WILL IN A SCRAP BOOK.

Dominion, Volume 6, Issue 1641, 7 January 1913, Page 6

WILL IN A SCRAP BOOK.

DAUGHTER'S DISCOVERY AFTER 16 j,' ; ! iejes..; ... , , Said to have'.teen .discovered by > his daughter in an old scrapbook after n lapse of sixteen year's, 'a father's will, drawn, in the daughter's favour,'' wos pronounced on'November'27 in'the Dumfries Sheriffs Court to ba his "last, will and testament The case' was:one' in which. Margaret M'Kimm, daughter .of tho^- late James M'Kimm, of Hardgate, ; v Kirkcudbrightshire, sought to set, aside a former will of April 2, 1894, under.which .the estate had been administered by the, trustees. She produced a holograph (entirely autograph) will dated. May 22,. 1894, which, she 6aid she had discowred, in a scrapbook containing newspaper outtings of poems published by her .lather. In the former ivill ■ tho estate was'divided .among James M'Kimm's children, but the new will, written on tho back of on© of tho poems.jui'ported to leave everything to the plaintiftY . •:( ' ' -'"■■ "..';'- ■'.'' Sheriff Campion, in his decision, declares the holograph will of May 22, 1894; to be James M'Kimm's last will and testa-' moot. Ho said the holograph will had all tho outward signs of having been written years, agoj' and the papor was of a Similar nature and apparently of similar ago to what Mr. M'Kimm was in,the habit,of using years ago. . ' .;.■ ( ■ ■ The circumstances v wcre; ho said, that Mr. M'Kimm' had intended to go to Annan', being dissatisfied {with, his previous will, .to* get a new will', drawn by his solicitor, but was induced''to \go to a form sale by a neighbour, .who said: ''Man; you have a grand head for- writing things. Write a will with your own -hands." That evening he handed his daughter,the scrapbook in which ho had bbsn writing, saying sho would.find something insido the book that would keep her all right when ■ he was gone., and sho'took him to mean that sho would find'comfort in reading tho l; B^olfaiteffrards:'^'• :, ?f'.' ' f'," '■ Next morning he was taken ill, and died a wcek;later.' It .was not until October, 1910, that she in any way: minutely examined tlievbook. Then: the' cover-came to' pieces) and the new will was discovered. This will, said the sheriff,, was only what was to be expected, as the plaintiff lived with and attended her father till his death. Further, she- had given' up a fortune sho previously received at her brother's death to assist the father to purchase knd, and lier father was anxious about this being repaid. <.. . . ' ' ■■' '• ; •-,' ■'■ The sheriff was also of opinion that tho plaintiff was not capable of executing sucb a fabrication as must bo implied. if this will was rejected, ""'"ij ,' ''■ '";