House v. Raymond

5 Thomp. & Cook 248, 10 N.Y. Sup. Ct. 44
CourtNew York Supreme Court
DecidedJanuary 15, 1875
StatusPublished

This text of 5 Thomp. & Cook 248 (House v. Raymond) is published on Counsel Stack Legal Research, covering New York Supreme Court primary law. Counsel Stack provides free access to over 12 million legal documents including statutes, case law, regulations, and constitutions.

Bluebook
House v. Raymond, 5 Thomp. & Cook 248, 10 N.Y. Sup. Ct. 44 (N.Y. Super. Ct. 1875).

Opinion

Daniels, J.

The first point requiring consideration in the disposition of this case is whether the testator’s widow took the personal property in the homestead absolutely or only for the period of her natural life, and that must be determined from what was expressed by the first paragraph of the will. That paragraph, so far as it is now material to refer to it, was as follows: I hereby give, devise and bequeath unto my beloved wife, Jane L. Raymond, the use of my homestead and all the personal property thereon at my decease, except,” etc.

After excepting certain securities, money, and the safe containing them, he proceeded by adding “I also give, devise and bequeath unto her during her natural life, the use of twenty thousand dollars, * * * and in the event my said wife shall desire to use any part of said sum of twenty thousand dollars, T give and devise the same, or so much thereof, as she may wish, to her, and direct my executors to pay the same to her.” •

The entire scope and design of these provisions seem to have been to provide a suitable support and maintenance for his wife during [251]*251her natural life, limiting the benefit of the bequests and devises for her to that period of time. It appears to have been the testator’s design to provide amply for that object while she lived, and then to have the property, unexhausted in accomplishing it, returned to the body of his estate at the expiration of that period. And the terms made use of in the first clause were judiciously selected to secure that result. He did not devise her the use of his homestead during life and bequeath absolutely to her the personal property thereon at the period of his decease subject to the exception afterward declared, but simply the use of both. That term was employed to qualify the interest given her in the personal property as well as in the homestead itself. It was of such a nature as to render the use of the homestead comfortable and convenient, and was undoubtedly made to accompany it for that reason. Other terms would be required to be added to the clause in order to give her any greater interest "than that in the personal property referred to.

It is next claimed that the executors took no title to the testator’s real estate, because he directed them to divide and invest the property left by him for the benefit of his children and grand-children. But while that was the direction which was given, a construction based upon that circumstance which would exclude the realty would be directly in conflict with an express devise of the real estate made in the same subdivision of the will. Upon that subject the testator declared:

I hereby give, devise and bequeath unto my executors hereinafter named all the rest, residue and remainder of my real estate and personal estate in trust, nevertheless, for the uses and purposes hereinafter named, to wit: First. To divide the same into seven equal parts, two of which said parts my executors shall keep invested for the use and benefit of my son Sidney; two they shall keep invested for the benefit of my daughter Augusta E.; one of said parts for each of my grand-children, Wallace, Benjamin and Ella. The income whereof my said executors shall pay to said devisees, or expend the same for the use and benefit of said devisees, from time to time as they may deem advisable, so long as each of said devisees shall live.”

This was a valid trust under the statutes of this State (Vernon v. Vernon, 53 N. Y. 351), and was in terms made so extended as tc include all the testator’s property not previously disposed of.

But it is contended that such could not have been the intention [252]*252of the testator because the real estate, particularly the homestead devised to his wife for life, could not be divided and invested, as it was afterward directed his property should be; and that the proceeds to he divided being denominated “income,” did not properly include the profits of real estate. Besides that the unexpended residue of the $20,000 was directed to be added to the portions of the estate to be invested and divided, and because the remainder of the homestead estate was not included in the same direction, it is claimed that this omission is evidence that it was not the testator’s purpose to include it. But neither nor all of these reasons would justify the exclusion of the real estate in view of the positive direction contained in the will to the contrary. The testator upon this subject used clear and comprehensive language, declaring it to be his design, for the purposes of the trust, to devise “ all the rest, residue and remainder ” of his real as well as his personal estate to the executors. And that included the remainder of the estate in the ^ homestead remaining after the life estate created for his wife, as well as the other two pieces of property of that nature which he owned at the time of his decease, and the personal property bequeathed for life with the homestead.

These terms were sufficient for that purpose. Youngs v. Youngs, 45 N. Y. 254. And as long as that was the nature of 'them, a repetition of the purpose expressed by them was not afterward essential in order to render them effectual. Salisbury v. Morss, 7 Lans. 359, 362, 363.

The construction which has been contended for would result in excluding the direction concerning the rest, residue and remainder of the real estate entirely from the will, and that it is the duty of the court to avoid by harmonizing the directions relied upon as inconsistent with the design of including that species of property, so that they may all be maintained together. And that can very well be done by limiting the directions given to the executors to invest, to the personal estafe, which was all that in its nature was susceptible of investment. For that reason the testator probably so intended, though the intention was not clearly expressed in words.

It is, however, to be inferred from the fact that both real and personal property was given in trust to the executors, and from the further circumstance that he appears to have designed that his children and grandchildren should by means of the trust be secured the entire benefit of all his property, so far as it was not specifically [253]*253devised for the enjoyment and support of his wife, and the payment of certain legacies. The income directed to he so applied is entirely consistent with this conclusion, for the terms used to describe it are broad enough to include the rents and profits of the real estate as well as the interest derived from the investment of the personal property.

It was claimed that the direction to allow the testator’s son Sidney to have the use of the office and the land connected with it, was opposed to such a construction of the sixth paragraph of the will. But as he was required to pay the executors an annual rent of S70 for such use and occupancy, no such effect can be attributable to it, for its payment enabled them to make precisely such a division of the proceeds, or income of the property, as they were required to for the purpose of executing the trust previously declared.

The effect of the will was to devise and bequeath to the executors, for the purposes of the trust, all the testator’s property not required to pay the legacies, subject to the provision made for his wife, which they were to invest so far as it was capable of investment, and divide and apply the income in the manner particularly specified, for the benefit of his children and grandchildren during life.

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Related

Vernon v. . Vernon
53 N.Y. 351 (New York Court of Appeals, 1873)
Taylor v. . Morris
1 N.Y. 341 (New York Court of Appeals, 1848)
Youngs v. . Youngs
45 N.Y. 254 (New York Court of Appeals, 1871)
Salisbury v. Morss
7 Lans. 359 (New York Supreme Court, 1873)

Cite This Page — Counsel Stack

Bluebook (online)
5 Thomp. & Cook 248, 10 N.Y. Sup. Ct. 44, Counsel Stack Legal Research, https://law.counselstack.com/opinion/house-v-raymond-nysupct-1875.