The Abbeville press and banner. [volume] (Abbeville, S.C.) 1869-1924, 1891-09-23
THE WILL OF JANE TAYLOR.
THE DECREE OF JUDGE wITHERsPooN

THE DECREE OF JUDGE WITHERsPooN.
The Probate Judge. With Very Slight
Modification. is Affirmed.
STATE. OF SOUTH CAROLINA,
COUNTY OF ABBEvILLE.
In Common Pleas.
Mary Hughes. Margaret Dodson. Barbary
Brock, and Jane Johnson, plaintiffs,
against
and i'm his own right, Elizabeth Shaw, Han
nah Kirkpatrick, AnnicTaylor and James
Taylor, defendants.
| Apucal from Probate Court.
| Jane Taylor. the wife OF the defendant Jas.
Taylor. and the mother Of the plaintiffs and
of the other defendants above named, dled
| tcStatc on or about the 10Th day OF December,
1sSS. The defendant L. II. Kirkpatrick, Il son
of Jane Taylor, duly qualified an executor OF
her will The plaintiffs, four of the children
Of Jane Taylor. instituted the above entltleu
action in the Probate Court for AbbeVllle
county, for an account and settlement OF lne
! estate of Jane Taylor. The DEFENDANTS Han,
nah kirkpatrick and Annie Taylor appeal
from the decree of the Probate Court, render
ed May H. 1871, and the cause came on to be
heard by this Court upon said appeal.
| The first and second grounds OF appeal Il :
legc that the Probate Judge erred in dlsnl-
lowing the claim OF Annie Taylor for services
rendered her deceased mother. | do not
think that the evidence is sufficlent 10 eS,
tablsh the claim, and the first ana secoha
grounds OF appeal are orerruled.
| The third, fourth, fifth and sixth grounds OIL
appeal allege, that the Probate Judge erred in
so constituting the will of Jane Taylor, as 10
require the lcgatecS who received land within
| life time of teStatriX to account for the same,
1T the value fixed by appraisers appointed by
lcstatriX, and that the appellants should ac-
count for the land devised to them at the
value fixed by appraisers appointed by the
| Executor.
The seventh and last ground Of appeal al.
! leGeS, that the Probate Judge erred In con-
Guiding that those who received more thar
an equal share Of testaLriX property must pay
back sufficient amount of money to pro
l duce equality.
l In constructing the will, effect must be
given 10 the instruction OF the teStatriN as
aSccrained from the consideration OF the en-
| tire will as well us the circumstances under
which the wifi was executed.
| The will is dated October ), 1887. Prior tC
that date, teStatriX had conveyed portions o.
her land to all OF her eight children, with the
exception of the appellants Hannah kirk,
patrick and Annie Taylor, and had the land
so conveyed appraised by sworn appraisers
| OF her own selection.
| The land conveyed to her son Il. r. kirkpa'
trick consisted OF l55 acres, valued at ST pei
acre.
The $50 acres conveyed to Mrs. Hughes wa!
valued at 50 per acre.
The les acres conveyed to Mrs. Brock was
The l52 acres conveyed to Mrs. Shaw was
valued at 81 per acre.
The l2G acres conveyed to Mrs. Dodson wa:
valued at Sl0.5O per acre, and the ~ acres con
veyed to Mrs. johnson was valued at S03O pei
acre.
Testatrix did not convey any portion of hel
land ,I. to to her daughters, the he appellant Hannah
Under these circumstances testatrlX eX
ccutcd her will.
After providing in the first clause for the
paymcnt Of debtS testatriX in the second
clause directs her Executor TO sell n certain
tract Of 2l0 acres Of land. and In the thlro
clause directs the sale OF her personal prop
erty, &c.
In the fourth clause testatrix directs thai
the proceeds OF the real estate and of the per
sonal property be divided equally, share ane
share alike between her eight children a'
above named, and the following Is the con
clusion of said fourth clause: :,
MAY deem 1t SO that all my children ShoulC
''be made equal, and In making the Sald al
"visionS, all advances heretofore made tc
"them in land are to be accounted for by
them In accordance with the terms OF the
, "deedS of conveyance to them respectively.
Tesiatrix states in the fifth clause, 81 hav:
mot included in this, my will, my home trac'
containing four hundred and fifty acres, as
1.-THE said tract | intend to convey to my
daughters, Hannah kirkpatrick and Annie
Taylor by deeds as TO others" and after indl
} eating how she intended to divide the 45C
acres between said daughters, the ifth clause
} OF said will concludes as fol lows, land l dt
, "Eereby give and devise the above named
l"tracLs to said Hannah Kirk patrick anu An
: "nic Taylor as above directed. in the event
that my death should occur before ma kline
'the deeds Of conveyance TO them as above
} "indicuted.
} "to Annie Taylor Of which the use and en-
"joymcnt is given to James Taylor is TO be
} ''during his natural life or widOwhood."
The sixth and last clause of the will relates
to the burial Of the testatriX.
The POO acres devised under the fifth clause
to Hannah rkpatrck was valued Septeni,
ber II, 1882 at Sll.0O per acre, and the balance
. OF the $50 acres decided to Annie Taylor in
the said clause was valued AT Sl3 per acre by
sworn appraisers, appointed by the EXecu
: tor.
Two of said appraisers had been selected by
trstatriX TO fix the value OF the land convey.
cd by her TO the other children, and the third
appraiser selected bys tcstatriN. being dead
+ the Executor substituted another.
: The appellants Hannah kirkpatrick and
Annie Taylor contend that the main object or
the will was to provide for the distribution ol
the proceeds of the 2lD acres of land and the
personal property arising under the second
and third clauses of the will-that such pro
cecilS should be divided in such proportions
that the children TO whom The more valu.
able tracts OF land were conveyed or devised
should not receive any portion Of said pro-
cecds until the children receiving the least
valuable tracts were made equal out of said
proceeds
This construction is inconsistent with tesla
triX direction IN the fourth clause, that the
proceeds of the 2lO acres and the personal
property "be divided equally, share and share
alike, between my eight children" includ-
TO whom testatriX intended to convey by
decd as to her other children, but failing TO
convey, did devise the more valuable tracts
: OF land.
IN the same clause in which testatrix di-
reefs the division of the proceeds OF sale OF
=. land and personal property equally between