Julia Roberts v. Austin L. Adams & Ann C. Harding. Notes of Evidence

 

Julia Roberts alias Robinson
against
Austin L. Adams & others

Suit for freedom.

The Petitioner, to maintain her action aforesaid, offered to read in evidence to the Jury, a copy of a Paper writing, purporting to be, a deed of Emancipation, under the hand and Seal, of one Simon Somers, which Paper writing is in these words & figures [here insert it] to the reading of which, as evidence, the defts: objected, until the Petitioner shall first shew, that the original Paper writing, of which the above is purports to be a copy, was proved & Recorded, or acknowledged, by the grantor [Simon Somers] in the County Court, of the County, in which said Simon Somers resided, at the time of its execu-   -tion; but the Court overruled the objection, & permitted it to be read to the Jury as prima facie evidence. the plaintiff and defendant gave the following evidence as contained in two papers marked A and the the and B

Wherefore the defts: produced competent & credible witnesses who testified that Simon Somers permanently resided with his Family in Alexandria County in the District of Columbia, until his death, which happened in November 1836. That said Somers commenced his residence [torn page] said County of Alexandria, in 1798 or 1799. That they are well acquainted with the bounding line between Alexa.   County in the District of Columbia, & Fairfax County in the Commonwealth of Virginia - that they were personally well acquainted with the said Simon Somers lived a near neighbors to him - ever since said Somers removed into the County afsaid - that the Tract of Land, on which, the said Simon Somers resided, was and is, altogether within the County of Alexandria, in the District of Col: - and that at no time since the execution of the deed aforesd down to the time of his death aforesaid did Simon Somers reside in the Commonwealth of Virginia - which was all the evidence offered by petitioner and also by defendant.