Author: George E. Nichols of Ionia, MI
Title: Letter to Charles R. Thomas of Ellsworth, MI
Date: 08 March 1915
Curator: Christine Fisher
Note:
March 8, 1915
Charles R. Thomas
Ellsworth, Mich.
My dear Charlie:
I went to Grand Rapids Friday and collected from the township of Byron $5260.81. There is still due $103.70 for interest that they hadn’t figured and the treasurer didn’t have enough money to pay the whole amount with him but agreed to come in within a week and pay the $103.70. I didn’t release the judgment and shall not until the $103.70 is forthcoming, but there will be no trouble about that, I apprehend.
I am sending your account as administrator. You will notice that I set up the fact that your wife [Alta A. Brown] had no estate except the claim against the township of Byron, and the further fact that you entered into a contract with us to prosecute the case, agreeing to give us one-half of any judgment recovered and collected and our disbursements and expenses, which amount to $546.23. I have received from you $100 on Sept 7, 1910, when we were going to take the case to the supreme court. You brought in $100 to take up the bond of $100 as security for costs signed by your father and that was placed in our hands to be paid on the costs provided we did not win in the supreme court, and that $100 you are to be credited with. I also collected $216.80 costs in the supreme court and then I have collected $369 costs in this last settlement, making the total moneys I have received outside of the judgment $685.80, thus leaving in my hands a balance of $139.57 of which you are entitled to one half as I understand the contract. So the account stands like this. I will be entitled to one half of the judgment and costs, $4981.81, or $2490.90, and you would be entitled to one-half of the balance less your fees, $1170.45, and $150 commission and one-half of the proceeds now in my hands, $139.57, or $69.78, or you should be credited upon your account with me $1390.23.
If the probate court should require me to pay the money to the trust company as guardian of your daughter, I will have to do so. By making this turn and charging the statutory fees for carrying on this law suit, you will have $1390.23 to your credit in my hands.
If the court would permit the guardian to leave the money in my hands to be applied upon the contract, the $1170.45, I would be glad of it, but I don’t think the judge will do it. As soon as you can get around to it, get a justice in or a notary public and swear to your account and send it back here and I will file it and have it allowed. I shall make no entries upon my books or upon our contract until I get it all straightened up, so the figures I give you in this letter may be changed.
I hope you are improving rapidly. When I spoke of you father’s estate I didn’t mean to make you any costs or charges by having Mr. Shaw look after it. I would make no charge in the matter unless there should be some law suit or something. I only did that as a means of seeing that things moved along all right and that your interests were protected.
With best regards to yourself, your wife and the kid [Robert Thomas], I am,
Yours truly, George E. Nichols, Lawyer, Ionia, Michigan