Knight

The plaintiff, as the administrator of the estate of Elizabeth Cook, deceased, seeks by this action to recover from the defendant certain personal property, or its value, alleged to belong to said estate. The defendant claims the property under title derived from the deceased in her lifetime. Mrs. Cook had been ill for several months, and, with the purpose of seeking relief, was about to undergo a surgical operation from which she apprehended danger. On the morning of May 30, 1895, the defendant came to her house by previous appointment to see her, and she informed him of this purpose, and stated that she wanted to dispose of her property; that she had once made a will, but had destroyed it, and had made up her mind that she might as well give her property away while she was living, say *676 ing to him: “I want to give it to you, or place all of it in your hands, and tell you those whom I want should have it.” Upon the defendant’s suggestion, she consulted an attorney in the matter, under whose advice she acted, and on the next day signed the following instrument, which had been prepared by the attorney, and delivered it to the defendant:

This instrument is in form a bill of…