2l6
THE GREEN BAG
which the English conveyancers have, since the time of Charles the Second, worked out this typical form of will makes it to-day a wonder to behold. Suppose, then, I attempt to introduce you to this perfection of detail. The first care of the draughtsman is to allow the testator, — as a great concession I assure you, — to bequeath as he pleases a few specific chattels — a watch to one, a pic ture to another, a library to a third. There is only one restriction upon the testator here. He must make his gifts absolute. He must not attempt any gifts of chattels to one for life and then to another. Such gifts are valid, but extremely annoying to both par ties interested, and unwise from other points of view. If the testator has any poor female rela tive or relatives whom he wishes to provide for he may then charge upon his estate or direct the purchase of a small annuity for their benefit. At this point the personal choice or preference of the testator largely, if not entirely, ceases. The conveyancer will next provide, as a matter of course, for the gift of household effects to the widow. Here some difficulties in the use of lan guage must be faced. It is of course im practicable to put into the will an inventory of all the household effects which are to go to the widow, for they might all wear out and be replaced by the time of the testa tor's death. General descriptive language must be employed. The articles must be described with reference to their existence at a certain locality, or without reference to locality. The former is a very usual method and the one adopted in the will of the late Marshall Field. In either case, however, difficulties arise. If the clause be drafted so as to leave all the residue of the testator's effects which shall be in and about a certain dwelling at the time of his death, he may include much more than he intends — viz., money or securities for money, bonds, stocks,
and other personal property of that nature in a private safe upon the premises. It is well, therefore, after a general gift of "all my wines, consumable stores, household fur niture, household linen, plate, china, books, and other effects which shall be in and about my house at ," to except "money, securities for money, stocks, evidences of indebtedness, and documents of title." In the will of the late Marshall Field this same object was effected by the following enu meration: "Furnishings and equipments of every kind, including furniture, paint ings, library, bric-a-brac, horses, carriages, and all other personal property which may be used in connection with said residence at the date of my death." If the testator does not restrict the gift to articles at a given locality, he must still use some general word such as "effects." The difficulty here may be that there will be included too much — viz., the whole personal estate of money, stocks, bonds, notes, etc. The general words must, therefore, be selected with the greatest care. Time and experience have suggested in the usual case the following: "All my household furniture, pictures of every description, plate, plated articles, linen, china, glass, musical instruments, books, watches, jewelry and trinkets, horses and carriages and the equipage and furniture belonging thereto, cows, poultry, and other live stock, plants in pots, gardening and husbandry implements, domestic animals, fuel, housekeeping provisions and other con sumable stores, and all other household effects not hereinbefore bequeathed, which shall belong to me at the time of my death. And I declare that the last mentioned be quest shall comprise all effects, though not strictly household, which are applicable to personal or domestic use, ornament, occu pation or diversion and are not hereinbefore specifically bequeathed." The usual practice of English conveyan cers is clearly to make the gift of effects to the wife an absolute one. It must not be a gift to her for life. Such a gift was valid enough but the practical inconveniences of it were too great. In the first place, the
