Chandrasekhara Ayyar, J.

1. The plaintiffs have preferred this appeal from a decree of the Subordinate Judge of Chittoor, dismissing their suit brought for partition on the ground that they are the legitimate sons of the fourth defendant and members of the coparcenary consisting of themselves and defendants 1 to 4. They claim to be the children of the fourth defendant by his wife Venkatamma. It was urged against this claim that their mother Venkatamma was an unchaste woman who was kept by the village manigar as his mistress and that there were caste pancha-yats in which her unchastity was found and she was ex-communicated for this reason. So, it was contended by defendants 2 and 3 who resisted the plaintiffs claim that they were the illegitimate children of Venkatamma and not the children of the fourth defendant. Applying Section 112 of the Evidence Act, the District Munsiff found in plaintiffs favour that as they were born during lawful wedlock, it must be held that they are the legitimate children of the fourth defendant even though the wife was leading an unchaste life and was living in her parents house and having intimacy with her paramour Venkata Gowdu. On appeal the S