Eustace v. Dickey

• Decision Date: 25 November 1921
• Citation: Eustace v. Dickey , 240 Mass. 55, 132 N.E. 852 (Mass. 1921)
• Parties: EUSTACE et al. v. DICKEY et al.
• Court: Supreme Judicial Court of Massachusetts

240 Mass. 55

132 N.E. 852

EUSTACE et al.

v.DICKEY et al.

Supreme Judicial Court of Massachusetts, Suffolk.

Nov. 25, 1921.

Suit by Herbert W. Eustace and others against Adam H. Dickey and others. On reservation by a single justice for decision by the full court, on exceptions by Emilie B. Hulin, on separate appeals by Daisy L. Krauthoff and others from decrees denying leave to file exceptions and motions and denying a motion to be admitted as parties, and on suggestion of the Attorney General. Suggestion denied, appeals dismissed, and bill dismissed.Wm. G. Thompson, of Boston (F. S. Streeter and F. C. Demond, both of Concord, N. H., and G. E. Mears, of Boston, of counsel), for respondent Dittemore.

S. L. Whipple and Lothrop Withington, both of Boston (C. E. Hughes, of New York City, and R. H. Hollen and S. H. Strawn, both of Chicago, Ill., of counsel), for plaintiffs.

J. Weston Allen, Atty. Gen., and Edwin H. Abbot, Jr., Asst. Atty. Gen., for the Attorney General.

Miles M. Dawson and Dawson, Merrill & Dawson, all of New York City, for petitioner Hulin.

Charles F. Choate, Jr., and Frederick H. Nash, both of Boston, amici curiae, in behalf of Christian Science Branch Churches.

Bates, Nay, Abbott & Dane, of Boston, and Clifford P. Smith, for defendants.

Daisy L. Krauthoff and E. A. Krauthoff, of Washington, D. C., pro se.

RUGG, C. J.

This is a suit in equity. The plaintiffs are three persons, who by succession are trustees under a deed of trust executed by Mary Baker G. Eddy, the founder of ‘Christian Science,’ so called, as donor, on January 25, 1898, to three persons therein named as trustees. The defendants are four persons alleged to be trustees under another deed of trust executed by Mrs. Eddy dated September 1, 1892, and also to be Directors of the First Church of Christ, Scientist, in Boston, Massachusetts, and two other persons, each alleged to be claiming to be a trustee and director in association with the other four. The basic question is whether the defendants have power to remove one of the plaintiffs from the position of trustee.

The answer to that question depends upon the true interpretation of these deeds of trust, executed by Mrs. Eddy and whatever other matters rightly may be considered in ascertaining their meaning.

The deed of Mrs. Eddy of January 25, 1898, whereby were created the trusts hitherto administered by the plaintiffs, hereinafter called the trust deed, related wholly to personal property. The declared object of that trust, recited in the early part of the trust deed is ‘for the purpose of more effectually promoting and extending the religion of Christian Science as taught by me.’ It transferred title to certain goods and chattels connected with the publishing business conducted for the promotion of the interests of Christian Science, which theretofore had been carried on by a corporation called the Christian Science Publishing Society. The grantees were three individuals, who accepted the transfer upon the trusts set forth in the deed. These are stated in paragraphs numbered from 1 to 14, both inclusive. The first of these requires the trustees to use the property exclusively for carrying on the business, which had been conducted by the Christian Science Publishing Society, ‘in promoting the interests of Christian Science.’ Among these trusts were provisions to the effect that the trustees should energetically and judiciously manage the publishing business under the unicorporated name of ‘The Christian Science Publishing Society’ on a strictly Christian basis and ‘upon their own responsibility and without consulting me [Mrs. Eddy] about details, subject only to my supervision, if I shall at any time elect to advise or direct them,’ should account for and pay over the profits of the business every six months to the treasurer of the First Church of Christ, Scientist, in Boston, Massachusetts, subject to the order of ‘The First Members of said Church,’ who were empowered to make the final disposition ‘only in accordance with the rules and by-laws contained in the Manual of said Church,’ and should employ and fix compensation of necessary help, assistance and persons to conduct the business and ‘To prepare Bible Lessons or Lesson Sermons to be read in the Christian Science Churches.’ The annual compensation of the trustees was to be $1,000 each ‘or such salary as the said ‘Church may determine from time to time.’ The trustees were required at all times to be ‘loyal, faithful and consistent believers and advocates of the principle of Christian Science as taught by me in my book.’ Clause 8 of the trust deed is in these words:

‘Said trustees shall have the direction and supervision of the publication of said quarterly and also of all pamphlets, tracts and other literature pertaining to said business, using their best judgment as to the means of preparing and issuing the same, so as to promote the best interests of the cause, reserving the right to make such changes as I may think important.’

In clause 10 of the trust deed, it is provided that vacancies among the trustees should be filled by the donor, if she so elected, otherwise by the remaining trustees, and that

‘The First Members together with the directors of said Church shall have the power to declare vacancies in said trusteeship for such reasons as to them may seem expedient.’

The facts are found by the master, in the light of which these words of this trust deed must be interpreted. Mrs. Eddy founded Christian Science. In 1879 she organized a church and became its pastor. In 1892 she reorganized the church. Under date of the first of September of that year she conveyed to four persons ‘as trustees as hereinafter provided and to their legitimate successors in office forever’ land in Boston upon which within five years they were required to build a church edifice. It was provided that the ‘grantees shall be known as the Christian Science Board of Directors.’ Thus that board first was constituted. ‘The First Church of Christ, Scientist,’ was not organized until September 23, 1892. The deed declared that the grantees should constitute a perpetual body or corporation under and in accordancewith section one, chapter 39, of the Public Statutes of Massachusetts. The master has found that the grantees never organized themselves as a corporation and never became such by virtue of their duties or similarity to deacons and wardens. The mere declaration of the grantor could not make them a corporation.

The directors were required, upon the completion of the Church building, to ‘elect a pastor, reader or speaker to fill the pulpit who shall be a genuine Christian Scientist,’ to maintain public worship in accordance with the doctrines of Christian Science in said church and to that end they were ‘fully empowered to make any and all necessary rules and regulations.’ The directors were enjoined not to allow in the church building any preaching or other religious services not consonant and in strict harmony with the doctrines and practice of Christian Science as taught and explained by Mrs. Eddy. The directors also were required to maintain regular preaching, reading or speaking in the church on each Sabbath and to rebuild the church under conditions named. The number of directors named in the deed of September 1, 1892, was four. In addition to the duties imposed on them by that deed, they have exercised other powers and performed additional functions, assigned to them by the Church Manual, all of a highly important nature and coveing a wide field. There was no rule fixing their number until February 1903 when a by-law was adopted, which has since continued in force, establishing their number at five. By the name ‘Christian Science Board of Directors' originally the four persons named as trustees by the deed of September 1, 1902, were described. As often, if not universally, used thereafter in the Church Manual, that name designates the board of five exercising powers and performing functions not derived from the deed but from the Church Manual.

The master also has found that the church has never become incorporated but has continued from the first an unincorporated religious association. It has worshipped regularly to the present in the edifice erected by the directors. ‘The First Church of Christ, Scientist, in Boston, Mass.,’ was organized on September 23, 1892, by eleven persons among whom were the four named as trustees and constituted directors in the deed of September 1, 1892. These eleven persons together with one other were voted to be ‘First Members of the First Church of Christ, Scientist.’ Others designated as ‘First Members' were added from time to time by vote of ‘First Members.’ The voting power in the church always has been confined according to its polity to ‘First Members.’ Members of the church had no voting power. The First Church of Christ, Scientist, at the instance of the founder first adopted rules and by-laws in 1895. These were radically changed from time to time during the life of Mrs. Eddy and many different editions of them called the ‘Church Manual’ have been published. In every edition the names of the Christian Science Board of Directors have been printed under the caption ‘Church Officers' together with the names of other officers of the church. This is true of those editions issued before January 25, 1898. At that time important functions of the church, such as the election of all officers, the appointment of missionaries, the appointment and removal of readers of the church to conduct its services, amongst others, were vested in the Board of Directors by the Church Manual. Although it was not until 1908 that a by-law of the church expressly included a board of directors among the officers, it always has been provided by a by-law that all officers of the church should be elected by the board of directors.

The provisions respecting First Members in force at the time of the trust deed of January...