John McDougall, administrator of the estate of Joseph W. Lea, asks the court to require Richard Van Brunt Jr. to return a slave named Maria, used by Lea to secure a loan from Van Brunt Sr. The plaintiff charges that shortly after Lea's death, Van Brunt Jr. "took possession of said slave Maria and removed her from the premises of said Lea." He states that the note in question was given to the individuals Lloyd and Flagg whom he has paid, clearing the estate of this debt. McDougall further states that the note "never was designed to be an absolute conveyance" but a mortgage because the slave is a "family servant to whom the family ... are attached and that her value to them could not be estimated or replaced in money."
Result: Granted.
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Repository: Florida State Archives, Tallahassee, Florida
