Sappington v. The Sappington School Fund Trustees

• Decision Date: 12 June 1894
• Citation: 27 S.W. 356,123 Mo. 32
• Parties: Sappington et al., Appellants, v. The Sappington School Fund Trustees, et al
• Court: Missouri Supreme Court

27 S.W. 356

123 Mo. 32

Sappington et al., Appellants, v. The Sappington School Fund Trustees, et al

Supreme Court of Missouri, Second Division

June 12, 1894

Appeal from Saline Circuit Court. -- Hon. Richard Field, Judge.

Equitable proceeding instituted by plaintiffs as the the heirs of John Sappington who sought to have a certain fund in the hands of the defendant trustees brought into court, an accounting had and a decree made declaring that the trust hereinafter more particularly mentioned, has ceased and determined, and ordering that the fund with its accumulations be distributed among said heirs.

Dr John Sappington, a prominent and wealthy citizen of Saline county, on October 24, 1853, executed a trust deed whereby he transferred to Claiborne F. Jackson and eight other designated citizens of Saline county, the sum of $ 10,519.46 in trust for the purpose of contributing to the education of the poor children of Saline county, in the manner prescribed in said instrument. The deed aforesaid provided in such behalf, that: "Said sum of money is to be kept at interest perpetually by the aforesaid trustees, and the interest accruing therefrom is to be annually expended by them in the education of the most necessitous poor children in the county of Saline aforesaid," and further provided that "said trustees are authorized and requested to organize themselves into a board of trustees, to appoint a chairman, secretary and treasurer, to hold meetings at least once in every year at the town of Marshall or such other place in the county aforesaid as may by them be deemed best to select the most needy children for education through the county, to keep a regular record of all their acts subject to the inspection of all persons whatsoever. Such record to contain the name and age of each scholar, and the amount of money annually expended upon each scholar, and, also, the whole amount expended upon every scholar to be kept in tabular form."

Said deed also provided: "In the event that at any time hereafter the common school fund, and other educational funds which may be provided by the state, or which may come into the possession of the state from any source whatever, for the purpose of education, shall become sufficient to educate all the poor children of said county, then, and in that case, the said board of trustees are hereby authorized and requested to apply the interest of said fund to such other objects of charity in said county as in their judgment may be most needy, but in no case nor for any purpose is any part of the principal of said fund to be used or diminished."

At the same time and on the same day, October 24, 1853, Dr Sappington also made and executed in due form his last will and testament, which, among other things, provided as follows: "I will, that my executors shall, so soon after my death as they may be able to do it, pay over to the trustees that I have this day appointed in an instrument of writing which I have made, and in which instrument I have set apart the sum of $ 10,519.56 for the purpose of educating the most necessitous poor children in the county of Saline, the further sum of money which together with the sum this day handed over to the said trustees shall make the sum of $ 20,000, and the said trustees herein referred to, are to manage the said fund placed in their hands, precisely in the same manner, and apply the interest on the same to the purpose as specified in the aforementioned instrument of writing."

Dr Sappington died on October 7, 1856. And his will was duly probated and his estate finally settled in the probate court of Saline county. The executors paid over to the above named trustees, said sum of $ 10,519.56 in accordance with the terms of the will and said trustees thus became possessed of the sum of $ 20,000, which sum they invested at interest and applied the annual income to the education of the poor and necessitous children of Saline county in accordance with the terms of the trust.

Afterwards, to wit, March 19, 1861, said trustees obtained from the legislature of Missouri a substantial act of incorporation which is as follows:

"Whereas, Dr. John Sappington, late of the county of Saline, state of Missouri, bequeathed by last will and testament (now of record in said county of Saline) a certain sum of money to certain trustees named in said will and to their successors in office, which said fund was to be loaned at interest by said trustees, and the interest arising from said fund to be appropriated annually be said trustees to the education of the poor and necessitous children of said county of saline, and,

"Whereas, in order the better to enable said trustees to carry into effect the trust confided to their hands, they desire an act of incorporation to be passed for that purpose; therefore,

"Be it enacted by the general assembly of the state of Missouri, as follows:

"Section 1. John W. Bryant, M. M. Marmaduke, A. W. Davison, Wm. Price, Ossamus Hurt, W. B. Sappington, R. E. McDaniel, C. F. Jackson, W. J. Brown and M. L. Laughlin, and their successors and assigns, are hereby incorporated as 'The Sappington School Fund Trustees,' and as such are hereby created a body corporate and politic, and shall have continual succession, for the purpose of loaning out said school fund, and appropriating the interest annually accruing on the same to the education of the poor and necessitous children of said county of Saline, in the manner and mode prescribed in the will of the late John Sappington, of said county; and to do and perform all other matters touching the management of said fund as provided in said will; and by that name may sue and be sued," etc.

The petition sets forth all of the foregoing facts; avers that plaintiffs are the heirs at law of said Dr. Sappington, and concludes with the following allegation: "From and after the date of incorporation the Sappington School Fund Trustees continued to apply said annual income in the same manner and for the same purpose, so long as there was any occasion or opportunity for so doing; but plaintiffs aver that the common school fund and other educational funds provided by the state, and which has come into its possession for the purpose of education since the creation of said trust, and set apart for the use of Saline county for establishing and maintaining free public school therein, is sufficient to educate all the poor children in said county, thereby rendering it unnecessary, and, in fact, impracticable to apply any portion of the annual income from said Sappington school fund for the maintenance of such schools or the education of children in attendance upon same; that the said common school fund having thus become sufficient to educate all children of said county, such trust, according to the terms and conditions of the instrument creating the same as above set forth, has ceased and determined; that the further provision expressed in said instrument purporting in such event to authorize said trustees 'to apply the interest of said fund to such other objects of charity in said county as, in their judgment, may be most needed,' is so general and indefinite as to be incapable of being enforced, and is void for indefiniteness; that by reason of the premises the right and title to said trust fund with its accumulations reverted to the heirs at law of the said John Sappington, deceased.

"Wherefore, in consideration of the premises, plaintiffs pray that the court may decree that said trust has ceased and determined, and that defendants, the Sappington School Fund Trustees, be required to render an account of said trust, and bring the fund into court to be paid to the heirs at law and distributees of said John Sappington, parties to this action, according to their respective interests, to be ascertained and determined by the court and for such other and further relief as may be just and proper."

Defendants' answer denied specifically, all the averments contained in the above recited paragraph of the petition, but admitted all the allegations of the petition as to the creation, organization and management of said trust, the death of Dr. Sappington and the heirship of plaintiffs.

At the close of the evidence, the court below entered the following finding and decree, to wit: "Now on this twenty-eighth day of June, A. D. 1892, this cause having come on to be heard upon the petition, answer and reply, and the proofs taken therein having been argued by counsel for the respective parties, and the court having duly considered the same and having been requested by the attorneys for the plaintiffs to state in writing its conclusion of facts in the cause, the court in writing states its finding therein as follows:

"Having been...