190 P. 309 | Or. | 1920
The testimony shows that the defendant is between ninety-one and ninety-three years of age; that he earned and accumulated funds and property after he was seventy years ol‘d; that he was divorced from his wife about twenty years ago; that he was the father of a large family, and all but one of the children took the part of the mother; that he lived alone in his own building at Elgin; that he did his own cooking and looked after his own wants; and that physically he was quité active for a man of his age.
In recent years he had his money, bonds and securities on deposit in an Elgin bank, and its officers looked after his business. His memory became very defective and he had somewhat of a delusion about his children, imagining that they had robbed him in a business transaction long past. He had acquired the habit of taking his assets from the bank, hiding them somewhere in the house where he lived and later returning them to the bank. He did this several times in the four or five months next preceding the filing of the petition. Among his assets he had $5,000 in Liberty bonds that were “payable to bearer” and the title would be passed by delivery, and $5,400 in certificates of deposit in the Elgin bank, payable to his order. The testimony is undisputed that he took all of these papers from the bank, placed them in his kitchen stove, where they would be destroyed by a brisk fire, later concealed them elsewhere and forgot where he put them. He then notified some of his neighbors that he had been robbed. Six or seven of them joined in a diligent search of his premises, including the stove and an old mattress where he claimed he had put his papers. He also told them that at times he placed his valuables in the ash-box of his heating stove. After a thorough investigation lasting about an hour and a half nothing was found, and for want of a light the
'Several witnesses were called to testify concerning the defendant’s actions, conduct and capacity to transact business and care for his property; and there was some evidence on Ms part, especially that of his son William, tending to show that he was competent and qualified to look after his business affairs. He was present at the hearing in the County Court, but was not called as a witness. The testimony was taken before the county judge, who had more or less personal knowledge of the surrounding circumstances. His findings were later approved by the Circuit Court.
The decree is affirmed. 'Affirmed.