Richmond dispatch. [volume] (Richmond, Va.) 1884-1903, 1898-08-27

mere are practically four chief
grounds on which Wills can be attacked
one Is that the testator hasn't the ca
pacity 10 make will. Another Is that
undue influence has been brought TO bear
on him so that the will Is not his own
| so that II he could speak be would say:
This will is not my will The third is
! that the testatos attempts TO do what the
law VIII not permit. The fourth ground
we have not discussed. and that Is the
iaiiure or the testator 10 execute his VIII.
different States and countries have
| diuerent requirements as TO how wills
shall be executed. some being more strin-
gent than others. The requirements in
New York 90 pass both real and personal
property are. first. that the testator
shall subscribe the viii at the end. Make
| that point emphatic. IL there Is one
| word or one syllable below the name the
win cannot stand. The name must liter
ally be at the end Second, he must either
| subscribe his name in the presence
| OF the witnesses or, having the name
| written and visible. he must acknowledge
| to the witnesses that no subscribed II.
| Third, he must declare to the witnesses
| that IL is his last viii and testament
| This is called the publication OF the
will Fourth. there must be at least
| two witnesses, who must subscribe their
! names 10 the will as such at the request
! OF the testator. 1t is not required In
New York that the witnesses shall be
together IN the testator's presence or
| that they shall be in the presence OF each
| other or that they shall sign their
| names in his presence, but 1t is best that
all these things should be done, and
/ better 20 have three witnesses rather
| than two. 1t is also well to put seal
| opposite the testator's name. In New
York the witnesses are required by the
| statute TO state their places Of residence.
| Their failure to do this does not inVan-
| date the will. however, but subjects the
! witnesses to a fine Of $50 each.
while this outline covers the New YORK
| requirement. other formalities are pre-
scribed in other States and countries, and
| since a will cannot dispose of real pro-
perty unless N is executed in the manner
| required by the law Of the place where
! such real property is situated, 1t is ad-
visable. in having a will executed, to have
| formalities enough TO cover the require
ments in all places. In order to DO thls'
| after having the will written preferably IN
manuscript have the testator and three
! witnesses present, and have them all re-
main until the execution Is completed. Inc
| testator then subscribes his name at the
end of the will while the witnesses see
I MN 90 so. ne DulS MS 0Itii ~ NV A'o''N
Of his signature, acknowledges to all OF
the witnesses that It is his signature, de-
clares the document to be his last will and
| testament and requests each of the wit
| nesses to sign II as a subscribing witness.
| Then each witness signs his name a little
| below that OF the testator and of 10 the
| left. An attestation clause is next added.
| which is in substance an outline OF the
| execution of the will. and then below TINS
| attestation clause each Of the witnesses
signs his name again and states his place
| of residence"
! care there not many different klnus Oh
! Wills?" asked the interviewer.
| Eyes" answered Professor Reeves, 'and
some are queer enough. The ordinary
will is a written will simply made by the
one testator. Indeed to pass real pro-
perty a will must be written. The only
| general cases in which oral or nuncupative
I wills are allowed to dispose Of personal
/ property are those of soldiers in actual
military service and sailors at sea; ana at
! sea means where the tide GIBBS and flows'
There is a mutual will in which two tes-
tators by one document Teciprocally VIII
| their property to each other, ana the
document becomes the will OF the one who
| first dies. A Joint will is where two or
| mora testators in one and the Same docu-
| ment give their property 10 some one or
! more outside persons. AS each teslalor
dies this s by most courts recognized as
his will and is probated as such. III must
| be remembered that wills ana contracts
are very different. While will is legal
! instrunent. unlike q contract, 1t can be
! revoked. stopped, cut off, changed at any
time Reciprocal wills are sometimes
/ snoken Of: they are the two distinct wills
/ Of two persons by which each wills ms
! oropertv TO the other. Conditional Wills
| are so drawn that they shall not operate
! unless certain events do or do not happeh'
! Another kind Of will is one mat news
naper reporters often get lamentaDly mix
ed up on, and that is n holographlc OF
geographic will. Properly, this is form
of will such as is permitted In some Vi
tho states. specially those of the South
and Southwest. The Photographic will is
written entirely in the handwriting OF the
testator. and thus. carrying on its face
| evidence Of its commences. does not re-
ouire witnesses. The mistake that news
papers make is in describing will as
Photographic because it Is in the testator S
handwriting. The legal meaning Is not
So. 10 be a Photographic will there must
be no witnesses. The average reporter
writes: Mr. A. filed a Photographic Will
with the Surrogate That couldn't De
| done. for witnesses are necessary in New
YORK
"A form OF will used in Louisiana and
largely on the Continent, where Roman
or civil law predomnates, Is the mystic
will. so-called from the fact that the
testator has IL written and sealed IN an
envelope and presented in that way to
the witnesses. This is well illustrated
nv the Louisiana way of making mystic
will. The testator incloses his VIII
in an envelope and then calls in at least
seven witnesses and a notary public. He
states TO them that this envelope which
he wishes them TO sign contains his WILL
Tho seven witnesses then sign the en-
velope the notary signs it next puts his
! certificate and seal upon il, and preserves
the will in his possession untll the
testator IS dead. a will Of this kind
could not pass real property in New YORK:
only two years ago such VIII
vas brought here from Germany. The
courts said they knew ii was genuine
but IT could not be probated. There Is a
rule i'm this State which admits VIII
"a probate here TO pass personal property
when the will is made in compliance with
the law Of the domicile OF the testator'
even though it doesn't follow our formal
dies of law here Such will, however
couldn't touch real property.
"With regard to revolving or doing away
with these wills. this used TO be allowed
very freely and informally but II Is now
uniformly required that the VIII shal DC
| ,..-...1 b,, the testatOr or under MS