In re the Estate of Carriger

The alleged last will of William W. Carriger, deceased, having been proposed for probate by the executor therein named, a contest thereof was made by Kate C. Carriger, the widow of the deceased, upon the grounds: 1. That the deceased was not of sound and disposing mind and memory at the time the will was made; and 2. That the will was made under the undue influence of Alfred Boggs Carriger, a brother of deceased. Nine special issues were presented to a jury. The first issue was this: “ Was said William Car-riger, at the time of the making of said will, a man of weak mind, vacillating, and easily led?” To this, the jury answered “No.” The next seven issues so presented were about intermediate probative facts, and were answered by the jury favorably to the contestant. The *83 ninth and last issue, which contained the pith of the charge of undue influence, was as follows: “Did the said William W. Carriger, at the time of the making of the will in question, understand and know what he was about, and does it express his real wishes, and dispose of his estate in accordance with his own independent judgment and desire, entertained by him at the time of its execution?” To this the jury…