Bennett v. Henderson

John I. Purtle, Justice.

A petition for declaratory judgment was granted by the chancellor. The decree held that the handwritten words on the margins of several deeds were ineffective for the purpose of severing mineral rights from the land. No testimony was taken by the court. On appeal it is argued that the court erred in refusing to take oral testimony and that the handwriting on the deeds constituted reservations of mineral rights. We cannot agree with either argument.

In 1937, W. S. Rogers deeded property to three of his children and the widow of a deceased son. Four separate deeds were…