gave her in his life-time. If the child be fully advanced in the father's life-time, the father may difpofe of all his eftate by will. So if the father marries his daughter in his life-time, and declares her fully advanced, without expreffing what fum he gave with her in marriage, this is a full advancement by the custom, though not fo in reality, and will bar her of her customary fhare; but, if the certainty of the fum appears fo given in advancement of the child, and it falls fhort of her portion of her father's eftate, then it fhall be put into hotch-pot, and fhe fhall have her cufto- mary fhare. Declaration of a full advancement by the father, is not a bar of the customary share in any cafe but that of marriage.

If a freeman of London has ten children, and fully advances nine of them in his life time, the tenth child fhall have the customary fhare belonging to the children. If it appears that an only child has received from his father, in his lifetime, as much as his cuftomary fhare amounts to, this shall be taken as a full fatisfaction of his cuftomary fhare; but, if it fall ever fo little short thereof, then it fhall be taken as a gift from the father, and the child fhall have his whole customary fhare, without any regard to it.

Note, Tracy J. who fat for lord-chancellor, ordered an account to be taken of what money the plaintiff had received from her father in his life-time, and on what account; and referved the confideration, whether the money given to her by her father in his life-time fhould be taken in part of her customary fhare; or, whether fhe fhould have a moiety of her father's eftate over and befides what he had given her in his lifetime, there being no other child. Curia advi. Jare Vult. 7 Vin. 216. cites. MS. Rep. Trin. 3 Geo. I. in Canc.

A. having feven children, makes an executor in truft, and devises to each child one seventh of

his perfonal eftate; one of the children dies in his life-time, and one of the fix furviving children has been advanced by the father in his life-time; yet, this child fhall take his full fhare of the feventh part, without bringing what he had before received into hotch-pot. 3 Williams's Rep. 124.

SECT. V.

Of the Wife's part of a Free= man's perfonalCftate; and what fall bar her thereof,

TH

HE widow of a freeman of London, by the custom, is intitled to her widow's chamber, and to a moiety of his perfonal eftate, if he leaves no children, and to a third part in cafe he leaves any child or children. Het. 158. 1 Vern. 132. Abr. Eq. 156.

But if a woman, upon her marriage, accepts a fettlement out of the freeman's perfonal eftate; fuch compounding, as it is called, fhall bar her of her customary fhare. Preced. Chan. 325, 326, &c. Abr. Eq. 157.

But though fuch compofition fhall bar the wife of her customary fhare, yet is the not thereby precluded from demanding the benefit of any gift or devife the husband may think fit to make to her. Abr. Eq. 159:

Alfo if a freeman, whofe wife has been thus compounded with, dies inteftate, his widow fhall have fuch part of the legatory, or dead man's fhare, as he is intitled to under the statute of limitations; efpecially if there were no exprefs words in the agreement to exclude her. Preced. Chan. 327.

1

If a freeman of London makes a jointure on his intended wife, and the fame is expreffed to be in bar only of her dower, or thirds of lands, tenements, and hereditaments, this fhall not bar her of her cuftomary fhare of his perfonal estate. Abr. Eq. 158, 159.

Where all the children were advanced, the widow had a moiety. 2 Vern, 666.

The widow is intitled to the furniture of her chamber; or, in cafe the estate exceeds two thoufand pounds, then to fifty pounds instead thereof. In a cafe before lord Parker, 18 Mar. 1728. Biddle v. Biddle. 7 Vin. 200.

If the wife be intitled to her customary part, and the husband dies, and then fhe dies, the executor of the husband fhall not have this, but the executor of the wife, because it is a thing in action. 2 Freem. Rep. 28.

The father, a freeman of London, poffeffed of a term, affigned it to his fon for a provifion, and died; the widow fued in Chancery for her cuftomary part; and, upon iffue tried before Hale, whether, by this affignment, she shall be barred of her customary part; it was proved, and found by the jury, that she is not bound by it, as being voluntary, but that the fhall be intitled to her customary part of it; and fo the like as of goods. 2 Lev. 130.

If a woman, before marriage, agrees to a jointure in bar of her cuftomary part, this agreement fhall bind her, and the fhall never after fue for her customary part. Held by lord-chancellor. 2 Freem. Rep. 67.

A freeman of London leaves the city, and lives in the country twenty years together, and marries, and makes his wife a jointure, and dies. She fhall have her fhare by the cuftom; per North, lord keep. Vern. 180.

Marriage agreement provided, that, if the wife claims any of the perfonal estate by the

cuftom

cuftom of the province of York, then the estate fettled in jointure fhould be to other uses. Decreed she is bound by the faid fettlement, and ought not to claim any part of the perfonal estate; decreed by lord C. Nottingham. But lord-keep. North decreed one third of the perfonal estate to belong to her as adminiftratrix; and that it was an accruing right, not barred by the marriage-agreement. But lord c. Jefferies fet afide the order of lord k. North, and confirmed that of lord c. Nottingham, and decreed accordingly. 2 Chan. Rep. 252.

A freeman of London left the city, and lived many years in the country; and, by his will, devised a leafe-hold to B. and all his books to C. and, as to all the rest of his eftate, confifting of money, goods, mortgages, and credits, he gave the ufe thereof to his wife for life, and made B. and C. and others, executors; and directed his executors, out of his eftate, to pay the wife's fu. neral charges after her death, and gave her the ufe of his plate for life; and directed, that his fock and eflate, then in D's hands, fhould there remain during her life, and the product be paid to her for her maintenance, and gave her feveral particular legacies, and devifed over the furplus of his eftate after his wife's death. It was decreed at the Rolls, and affirmed by the lords commiffioners, that the wife fhould have a moiety of the books and goods, though fpecifically devifed to others; and there being no child, the widow, by the custom, was intitled to a moiety, fo that the teftator could devise no more than a moiety, and therefore nothing more paffed by the will; and that the specific legatees fhould not have any fatisfaction out of the furplus for the moiety evicted by the widow by reafon of the custom. 2 Vern. 110,

A voluntary judgment given by a freeman of London, payable three months after his death, is

to be poftponed to debts by fimple contract, and to the widow's customary part, but will bind the freeman's legatory part. 2 Vern. 202.

Any jointure binds and bars the wife; per Dee, city ferjeant; and faid, that it is called a compofition. 2 Vern. 666.

Where a freeman of London's wife is compounded with before marriage, by fettling a jointure, though of land, the wife is taken as advanced; and the children, by the cuftom of Iondon, fhall have a moiety, as if the wife was dead; and fo certified in the cafe of Hall and ux. Lumley. 2 Vern. 665.

The wife of a freeman of London fhall not take by her husband's will, and likewife by the cuf tom, unless it be fo declared in the will. Chan. Prec. 351.

A widower and widow being about to intermarry, and having only perfonal eftate, by articles made before marriage, agreed, that, in cafe the husband furvived, he fhould have two thoufand pounds only of his wife's perfonal estate, and the reft to be at her difpofal, &c. and in cafe the wife furvived, then she was to have two thousand pounds out of the husband's perfonal eftate, without faying only, or, no more. The hufband, being a freeman of London, died; and his wife brought her bill for an account of bis perfonal eftate over and above the two thoufand pounds, and to be let into the customary share thereof; but it was decreed, that the equal conflruction of those articles must be to exclude the wife from any further fhare out of the eftate; and, tho' the words were not fo full to exclude her, yet the intent of the articles appearing to be a mutual reciprocal agreement between them for fettling each other's claim, ought not to be extended larger on one fide than the other; and decreed that the wife must have only the two thousand pounds. Gilb. Eq. Rep. 95, 96.

Bill