The sun. [volume] (New York [N.Y.]) 1833-1916, 1915-11-21
NovEL POINTS OF TIE LAW.

A feature 81 tho report ~ tho rom.
mit's, on Unnecessary Litigation ~ the
State Bar Association. which has been
adopted by the association. IL a recon-
mendaiion that The public he educated
TO nan the preparation OF more
carefully prepared Wills. contracts and
other writings The report says:
"A will Is a peculiar legal document.
II requires treatment quits irercnt
from a contract or other writing be-
tween living persons. 1t presents all the
difficulties Of such writings and others
peculiar to itself. As the maker is the
only person to execute a will. frequently
he makes II In secret and prepares II
from a single point of view. On the
death Of the maker. each interest en-
ploys counsel to search for flaws and
to test the will more or less as opposing
lawyers test . contract before II Is ex-
ecvted. There 10 this important diff
ference, however: u a flaw is then dis
covered, II 10 too late for the maker
to correct II. Litigation ensues. In
order to obtain the best results In the
preparation OF wills the craftsman must
not only have the qualifications above
specified for the Preparation of written
Instruments. but must also submit the
will to one or more competent lawyers
for independent Interpretation and con-
~structive criticism. II Is plain that the
layman who draw his own legal docu-
nents or seeks to have them drawn by
a person possessing anything less than or
binary professional skill can be properly
advised that he is inviting unnecessary
disputes and litigation. Indeed. where a
lawyer OF ordinary or even extraor-
binary professional skill Is employed
In S1,eriat u,nrk In uhiph ha 10 MT .ar
ought not be) entirely certain of him
self. II Is plainly his duty to 80 advise
his client and to seek such additional
Skill as the facts Of the case shall re-
quire. In this manner the professional
man. in law as In medicine, may best
protect the interests In his keeping and
at the same time enchance his own rep
utation a. a safe legal adviser. Any
other course is. In the opinion OF your
committee. dangerous to clients inter-
ests and detrimental to the profession"
The United States District Court OF
the Southern District Of New York held
In re Silberstein that where a father
made payments for his daughters mar
riage trousseau and It appeared that
at least some of the payments were
made after he knew he was bankrupt.
and the father supposed he WAS bound
to make u provision for his infant
daughter. such payments will not be held
In fraud Of creditors. The court said:
Even a m insolvent has his duties to
his family and must support them.
though his creditors suffer. IL II Is part
OF a fathers obligation to see his daugh-
ter decently married and give her "A rea-
sonable outfit. I cannot say that the OUT
lay is in fraud OF creditors. One may
expect more of a nicer sense Of honor.
but one may not call it fraud. The
question whether such a payment lies
within the fathers obligation is the same
As whether the infant would have been
responsible for IL as for a necessary. !
have been able TO find only two cases
OF wedding clothes as infants necessar-
les. but they both favor the bankrupt
here. If an insolvent father keeps within
measure he is not guilty OF fraud when
he gives his daughter a trousseau. No
one suggests that the here given
was too large or that he seized the op-
portunity as a pretence for giving the
girl moro than she needed 1t In true
that on April 90 Anna was 81 years old,
but II does not appear that when married
she was not still a minor. or that the
bankrupt supposed his duties to her ia
be different from those or q minor"
Where n TICKET noluer ldlS 10 HS'fl
ain tina the train stops AZ his destina
ton, the carrier may compel him Il
leave the train Mt the last place a
which tho train H. scheduled to stop he
for reaching such destination.-Sou,hern
Ry. Co. vs.. Bailey. Ga. 50 ;. +. s4'.
4 commander ~ an army In posses
sion Of u large territory who observe,
tho lauro ~ uuv can solve nriNata prnp,
erty for military necessities. though bel
lieerenCy was not reCognlzed.-rNeil
W. Central Leather Co. y. j., 81 All
$50.
A decision nv the Texas Civil Court
OF Appeals indicates that the amount q
railroad should pay for killing a mar
depends on the size OF his family. II
Galveston Railroad Company w. Pinge'
not the court said W. are not dis
posed to hold that a verdict Of ses.jO0
20 he divided among the eight persons
was excessive. The probabilities arr
that each one would have received more
from the deceased than was allotted Il
him or her. Considering each sum al
lowed to each appellee. 1t does not APP
pear To be excessive, II may be I'M
fortunate for appellant that the size o
the family was such a. to preclude an,
lntuxlt pl race rIl'INf anu illsstSultS VI
Ia the Roo~eveltian standard hut unde
the facts of this case we would not h,
:, justified in holding that the life o
Edward T%ingenot was not worth to tn,
mother. the wife and the six mino
, children the sun given them by tn
; jury
In Miller va. Otter Tail Power Com
: pany IJuly, 1917, 1913 y. W, 7i6) tn
Supreme Court Of Minnesota passed uIol
. "A case involving a novel state Of facts
!, II appearcl that defeudaut, under con
J tract with plaintiff, a merchant, SUPPLE,
electric current TO his store \ FIR
: broke ont in "A restaurant in the rear q
the store and separated from 1t by
solid partition. Defendant severed tn
, wires supplying he store with cleCtri
a current, ard plaltnif. by reason Of III
darkness. was unable TO remove hi
n stos-k and fixtures. The action wa
a brought 10 recover the value of sue
property. which was entirely dcstioye
ny the fire. II was held that defendan
g had the right t. sever the wires provid
ing II was reasonably necessary to d
r so in order to save loss or damage to II
q own property. hut no III right aros
; until the act became necessary. II wa
G practically conceded that the wires Wen
cut forty minutes before there was an
such necessity and that defendant kue'
tina pla would need light to say
x his property, II was held that the evi
$ dence sustained a finding that cuttin
S the wires at the time and under the eli
" cumstances was an actionahle breac