Sec. 2672. Renunciation of trust. Petition. Liability for neglect. Petition for probate. By person having interest in. Production of will. Penalty for thirty days after he has knowledge that he is named executor, 2672. SEC. 5. If he intends to decline the trust, he shall, at the same time, file his renunciation in writing. If he shall neglect, for ten days, to file his renunciation, such neglect shall be equivalent to a renunciation, unless, for cause shown, the probate court, or Judge, shall extend the time. If he intends to accept, he shall present, with the will, a petition setting forth the facts necessary to give jurisdiction, and, when the same are known, the names, ages, and residence of the heirs and devisees of the deceased, and the probable value and character of the property of the estate, and praying that the will be admitted to probate, and that letters testamentary be issued to him. If the jurisdictional facts existed, but are not fully set forth in the petition, and the same shall be afterwards proved, in the course of the administration, the probate of the will and the subsequent proceedings shall not, on account of such want of jurisdictional averments, be held void. 2673. SEC. 6. Every person who shall neglect to perform any of the duties required in the preceding sections, without reasonable cause, shall be liable to every person interested in the will for the damages they may sustain in consequence of such neglect. 2674. SEC. 7. Any person named as executor in a will, though the will is not in his possession, may present his petition to the probate court which has jurisdiction, praying that the person in possession of the will may be required to produce it, that it may be admitted to probate, and that letters testamentary may be issued to him. 2673. SEC. 8. Any person, having an interest in the will, may, in like manner, present a petition, praying that it may be required to be produced and admitted to probate. 2676. SEC. 9. If it be alleged in any petition that any will is in the possession of a third person, and the court shall be satisfied that the allegation is correct, an order shall be issued and served upon the person having possession of the will, requiring him to produce it at a time to be named in the order. 2677. SEC. 10. If he has possession of the will, and negdisobeying. lects or refuses to produce it in obedience to the order, he may, by warrant from the court, be committed to the jail of the county, and be kept in close confinement until he shall produce the will. Application 2678. SEC. 11. Applications for the probate of a will, and for probate. for the issuance of letters, may be made to the Probate Judge Time for out of term time, or at chambers; and he may also, out of term time, or at chambers, issue all necessary orders and writs to enforce the production of any will. He may also appoint a special term for the hearing of any such application. 2679. SEC. 12. When any will shall have come into the proving will. possession of the probate court, and a petition for the probate thereof, and for the issuance of letters testamentary, or letters of administration with the will annexed, shall have been filed, the court, or Judge, shall appoint a time for proving it, which shall not be less than ten nor more than thirty days, and shall cause notice to be given thereof by the Clerk, by publication in some newspaper, if there is one printed in the county, if not, then by notices posted in three public places in the county. 2680. SEC. 13. If the heirs of the testator reside in the Citation to county, the court shall also direct citations to be issued and heirs. served upon them to appear and contest the probate of the will at the time appointed. named in 2681. SEC. 14. If the will is presented by any other per-To persons son than the one named as executor, or if it is presented by one wame of several persons named as executors in the will, citations shall also be issued and served upon such person or persons, if resident within the county. 3682. SEC. 15. The court shall also direct subpœnas to Subpœnas. be issued to the subscribing witnesses to the will, if they reside in the county. 2683. SEC. 16. At the time appointed, or at any time to Hearing of which the hearing may be continued, upon proof being made, proof. by affidavit or otherwise, to the satisfaction of the court, that notice has been given, as required in the preceding sections, the court shall proceed to hear the testimony in proof of the will. contest. 2684. SEC. 17. Any person interested may appear and who may contest the will. If it appears that there are minors or persons residing out of the county who are interested in the estate, the court shall appoint some attorney to represent them. 2683. SEC. 18. If no person shall appear to contest the one witness probate of a will, the court may admit it to probate on the testi-sufficient. mony of one of the subscribing witnesses only, if he shall testify that the will was executed, in all particulars, as required by law, and that the testator was of sound mind at the time of its execution. 2686. SEC. 19. If any person appears and contests a will contest and he shall file a statement in writing of the grounds of his oppo-proceedings sition; when any issue or issues of fact shall be joined in the probate court, respecting the competency of the deceased to make a last will and testament, or respecting the execution by the deceased of such last will and testament, under restraint or undue influence, or fraudulent representations, or for any other cause affecting the validity of such will, the court shall proceed to try and determine such issue or issues of fact, and shall be governed therein by the same rules as are provided by law for the trial of issues of fact in the district courts of the territory; provided, however, that no trial by jury of such issue or issues of fact shall be allowed in said court. Issues of fact shall be deemed joined by the filing of the grounds of opposition with the Clerk of the Probate Court. 2687. SEC. 20. If the will is contested all the subscribing To be examined. Other than witnesses who are present in the county, and who are of sound mind, must be produced and examined, and the death, absence, or insanity of any of them, shall be satisfactorily shown to the court. 2688. SEC. 21. If none of the subscribing witnesses reside subscribing in the county at the time appointed for proving the will, the sufficient. Reduced to writing. Certificates of proof. To be filed. Evidence. Valid, when. Probate of copy. Same. court may admit the testimony of other witnesses to prove the sanity of the testator, and the execution of the will; and, as evidence of the execution, it may admit proof of the handwriting of the testator, and of the subscribing witnesses, or any of them. 2689. SEC. 22. The testimony of each witness shall be reduced to writing and signed by him, and shall be deemed good evidence in any subsequent contests concerning the validity of the will, or the sufficiency of the proof thereof, if the witness be dead, or has permanently removed from this territory. 2690. SEC. 23. If the court shall be satisfied upon the proof taken, and from the facts found by it, or by the jury, that the will was duly executed, and that the testator, at the time of the execution, was of sound and disposing mind, and not under restraint, undue influence, or fraudulent misrepresentations, a certificate of the proof and the facts found, signed by the Probate Judge, and attested by the Clerk, with the seal of the court, shall be attached to the will. 2691. SEC. 24. The will and the certificate of proof thereof, together with the testimony which has been taken, shall be filed by the Clerk, and recorded by him in a book to be provided for the purpose. 2692. SEC. 25. The record of the will, and the exemplification by the Clerk in whose custody it may be, shall be received in evidence, and be as effectual in all cases as the original would be if proved. 2693. SEC. 26. All wills which shall have been duly proved, and allowed in any other of the United States, or in any foreign country or state, may be allowed, and recorded in the probate court of any county in which the testator shall have left any estate; provided, it has been executed in conformity with the laws of this territory. 2694. SEC. 27. When a copy of the will, and the probate thereof, duly authenticated, shall be produced by the executor, or by any other person interested in the will, with a petition for letters, the same shall be filed in court, and the court or Judge shall appoint a time of hearing, and notice shall be given in the same manner as in the case of an original will for probate. 2695. SEC. 28. If, on hearing, it shall appear to the court that the instrument ought to be allowed, as the will of the deceased, the authenticated copy shall be admitted to probate, and recorded, the same as in case of other wills, and the will shall have the same force and effect as if it had been originally proved and allowed in the same court. Sec. 2704. 2696. SEC. 29. If, on hearing, it shall appear to the same. court that the instrument ought to be allowed as the will of the deceased, a copy shall be filed and recorded, and the will shall have the same force and effect as if it had been originally proved and allowed in the same court. 2697. SEC. 30. When a will has been admitted to probate, After probate. any person interested may, at any time within one year after such probate, contest the same, or the validity of the will. For that purpose, he shall file in the court before which the will was proved, a petition in writing, containing his allegations against the validity of the will, or against the sufficiency of the proof, and praying that the probate may be revoked. 2698. SEC. 31. Upon the filing of the petition, a citation same, citashall be issued to the executors who have taker upon them the tion to issue. execution of the will, or to the administrators with the will annexed, and to all the legatees named in the will, residing in the state, or to their guardians, if any of them are minors, or their personal representatives, if any of them are dead, requiring them to appear before the court on some day of a regular term therein specified, to show cause why the probate of the will should not be revoked 2699. SEC. 32. At the time appointed for showing cause, Hearing or at any time to which the hearing shall be continued, personal proof. service of the citations having been made upon any person named therein, the court shall proceed to hear the proofs of the parties. If any devisees or legatees named in the will shall be minors, and have no guardians, the court shall appoint some attorney to represent them. of probate. 2700. SEC. 33. If, upon the hearing of the proofs of the Revocation parties, the court shall decide that the will is, for any reason, invalid, or that it is not sufficiently proved to have been the last will of the testator, the probate shall be annulled and revoked. 2701. SEC. 34. Upon the revocation being made, the pow-Effect of. ers of the executor or administrator with the will annexed, shall cease; but such executor or administrator shall not be liable for any act done in good faith previous to the revocation. 2702. SEC. 35. The fees and expenses shall be paid by Fees and the party contesting the validity of the will, or the probate, if costs. the will or probate be confirmed. If the probate be revoked, the party who shall have resisted the revocation shall pay the costs and expenses of the proceedings, or the same shall be paid out of the property of the deceased, as the court shall direct. 2703. SEC. 36. If no person shall, within one year after when the probate, contest the same, or the validity of the will, the conclusive. probate of the will shall be conclusive; saving, to infants, married women, and persons of unsound mind, a like period of one year after their respective disabilities are removed. 2704. SEC. 37. Whenever any will shall be lost or Lost will, destroyed, by accident or design, the probate court shall have how proven. Sec. 2703. Same. Certificate of proof. Pending proof. Letters to be power to take proof of the execution and validity of the will, 2705. SEC. 38. No will shall be allowed to be proved as a lost or destroyed will, unless the same shall be proved to have been in existence at the time of the death of the testator, or be shown to have been fraudulently destroyed in the lifetime of the testator, nor unless its provisions shall be clearly and distinctly proved by at least two credible witnesses. 2706. SEC. 39. When any will shall be established, the provisions thereof shall be distinctly stated and certified by the Probate Judge, under his hand and the seal of his court; and the certificate, together with the testimony upon which it is founded, shall be recorded as other wills are required to be recorded, and letters testamentary, or of administration, with the will annexed, shall be issued thereon, in the same manner as upon wills produced and duly proved. 2707. SEC. 40. If, before or during the pendency of an application to prove a lost or destroyed will, letters of administration be granted on the estate of the testator, or letters testamentary of any previous will of the testator be granted, the court shall have authority to restrain the administrators or executors so appointed from any acts or proceedings which would be injurious to the legatees or devisees claiming under the lost or destroyed will. II. LETTERS TESTAMENTARY AND OF ADMINISTRATION, AND BONDS OF 2708. SEC. 41. When any will shall have been proved issued, when. and allowed, the probate court shall issue letters thereon to the persons named in the will as executors, who are competent to discharge the trust, and who shall appear and qualify. Executors, who competent. Objections to 2709. SEC. 42. No person shall be deemed competent to serve as executor who, at the time the will is proved, shall be: First, under the age of majority; or, second, who shall have been convicted of an infamous crime; or, third, who, upon proof, shall be adjudged by the court incompetent to execute the duties of the trust by reason of drunkenness, improvidence, or want of understanding. If any such person be named as the sole executor in any will, or if all the persons named as executors are incompetent, or shall renounce, or fail for letters, or to appear and qualify, letters of administration with the will attached, shall not be issued. a 2710. SEC. 43. Any person interested in will may file objections in writing to the granting of letters testamentary to the persons named as executors, or any of them, and the objections shall be heard and determined by the court; a petition |