Volume 19 — Grattan's Virginia Reports

This was a suit in equity in the Circuit court of the city of Richmond, brought in February 1867, by Spiro Zetelle, against Gustavus A. Myers and Frederic J. Cridland, seeking to hold them responsible for the purchase money of a house and lot in the city of •Richmond, sold by them under a deed of trust from Zetelle and wife to Myers and Cridland.

This was an appeal from a decree of the Circuit court of the city of Richmond, made on the 26th of February 1868, in three suits, styled Mayo v. Carrington, *Coutts v. Mayo, and Coutts’ adm’r v. Mayo. The case was argued by R. T. Daniel, for the appellants, and by Roberts, Sands, C. Robinson and Griswold, for the different appellees.

In January 1807, Caleb Stone made, his will, which was admitted to probate in the County court of Eluvanna county, in April 1810. He left a widow and six sons and five daughters. .

*This was a bill filed in July 1867, in the Circuit court of the city of Richmond, by Edward Crouch against E. W. E. H. Bohman, Wm. A. Wyatt and another. The bill set out a sale of a tract of land by Wyatt to Crouch on the 16th of July 1862, at the price of thirty-nine hundred dollars, of which one thousand dollars was paid in cash, and Crouch executed his negotiable notes for the remainder, at twelve and twenty-four months, interest added.

Upon the trial the question in dispute was, whether the slaves had been hired by Rdwin Robinson, who *was at the time the president of the company, for himself or for the company.

On the 24th of May, 1859, Benjamin W. Green, by deed of trust dated on that day and duly recorded, conveyed certain real estate in the town of Sidney, in the county of… Held: and the value of each portion; and in case sale of the same, or any portion thereof, shall be necessary to satisfy the debt of the plaintiff charged thereon, what portion thereof ought in equity to be first sold, and in what' order the respective portions thereof ought to be sold for that purpose.

This was an action of assumpsit in the Circuit court of the city of Richmond, brought in October 1866, by Joseph Billgerry against Thos. Branch & Sons, brokers.

Nicholas Mills, an old citizen of Richmond, departed this life on the 13th of September 1862, having made his will, which bore date on… Held: to change by sale and repurchase or otherwise, the investment of any trust property given by this my will, taking care, however, to secure the substituted investment in a safe form and substance, and to hold and appropriate the same under the same trusts, uses, conditions, limitations and powers, as those herein declared applicable…

On the 16th of March 1867, R. P. Smith sued out of the clerk’s office of the Hustings court of the city of Richmond, a summons against Halsted & Putnam, partners, in an action of assumpsit, damages $1,200; and on the same day, upon an affidavit made before the clerk of the said court, that the defendants were justly indebted to the plaintiff in the sum of eight hundred dollars, with interest thereon from the 1st of March 1867 till paid, and that the defendants were…

At the January term of the County court of Alexandria county for 1864, on the motion of James H. Devaughn, one of the heirs of William Devaughn, deceased, Wm. B. Price and two other persons were appointed by the court commissioners to assign dower to Susan Devaughn, widow of William Devaughn, deceased, in the real estate of which said William Devaughn died seized in the county of Alexandria, Va.

This was a suit in equity in the Circuit court of the city of Richmond, brought by Fendall Griffin’s ex’ors against Edward Cunningham, to enforce the specific performance of a contract for the sale of a house and lot in the city of Richmond, known as the Wall street hotel. Fendall Griffin died after the 19th of October 1865, the date of his will, which was admitted to probate in the court of Hustings of the city of Richmond *in April 1866.

*The following statement of this case was prepared by JUDGE WILLOUGHBY: The Alexandria and Washington Eailroad Company was chartered in February 1854, by the legislature of Virginia, and was organized pursuant thereto; and Janies S. French was made president. In August 1854, congress passed an act authorizing said company to purchase and hold lands in the District of Columbia, and to lay a track through such streets as the corporate authorities of Washington might approve.

At the June term 1869 of the Circuit court of Northampton county, Spencer Wright was indicted for the murder of Joshua P. Wescoat. When the prisoner was brought into court, and before the jury were selected and sworn to try the cause,- he moved the court to certify his case to the County court of the county for his arraignment and election as to whether he would be tried in said County court or in the Circuit court of the county.

At the quarterly term of the County court of Chesterfield for March 1869, the record states that the grand jury came into court and presented the following indictments as “True bills,” to wit, one against Marcellus jSTunually, one against Lewis Mason, one against Ben Gray, one against Lawson Burfoot, one against Rachael Carr, one against Daniel Johnson, one against Thomas Brown, one against Lewis Johnson, one against Thomas Willis and Richard Whitehead, and one against R.…

At a quarterly term of the court of Hustings of the city of Lynchburg, held by the judge thereof, in August 1869, an indictment was found against William Shelly for grand larcen3T. And at the same term of the court the prisoner was brought to the bar, and before being arraigned in his proper person tendered a special plea in writing, which he swore to in open court.

At the February term of the County court of Prince EJdward' for 1869, Nathaniel H. Jackson was indicted for the murder of Alexander Bruce. At the same term of the court he was arraigned, and demanded to be tried in the Circuit court of the county. At the August term of this court he pleaded “not guilty,” and was put upon his trial.

These cases were prepared by agreement of the parties to bring before the court the question, whether *Henry K. E)llyson or George Chahoon was the mayor of the city of Richmond.

This is an appeal by a purchaser at a judicial sale from a decree requiring- him to pay the balance of the purchase money.

These cases involve the same question, and were heard together in this court. *In October 1867, the Exchange Bank of Virginia, suing for the benefit of George W. Camp, trustee, instituted an action of debt in the Circuit court of the county of Alexandria against Knox & Brother and others, upon a negotiable note for one thousand dollars, due on the 1st of June 1861.

This was a bill filed in January 1863, in the Circuit court of Nelson county, by D. J. Hartsook, executor of Mary W. Cabell, deceased, to obtain a… Held: 1st. That the bequest of the residuum was not on a contingency which avoided it. 2d. That Peyton H. Skipwith took only one-half of the residuum, and the testatrix died intestate as to the half left to Dr. Carter. 3d. That the legatees of the Fitzhugh Carter fund under the first clause took only the State bonds. 4th.

At the May term 1867 of the Circuit court of Franklin county, the attorney for the Commonwealth filed an information founded on a presentment of the grand jury, against Wm. JB.

At the August term 1867 of the County court of Henrico, the grand jury presented Win. W. Sledd, first, that within two years last past, in said county, he did, without a license authorized by law, unlawfully canvass the said county for the purpose of buying and offering to buy, and did actually buy, certain matter of subsistence for man, to wit: cattle, sheep and hogs, not for his own use or for the use of his family. *There was a second and third count in the presentment.