Alfred Henry Lionel Leach, C.J.

1. Two questions of law arise in this appeal. The first has reference to the application of Section 116 of Evidence Act. The second is one of limitation.

2. The appellants are the legal representatives of one Naivasal Abdul Waheb Saheb, who instituted a suit in the Court of the District Munsiff of Tirupattur for partition of two items of immovable property. The properties originally belonged to three brothers, Mohammed Hussain, Mohammed Ghouse and Moham-med Usman. On the 20th September, 1926, Mohammed Huss∈, who was a major, for himself and on behalf of his brothers, who were minors, conveyed item No. 1 to Mahabub Bivi the wife of the first defendant and the mother of the second defendant and on the 28th September, 1928, he conveyed item No. 2 to her. Mohammed Ghouse attained his majority in 1930 and Mohammed Usman his in 1936. On the 24th September, 1936, the plaintiff, the first defendant and a third person took a lease of both the properties from Mahabub Bivi for a period of ten years. On the 16th November, 1939, the plaintiff bought the shares of Mohamed Ghouse and Mohamed Usman in them. On the 14th December, 1939, he filed the present Sui