Oliver Wendell Holmes, Jr.

“ If, on the other hand, it should be regarded as a suit against Buenaventura Ubarri personally, in respect of a liability of his ancestor, the complaint does not allege that he inherited any property, or how much, or that the inheritance had been divided, or whether it was accepted with or without benefit of inventory. It we assume a division to have taken place, we see no ground for presuming that the defendant accepted his share without benefit of inventory, or is liable for anything beyond the unascertained value of what he received. ”

“ Ubarri thereupon showed some irritation, and wrote to her in a manner that might be taken to imply a threat. She persisting, he began a suit with an attachment, the above-named Caballero being his procurador. Before and afterward some of the property was attached for taxes, and ultimately it was sold. Ubarri became the purchaser, no other bidders appearing at the sale. Then his action went to judgment, and, finally, the land belonging to the estate, or a large part of it, was adjudicated to him upon execution. Ubarri was the richest, and, politically, the most powerful man in Porto Rico. ”

“ The inference sought to be drawn from his powers and the result is that he pressed the collection of the taxes after he had made it impossible for the estate to pay them; that no one would dare to oppose when it was made known that he wished to buy, and that, by his pressure at both ends, he was able ultimately to appropriate and exhaust an estate appraised by his own appointees at $123,000, for a claim of $24,000 and a comparatively small debt for taxes. ”