41 Iowa 329 | Iowa | 1875
On the 11th day of October, 1866, the plaintiff, executed an instrument of which the following is a copy: “I, Jane A. Stoddard, wife of Benjamin Stoddard, of the County of Louisa, and State of Iowa, for and in consideration of the sum of two thousand dollars, to me in hand paid by my husband, Benjamin Stoddard, the receipt whereof is hereby acknowledged, do hereby assign and set over all my right, title, interest, claim or demand, dower, or expectancy of dower that is now due, or may hereafter become due by the death of my husband, Benjamin Stoddard, or otherwise, in and to the’ following real estate, situated in the County of Louisa and State of Iowa, to-wit: ******* containing in all seven hundred and fifteen acres, more or less. And I further release all of my interest in his personal property, money, credits and effects, that is now due or may hereafter become due; the object of this release in the foregoing described premisés, his personal property, his money, credits and effects, is to enable my husband, Benjamin Stoddard, to dispose of his real, personal and mixed property, as he may deem advisable, without hinderance or molestation by’ myself, or any other person or persons claiming by, or through
On the same day Benjamin Stoddard executed his will, containing amongst other things, a bequest as follows: “ First, to my beloved wife, Jane A. Stoddard, I will and bequeath the sum of two thousand dollars, which is in full consideration of her legacy by special contract with her for all of her interest in my entire estate, of real and personal property, which sum of money, if not paid before my death to her, I direct my executor to pay the same to her, or the balance of the amount that may remain unpaid at my death, out of the first money collected.” The will further contains a bequest of two thous- and dollars to each of three children by his first wife, and directs that all of his real estate remain unsold, and that the rents and income thereof be applied to the education and support of his children, five in number, by his second wife, Elizabeth, until the youngest shall attain the age of twenty-one years, and that then the real estate be sold, and two thousand dollars paid to each of the children by his second wife, and if anything remain of the real and personal estate, it be divided amongst all his children equally.
The testator died about the 16th day of December, 1866. On the 9th day of March, 1869, the plaintilf commenced her action to set aside the agreement. In her petition she alleges that she was over persuaded and fraudulently induced to execute said agreement, by the false and fraudulent representations of Thomas Stoddard, the brother of deceased, and who assumed to act as his friend, adviser and agent; that she was ignorant of the true value of the estate of her husband and was induced to believe it to be much less valuable than it was in fact; that she signed the release under the promise and belief that the two thousand dollars were to reimburse her for the property she took to her husband; that, beside said two thousand dollars, it was understood by her that a homestead would be provided for her out of her husband’s estate worth $1,000, and that she was not relinquishing her rights of dower.
We fail to discover in the case any evidence of actual fraud. Both the will and the contract were carefully read over to her
When she undertook to enforce the bequest by filing a claim against the estate, growing-out of a contingent liability upon one of the notes delivered to her by her husband in part payment of the legacy, and afterward accepted from the
Reversed.