James Caldwell, Appellant v. John Taggart and Mary His Wife

The material facts of this case may be thus stated: Grizzle Taggart, wishing to make provision for the family of her son John Taggart, conveyed a considerable property to one Goldsmith, and the defendant, James Caldwell, to the use of herself for life, then to the joint use of John Taggart and his wife for life, to the use of the survivor for life, and finally, to be distributed among their children. The children, together with their parents, preferred this bill. The deed bears date the 22d of June 1809, and contains a clause, empowering John and his wife, or the survivor of them, to sell and dispose of the trust property, 'and invest it in other property subject to the like uses and trusts, and to repeat the same as often as they may think beneficial for them and their children.' In July 1812, Goldsmith being dead, Caldwell prevailed upon the cestui que trusts, Taggart and wife, to permit him to make use of a large sum of money raised upon the trust property, and secured it to them by a mortgage on the Salisbury mills, executed to Nicholas Brice, in terms adapted to the purposes of the original trust deed. Afterwards, in the year 1816, Caldwell prevailed upon the cestui que trusts to make another change of application of the trust found in his favour, by executing a release of the mortgage to enable him, as is alleged in the bill, to make a purchase of the Sulphur Springs in Virginia, and under a promise to mortgage that property when purchased, to secure the money according to the original trusts.