not yet divulged or ascertained "; and sixthly, President Lincoln's command in 1863, that the patent issue. After it was drawn up, he died without signing it. The record of the patent was inspected by the Judiciary Committee of the House, and on July 14, 1870, Chairman John A. Bing ham ordered an authenticated copy; but when this arrived, July 26, the record was found to have been meanwhile mutilated. The committee were puzzled and divided. Then follows1 a heart-sickening account of bill after bill of successive Congresses, re ported in McGarrahan's favor, none directly defeated, but hope deferred, deferred, de ferred. The writer is not sufficiently in formed to discuss the merits of certain severe criticisms of the action of Senators Stanford and Morrill in favor of the New Idria and of President Harrison's veto of July 29, 1892, on the ground that the bill did not end litigation. In April, 1894, McGarrahan was lying sick in Providence Hospital, Washington, evi dently still trusting Providence. As to the New Idria bonanza bosses — 'tweren't strange if they were still trusting " 'tother fellow"; i. e., the Almighty Dollar. Last week I sent a copy of the foregoing sketch to McGarrahan, soliciting him to correct any inaccuracies. On Tuesday came the public announcement of his death. On the day before came the congressional docu ment which I have used in verifying. On the lower corner of its envelope were the words: "Am sick — can't write." One of the most indefatigable of Amer ican litigants was Myra Clarke Gaines. At the time of her birth her mother, Marie Zulime, was the wife of Carriere. Her putative father, Daniel Clarke, was the owner of valuable real estate in New Orleans. Myra was the young widow of Whitney when she married General Gaines. Any attempt to recite all of the vicissitudes of her litigation would be too voluminous for "r.Si,p.8.
our present limits. To say nothing of the trials in the Louisiana Federal Court, there were no less than seven decisions in the Federal Supreme Court between 1839 and 1867.' The decision in 1867 was, that Dan iel Clarke's will made in 181 3, a short time before his death, acknowledging Myra to be his legitimate and only daughter, and an nulling the will of 1811, was in the nature of dying testimony, and was affirmative evidence of great weight. One of her many exciting episodes was a scene in a court-room in New Orleans, wherein her counsel got into a wrangle with Judge Buchanan, and withdrew. Thereup on General Gaines introduced her, and she pleaded her own cause before the jury. She disobeyed the judge, and upon being repri manded, she twitted him of being interested against her.2 In 1874, Mrs. Gaines filed a bill in the equity court at Washington, charging that she had conveyed to Hon. Caleb Cushing 68,000 acres of land in Louisiana, and had received from him a counter deed acknowl edging the trust; and that he afterwards, in his own name, obtained a confirmation of the title, denying her right to any interest therein. She obtained from Judge Wylie a temporary order restraining him from re ceiving the patent from the Interior Depart ment. The injunction is said to have been readily dissolved, and satisfactory adjust ment to have been effected. In point of plucky litigation Mrs. Gaines had a compeer in Patience Swinfen. A half century ago there lived in Staffordshire, England, an old man named Sam Swinfen, who had inherited a dilapidated estate worth £60,000. On the death of his wife, he in vited his only son, H. I. Swinfen, whom he 'See ex parte Myra Clarke Whitney, 13 Peters, 404; Gaines v. Relf, 15 Peters, 9; Gaines v. Chew, 2 Howard, (U.S.) 619; Paterson v. Gaines, 6 How. 550; Gaines v. Relf, 12 How. 472; Gaines v. Haines, 24 How. 553; Gaines v. New Orleans, 6 Wallace, 642. 2 See 13 Sol. Jour. & Rep. 861.
