Howard v. Wofford

Citations

• 16 S.C. 148
• 1881 S.C. LEXIS 143

Syllabus

<p>1. A testator, by his will, which was without any marks of punctuation, devised to his grandchildren “ the tract of land that their mother now lives on * * * also at the death of my wife the tract of land that I have willed to my wife when they arrive at the age of twenty-one years they to have all the rents or other profits arising on the same after retaining a support for my sister-in-law H. to be paid her during the minority of my said grandchildren and it is my will if one of my said grandchildren dies before attaining to the age of twenty-one years the survivor is to have all If they both should die not being twenty-one years old my will is then that my executor sell the same” &c. Held, that the support of II. was a charge upon the tract of land which the grandchildren received at the death of testator’s wife, but not upon the other tract.</p> <p>2. Where A., by will, charged a support for his sister, H., on lands, the rents of which were received, or should have been received, by his executor, B., and after B.’s death, by B.’s executors as executors of A., a single action by H. cannot be maintained at law against the executors of B. for the moneys received by B., and against the same persons as executors of A., for the moneys received by them after B.’s death. And a general judgment against the same persons ’as executors of B., and as executors of A., cannot be sustained.</p> <p>3. There being, in the case, some evidence of an agreement, a charge by the Circuit judge that he had “ heard no evidence of an agreement which would operate as an estoppel to the plaintiff,” was calculated to withdraw from the jury a question of fact, and, therefore, violated Article IV., 3 26, of the constitution.</p> <p>4. Tire tract of land chargeable with H.’s support being under the control of the executors, they, and not the devisees, were the proper parties defendant to this action.</p>