MATILDE GUERRA, DOMINGO REYES, VIRGINIA GUERRA, AND FELIX A. VILLARIN, PLAINTIFFS AND APPELLANTS, VS. EULALIO TOLENTINO, ROSALIA ARROYO AND PEDRO MANGUBAT, DEFENDANTS AND APPELLES.

This is an action for the annulment of
certain deeds of donation executed by Eulalio Tolentino in favor of
Pedro Mangubat and Rosalia Arroyo on the ground of fraud with an
alternative prayer that, in the remote case that the donations are not
annulled, the donor and the donees be ordered to register in the office
of the register of deeds the right of the plaintiffs. as reservees of
the properties subject of donation under Article 968 of the old civil
code.

Plaintiffs Matilde Guerra and Virginia Guerra are the legitimate
children of Hilarlon Guerra who was a half-brother of Eustaquia
Azusada, wife of Eulalio Tolentino. Eustaquia Azusada owned five (5)
parcels of land as paraphernal property and other pieces of land as
conjugal which she and her husband acquired during their marriage. During her lifetime Eustaquia Azusada made a donation mortis causa
in favor of her husband transferring to him all her paraphernal
properties as well as her share in the conjugal property. Eustaqula
Azusada died on November 6, 1918, leaving no child nor descendants. She
died Intestate. After her death her donation was admitted to probate.

On July 20, 1926, Eulalio Tolentlno contracted a second marriage
with one Aniceta Languban, and sometime In 1945 and 1946, he donated
some of the properties to his co-defendants Rosalia Arroyo and Pedro Mangubat. These donations, and the subsequent marriage of Eulalio
Tolentino, prompted Matilde Guerra and Virginia Guerra to file the
complaint that initiated these proceedings in the Court of First
Instance of Laguna.

After issues had been Joined, the lower court dismissed the case
holding that the plaintiffs “cannot be considered as within the scope
of the reservatario as provided for in Art. 968 of the Civil
Code in relation with other articles of the same code pertinent to the
issue.” From this decision plaintiffs have appealed.

The only issue to be determined is whether the plaintiffs can be
considered as reservees of the properties donated by the deceased
Eustaquia Azusada to her husband Eulalio Tolentino under article 968 of
the old civil code.

This article provides:

“ART. 968. Besides the reservation Imposed by
Article 811, the widower or widow who contracts a second marriage shall
be obliged to reserve for the children and descendants of the first
marriage the ownership of all the property acquired from the deceased
spouse by will, by intestate succession, by donation, or by any other
lucrative title; but not his or her half of the conjugal property.”

The evidence shows that Hatilde Guerra and Virginia Guerra are the
legitimate children of Hilarion Guerra, half-brother of Eustaquia
Azusada, late wife of Eulalio Tolentino. These spouses did not have any
issue nor descendant. Eustaquia Azusada died on November 6, 1918, and
on July 10, 1926, her surviving spouse Eulalio Tolentlno contracted a
second marriage with Aniceta Languban. These are the only pertinent
facts that need to be considered in the determination of this issue.
These facts show that in the light of article 968 of the old civil code
above quoted, no one can be considered as reservee of the properties
donated because the spouses did not leave any child nor descendant. The
plaintiffs who are but half-blood nieces of the deceased do not come
within the purview of said article.

But it is contended that the plaintiffs even if they are only
half-blood nieces come within the purview of said article because they
are the legitimate children of a half-brother of the deceased and,
therefore, they can be considered as collateral descendants, and that
the term “descendants” used in said article should be Interpreted as
including descendants In the collateral line. And to bolster up his
contention, counsel makes reference to article 811 of the same code
with respect to reserva troncal which provides that the ascendant who Inherits
from a descendant property which the latter acquired by lucrative title
from another ascendant is obliged to reserve what he has acquired in
favor of the relatives who are within the third degree belonging to the
line from which such property came. His reasoning is this. In reserva
viudal there are more reasons for extending the reservees to the
collateral line down to the third degree because (a) in reserva troncal the reservista is a relative of the giver, while in reserva viudal the reservists, has no blood relation to the giver, and (b) in reserva viudal there
is greater possibility that the properties may be transmitted to
strangers because the reservista has no blood relation to the giver,
whereas in reserval troncal, the reservista is a relative and his heirs would naturally be also relatives of the giver.

This argument sounds logical but loses its force when confronted
with the philosophy of the article we are considering. This article
clearly provides that the reservation therein provided shall only inure
to the benefit of the childiren and descendants of the first marriage.
And this marriage refers to the marriage of the deceased Eustaquia
Azusada and the defendant Eulalio Tolentino, dissolved in 1918 by
reason of the death of the former. The word “descendants” used in said
article has its own meaning in the law, as may be gleaned from articles
916 and 917 of the, same code. It means descendants of direct
descending line. A line as applied to succession may be either direct
or collateral. A direct line is one constituted by the series of
degrees among persons descending one from the other. A collateral line
is that constituted by the series of degrees among persons not
descending one from the other but proceeding from a common trunk (Art.
916, Civil Code). Manresa, speaking of the scope of this article 968,
says:

“Pero como esta doctrina, no obstante ser la mas
legal, no era por eso la ma’s justa, los autores del Codigo civil
entendieron, con sobrada razon, que el fundamento y fin de las reservas
exiglan su establecimlento en favor de toda la linea recta descendentre, y
de aqui que el caso se halle hoy resuelto con toda claridad en los
arts. 968, 969, 970 972 y 973, todos los cuales hablan expresamente de
hi Job y descedientes legitimos.” (7 Manaresa, Codigo Civil, 5 ed., pp.
243-244, underscoring supplied).

Sanchez Roman makes this comment:

“El reservatario o reservatarios a cuyo favor se
establecen las reservas son indudablemente, despue’s del Codigo (1),
los hiJos y descendientes legitimos y comunes del conjugl premuerto y
del superstite que por la celebraclo’n de nuevo aatrimonio viene
obligado a reservar. Las palabras “viudo” y “viuda”, “hijos y descen.’
dlentes del primero”, refiriendose al matrimonlo disuelto, que se
eaplean en los arts. 968, 969, 970 y 972, y las de “hidos y
descendientes legitimos del primer matrimonlo”, dejan fuera de toda
duda que el Codigo solo otorga el favor de la reserva a la descendencla legitima comiin del coyuge difunto y del sobreviviente obligado a reservar.” (6 Sanchez Rora£n, Derecho Civil, 2,a ed. 1878, underscoring supplied).

There can, therefore, be no mistake as to the proper interpretation
of the words children and descendants employed in article 968 of the
civil code. They undoubtedly mean those who are considered as such in
the light of the meaning given to them by the said code. And the
exclusive nature of the provision Is reflected by the limitation that
the children and descendants referred to must be of the first marriage,
meaning the marriage formed by the spouses from whom the property came.
They must be common to both spouses. They have a restricted meaning.
They exclude all other relatives belonging to the collateral line. All
commentators agree on this point of view. Certainly, the plaintiffs
herein cannot pretend that they are direct descendants of the marriage
formed by the spouses Eustaquia Azusada and Eulalio Tolentlno. When the
terms of the law are clear there is no room for interpretation.

Wherefore, the decision appealed from is affirmed, with costs against the appellants.

Paras, C. J., Feria, Pablo, Bengzon, Padilla, Tuason, Reyes and Jugo, JJ., concur.