MANY CLAIMANTS

Sun (Auckland), Volume III, Issue 843, 11 December 1929, Page 11

MANY CLAIMANTS

BENEVOLENT BEQUEST OF £SOO RELIEF OF INDIGENT GENTLEWOMEN Seven Auckland religious and charitable organisations figured in the Supreme Court today as claimants to a bequest of £SOO under the will of the late Miss Isabella Campbell, of Remuera, to any association in the City established for the purpose of maintenance or relief of indigent gentlewomen at the time of her death. Miss Campbell died on March 27 last. The case was heard by Mr. Justice Smith. The trustees of the estate, James A. Peacock, of Auckland, and John C. Peacock, of Wellington, for whom Mr. McVeagh appeared, applied for direction regarding the payment of the bequest. Claimants to the legacy represented were the St. Vincent de Paul Society, through the Rt. Rev. Dr. Liston (Mr. Finlay), the Auckland Ladies’Benevolent Society, through John Falconer Ewen (Mr. Northcroft), the Salvation Army, through Commissioner James Hay (Mr. Reed), the Mary Ann Barstow Trust, through Geo. E. Cruickshauk, vicar of St. Mark’s, and the Janet Handcock Memorial Fund, through Archdeacon Simkin (Mr. Cocker), the James and Martha Trounson Trust Board (Mr. Peak), Y.W.C.A., through Miss Jean Begg (Mr. Drummond), and the Presbyterian, Church Property Trustees (Mr. Weir). The last named party was added because if the bequest was held void it would be argued that the £SOO would revert to the estate. Mr. Weir explained that the residuary legatee did not desire to take the money from any deserving organisation, but merely to question the validity of the bequest;. He argued that if it could not be shown the bequest was a charitable gift, it must fail because of uncertainty, and as there was more than one organisation this situation was created and there was nothing to prevent such an association from applying the money to purposes not strictly charitable in law. Counsel further pointed out that the gifts were not devoted for a specific purpose, but were bequeathed to institutions.