258 
ary bounty to her more consider- 
able. The extracts from the diary 
contemporaneous with the will 
formed the strongest picture the 
Court could have of the deceas- 
ed’s feelings and intentions, and 
manifested the greatest improba- 
bility that he should destroy the 
will with the intention of leaving 
her wholly unprovided for ; and 
the endorsement on the will ad- 
dressed to her was a strong confir- 
mationof his adherence to it, even 
to the extent ofa desire to put it 
out of his power to revoke it. He 
continued to express the senti- 
ments of regard he entertained 
for her down to his death; re- 
cognised by the expression of 
‘¢ all, all is your’s,” even in his 
dying moments; and by making 
the copy of it, and depositing it 
amongst her letters, took the 
greatest precaution to prevent the 
possibility of his intentions being 
defeated. The book left open in 
his study did not of itself shew an 
intention of making a new will 
sufficiently to destroy the effect of 
the evidence alluded to. The will, 
indeed, might still be found, as 
it very commonly happens that 
persons from excessive precau- 
tion place things so securely 
that they know not afterwards 
where to find them themselves. 
The deceased died at Worthing, 
and his papers were afterwards 
brought to town. The will might, 
therefore, have been lost or mis- 
laid in the confusion of the re- 
moval ; for as to its having been 
intentionally destroyed, there was 
no foundation for such a suppo- 
sition, Mr. Marston, against 
whom it was levelled from the 
circumstance of the deceased hav- 
ANNUAL REGISTER, 1815. 
ing expressed a wish that he 
should not have the search and 
collecting of his papers,(nodoubt 
on account of his considering him, 
from the conversation they had 
had, rather inimical to the inter- 
ests of Miss Price) had in his evi- 
dence satisfactorily acquitted him- 
self from such an insinuation.— 
Upon the whole of the case there- 
fore, the Court was impressed 
with a strong moral conviction, 
after the most careful considera- 
tion, that the presumption of law 
was sufficiently repelled by the 
circumstancein evidence, and that 
the deceased did not destroy the 
will but died with the impression 
on his mind, that it would ope- 
rate afterwards, and that he had 
taken sufficient means to ensure 
its having that effect. ‘The vali- 
dity of the will was accordingly 
pronounced, and a probate de- 
creed of the copy in short hand 
and translation, limited until the 
original shall be found, and 
brought into the registry. 
The counsel for Mr. Worthing- 
ton then moved, that the Court 
would direct his costs to be paid 
out of the estate, on the ground 
ofthe deceased having by his con- 
duct led his relations to believe 
that his testamentary disposition 
would be to avery different effect ; 
and thereby under the circum- 
stance of the original not having 
been found, imposed upon them 
the necessity of investigating the 
matter by the present proceeding. 
SirJohn Nicholl observed, that 
the case had not been conducted 
in such a manner as to show the 
Opposition to have been compul- 
sory on the part of Mr. Worthing- 
ton. It was only under very ex~ 
