The Sun.
London, England, 1850-08-01 00:00:00

with it on the Saturday; but Mr. B. was in a state of
stupor and could not execute it. He died at three o'clock
on that day. After the funeral the two brothers and his
or their nephews retired to Woodseat. I tither read the
will or went through it. The document before me is
what I then real. It was proved March 17. No caveat
was entered. At the funeral I delivered to Mr. Joseph
Bainbrigge a copy of the will. He subsequently applied
to foreclose a house at Derby that had been a family
mansion, and he alleged the te.stat sr owed him a large
sum of money. Mr. Lockhart, of Derby, acted for him
in the correspondence; afterwards Mr..Jessop. He ulti-
mately executed a deed of confirmation.
in The pre-
sent lessor of the plaintiff filed a bill Chancery
to compel a specific perfsrmance of
.that agree-
ment, and that the validity of the will of 1818
might be inquired into. Specific performance was
decreed, and the rest of the bill dismissed with costs.
Joseph afterwards became purchaser of one of those
lots. After testator's death I found he was in the habit
of keeping diaries and accounts. The one produced is
in his handwriting. Under the date Jan. 15, 1813, is
the entry. "-- brought to bed of a boy." Dr. Fox
was 'present at the execution, but not when I read over
to him the will. We wished to examine Dr. Fox by
cenamission, and sent commissioners, but his wife said
he was too ill..
Cross-examined—Testator swirl, " Blair, I want to
make some alterations in my will. I wish, if Marianne
dies, that Mrs. Arnold's children sheuld have the estate
and that Mrs. Arnold should have 100/. a year at once,
and 3001. a year alter her husband's death." To every
alteration in the will there are his initials—but not to
those in the codicil, because it was only a temporary
precaution. The will was engrossed by a clerk of mine
named Stringer, who has been since prosecuted by me
for embezzlement, and sentenced to transportation. The
testator did not read over the will himself, but
I told him its provisions from it. I said, "will
you do anything for your relations," or something to
that effect. I saw the will at Doctors'-commons,
about six weeks ago. I did not suggest anything to
him about putting in Mrs. Arnold or ter children. I
remember Mrs. Alsop and her child filed a bill against
me for malversation in my trust. Mr. Warren asked
me whether Mr. Arnold Bainbrigge would agree to
pay me my costs in that suit 4 I replied that if it was
not for me he would not have the estate, but I did not
say I might put in my own name if I liked. It would
be going beyond my duty to do more than give testator
a hint of what ought to be done. He was weaker on
Friday, but he was quite collected and gave his instruc-
tions for a settlement quite clearly. Mr. Rushton, now
solicitor in Uttoxeter, did the engrossment. I cannot
recollect whether I sent to Uttoxeter for the will when
the relatives asked for it; the best of my recollection now
is that Mr. Rushton brought it by my direction. I
read the will most probably altogether. I did not
intentionally turn my shoulder, so as to pre-
vent General Bainbrigge from seeing the will. I swear
that the blank was filled up before it was executed. I
frequently make pencil notes in the margin of original
documents, but cannot say whether I had made
them in this document, but there were no pencil inter-
lineations. Mrs. Fox declined to let me see her husband
except in the presence of the solicitor on the other
side.. I believe the Fox family did tell me that haste
must be made, or otherwise he could not be examined.
I believe Mrs. Fox did in the presence of the commis-
sioners accuse me of having delayed the examination of
Mr. Fox. I agreed with Mr. Joseph Bainbrigge that
the purchase money of the house in Derby should be
allowed out of such claims on the estate as he could
establish; he was to file a friendly bill, and I was to
offer no opposition. I became bankrupt in 1836. My
debts amounted to 100 0001. I have paid no dividend on
unsecured debts. There was some trust money in-
cluded. Notwithstanding the clause in the will of 1818
I let Arnold have 20 or 30 acres of land.

Mr. Rushton proved that he took the will on the
morning of the funeral from Uttexeter to Woodseat, and
read the whole of it, and made two copies of it, and that
it was in the same state as now, and also on the Satur-
day the testator died made an engrossment of an assign-
ment of his personal estate to the trustees.
Lord CAMPBELL summed up. If the jury were of
opinion, notwithstanding the extravagant things which li
the testator had done, the habits ho had acquired, and
the many blamable features in his conduct, that he was
sane bef)re his illness on the 15th June, and that on the
17th and 18th he was c‘aascious of what he was doing,
and that the codicil and will spoke his intentions, they
should find for the defendant, but if they thought he was
insane before his last illness, or if they thought he was
sane, but that during that illness some fraud was prac-
tised upon him, and he did not give directions for the
will and codicil, then they should find for the plaintiff.
It did not appear that there was any ground for dating
the supposed insanity from the accident in August, 1815.
There was one peculiarity in this case. Generally,
where aahity or insanity was in question, wild and violent
acts were sought to be explained by showing that the
party drank deeply, and that they were to be attributed
to that cause, while here the party setting up the insanity
gave evidence of excessive drinking, and the other aide
denied it. In arriving at their verdict, they would have
to say whether or not Major-General Bainbrigge was
labouring under soma hallucination as to what he
saw after the funeral. It did not appear by the
will as it now stood that there ever was more than one
blank in it, and for that Mr. Blair accounted in a very
probable manner, as he thought, for he virtually had
all the same advantages by the will of 1815 as by that
of 1818. except the t xclu.ive right of sporting. The
evidence of Mr. Rushton also, wno saw the will before
the Genera', and made two copies of it, went a great
way to show that the gallant General had fallen into
some mistake. A s:rong improbability against the will
of 1818 was, that in that of 1808 he lett his sister, Mrs.
James, an annunity cf 1001. a }ear, and by that of 1815
one of 4001; and a short tune before his death he wrote
affectionately to her, enchsing a cheque for 1201., and
by ilia without a peony. This astir of
but it was possibly that at the la•t moment his heart re-
lented, and his natural feelings returned.
The jary, before retiring, wished to know how old
the old man was. He had been all along spoken of as
the old man, but his age was not mentioned. _ .

His LORDSIIIP said it had not been proved, and he
would not then inquire about it.
The jury rrtireq at hall-pait one o'clock, taking out
with them the codicil and will and the diaries, and in
about twenty minutes returned with a verdict for the
plaintiff.