Williams v. Otey

27 Tenn. 563
Tennessee Supreme Court·Decided December 15, 1847·Published

Opinion

Turley, J.

delivered the opinion of the court.

On the 23rd day of December, 1826, Robert Parish'by deed of that date, loaned to his daughter Jane, wife of Joseph Williams, two negro women, Kitty and Ailsy, during her natural life, but subject to his command at all times; but if he should permit them to remain with her till death, they were then to return to him and be at his disposition. On the 24th of March, 1827, the said Robert' Parish executed a deed to Peter N. Smith and Robert P. Currin, by which he conveyed to them a number of slaves, including the said Kitty and Ailsy, and other personal property in trust for the following purposes. 1st. For the payment of every just debt due by him, the said Robert Parish, to any and every individual; the same to be paid out of the negroes and other property conveyed. 2nd. For the competent livelihood and support of him, the said Robert, and his wife Elizabeth, for and during their lives, out of what might be left of said negroes and other property after the payment of the debts secured by the deed of trust; all of which was to be kept together for that purpose, with the exception of the above named negroes, Kitty and Ailsy: which, were to be permitted to remain in the possession of Jane Williams in pursuance of the deed of loan of the 23rd of December 1826, as a loan during her natural life, and at her death to be equally divided between her children, Robert, Wm. R. and John F. Williams.

R. P. Currin, one of the trustees, by writing on the deed of trust before its probate and registration, renounced the trust and declined its execution. Afterwards, to wit, at the July term 1827, of the county court of Williamson county, Peter N. Smith, the other trustee, caused the deed to be duly proven by the subscribing witness, and registered and took upon himself the execution of the trust; by virtue of which he sold all the properly conveyed by the deed of trust, except the [565]*565negroes Kitty and Ailsy: whether it were necessary to have done this or not in order to pay the debts, does not appear, nor whether the whole of the proceeds were appropriated by him to the payment of the debts, but it does appear that a portion of the debts secured by the deed were left unpaid.

Mrs. Jane Williams died in the year 1831; upon the happening of which event Peter N. Smith the trustee, took into possession the negroes, Kitty and Ailsy: and Lucinda and Albert, children of Kitty, born after the execution of the deed of trust. On the 6th day of September 1834, Kitty was sold by a constable of Williamson county, under an execution against Joseph Williams, and was purchased by James H, Otey at the price of $401, who has had her in possession ever since, claiming her as his own. After this sale, Peter N. Smith, the trustee, brought an action of trespass against the constable for selling the negro as the property of Joseph Williams, when she belonged to him under the deed of trust, and recovered a judgment in full against him for this trespass, which has been paid and satisfied with cost.

On the 20th day of September 1834, Peter N. Smith, as trustee, sold at public sale the other negroes, Ailsy, Lucinda and Albert, to C. D. Parish for a full and fair consideration, which was paid, and thereupon possession was taken of them, by him. On the 3d day of June 1836, C. D. Parish sold and delivered Lucinda to A. M. Whyte, and on the 29th day of December 1841, A. M. Whyte having previously died, Lucinda was sold at public sale by order of the chancery court of Williamson county, as a part of his estate, to B. Rupe, who aff terwards, to wit, on the 9th day of December 1842, sold and! delivered her to Susan A. Whyte, one of the .defendants to thjs bill. On the 31st of October 1839, C. D. Parish sold andd'e-. livered the other two slaves, Ailsy and Albert to B. S. Tappan,, which were afterwards levied upon as the property of Tappan, by the marshall of Middle Tennessee, by virtue of an execu[566]*566tion from the federal court at Nashville, and sold on the 12th of March 1840, and Albert was bought by defendant, Elisha Thompson, and Ailsy by Andrew B. Ewing, who afterwards, to wit, on the 14th day of October 1844, sold her to the other defendant, W. O. Perkins. Wm. R. Williams, one of the children of Jane Williams, died intestate in 1837, and has no personal representative. This bill was filed by Robert W. Williams on the 23rd day of January 1845, who at that time was' about twenty-four years of age, and John F. Williams, the other remaining child of Jane Williams, who was made a party to this suit by amended bill, was not twenty-one years of age at the time of filing the bill. This suit is brought by Robert W. Williams to recover from the possession of James H. Otey, Kitty and her increase; from Susan A. Whyte, Lucinda; from Elsha Thompson, Albert, and from W. O. Perkins, Ailsy. Out of this state of facts several legal propositions have been presented for the consideration of this court.

1st. Was Robert Parish by the terms of the deed of loan for Kitty and Ailsy, to his daughter, Jane Williams^ during her life, bearing date the 25th'of December 1826, prohibited from conveying the same negroes in trust for the payment of his debts, by the deed of the date of the 24th of March 1827?

We think not, because by the terms of the deed of loan, the negroes were held subject to his command at all times — that •is, he parted from no right or title to them by virtue of the deed, but loaned them during the life of his daughter, unless •he should think proper otherwise to dispose of them, which he ■.did by the deed of trust.

' 2nd. Did the refusal of R. P. Currin, one of the trustees, to •execute the trust, operate in law a disqualification on the part of Peter N. Smith, the other trustee, to prove the deed and fake upon himself the execution of the trust?

We think not. This is a question of authority and is well .settled. In the case of Roberson vs. Gaines et als. 2 Hump. Rep. [567]*567367, it was held by this court that it is a general principle of the common law that a mere naked power to sell, not coupled with an interest, given to séveral persons, must be executed by all, and does not survive; but when it is coupled with an interest, it may be executed by a survivor; that “when a testator directs his executor to sell lands for the benefit of creditors, or to do any act in which third persons are concerned, and who have the right to call on the executors to execute the power, such power survives:” that “when A and B were appointed executors, with authority to sell and convey land, and A qualified as executor, and acted as such, and sold and conveyed land, B not having qualified or acted, A’s deed passed the title though no renunciation or refusal was entered of record.” This case is direct to the point under consideration; the fact that it is a case of a devise to executors, can in no way vary it; the principle is the same, whether’the conveyance in trust be by deed or will, The same point is held by chancellor Wal-worth, in the case of Stephens, 3rd Paige’s Rep. 420, where he says, “by the common law, if a devise were to two upon trust, and one refused to accept the trust, it was a good devise to the trustee who did accept.” In Hill on Trusts, page 337, it is laid down that “a trustee who has disclaimed or renounced, or who has been duly discharged under a power contained in the trust instrument or by a decree of court, need not join in any sale or other disposition of the estate, or in receipts of trust monies; for a gift to several individuals nominatim

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Williams v. Otey, 27 Tenn. 563 (Tenn. 1847).

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