APPENDIX TO CHRONICLE. 



98.5 



been cited. In that of Brown v. 

 Manby, the words were pleaded 

 to have been written in the de- 

 ceased's life-time, and with his 

 privity, and therefore it was pos- 

 sible the requisites of the act might 

 appear on proof to have been com- 

 plied with, and upon that ground 

 the allowances admitted ; but in 

 the present case the facts pleaded 

 showed demonstratively the im- 

 possibility that they could have 

 been so. He therefore felt him- 

 self bound to reject the allega- 

 tion ; but as the will was opposed 

 on the ground of incapacity, and 

 might ultimately be invalidated 

 upon that ground, in which case 

 the nuncupative codicil would not 

 then contravene the act by alter- 

 ing a more regular disposition of 

 the property, but would only be 

 open to the usual opposition from 

 the next of kin , and as they might 

 be deprived of the benefit of that 

 opposition, by the six months al- 

 lowed by the act for that purpose 

 being by that time elapsed, the 

 Court postponed pronouncing its 

 judgment until all the next of kin 

 should have been cited to become 

 parties to the proceeding. 



Harris against Bedford, Jormer- 

 ly Mannooch. — This was a ques- 

 tion as to the validity of the will 

 of Francis Fagg Mannooch, Esq. 

 Lieutenant-Colonel and Inspecting 

 Field Officer of the Volunteer 

 Corps for the South-West Dis- 

 trict, and of Fareham, Hants, de- 

 ceased, at the instance of Lieut.- 

 Henry Harris, R. N. one of the 

 executors, against Catherine, the 

 wife of the Rev. Mr. Bedford, for- 

 merly Mannooch, and widow of 

 the deceased. 



Colonel Mannooch, it appeared, 

 died in June 1809, and the will 



in question was dated the 7th of Ja- 

 nuary preceding. It was all of the 

 testator's hand-writing, and spoke 

 of his wife and children in the most 

 affectionate terras. It bequeathed 

 the greater part of his property to 

 his natural son, Lieut. Harris, as- 

 signing as his reason for it, that his 

 wife and legitimate daughter were 

 amplj"^ provided for by his mar- 

 riage settlement ; but concluded 

 thus, " This being written with 

 my own hand, I am led to be- 

 lieve, from counsel's opinion, that 

 it will stand good in the eye of the 

 law ; I therofore, revoking all 

 former wills, have hereunto set 

 my hand and seal," &c. The will 

 was duly signed, but without a 

 seal, and the usual clause of at- 

 testation was added, purporting 

 that it had been duly executed in 

 the presence of witnesses ; but 

 none such appeared subscribed 

 to it. 



The evidence in support of this 

 paper went to establish the de- 

 ceased's regard for Lieutenant 

 Harris, his hand-writing to the 

 will, and a recognition of his in- 

 tention that it should operate, by 

 his reading it over to his wife, and 

 declaring so to her, and then de- 

 positing it in his writing-case. 



It was opposed by Mrs. Bed- 

 ford's counsel, on the ground, that 

 the presumption of law, afforded 

 by the clause of attestation to the 

 paper, of an intention in the mind 

 of the testator to execute his will 

 in the presence of witnesses, had 

 not been satisfactorily repelled by 

 the evidence produced ; that he 

 lived a sufficient time afterwards 

 without having done so ; and it 

 was, therefore, to be presumed 

 that he had abandoned his inten- 

 tion. iN !■ ' 



Sir John Nicholl, said, the Court 



