Evening star. [volume] (Washington, D.C.) 1854-1972, 1882-06-28

Rules Which Some NIen Are Ignorant
OF asad Others Ignore.

From the Springfield Republican.
The Journals of year past have mentioned an
extraordinary number of queer or contested
wills. Are people 1hecoming more disposed to
draw their own wills without employing law
yers? There is no reason why any one should
not draw will who has fair husiness-alike
ability to write out the gifts. Common sense
suggests that the paper ought to be headed as
viii. and it is not difficult to learn By inquiry
how many witnesses are required in the particu-
lar state this, by the way, is the state where the
testatOr resides Cat his death); will drawn for
man on journey should follow the law OF
the state where he has his home. Neither bad
grammar nor misspelling in the body of will
vitiates it; If the judges can understand what
the paper means they will order that done Wills
having nearly every important word misspelled
and almost destitute of punctuation have been
accepted Maine papers say that a court has
lately taken proof of a will made in pantomime
by man who was deaf and dumb and could not
write or use the manual alphabet. But mistakes
which obscure the meaning make trouble.
story last summer was that Mr.. Matthew Vas
sar. when drawing his own will, meant to leave
S1.ooV TO seven Churches e., 81 600 apiece
but in copying his rough draft he inadvertently
inserted the word ''each" giving the churches
$1,000 EACH or $40, 0O0 in all. The general rule
rs to mistakes is that if the will is lucid and in
telligbe, and can be carried into effect as it
reads. this must be done; the language cannot
be altered because witnesses say that the tesla
tor meant something different from what he
wrote But if what is written cannot be per-
formed the courts will then take proof of what
the man meant to write.
Curious conditions are sometimes imposed
One testatOr declared in his will that if any lega-
tee should attempt to break 1t he should be de-
barred from all share. Another cut off any heir
who should wear mOustaches Another said
that each legatee must take the pledge before
nd chnt1l6 holr
years income for every breach o. it. Another
left to his family physician 60, 600 if testator
should live two years, or $4,000 If he should
live five; but unluckily for the doctor, the
patient lived only week. Whether conditions
of this kind are operative depends on the cir
cumstances if they are lucid and practicable the
courts will enforce them, but many are so ex-
pressed that they amount to nothing. II you
wish that your legatee should not receive the pro-
perty unless he complies with condition say so
plainly in the will, and the condition. if not con-
trary to law. will probably be enforced. But to
make him give back the legacy because of
breaking the condition after it has been paid
may not be so easy. And do not mention the
request at all in the will, but write them in
letter separately, unless you mean that, if they
are not obeyed, the legacy shall be forfeited
Requests which are not peremptory conditions
often make trouble. When Heller the magician
died he bequeathed his apparatus to be de-
strOyed. In some instances a testator has di-
rected that favOrite horse or other pet should
be killed. ''lest it fall into unkind hands, 1t is
doubtful whether q court would compel an eX-
ecutOr to destroy property because the will so
desired. Wills are allowed for giving ones
property; that useful animals or articles should
be destroyed is not for public benefit Direc-
lions given in will as to mode OF burial or for
cremation are also subjects of the sanitary law
of the place.
1t is only when one designs to give his prop
erty outright in simple WAYS that he should
wi tai
lowing new institutions, or tying up property
for future time. a lawyers aid may be very
needful. Even lawyers sometimes make mis-
takes. New York lawyer named Rose drew
his own will. leaving about two million to be
held for five years to see whether other givers
would add $500, GOO; if they would the whole
should go to endOw a Rose Beneicent AssOcia-
tion;' if they would not, then his money was to
go to other charities. Now the law does not al
low property to be held in suspense for def
mite term of years. therefore his gift was pro-
nounced void. Some most absurd blunders
nave been made by lawyers in drawing wills for
themselves. 1t is not obligatory to appoint an
executor. but doing so is wise, and If a testatOr
has enough confidence in the person named to
direct that g he shall not be required to give
security" this may prove great convenience.
AS respects signing and witnessing, wills often
fail for some infOrmality in these especially in
New York, where the form Is stricter than in
most states. A story of last summe- was that
will was presented written partly in black pen
Gil, partly in blue Ga will is not void because i'm
pencil, though ink is far better;) about half was
written on one page, and the witnesses signed
at the foot; the other half was written on the
other page, and then came the testatOr's sigma
ture. This instrument was discarded because
the witnesses did not sign at the end of the will
Common sense ought to tell any one that any
important paper ought to be completed before
the sign atureS are affixed.
The New York rule as to signing and witness
there no
testator must sign in their presence, inform
them that the paper Is his WILL Che need not
tell them what is In it,, and ask them to witness
it; and they must sign their names and resi-
dences as witnesses at the end of the will. They
usually sign below brief memorandum certify
ing that these things were done; but this MEM
Orandum is not strictly essential Keep the will,
when completed, in safe place. In Massachu-
sets, lately. will was contested because rats
had eaten the signature Lord st. LeOnards
will was lost, and was established only by the
fortunate fact that his daughter was able to re-
peat the substance of it from memory.