Savannah morning news. [volume] (Savannah) 1868-1887, 1883-08-08
HOme-Hade Wills.
Chambers journal.

No person should write his own will nm
less there be urgent need for it. Perhaps
more litigation has arisen from this cause
than any other. The most experienced
lawyers, not even excepting learned
judges, in making their own Wills. have
been known to fail, not, however, in maxi
ing simple requests, for in that a man of
falr intelligence and education could
scarcely go wrong, but in irving too
much in the way of complex and alterna-
tive and contingent destinatiOn-in short.
looking too deeply into the future. A
man OF standing and one who is constant
ly in the habit of drawing such docu-
ments should be employed. Nothing is
saved by being too parsimOniOus in this
respect.
If any man is determined to write his
own VIII, let him do so in plain English,
setting forth as clearly as he can what he
has clearly and definitely resolved to do.
All legal terms and phrases, nOtwith-
standing the learning they may display,
ought to be avoided, Children, if men
toned, ought to be called by their names:
and such expressions as ''heirs, success
sors. issue, heirs of the body" and so
forth, never used at random. Most of
these terms have certain legal interpre-
tation, which may differ from what the
testatOr intended. There is no use, either,
in inserting a long string of words like
''give, grant, devise, legate, bequeath.
convey, dispose, and make over." AL
though most of the legal peculiarities at
taching to these words are now swept
away, their repetition only leads to con-
fusion. All printed forms of wills should
be rejected as dangerous, at least in so far
as their meaning is not quite clear. If no
legal aid is at hand, let the party express
his wishes on paper in plain simple Sax
on, just as II he were telling friend a
story, or writing letter expressing his
wishes, And let him not forget TO sign
it, as has been the case with many an
amateur will maker.
The same rules apply to codicils. They
may be executed at the testatOr's pleasure:
but if they make changes upon or partial
revocations of the original will great care
should be taken that these are clearly
expressed. The will and each of the
cOdicils should be dated, although this
is not essential, if their provisions do not
clash. When two testamentary prOvi-
siOns are clearly inconsistent the later re-
vOkes the earlier, and will disposing of
the whole estate, real and personal, herit-
able and movable, by implication of law
revokes all prior wills. Litigation often
arises from defects in the written in
strument, but still more frequently
from the author of will not
having clearly thought out what he
intends to do; or having partly altered his
mind; or having forgotten what he has
done in some earlier cOdicil, which has
fallen out of sight on loose fly-leaf, and
bequeathed the same ring or piece of
plate, or other mementO, to two different I
persons; or left the same money legacy
twice over to the same person; or mis-
named some college or charitable institu-
ton; or failed to distinguish two of
similar names; or, worst of all, has de-
layed this duty of ''setting the house in
Order' until disease has weakened or de-
stroyed the ''sound disposing mind" and
left the kindly wishes and benevolent
hopes of lifetime-long cherished, but
expressed, perhaps, too late-to a battle
of medical and legal theories about In
sanity, or the accidents of jury trial.
Indulgent parents who allow their chill
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