acquainted with Henry
| L. Ward and knew Mrs. Wells quite
well. Judge Mower also was vice pres
ident of the Burlington Trust company
for a number of years
Mr.. Mower testified that at the in
terview in his office in which Mrs
Wells made the statement in Mr.
= Wards presence that she was going
to make him the resduary legatec IN
: her will Mr.. Ward said he did no,
know as she ought to do that as some
one might think he had Influenced hei
to do It, Mrs. Wells replied that she
; was doing as she wished to do.
On January I. 1917, when Mr.. Ware
and Judge Mower were talking owe,
business matters with Mrs. Wells a
her home. Mrs. Wells suggested thai
she was thinking of changing her will
This was more than year after she
had made the will in which Mr.. Ware
became the residuary legatee. Wher
Mrs Wells spoke of changing her will
IN the interview above mentioned. Mr.
Ward remarked that he wanted her t.
3 feel perfectly free to make any chang,
$ in her will which she saw fit to make
without regard for him
Mr. Mower was closely examine
concerning all of his transactions witt
Mrs Wells, including the making o.
the three Wills above mentioned. ant
( further advice given her. Attorney
= Brown, who started the cross-examin
q alton aboIt half an hour before the
e close of the afternoon session. brought
up the matter of n 35-year provision
, applying to the requests to Ann;
Wells Sykes AMI to Mrs. Charles Well.
= under the will of 1915. and asked Mr.
t Mower If he realized how old Mrs
=. Sykes and Mr. Charles Wells ,rouls
= have been when they received their be
G quests under this provision Mr. Move
, said that he did not know as he ha,
. not figured that out 1t was suggested
I by Brown that Mrs. Sykes would hav'
g been about 10 years old AMI Mrs
| Charles Wells would have been l0
n years of age before they got thu
y amount of the requests made to then
q under this provision.