THE WILL OF THE LATE THOMAS WADSWORTH.

Temuka Leader, Issue 1914, 9 July 1889, Page 4

THE WILL OF THE LATE THOMAS WADSWORTH.

At tha Supreme Court, Christchurch, on Friday, His Honor Mr Jiistice Denniaton delivered judgment irj the the course of hfs Judginent His Honor said The plaintiff prdpouhd.S ; w*bat he alleges*to. be' the will of Thomas Wadsworth, 1 deceased.* Alfred John? ; Wadsworth* the son’of the 'deceased^ 1 denies that the document so' -pro-* pounded s was duly executed, The ddcumkdt is admitted to be in the handwriting of ! the' testator, and is written in a series of-paragraphs, com*u|)per half of a sheet of foolscap. The last paragraph, written like the rest of the document, right across the paper, is the , t attestation/Clause’, and is in !, : th&. words, ■ f ‘Signed* : by Thomas Wadsworth the testatdFi’as'hndior his last will and presence of us who in hislpresence and at his request add in they presence of each other' have' hereunto subscribed our names as wittfSsses.” The document is not signed except by the testator having written his name ‘in clause, but there, is no donbt that this •is a sufficient signature;’if-spintended: The signaturss j of the two' attesting witnesses; are written ’Oh" the : /secodd ha If of’the paper, is a substantial, agreement, except'as to one fact, between the two witnesses as to what took place when their * signature’s were written. Both agree that they 'were asked by the testktpr if\ they .were willing to' #itneSß* his' Will;' that they thak; into an hotel and that the testator .produced the document before mentioned, that they then signed* it the/testator put it backin his pocket.*' "■> THecoiilflict between them is as to whether the whiting bn the* document o'6hcealed* I ’from 1 ; the ‘'‘WltneilßesV The, witness Walden ; swears positively that' it lay open bn the table, : and that, he could - and did: see v the writing. The witness Sullivan is equally positive that the . upper half of the paper was folded back so that nothing but the iblaUk half was' visible. • I am "Satidfied ; that Sullivan’s is the correct account of the transaction. Both witnesses agree that before or immediately after producing this. document the- testator intimated his wish that they should not know the contents of his will. .

■ I find/ 1 therefore, these facts—That the document existed in its present form before the witnesses signed; that they signed.as attesting witnesses what the testator told them was his will; and that up to and at the time of signing they neither saw nor had an opportunity of seeing the document or the testator’s signature to it . I

must, therefore, pronounce against

the document The costs of all parties including the costs incurred by Attwood, the - original ( plaintiff, as as between solicitor and client, will be paid out of the estate.