The New York herald., 1921-11-01
HEIRS CLAIM ESTATE
OF WOMAN RECLUSE
Three Ask Letters of Ad-
ministratiOn for Property
OF Mrs. EastOn.
THEIR VISITS REPULSED
Relatives i'm The Bronx I'm
earthed When Papers Are
Examined.
NO WILL Is REVEALED
Money in Banks and Jewelry
May Amount 20
$1,000
NO WILL Is REVEALED


faded. dust choked home at 80 Put
nam avenue, Brooklyn. bank books
and jewelry indicating possession of
fortune of s250,000 were found by
wondering searchers after her death
on Saturday night, apparently left no
Will. Rummaging has brought to light
many curious things, but no hint OF
how she wished to dispose of the es-
tate that grew SO large while she
spent so little.
Three heirs at law who lay claim
to it appeared from The Bronx yes
terday. They are a nephew, Allen j.
Mcdonald and his sisters, Miss Alice
Isabelle Mcdonald and Mrs. Law
renee Sweeney. They are the chill
dren of Mrs. Mary r. Mcdonald of
Isl West Kingsbridge road. whose
husband, the late Allen Mcdonald. a
New York lawyer, was Mrs. Easton's
brother. They saiG that to the best
of their knowledge the woman who
died in Brooklyn had no other kim
Cold to Relatives.
None of the Mcdonald family had
seen Mrs. Easton in recent years Let
ters written to her were not answered
When visits were attempted her door
remained locked. Yet there seems to
have been no definite estrangement be-
tween the peculiar old woman and her
Bronx relatives. She merely seems to
have had no more to do with them than
with anybody else. When they read
n har 1Aaf 4.
claimants. 1t was the Brooklyn under
taiSer, searching for some scrap Of In
formation that would lead to the dis
covery of relatives. who found them
In the Putnam avenue house he came
upon an old letter beginning Dear
Aunt" That clue led to The Bronx and
the family OF Mrs. Mcdonald. Then,
With an old friend who is a lawyer
Henry A. Vieu of 1870 Broadway, they
went to Brooklyn. visited Putnam ave-
nue., the police and the undertaker's Of
flee and tried vainly to ascertain from
the Public Administrator the probable
value of the estate
In behalf of Alien J. Mcdonald, Mr.
Nieu applied TO Surrogate Wingate for
letters OF administration. and the Sur
Jogate as usual, reserved decision
These relatives will ask to have Mrs
Mcdonald made coadministrator with
her son.
In the Putnam avenue neighborhood
where women of other houses sit all day
at their windows peering at forlorn old
No. 90 and whoever calls there, the
rumor persists that Mrs. Easton had a
son. Some say she did, some say she
didn't; nobody knows for sure or can
think of anybody who knows. Oldtimers
who have moved from the changing
neishborhood. but who knew the Eastons
years ago. discredit the rumor They
say that except for Florence Easton.
daughter who died thirty years ago. and
a child who died in infancy there was
lto offspring.
Her husband said Allen J. Nc
Donald last night, was James NJ
Easton. He was with the Mutual Life
Insurance Company OF New York and
was either secretary or treasurer of
the company, ] believe. But 1 under
stand that he retired from business a
good many years before he died.
James NJ. Easton of 30 Putnam ave-
nue.. Brooklyn. was buried IN Green
wood Cemetery on January {, 1914 No
record of his estate could be found in
the Brooklyn Surrogate's office yester-
day. At the office of the Mutual Life
Insurance Company 1t was said that
William ]. Easton was secretary of
the company at one time and that "a
James Eoston' was a clerk.
Uncertain ON Value of Fortune.
After calling on Public Administrator
Kelly in Brooklyn. Attorney vieu was
inclined TO think that Mrs. Eoston's $
estate did not amount to mole than
$4,000. DR.. Baldwin of 493 Cla sson ave-
nue.. Brooklyn, who had prescribed for
Mrs Easton and was summoned after
her death, examined the bank books He
seid last night that one of them, on
the Union Trust Company of New York,
was balanced only last moth and
showed credit deposits of more than
slc00o-the figure was sl64.oo9 as DR..
Baldwin recalled it-with no withdraw W.
ais. There were also at least dozen
savings bank books. and the whole
credit. DIR. Baldwin said. exceeded s-tD,-
C0c. There were. moreover, entries in
dicating that Mrs. Easton received from
the Mutual Life Insurance Company
monthly check for 5000. represent
ing an annuity OF S2i,c0o Casa found
in bureau drawer amounted to 81,
6S257 of which $3.50 was in $50 bills
There were twenty pieces of jewelry
heavy gold of old fashioned workman
ship. set with stones that seemed to
be diamonds. One of the bracelets had
thirteen diamonds, another twenty-four:
a bar pin seventeen diamonds: one of
the six rings had thirteen diamonds,
another seven: a stickpln twelve dia-
monds
In recent years Mrs. Easton had un-
doubtedly been queer" the neighbors
said. Her one great wish seemed to
be to 1--we until she died in the house
whittier she had come bride. although
quality" had left IL stranded a long
time ago, and some negroes had come
in But men and women who are still
young remember her from their child
hood as a gentle and finely hammered
woman OF fastidious habit. who gave
them pennies for the asking and. as one
OF them said yesterday was the most