1. In Appeal No. 286 of 1970, the first defendant in O.S. No. 456 of 1967 on the file of the Court of the Subordinate Judge, Madurai, is the appellant ; the second defendant is the appellant in Appeal No. 287 of 1970; and defendants 5 to 7 are the appellants in Appeal No. 272 of 1971. Parasumanna Lakshmanier the first defendant was adopted to one Parasumanna Chakrapani Iyer. The plaintiff and defendants 3 and 4 are his sons; the second defendant is his wife; and defendants 5 to 7 are his daughters. The plaintiff has instituted this suit for partition, including in the plaint, three schedules A, B and C.- A. schedule relating to immovable properties, B schedule to moveables and C schedule to outstandings. He claims an ¼th share in all such properties delimited by him in the various schedules which according to him are joint family properties. It is common ground that the first defendant was adopted to Chakrapani Iyer. The plaintiff's case is that Chakrapani Iyer, was doing several kinds of business and in the course of such varied avocations acquired properties, both movable and immovable. The first defendant as the adopted son and as a member of the coparcenary consisting