Francis v. Rice
Francis v. Rice
Opinion of the Court
Opinion of the Court bt
Appellant claims the'land conveyed by Octavions Goodloe to hex late husband, insisting that it was paid for with hex money, and the deed having been made to her husband, Thomas K. Francis, a trust resulted to her for said land.
The first question to be considered is, did Mrs. Francis pay for the land? To answer that question, it becomes necessary to examine the evidence. At the time of her marriage with T. K. Francis, she was the widow of T. Kennedy, deceased, and as such entitled to dower in certain lands in Garrard county, owned by said Kennedy. Rice Wood proves that while she was a widow he purchased her dower right in the lands in Garrard county owned by her deceased husband by a written contract, for which he agreed to give her $6,000. After.her marriage with Francis
Silas T. Green proves that in 1816 he was clerk of the Richmond branch of the Northern Bank, that a few days before the 8th of January 1816, Rice Wood deposited in said branch bank $5,850, which sum Thomas K. Francis drew on the last named day on the check of Wood, and had the same placed to his own credit. On the 20th of January 1816 said Francis gave a check payable to Oct. Goodloe for $5,950. The facts stated, he says are shown by the books of the bank. Francis had other money than that paid by Wood, at the time deposited in the bank, and paid Goodloe more than he received from Wood, and on the 12th of January, 1816 he paid to John B. Francis $6,000 by a check on said bank.
Appellant had before her second marriage sold her dower interest in the lands of her first husband, and converted it into money, and Francis her second husband possessed himself of the money by her consent, after his marriage, and it thereby became his, and his legal right to it when reduced to possession was perfect, and after that was done, it could not have been interfered with, even by a court of equity to force a settlement on the wife if she had sought it.
The foundation of appellant’s claim is that she -paid the money for the land, or that it was her money when it was converted into land; if she fails to show that, her claim must fail. Her husband could certainly have waived his right, to the money received from Wood, and permitted her to have retained and used it, or to have invested it to her own use; but there is no sufficient evidence of such waiver, or surrender of his right. He purchased the land from Goodloe, and conceding that the money paid for it, was the same received from Wood, still he took the
As tbe posthumous child took an interest in tbe land by descent from tbe father, and died in infancy, bis mother, and half sister on the mother’s side took no part of his share of tbe land, but on bis death it passed to bis brothers and sisters of the whole blood. Sec. 9, Chap. 30, 1 Vol., R. S. pp. 421-2.
Wherefore tbe judgment is affirmed.
Case-law data current through December 31, 2025. Source: CourtListener bulk data.