Deseret evening news. [volume] (Great Salt Lake City [Utah]) 1867-1920, 1897-04-10
THE STAINES WILL.
One Of The Heirs Contests the DsYlSe
and Bsquest Of The Deceased.
HILEs DECIDES AGAINST HIM.
Decision In The Hot springs Railway
Case--Contemp Proceedings-for
aWrit Of Mandate--Notes.

Judge Hiles handed down an
opinion today In the case OF William
G.. Staines VS. Robert T. Burton aud
JsmesT. Little, executors OF the estate
Of William Carter Statues and the
Church OF Jesus Christ of Latter.dsy
Saints.
The plaintiff in this case is the son
and sole surviving heir-at.law OF the
late w IlIam Carter Stsitel anu brought
suit to have the devise and btqnest OF
the will OF deceased set aside and adj
judged void.
The defendants demurred TO the
complaint on tho ground that II did not
state facts sufficient to constitute a
cause OF action.
Judge Hiles In bis decision ss rem
dered today sDstaius the demurrer.
BY the will OF the late William
Carter Staines, who died in 1881, he
made the following direction as to the
reHidue OF his estate:
"As to the residue OF my estate real
or personal. my will lie, that my execu-
tore shall sell 1t and invest the proceeds
as they think best, to be safe, anu I to
yiulu the most income.
"This incc me l wish to have divided
as 1t accrues quarterly or eemi.aunu.
ally, between tne ABOVE named Lillias
anu Pisciiia, one.hali TO each as long
as shs lives. Alter the death OF each
one l desire that my executors shall
make over TO the presiding Bishop OF
the Church OF J sus CHRIST OF Latter
day SAints the half OF my estate from
which that wif.'s Income was derived.
The presiding bishop shall receive 1t
In Iiut, TO expend the annual Interest
income according to his discretion, lot
the bentfi, OF mem bers OF the Church
OF Jssus Chiist OF Batter.dsy Saints,
whether 1t be for schools, patkP, water
ing citier, planting forests, acciimatiz-
ing foreign plsuts. or anything else
whereby the memoirs may be bene-
fitted.D
The will was made on the LIST OF
March, 1873.
Plaintiff alleges that the devise to
to the Churcn IL void bscsuse 1t lie
uncertain, uuintelligiblr, Analogous
and Illegal, and iutther because the
SHutCu nv tuo iiLuo VI tut uthtu Ol the
testator and the probate OF the will
held real eetate OF greater value than
$4,000, and further because at the
iimo 1t taught tbat polygamy was
right and proper and legal and this
was and 10 one OF the principal teuets
OF that Church, and these devise and
Inquest being for an immoral purpose
is void.
The court In giving Its decision sayt:
"ln respect to The frat point,I think
1t 10 sufficient TO soy that tue devite
and btqueeis OF the will are not to the
Church OF Jesus Chrlst Of Lstter-dsy
SainR, nor are they to iuriher or
propagate any Of the SUP posed illegal
practices or immoral tenets or doc.
trines oil that or any other church, but
1t Is for members OF that Chufoh
whom the donor thought were worthy
objects of his charitable bounty.'
On the second point the court holds
that there IL not sufficient Indefinite.
ness ~ to defeat the will.
AS to the third ground OF objection
the court says:
"lt seems TO me that desire or be-
quest OF property to charitable uses TO
so large bouy as the members OF the
Church OF Jesus Chrlst of Latter-day
Saints 10 n general devotion 10 char