COMPETENCY OF TESTATORS AS TO AGE. The age at which a person becomes competent to make a will is in most of the states and territories twenty-one years, as at common law. ARIZONA: but any person who may be or may have been lawfully married is competent, R. S. 1887, § 3232. DELAWARE: R. Code 1874, p. 508, § 1. FLORIDA: Dig. of Laws 1881, c. 200, § 1. INDIANA R. S. 1888, § 2556. Iowa: Annot. Code 1885, § 3522. KANSAS: G. S. 1889, § 5207. KENTUCKY: G. S. 1888, c. 113, § 2. MAINE R. S. 1883, c. 74, § 1. MASSACHUSETTS: R. S. 1882, c. 127, § 1. MICHIGAN: G. S. 1882, § 5788. MINNESOTA: G. S. 1878, c. 47, § 4. MISSISSIPPI: R. Code 1880, § 1262. NEBRASKA: Comp. Stats. 1885, c. 23, § 126. NEW HAMPSHIRE: G. L. 1878, c. 193, § 1; Laws 1887, c. 64. NEW JERSEY: R. S. 1877, p. 1244, § 3; p. 1248, § 26. NORTH CAROLINA: Battle's Rev. 1873, c. 119, § 2. ОнIO: R. S. 1890, § 5914. PENNSYLVANIA: Brightly's Purdon's Dig. 1883, p. 1709, § 3. SOUTH CAROLINA: G. S. 1882, § 1853. TENNESSEE: The common law rule as to competency prevails. TEXAS: R. S. 1879, p. 712, art. 4857. VERMONT: Rev. Laws, 1880, § 2039. WASHINGTON: Code 1881, § 1318. WYOMING: R. S. 1887, § 2234. The exceptions to this rule are as follows: Persons become competent as regards age to make a will at the age of eighteen years, in CALIFORNIA: Codes & Stats 1876, § 6270. CONNECTICUT: G. S 1888, § 537. IDAHO: R. S. 1887, § 5725. MONTANA: Comp. Stats. 1887, p. 380, § 432. NEVADA: G. S. 1885, § 3000. - NORTH AND SOUTH DAKOTA: R. Codes 1877, § 683 of Civ. Code. OKLAHOMA TERRITORY: Comp. Stats. 1890, § 6797. UTAH TERRITORY: Comp. Laws 1888, § 2647. In GEORGIA: Any one over fourteen years of age is competent. Code 1882, § 2406. In LOUISIANA: Any one over sixteen years of age. R. Civ. Code 1870, art. 1477. While males must be of the age of twenty-one years to be competent to make a will, females of the age of eighteen are competent in COLORADO: G. S. 1883, § 3481. DISTRICT OF COLUMBIA: Maryland Act 1798, c. 101. ILLINOIS R. S. 1880, c. 148, § 1. MARYLAND: Pub. G. L. 1888, art. 93, § 309. MISSOURI: R. S. 1889, §§ 8868, 8869. As to personal property, see infra. WISCONSIN: A married woman of eighteen. R. S. 1878, §§ 2277, 2281; Annot. Stats 1889, §§ 2277, 2281. Comp. Laws In NEW MEXICO: Males not having completed fourteen years, and females not having completed twelve years, are prohibited from making a will. 1884, § 1378. Persons of the age of eighteen years or more may dispose of personal property by will, though they cannot dispose of real property by will till they arrive at the age of twenty-one years, in ALABAMA: Code 1886, §§ 1788, 1945, 1951. ARKANSAS: Dig. of Stats. 1884, §§ 6490, 6491. MISSOURI: R. S. 1889, § 8869. OREGON: G. L. 1872, c. 64, §§ 1, 2; Annot. Laws 1887, § 3066. RHODE ISLAND: P. S. 1882, c. 182, § 7. VIRGINIA: Code 1887, § 2513. WEST VIRGINIA: Code 1877, c. 77, § 2. In COLORADO persons of seventeen years of age may dispose of personalty by will. G. S. 1883, § 3481. IN KENTUCKY, G. S. 1883, c. 113, § 3, a person under the age of twenty-one years may make a will in pursuance of a power, or, being a father, may appoint a guardian for his child or children. In NEW YORK, males of the age of eighteen years, and females of the age of sixteen years, can dispose of personal property by will. 3 R. S. 7th ed. p. 2285, § 21; 4 R. S. 8th ed. 1889, p. 2547. Only persons of age can devise realty. REQUIREMENTS AS TO WITNESSES TO WILLS. ALABAMA: Two witnesses. Code 1886, § 1966. ARIZONA: Two witnesses if not wholly written by the testator. R. S. 1887, § 3234. ARKANSAS: Two witnesses. Dig. of Stats. 1884, § 6492. CALIFORNIA: Two witnesses. Codes & Stats. 1876, § 6276. COLORADO: Two witnesses. G. S. 1883, § 3482. CONNECTICUT: Three witnesses. G. S. 1888, § 538. DELAWARE: Two witnesses. R. Code 1874, p. 508, § 3. DISTRICT OF COLUMBIA: Three witnesses. Maryland Act 1798, c. 101. FLORIDA: Three witnesses. Dig. of Laws 1881, c. 200, § 1. GEORGIA: Three witnesses. Code 1882, § 2414. IDAHO: Two witnesses. An olographic will need not be witnessed. R. S. 1887, §§ 5727, 5728. ILLINOIS: Two witnesses. R. S. 1880, c. 148, § 2. INDIANA: Two witnesses. R. S. 1888, § 2576. IOWA: Two witnesses. Annot. Code 1885, § 3526. KANSAS: Two witnesses. G. S. 1889, § 7206. KENTUCKY: Two witnesses, unless wholly written by the testator. G. S. 1888, c. 113, § 5. LOUISIANA: To a nuncupative will by public act before a notary public, three witnesses residing in the place where the will is executed, or five witnesses not residing in the place. A nuncurative will by private signature requires five witnesses residing in the place, or seven witnesses residing out of the place. A secret will must be closed and superscribed in presence of a notary and seven witnesses. An olographic will, that is, one wholly written by the hand of the testator, need not be witnessed. MAINE: Three witnesses. R. S. 1883, c. 74, § 1. MARYLAND: Two witnesses. Pub. G. L. 1888, art. 93, § 311. MISSISSIPPI: Two witnesses. R. Code 1880, § 1262. R. S. 1889, § 8870. But an olographic will need not be witnessed. Comp. Comp. Stats. 1885, c. 23, § 127. G. S. 1885, §§ 3002, 3004. NEW HAMPSHIRE: Three witnesses. No seal required. G. L. 1878, c. 193, § 6; NEW JERSEY: Two witnesses. R. S. 1877, p. 1248, § 22. NEW MEXICO TERRITORY: Three witnesses. Comp. Laws 1884, § 1380. NEW YORK: Two witnesses. 3 R. S. 7th ed. p. 2285, § 4; 4 R. S. 8th ed. 1889, NORTH CAROLINA: Two witnesses. Battle's Rev. 1873, c. 119, § 1. NORTH AND SOUTH DAKOTA: Two witnesses. R. Codes 1877, § 691 of Civ. Code. OKLAHOMA TERRITORY: Comp. Stats. 1890, § 6805. PENNSYLVANIA: Two witnesses. 1872, c. 64, § 4; Annot. Laws, 1887, § 3069. RHODE ISLAND: Two witnesses. P. S. 1882, c. 182, § 4. TEXAS: Two witnesses. R. S. 1879, p. 712, art. 4859. UTAH TERRITORY: Two witnesses. Comp. Laws 1888, § 2651. VIRGINIA: Two witnesses. Code 1887, § 2514. WASHINGTON: Two witnesses. Code 1881, § 1319. WEST VIRGINIA: Two witnesses. Code 1887, c. 77, § 3. WISCONSIN: Two witnesses. R. S. 1878, § 2282; Annot. Stats. 1889, § 2282. APPENDIX Containing Recent Statutory Changes. CALIFORNIA. The certificate of acknowledgment must be substantially in the following form:1 State of in the year County of SS. On this ་ before me (here insert name and officer), personally appeared, known to me 9 day of quality of the (or proved to me on the oath of -) to be the person whose name is subscribed to the within instrument, and acknowledged that he (she or they) executed the same. FLORIDA. Statutory Form of Warranty Deed.2 A. D. be This indenture, made this day of tween, of the county of, in the State of -, party of the first part, and of the county of - in the State of -, party of the second part, witnesseth: That the said party of the first part, for and in consideration of the sum of dollars to him in hand paid by the said party of the second part, the receipt whereof is hereby acknowledged, has granted, bargained, and sold to the said party of the second part, his heirs and assigns forever, the following described land, to wit: — And the said party of the first part does hereby fully warrant the title to said land, and will defend the same against the lawful claims of all persons whomsoever. 1 Stats. 1891, p. 137. A conveyance by a married woman has the same effect as if she were unmarried, and may be acknowledged in the same manner. Ib. § 1189. 2 A deed executed in the foregoing form shall be held to be a warranty deed with full common-law covenants, and shall just as effectually bind the grantor and his heirs as if said covenants were specifically set out therein. And this form of deed, when signed by a married woman, shall be held to convey whatever interest in the property conveyed which she may possess. Such deeds shall be executed and acknowledged as is now or may here after he provided by the law regulating convey. ances of realty by deed. Laws 1891, § 4038. MARYLAND. Any unmarried woman between the age of eighteen years and twenty-one years shall have power to make a deed of trust of her property, real, personal, or mixed; provided the same shall be approved and sanctioned by a court having equity jurisdiction in the city or county where the grantor resides upon the petition of the said grantor, and such proof as the said court in its discretion may require. Laws 1890, ch. 210, p. 241. MICHIGAN. Authentication of Acknowledgment. Unless the acknowledgment be taken before a commissioner appointed by the governor of this State for that purpose, a judge of a court of record whose certificate has attached the seal of such court, or before a notary public who certifies thereunto under his seal of office, such deed shall have attached thereto a certificate of the clerk or other proper certifying officer of a court of record of the county or district, or of the secretary of state of the state or territory, within which such acknowledgment was taken, under the seal of his office, that the person whose name is subscribed to the certificate of acknowledgment was, at the date thereof, such officer as he is therein represented to be, and that he believes the signature of such person to such certificate of acknowledgment to be genuine, and that the deed is executed and acknowledged according to the laws of such state, territory, or district. Acts 1891, No. 112, p. 131. NEW MEXICO TERRITORY. Acknowledgments. The forms of acknowledgments recommended by the American Bar Association, found on p. 1, were adopted in this territory by Laws of 1889, ch. 46. When a married woman unites with her husband in the execution of any such in trument, and acknowledges the same in one of the forms sanctioned, she shall be described in the acknowledgment as his wife, but in all other respects her acknowledgment shall be taken and certified as if she were sole; and no separate examination of a married woman, in respect to the execution of any release of dower, or other instrument affecting real estate, shall be required. Laws 1889, ch. 46, § 4. A married woman may sign and acknowledge a deed through an attorney authorized by a power executed and acknowledged by herself and her husband. Laws 1889, c. 46, § 4. An acknowledgment taken out of the state must be authenticated by a certificate, under the name and official seal of the secretary of state of the state in which such officer resides, or under the name and official seal of the clerk, register, recorder, or a prothonotary of the county in which such officer resides, or the clerk of any court thereof having a seal, specifying that such officer was, at the time of taking such proof or acknowledgment, duly authorized to take the same, and that such secretary of state, clerk, register, recorder, or prothonotary is well acquainted with the handwriting of such officer, and verily believes that the signature to said certificate of proof or acknowledgment is genuine. Laws 1891, ch. 100. |