OLD LADY'S WILL.

Star (Christchurch), Issue 16809, 11 August 1922, Page 8

OLD LADY'S WILL.

UNDUE INFLUENCE ALLEGED. SUPREME COURT CASE. \ The hearing of a dispute over the will of Mrs Rachel Willis, Healey Avenue. who died on March 7 last, was continued in the* Supreme Court, before I his Honor All* Justice Adams, to-day. L Air O. T. J. Alpers. for the executors Ada Willis, a daughter, and John Al idd Lion- had moved lor probate. Air t -M. -Myers, with him Mr A. F. Wright, lor Airs Willis'* four sons, Henry James Wiihs. Flias Beresford' "Willis, Albert V. illiam Willis and Sydney 11. AN illis, opposed the granting of probate, on ; lie ground of alleged undue influence, on Mis- Ada WilLe-’s part. and oji the ground that-Mrs AY illis. when she maoD her lasi. will. lacked testamentary capo city. The will provides for the bulk of Airs Willis's estate to go to .Miss Ada Willis. Hiias Beresford Willis. letterpress printer. Lower Hull, third son of Airs Willis, called by Air Myers, said that whop be visited Mrs Willis, Ada was very hostile to him, and he threatened t to call in the police. He invited Airs W 11 is to visit him. but received no reply. On the day of the funeral after Airs Millie had beers buried, when the. p family had gathered in the house. Ada , said that she did not know the. contents of the will, and that anybody concerned could discover the* contents by 1 means of a two-penny stamp. Alls Willis never in conversation spoke to him of .unfilial conduct on his part. To Air Alpers: He bad received a letter from ?drs Willis stating that if the sons did not mind what they were doing she would leave Ada everything He believed that the spirit of Ada was in the letter and that Ada was behind it. To Mr Myers: Airs Willis often wrote to him thanking him for the trouble be had taken. That, closed the case as far as allega tioiis of lack of testamentary capacity are concerned. : In answer t . the charge of undue influence on Ada Willis’* part. Mr Alpers/ called Olive Virtue, wife of Murrav Kerr Virtue. She said that she had milled Airs \\ illis". who. when very ill. said decidedly flint she. did not want to see her sons. Ada was not present at the time. Soon before her death. Mrs Willis feigned sleep while her sons were with her. Ada was a very devoted nurse fo her mother. , To Air Myers: Airs Willis could nob have been pleased to see t.he sons when 1 they went to her in January, because ' was very ill and most of the time was unconscious. Airy Ann Aides, wife of John .Moles, Marshland, said that sh%> had known Airs Willis well for years. Mrs Willis, soon before her death, said that if it, was not for Ada she might lie down and die. as it was Ada, not the doctor, who kept her alive. She said that the other members of the family always upset her when they called, and she did not want to see them. J o Air Myers : Airs AVillis always spoke highly of Ada. who looked after ] the old lady well. What she said of her sons was not so kind. I Ada .Matilda Willis said that Airs I Willis always said that she would make good to witness for services to her. One brother, Albert, had had hundreds of pounds from Airs "Willis. "Witness resigned from the Postal Department at Airs Willis's request. If she had not. resigned, promotion was available, but it meant leaving for the North Island.

Mrs Willis often asked witness not to many while Airs Willis was alive, and witness broke oft" two engagements. Mrs Willis gave witness £."00 in return for paying hoard at the rate of lOs a week, and doing the housework. Air Alpers: Two of your brothers said that wßoir your sister Alary came down to nurse Airs Willis von said she was going to poison Airs Willis? Absolute piffle. Witness continued that, even when Mrs Willis was ill. there wore many callers at the house. Mr Alpers: You didn’t try to bottle her up so that nobody could see her? —She soon would have bottled me up. Witness said that Mrs Willis always had a foreboding that the sons woubl try to upset her will. Airs Willis lat terlv had an income of. about £220 a year out of the estate : it was all she bad to live on. In further replies to Air Alpers. Witness said that the sons complained of Ali*s AVilliTs expenditure of the j trust estate* left by Mr Willis. The sons advised witness greatly, hut did | not help. She never prevented -Tier 1 brothers from seeing Mrs Willis, hut she disapproved of their seeing Mrs AA illis. for Airs AVillis’ sake. Dealing with a scuffle at' the gate, in Airs Wibis’s presence. Witness said that her brother Sydney tried to pull her away Horn Mrs Willis, and pushed her. She did not. kick hint in the abdomen. Il j was ini possible for her to do so. She She called for help. A man. the next door neighbour came along, and her j brothers got away as .quickly as pos- ! sible. ("Proceeding).