258 Pa. 22 | Pa. | 1917
Opinion by
The appeal is from the decree of the Orphans’ Court of Philadelphia County affirming the action of the register of wills in admitting to probate a paper purporting to be the last will of John G. Watmough, deceased, and in
Turning now to the second ground of assault, a somewhat fuller statement .of facts is here required to comprehend the significance of the evidence produced by one side and the other. The testator, at the time of the execution of the will, was in his seventy-seventh year. He was then childless and a widower; his wife, between whom and himself there had always been the closest confidence and endearment, had died May 27, 1911. He himself died October 10,1913, leaving as his next of kin a half brother, James H. Watmough, the children of a deceased half brother," the children of a deceased half sister, and William W. Grier, son of a deceased sister, who is' an appellant here. The testator was a man of large estate, exceeding a half million dollars in value, which he had always managed himself, and so far as appears, with intelligent judgment. He had resided for
This brings us to the will which is the subject of the present controversy, executed June 6, 1913. This will was drafted at the direction of the testator by Charles J. McDermott, Esq., at the office of John G-. Johnson, Esq., and executed at testator’s own home, in the presence of Mr. McDermott and Maurice Bower Saul, Esq., both of whom testify that no one but themselves and the testator were present at the time. The first item in this will gives to Zalie Faget “now in my employ, and who was maid to my dear wife, Caroline Drexel Watmough,' in her lifetime,” the sum of $100,000.00, “in appreciation of her kindness to my beloved wife.” Separate bequests, one only amounting to as much as $1,000.00, were made to his servants, conditioned on their being in his employ gt the time of his death; then follows this direction, “All