KING ALFONSO AND A WILL

Hawera & Normanby Star, Volume LXXI, Issue LXII, 13 May 1912, Page 2

KING ALFONSO AND A WILL

An interesting claim in respect to a' legacy of £IUO,OOO bequeathed to King Alfonso by M. Albert Sapene, a wealthy landowner, came recently before the president of the Civil Court at-Saint-' vxaudens, Maftre de Maribail pleading on behalf ot his Majesty, and Maitie 'Thevenin for tiie niece oi the deceased, who disputed tiie will. It is a very curious case, states the Madrid correspondent of a London Journal. M. Sapene died at a lunatic asylum in October last, year, and when his will was opened at the office of the Civil Court, it was ascertained, with considerable surprise, that he had left the whole of his fortune, as well as his titles of nobility and his orders, to the King of Spain. The fortune existed — of that there could be no doubt whatever —but M. Sapene had no right to any title; nor, again, had he ever been decorated. But, as the will was drawn up in due form, its stipulations with regard to the fortune were about to be carried out, when the niece of the testator came forward as his natural heiress to dispute the will, paritcular stress being also laid on the fact that M. Sapene had been in an asylum sincy 1908, and that the very terms of the testament, which was drawn up in 1911, tended to indicate that he was not in his right mind. There had since been an impression that King ! Alfonso had, in those circumstances, 1 decided on giving up all claim to the legacy, but this was found to be an error. The Court pronounced in his Majesty's favor, and granted his request for the appointment of sequestrator. This judgment means that the contention that M. Sapene, who died in a lunatic asylum, was not in his right mind when he drew up the will is not admitted by the Court; but the relatives will no doubt bring the case before another tribunal.