Jordan's Adm'x v. Ladies

• Decision Date: 14 March 1907
• Citation: 56 S.E. 730,106 Va. 710
• Parties: JORDAN'S ADM'X et al. v. RICHMOND HOME FOR LADIES et al.
• Court: Virginia Supreme Court

106 Va. 710

56 S.E. 730

JORDAN'S ADM'X et al.

v.RICHMOND HOME FOR LADIES et al.

Supreme Court of Appeals of Virginia.

March 14, 1907.

1. Wills—Designation of Beneficiaries— Corporations.

A testatrix made a gift to "the Trustees of the Presbyterian Home for Old Ladies situated in Richmond." The only home for ladies in Richmond was the "Richmond Home for Ladies, " incorporated to give a home to Presbyterian and Methodist indigent women, and permitting the admission of women not connected with either of the denominations. The testatrix was a Presbyterian. Three years after the execution of her will she consulted an attorney with a view of having him redraft it. In the redraft a blank space was left for the insertion of the correct name of the corporation. Held, that the Richmond Home for Ladies was identified as the beneficiary intended.

[Ed. Note.—For cases in point, see Cent. Dig. vol. 49. Wills, § 1110.1

2. Corporations — Constitutional Provisions—Purpose of Incorporation.

A benevolent business corporation, with a capital stock, chartered for the purpose of maintaining an institution in which indigent women connected with designated religious denominations might be provided with a comfortable home, either gratuitously or on such charges as might be prescribed, and authorizing the admission of infirm women not connected with either of such religious denominations, and governed by a board of directors, with power to fill vacancies and to appoint managers, does not bear such relations to any religious denomination as to contravene Const, art. 5, §§ 14, 17, prohibiting the incorporation of religious denominations, etc.

3. Same.

Acts 1853-54. p. 32, c. 46, as amended by Acts 1855-56, c. 36, and by Acts 1866-67. p. 577, c. 129, and, as amended, carried into Code 1887. § 1145, authorizing courts to grant charters for the conduct of any enterprise or business which might be lawfully conducted by a body politic or corporate, except to construct a turnpike, railroad, canal, or bank, authorizes the incorporation of an institution for the support of indigent women, either gratuitously or on such charges as may be prescribed.

4. Charities — Bequests — Validity — Certainty of Purpose

A general bequest of the income of certain property to a benevolent and business corporation, existing under a valid charter for the purpose of maintaining an institution in which indigent and infirm women might be provided with a home, either gratuitously or for such compensation aa might be prescribed, is not ob jectionable as being too indefinite, because not mentioning the purpose of the gift, but will be enforced by equity.

[Ed. Note.—For cases in point see Cent Dig. vol. 9, Charities, §§ 51-56.]

5. Wills—Construction—Intestacy.

A testatrix gave the interest of corporate bonds to two legatees as long as they remained unmarried, and gave the income of the remainder of her property to a third person for life, who died before the two legatees, and provided that after the death of the three beneficiaries the income of the property should be paid annually to a benevolent institution. Held, that there was no partial intestacy with respect to the income from the trust estate resulting from the death of the third person previous to the death of the two legatees.

6. Same—Residuary Legatee.

A testatrix gave the interest of specified corporate bonds to two legatees as long as they remained unmarried, and the income of the balance of her property to a third person for life, and provided that, after the death of the two legatees and the third person, the interest of all the property should be paid annually to a benevolent institution. Held, that the benevolent institution was a residuary legatee.

[Ed. Note.—For cases in point, see Cent. Dig. vol. 49, Wills, § 1279.]

Appeal from Chancery Court of Richmond.

Suit by the Virginia Trust Company, executor of the will of Mary E. McClung, deceased, against the Richmond Home for Ladies and others, to construe the will of the deceased. From a decree construing the will, Jordan's administratrix and others, heirs at law and next of kin of the deceased, appeal. Affirmed.

B. Rand. Wellford, Wm. A. Anderson, and Jas. E. Edmunds, for appellants.

Coke & Pickrell and Christian & Christian, for respondents.

WHITTLE, J. This is a suit in equity, instituted in the chancery court of the city of Richmond by the Virginia Trust Company, executor of the will of Mary E. McClung, deceased, against her heirs at law and next of kin and the "Richmond Home for Ladies" and others, to construe and give effect to testatrix's will.

The text of the will is as follows:

"Sulphur Mines, October 12th, 1893. "This is my will as follows: I wish the Va. Safe Deposit & Fidelity Company to act as executors & distribute the interest as I direct

"1st. To Georgie Kenney as long as she lives unmarried the interest of $5,000 semiannually of Sulpher Mines Company's bonds which I held; if she marries or dies then the interest goes to J. C. Petty as long as he lives.

"2d. To my old family servant Margaret Davis as long as she lives unmarried, the interest of $4,000.00 of Va. Sulphur Mines Co. bonds (8 per cent). If she marries or dies then the interest is to be paid to J. C. Petty as long as he have.

"All my real estate, house and lot in Covington, Va., tract of land in Alleghany (the Rich Holes) and % interest in the Iodine Alum Spring, and 100 acres of land near Long Dale Mines, Alleghany Co. Also 2 lots in Lexington, Va., to be sold as is wise in the opinion of the executors, and the proceeds invested. The interest of this and of all other bonds, stock and whatever property I may be possessed to be given to J. C. Petty as long as he lives, and with the exception of $200 annually to be expended as follows: $150 to keep in good order and repair my section in the Cedar Hill Cemetery near Covington, Va., in which our family are buried, $50 to be given to the trustees of the Cedar Hill Cemetery for the general improvement of the Cemetery. The trustees are requested to attend to the repairs, etc., of my section in the Cemetery.

"After the death of Georgia Kenney, Margaret Davis and J. C. Petty, I wish the interest of all the property I leave to be paid annually, except the perpetual fund of $200 for the Cedar Hill Cemetery and my section therein to be paid to the Trustees of the Presbyterian Home for Old Ladies situated in Richmond, Va. I further request that $100 be given to Alice Adams and $100 for each Herbert and Goram Adams to be put on interest to be given them when they are 21 years old. And request that Mr. J. C. Petty will see that they have good homes and are well taken care of until they are old enough to take care of themselves. Those that I have left my estate to have been my friends when I was in need of sympathy and kindness after being bereft of all my own dear ones. May God bless and keep them all is the wish and prayer of their friend.

"Mary E. McClung."

In response to certain inquiries submitted by the court, the master in chancery returned the following findings:

(1) That there were no such persons as the trustees of the Presbyterian Home for Old Ladies, situated in Richmond, Virginia, "but that the testatrix by that description meant the 'Richmond Home for Ladies, ' which is a corporation chartered by the circuit court of the city of Richmond."

(2) "That the 'Richmond Home for Ladies' is capable of taking the bequest made in the will and that the bequest to it is legal and valid."

(3) That there was no intestacy resulting from the death of J. C. Petty in the lifetime of Georgia Kenney and Margaret Davis; but that at his death "the annuity to him went to the home, to open and take in the special annuities to Georgia Kenney and Margaret Davis when those annuities, respectively, shall lapse."

(4) That the bequest of $50 a year, perpetually, to the trustees of Cedar Hill Cemetery, for the general improvement' of the cemetery, is valid; but that there is an intestacy as to the bequest of $150, to be expended annually to keep testatrix's section in the cemetery in good order and repair, and that "the $150 per annum, being a portion of the residuum of the testatrix's estate, " would go to her next of kin.

By the decree under review the chancery court overruled exceptions of the appellants to the report of the master on the first, second, and third findings, and sustained the exception of the Richmond Home for Ladies to so much of the fourth finding as declares that the bequest of $150 per annum, in perpetuity, goes to testatrix's next of kin. The court was of opinion that the bequest was invalid and void; but, with the exception of the accumulation therefrom prior to the death of J. C. Petty (as to which no decision was made), that the income after his death passed to the Richmond Home for Ladies as residuary legatee.

The appellants assign as error the rulings of the court in the particulars indicated.

Upon the first assignment we have no difficulty in agreeing with the chancery court that the bequest "to the trustees of the Presbyterian Home for Old Ladies, situated in Richmond, Virginia, was intended by the testatrix to be made to the defendant the 'Richmond Home for Ladies, ' an institution incorporated in due form of law by an order of the circuit court of the city of Richmond, entered on the 28th day of February, 1883."

The well-established rule, that parol evidence is admissible to indentify the object of a testator's bounty is succinctly stated in the case of Roy's Ex'rs v. Rowzie, 25 Grat. 604, 605, as follows: "Parol evidence is always admissible, and even necessary, to lead us to the person or object and subject referred to In a bequest The court of construction, with the testator's will in hand, looks for the object of his bounty and the thing intended to be given, and expects them to answer precisely the terms of description given of them in the will. Generally they do, and there is no difficulty. Often they do not; and...