Nashville union and American. [volume] (Nashville, Tenn.) 1868-1875, 1869-06-09
AN IMPORTANT CASE.



Suit OF Negroes 40 Recover the Esint'
Of their Former nzsster-The versate
Against Them.
| An important case, known as Che
Owen Thomas will case, has just
been decided in the Superior Conrt
at Columbus. Al statement of the
| facts and the results of the trial
| may not be uninteresting. The
amount invohedswas at least $4O,-
600. The parties were Jas. X. Redd,
propounder of the will, Vs. Sophia
Hargroves and nj. w. Thweat, ct
ais. caveators, and the facts as stated
| by the Judge in his charge are as
| follows :.lhli 30 | s'r's s-"' =
lon the 18th of February, 1862, Owen
Thomas made and. published, paper
parporting to be his last will and tesla,
nisnt, and nominated Jas. h. Redd ard
Augustus Howard executors of the
same, and in the Sd, 4th and 9TH items
provided that . certain, number Of his
slaves, in all over thirty. and consisting
of men, women and children, should be
carried to Liberia, or some other free
State, foreign to Georgia, iato which
they might segerally elect to go, and
there be forever manumitted and freed
they and their posterity and further
provided that all the re-t Of his property,
consisting of lands, negroes, stock and
CROPS, ETC., should be sold, and the pro-,
ceeds be applied to the payment Of debts,
to the betrayal of the expenses incident
to- the execution of the will, to the re-
moyal and subsistence of the negroes in
their new homes; and the balance to be
equally divided among such Of the ne>
groes as were over eighteen years Of
age, on their arrival at the place they
might select for their homes. 1l ' ''..''
On the 2Sth Of September, 1868,
Owen Thomas departed this life. Snbse>
quently James K. Redd, the executor
nominated in the will, propounded the
same to the Ordinary Court Of thiscounty
for probate; when the cayeators, the
only heirs at law Of Owen Thomas, ap.-
peared and filed their cayeat against the
probate Of the will, on the following
grounds: T8d Do HlLiIs. ts7a tisfi ~ 20
j. Because said will was revoked
by an act of the Legislature assented to
the 18th December 1859, to prohibit the
post mortem manumissi0n of Slaves. 2.
Because the will provided that the
negroes might elect to go 70 Liberia or
some other free State. 3. Because cir
cumstances subsequently occurring have
made it impossible for the executors to
execute the will. .4., u -...fazH5.d,ts
Upon hearing the case the Ordinary
refused to set up the three items men
toned above; but admitted the bill to
probate, as to the other items therein
contained. From this decision Of the
Ordinary an appeal was entered by the
PropouRder, and this way the case comes
before this court for trial. 81 o. 81. Sos l.l,,
The, judges charge was favorable to
the defendants, the caveators, and the
jury found the following verdict: Ia
We, the Jury, find that every part Of
the paper propounded as the will of
Owen Thomas, is void, except that part
which gives legacy or bequest to Mrs.
Howard, and the part which appoints
James X, Redd and Augustus Howard
Executors, excluding the legacy to them,
and we find that these two parts are the
will Of Owen Thomas.
The result, as stated by the Sun, is
to take the administration from j. M.
Thweatt, appointed by Ordinary Duer,
and give it to the surviving executor, j.
K Rsdd, and besides the legacy to Mrs.
Howard, not large amount, and the apr
pOintment of the executors, no part of
the will holds good. The bulk Of the
estate then goes to heirs Of Mrs. Thweatt
and to Mrs. IIargroves, unless, the Su-
preme Court joverrules the decision, or
some other course is taken. The case
will be carried to the Supreme Court
Macon (Ga) Journal and Messenger
lime z ..e wy .a-ttfF fa7