William Scruggs and Mary Barksdale, children of Finch Scruggs, seek to protect their remainder interest in a slave named Jemima and her children and grandchildren under the 1798 will of their great-grandfather, James Scruggs. The will bequeathed a life estate in Jemima to their father, and gave the slave and her "issue" to the petitioners at Finch's death. Finch brought Jemima to Tennessee from Virginia "many years ago," where she had "issue a female child." Finch then sold his interest in the slaves to one Mary Matthias [Mathews]. While in Mary Matthias's possession, Jemima gave birth to at least nine children. At Mary Matthias's death, the slaves went to the possession of her four children at her death, and one them, a son named Thomas, received Jemima's daughter, Delila, who has given birth to two children, Elijah and William. Delila and her children have recently been sold to Guilford Read. The petitioners now "require a discovery of the number, names & ages of" of the slaves as Read "refuses to recognize your Orators interest therein." They "seriously apprehend" that the slaves will be "removed, or sold & lost" to them. They ask the court to protect their "present right of future enjoyment," by attaching the slaves and compelling Read to post "bond & security for [their] forthcoming." Six years later Scruggs and Barksdale filed another bill against Read, complaining that he and his security, Samuel M. Allen, had failed to execute bond as required by the earlier decree. They further complained that the men had failed to deliver the slaves to the clerk and master as required in default of bail. Deeming them "guilty of contempt," they ask the court to require Read and Allen to bring the slaves "within the Jurisdiction of this Court or that they be charged with their value."
Result: Granted.
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Repository: Tennessee State Library and Archives, Nashville, Tennessee
