Case ID: h-mch_2/html/0001-01.html
Source: Caselaw Access Project
Author: {"author": "", "license": "Public Domain", "url": "https://static.case.law/"}
Date Created: 2024-08-24T03:29:51.129683

MAY TERM, 1780.
    Edward Mockbee’s Lessee against Samuel Clagett.
    EJECTMENT for a tract of land called Brock Hall, lying in Calvert county, (formerly in Prince George’s,') containing 500 acres. The verdict was given for the plaintiff, subject to the opinion of the court, on a statement of facts, made at October term, 1779. By which statement it appeared,
    That Edward Brock, on the ,5th of March, 1712, made the following devise : “ I give and bequeath to my granddaughter Mary Nicolls, and to the heirs of her body lawfully begotten, all that piece or parcel of land, being part of Brock Hall, which lies on the east side of a branch called Collington, in Prince George’s county,
    u Item. I give and bequeath to my grandson Matkeiv Mockbee, and to the heirs of his body for ever, one hun- ' dred acres of land, (other part of Brock Hall aforesaid,) lying on the west of Collington, the said one hundred acres to begin at, &c. as will contain such a quantity of land, and no more»”
    “ Item.» I give and beque,ath to my grandson Brock Mockbee, and to his heirs for ever, my plantation I now: live on, and all the land thereto adjoining, lying on the south side of the Brock branch, and bounding eastward on the land before bequeathed to his brother Mathew. And further, my will and intent is, that if my said granddaughter Mary Nicolls, should die without heirs of her body as aforesaid, the land hereby to her devised, shall go to her brother Mathew, and his heirs as aforesaid. And if my grandson Mathew should die without heirs as aforesaid, then the land héreby to- them devised shall,, with what he may have inherited from his sister, go to my said grandson Brock, and his heirs for ever j and if it please God that all my grandchildren as above named, should depart this life without issue as aforesaid, then all the lands-herein before devised, shall go and fall t'o' my grandchildren by my daughter Qffet, or fa such of them as shall be then surviving, and their heirs for ever, to be divided equally between them.”
    
      Brock Mockbee being seised of the land in question,, under the will of Edward Brock, on the 23d of November executed a deed of conveyance of the land, for which this ejectment is- brought, to Samuel Clagett.
    
    That Brock Mockbee died about twenty years ago. That S-amuel Clagett, in pursuance of the said deed, entered into the lands in question, and was seised thereof, and being so seised, died in the year 1756, having first devised the land to the child his wife was then big with, be it son or daughter, and to the heirs of the said child.
    That Samuel Clagett the defendant, is the child of Samuel Clagett the devisor, and was born after the death of his father; that the defendant, after the death of his father, entered into the land in question ; and that no actual entry was made by the lessor of the plaintiff, at any time before the beginning of this ejectment.
    The points submitted to the court were, what estate Brock Mockbee, mentioned in the will of Edward Brock, took in the land devised to him by the said will ? And whether, if the court should be of opinion that an estate-tail was devised to' Brock Mockbee by the will aforesaid the lessor of the plaintiff is not barred of his entry by the deed, seisin and death aforesaid ? And whether, if the plaintiff' had right of entry, he ought to have entered upon the land in question before bringing his ejectment ? .And it was agreed, if the court should be of opinion that an estate tail was devised to Brock Mockbee by the will aforesaid, and that the lessor of the plaintiff was not barred of his entry by the deed, entry, seisin and death aforesaid, and that the ejectment is well brought without entry, then judgment to be entered upon the verdict for the plaintiff. But if the court should be of opinion that an estate-tail was not devised by the will aforesaid, or that the lessor of the plaintiff was barred of his entry, or that he ought to have entered before bringing this eject ment, then judgment to be entered for the defendant,
    
      J. Hall, for plaintiff.
    T. Stone, for the defendant.
   The General Court, after argument of counsel, gave judgment upon the point saved or statement of facts, lor the plaintiff.

The defendant appealed to the Court of Appeals. The case was discontinued in that court at May tc.rm, 1788, for want of parties to prosecute it.