Whitaker v. . Hamilton
35 S.E. 815
N.C.
1900
Check Treatment
Faircloth, C. J.

This is an action by the plaintiff, as administrator of E. L. Davis, against the defendant as administrator of Sarah L. Davis, to recover money, notes and personal property.

The material facts are these: The said Sarah L.. was the wife of said E. L. Davis, and was the owner of the property sought to' bе recovered in this action at the time of her death, .about April 8, 1896, leaving her husband surviving, who died *468 intestate in June, 1896. By deed, dated April 13, 1896, said E. L. Davis sold and conveyed to defendant J. 0. Hamilton, and other defendants, all his right, title.and interest as husband of said wife, in and to all of such property owned by her at her dеath or during coverture, with authority to take possession,and renounced his right to administer on his wife’s estate. The defendant administrator took and hоlds possession of said property. Plaintiff demands possession and an accounting by the defendant. It is not disputed that the husband became the owner of said property as provided in The Code, 1479.

The plaintiff alleges that at the time of said deed and sale, the husband was mentally incaрable of making a contract, and that the deed was obtained ‍​​‌​‌‌​‌​​​‌​​‌‌‌​​‌​‌‌‌​​​‌​​​​‌‌​​​​​‌​​‌​‌​‌​‍by undue influence by the defendants, and is void. This is the principal matter in controversy. Several witnesses were examined on that question.

1st issue: “At the time of the execution of the contract, set out in tire pleadings, whereby E. L. Davis purported to convey to J. C. Hamilton and others the property therein described, did the said E. L. Davis have sufficient mind to know what he was doing and to understand tire nature of the contract he was making?” The jury answered, “No.”

2nd issue: '“Was the execution of said contract procured by fraud or undue influеnce on the part of J. 0. Hamilton or any of the other grantees or donees named in the contract?” The jury answered, “Tes.”

During the trial tire plaintiff called J. D. Griffin, who testified :

“I have known E. L. Davis fifty-five or sixty years, have lived about six miles from him for the last several years; frequent visits were exchanged between ‍​​‌​‌‌​‌​​​‌​​‌‌‌​​‌​‌‌‌​​​‌​​​​‌‌​​​​​‌​​‌​‌​‌​‍us. I visited him during his last sickness, and was there the day his wife was buried, and assisted him to get to her grave, which was about *469 one week prior to the date of tbе contract mentioned in the complaint, and I talked with him for some time. I also visited him a week or ten days after the contract was exeсuted. I have had opportunities of forming’ an opinion of the mental condition of E. L. Davis at the time of the making of the contract, and I havе formed an opinion.” Here the plaintiff asked this question: “From your observation, conversation and association with E. L. Davis,, ivhat, in your opinion, was his mental capacity with reference to making contracts or disposing of his property after his wife’s death ?” The defendant’s objection was overruled, and they excepted. The witness proceeded: “I do not think he was capable of making a contract or disposing of his prоperty after his wife’s death. Mr. Davis was 84 years of age, and was very greatly grieved at his wife’s death. Two or three weeks after her death he asked me what day of the week it was, and said he could not recollect anything; he did not have anything to do with his business, but left it all to his wife. His mind was such that he could hаve been easily influenced to make a contract to his own injury.” The witness further said that he did not think that Davis was insane, but he was not competent to mаnage his affairs, and Davis said so. He could not recollect recent events as well as matters several years back.

The exception is that the opinion of the witness was inсompetent. All the authorities agree to the general rule that the triers of the matter in dispute — the Judge or the jury as the case may be — form their conclusions from the facts before them, and not upon the opinions of others, and that facts and not opinions ‍​​‌​‌‌​‌​​​‌​​‌‌‌​​‌​‌‌‌​​​‌​​​​‌‌​​​​​‌​​‌​‌​‌​‍are heard by judicial tribunals. The same authorities agree that there.are some exceptions to this general ride. These exceptions are divided into three general classes. 1. Opinions of experts. 2. Opinions on questions of identity. 3. Opinions received from necessity.

*470 Ill the third class there are severаl sub-divisions, according to Lawson on Expert and Opinion Evidence. On page 476 (Sub-Rule 4), he says: “One not an expert may give an opinion, founded upon observation, that a certain person is sane or insane.” The exception was first adopted in the English courts, and our courts soon recognized the necessity of permitting anyone, whose acquaintance and means of observation of the party whose sanity is in dispute were sufficient, to express his opinion as to his mental condition.

This exception to the general rule has been received in all the States of the Union except Massachusetts, Maine, New Hampshire and Texas.

This question was first presented to this Court in 1841, in Clary v. Clary, 24 N. C., 78 (2 Iredell Rep.), in which it was held that “A witness, who has had opportunities of knowing аnd observing a person whose sanity is impeached, may not only depose to the facts he knows, but may also give his opinion or belief as tо his sanity or insanity.” In this case Gaston, J., wrote a lengthy and interesting opinion, treating the question in its manifold aspects with clear* reasoning. He says: “But judgment founded on actual observation of the capacity, disposition, temper*, character, peculiarities of habit, form, features or hand-writing of others, is more than mere opinion. It approaches to knowledge, and is knowledge so far* as the imperfection of human nature will permit knowledge of tírese things to be acquired, and the result thus acquired should be communicated to the jury because they have ‍​​‌​‌‌​‌​​​‌​​‌‌‌​​‌​‌‌‌​​​‌​​​​‌‌​​​​​‌​​‌​‌​‌​‍not had the opportunities of personal observation, and because in no other way can they effectually have the benefit of tire knowledge gained by the observations of others.”

This leading case has not been disturbed by any of our predecessors, but has been frequently affirmed and recognizеd, notably in McLeary v. Norment, 84 N. C., 235; State v. *471 Ketchey, 70 N. C., 621; Barker v. Pope, 91 N. C., 165; McRae v. Malloy, 93 N. C., 160. See also 1 Greenleaf on Evidence, sec. 441.

Smith v. Smith, 117 N. C., 326, was relied on by defendant as establishing the contrary doctrine. The mere reading the facts therein will show that the case is in nowise in conflict with Clary v. Clary, supra, and in fact it expressly recognizes the same principle. The exception was therefore properly overruled. Several other witnesses were examined on the same question as J. D. Griffin, with some exceptions. They were all properly overruled on thе same ground as defendant’s second exception.

The Court, at plaintiff’s request, gave the jury several special instructions, all of which were assigned by defendant as errors. The instruction, in substance, was that a mind capable of making a contract was one that had sufficient intelligenсe to understand ‍​​‌​‌‌​‌​​​‌​​‌‌‌​​‌​‌‌‌​​​‌​​​​‌‌​​​​​‌​​‌​‌​‌​‍what he was doing, what property he was disposing of and to whom he was conveying it, and the capacity to know who are excluded by the contract or conveyance. Whilst the definition is in general terms we do not see anything in it prejudicial to> the defendant. The othеr instructions were a recital of several parts of the evidence, and that if they believed the evidence to be true, they would be justified in finding that E. L. Davis did not have sufficient mind to make the contract. The language of these instructions is general, but we do not find any error calculated to mislead the jury in forming their verdict.

Affirmed.