Nashville union and American. [volume] (Nashville, Tenn.) 1853-1862, 1861-04-04
DECISIONS Of THE sUPREmE. ooURT.
Decisions OF she suPrenic' Court OF tine
state Of Tennessee, at KnexFilis, SeP-
tender Term, 1860. -, ~ ssl,s,a7 X

e. ss.4 ts.t3 a..s ssssstst Y tis- 'l..- -''V~
Decisions OF she suprsmet. Court OF the
state of Tennessee, nj KnexFilIs, SeP-
sembcr Term. 1860. 80 - ssl.s,a7 Il
iIar by next friend, vs. Union Bank Of Tennessee IL b
This was an agreed case. The facts are as fol-
VIII. F. Harris. In the year 1855, perhaps, one
Germany made gift to Mrs. HARRIS Of the sum Of
$500 90 in money for the express purpose of ptifl
chasing nurse for child of Mrs. Harris who bore
his surname. The money was. given through the
medium of the husband of Mrs. Harris and the gift
made on the express condition that the negro
should be the separate, absolute property Of Mrs.
Harris and her child children, and free forever
from the marital rights of her husband. With this
sum of money negro girl vas purchased for Mrs.
Harris, but she turned out to be girl Of bad tenn
per and disposition, unspted for nurse; and feg
that reason she was sold, and with the proceeds
being $3.50 90 hrs, Harris, through a. friend, on
the Esd of june 1856, purchased smother negro girl
named Csty'e and her child, from one John L.
DeYine. The BILL Of ssle for said slaves was made
directly to Mrs. Harris, and was never registered
Afterwards, on the I'd of October, 1857 w. F.
Harris the husband, made deed of trust to secure
! q large indebtedness his part TO- the Union Bank
Of Tenneasee, and among other property conveyed
by said deed were the negro girl and child above
mentioned, see separate property Of his wife and
| { The sueston for our determination ID whether
i upon the foregoing facts, the Bank can enforcs
1 sale of the slaves against the claim Of Mrs Harris
lis well settled that the 9TH section Of the statu te
| frauds % Charles z en- 3. applies only Glands
/ tenan1ents and hsraaItanents" The law in regard
to personal chdi<s remains wholly unaffected BY the
| statute and valid transfer Of personal property
may NOT ohiy be created but may be established and
1 proved by mere parol declarations. Hill on Trus
tees, Jed. Of Is541 90, 72. Levin on Trustees 81
If is essential hnweFer, 20 the creation of trust
BY pafol dseisrztiop, that the expressions used
should auopnt 70 clear and explicit declaration o.
4 trust. = E tSis'3 low .'2.l''
The subject matter Of the trust as wen as the OBJ
iect of the trust must be pointed out with certainty
Hill on Trustees, s5. II the trust be purely voIun
tary it viii not be enforced against the donor npor
psrol declaration, unless complete exceeded
trust be clearly proved. Id. &c. 1 Hare 476, 43s
But it is well settled that trust once efectually
created by parol and fully executed cannot subse
quenty be extingulshed, revoked altered, by the
party creating it, any more than more formal as
surance. Id. a. Nor can it be effected by any sub
sequent declarations Of the donor. levin on trusts
81. N. q X. $50. 7''h S1Ea' .,1 a'o.N,-l - q
1t is clear upon the principles that a valid
L irrevocables trust was created in favor of Mrs
Harris and her infant in the first mentioned negro
girg and it n no less clear that by the investment
of the proceeds of the sale of that slave in the las
paped ysmsn and child, the trust attached TO the
latter AZ fully asto the former ,the change of tbs
property so long the trust fund can be certainly
traced, is matter of no importance. Nor is it at
all material to the rights of Mrs. Harris and hel
infant that the title conveyed directly to herself
without the nterpositi9n of trustee; the principle
| Is familiar one that s-Court of equity will no
suffer trust already established to fail for want O.
| Q trustee, -t
The absence of trustee only renders It the more
Editicult to establish the trust in many cases bu
when sufficiently established the trust itself is
valid and viii be as amply protected without ~
| with trustee. The possession of the slaves ani
his osteaSibis ownership of them, is Of no ayai
against the wife and her infant. The apparen
possession of the husband, in such cases, Is
necessary consequence of the relation of the parties
Itsurey will not do to hold, that in order to ena
Bile the wife to become the owner of separate
property, dissolution Of the marriage relation, d
fdcto, must first take place. The husbands regard
ed as holding the possession of the property in tbs
character of trustee for the wife in such caseas
Nor can the non-registration of the title of Mrs
Hsrris and her infant be held to prejudice theil
rights. 3" - 5''A 'tg1ga CAS-
That is an objection which the creditors of tn,
husband cannot be heard to make, under our regis
try laws. The creditors of the donor alone coax
avail themselves of this matter.
We Of opinion, therefore that no title passed
to the Bank by the trust deed and that the titetC
the slaves remains unimpaired in AIRS. Harris anC
her child and children as the case may now be, tC
the negro weman and child, as well as to any in
crease of the woman, born since the date of tn,
conveyance, from Devine on the 23d of June, 1856
The decree of the Chancellor will be reversed
and the legal title to the slaves and their future in
crease, will be vested in suitable trustee to holt
| for the exclusive benefit of Mrs. Harris and hel
child and children, in exclusion of the martial RICH
of the husband and all others. sa .'-'.s.'N
| A true copy. MCKINNEY. d
| NM r. CAswEIL. Clerk .--. $500