The Wheeling daily intelligencer. [volume] (Wheeling, W. Va.) 1865-1903, 1866-11-09

HAAGp E<LAAA4A8 A9s Au0 0OuLlsUh N4A4L4-
a- Defendants.
Josiah F. UpdegraR and Catherine o., hIl
EIEe, ST, STEPHEN Pl9eR, O FseHey, Emma Feeney
$, Feeney, Annie G.. Feeney, by ]. r. Upde.
gnlfL, her next friend, George w. Steenrod,
sarah Il, his vile. and Conrad Troll and
Emma g., his vile. N - r.
Cgul4ei m Piaiattds: Hon. --- y Kennon,
Counsel FOR DeEe1tClG,lts Hon. John. A. Bling
ham, OF Ohio and Daniel Peck and Daniel
Lamb. Of w. Va
Mr.. BINGHAM said: r.' r-as sEs4..ia.
With permission Of Your Honor, Gentle
men Of the jury: 'g 'a'I
The sole issue you are sworn to try in
this case IS made up by this honorable
Court. BY it's order you are directed,
upon your oaths, to find and determine
whether the several papers which have
been propounded-g here, or whether
either Oithem, indeed. is the valid last
VIII and testament of Daniel Steenrod.
do not know, gentlemen, that any
purpose was intended by the apparent
attempt on the part of the. learned
gentleman who opened the argument
on behalf of the proponents of this
paper, to limit this issue; but such
seemed 10 be the tendency of his re-
marks. Now / understand that there
is no room for question that where an
issue is directed in the manner and form
thisi ssue has been, every question that
touches the validity of tho paper, is in
issue before the jury, for the purposes
of this trial. so far MS it affects or dis
closes anything in the case. I am free
to say, for myself, that there are but
three inquiries to be made by this Jury,
in order to determine the issue as to
each of these papers; that is to say,
whether IL is the last valid will and teS-
lament of Daniel Steenrod. The first
inquiry as to each is
Whether the formal execution of
these several papers as required by the
law of Virginin has been established2
II that has been done, the next ques-
whether cths testatorI wS,as of Tesla
mcntary capacity?
And if SO, the further question is
Whether he exercised this testament
ary capacity voluntarily. without re-.
straint, intelligibly and pprposely, in
the execution of these 1pabers? !?
Because the word "wILL" as used in
the statute OF the State-which is used
in the statutes OF all tho States of this
Internationally implies that it must
be tho voluntary as well as the intellir
gent and competent act of the party
himself, to be carried into execution
after his death. 81 ,szfT9m Il
agree with everything that has been
said here by the gentleman, that the
statute of the State is to be followed, If
this was cOmpetentto to make will
and made his will, it is to be sustained
by the jury. HthismaIt, being cOmpe-
Ten, Possessln ng a -tastamehtaEySCa Ca pact
ty, has, in the language OF one of the
authorities read by the gentleman him
self, in his opening, been circumyent-
ed, been lmisled, been deceived, and
thereby has uuwittingly put his name
to y paper the contents and effect of
which he did not nnderstand,it it iB NOT
his will, no matter how formally il was
executed. 1t requires, gentleman, no
great amount of legal learning to un-
derstand that propositions; because, asI
said, the word t'will" itself Implies It
There is no getting away from 1t. 1t
must be the will of :he man himself:
his own voluntary act; his own intelli-
gent acti he must have purposed it and
understood it. In tho language of tho
law, plainyand simple-as I may have.
occasionI to Ad ~ before 1 nm DONE
he must have known and understood
what he was about, and must have in
tended to do the very thing which these
papers would accompIlshi II any force
be given them by tho verdict or this
jury.n The law of the State Of ViTninia
which was road to you, is that every
person of requisite age tEiefein named
and not, t,of unsound mind, may execute
his last will and testament. But it must
be his will; for however sound his mind
may have been, If, as said before, he
has been circumvented, il is not his,
Will. If the paper contains something
else than what he intended It should
1t is. not his will II it does
violence TO, his obligations, confessed
by himself and proved by his own de-
beyond II shadow of doubt,
u The i9TTY are AZ bound to conolntie it is not
On the first of these inquiries, as to
the formal execution of these five sew
eral papers-the paper of November
the 22nd, 1862, and tho four additional
papers purporting to be codicils to the
Ia no Controversyh hero. The
several witnesses to edpIl have been
called. They have testified that the
party signed each paper; that Daniel
Steenrod signed in their presence; that
they signed in his presence; that they
signed at his request and that he execu-
ted 1t, It you please, MS his last will and
in the one case, or as the
cOdictl in the other,, So that there is;nO
on that point ae all; and
the jury are not troubled about it.
Ihat ls tho end of what, haye to say
all that was said SO elabof-
ately and at so great length by the hon
orable gentleman who opened this case
on the part of the proponents, who pro-
pose to prove these several papers were
the last viii and testament of Daniel
Steenrod.
Then comes the question, had Daniel
Steenrod, this testator, testamentaFY ca1
pacityf said, gentlemen, in the pro-
gress oflthis case, that in order to estab-
lish the point that the party alleged to
be the testator was not of testamentary
it was not necessary to show
sary toAshow that he wis 4uinatie Il
was not necessary To show that he was
idiotic. It is all suf6cient-and assert
it on the authorities which the genIleS
man himself read-to show to the sat-
isfactton of the jury, by good and COM
petent witnesses, I'M order to maintain
the issue OF tRstamentaEy incapaciEY,
that, by reason of age and of disease,
the party was not able to- summon TO
his own mind without the aid of others
all his property, and summon at the
saIisi time before his oNn mind yithoTlb
the aid of others all the persons who
were the natural objects OF his beuntv
and were entitled to his cotisi ileration
and care. On that subject, gentlemen
there is no room for mistake at all,
This question has been too long consid-,
ered IN tie lEhgIish and American
Courts to admit OF any doubt at all on
that point to-day. say the authorities
the geutlemRnlrpad 0st1blishstE GRay
the authorities which i shall read estnb-
lish it also. And / may, IL think 1
am not tresspaSsing too much bIfy6ur
good what have said, TO read s6tne-
what from the very pages and books to
which the gentleman himself REFERRED.
On this subject, gentlemen, read in
the 6rst place from RedEield, page 123.
as to testardehtSry capacity! sifs5 .sEn
The party mus not only be able TO answer
tive, IntelliblYs but, as Is said by I,oFIi CniCe