The Express.
London, England, 1865-07-20 00:00:00

AN ZITSAOADINARY WILL.

A case which came before Vice-Chancellor Sir
W. P. Wood yseterday, "Nun agu e. !sundown's" affords
an illustrattoo of sat tru. hut the old saying, " The best
friend of the lawyers is the man who makes bean own will."
The ettbjectonatter of litigation sat the will of the into
Captain Mower, RN.; ant a more extraordinary dom.
meat, or ono framed with more perms" ingenuity for
creating difficulties and birefitlng the lawyer—for wham
the testator professed more thea err the ordinary aversion
of a sailor—Ws seldom come before the omit. The will in
question, with its atteodant codicils, insinietious, memo•
readmits', directions, sod elacidatioss, mespied so less thee
42 biief-abects, sod was the aus•ded isinpostre of the
testator, who was a retired easy captain of "dumped yeses
rending at Bath, of ample means, a collector of books, auto-
graphs, sod pictures, sad a firm believer in 'mown powers
of literary and especially poetical oomposition.
The imitator. attar stating his age, meatal and bodily
health, and belief in the Christian religion, in as exordium
garnished with quota ions from Young sad Phoebes,
and the following 'angularly apposite text from Peers
6—" We hasp up riches, and know not who shall
gather them," described the content. of his will in what
he milled a " synopsis." The "preamble," which imme-
diately followed, was as follows, sad is Interesting, as
affording an instance of that species of Irony by which the
testator has noconssioesly °carload that vary result
which be has most carefully sought to avoid :
"In drawing up the following sheets, which bed already
passed through legal hoods—Mess% —sad boon
extended More to too times their preset di/envious with
samirectons sad ridiculous circumlocutions and repetitious,
formes wordsry, besides being ueiutelligibly expreamd to
common lay intellects, my object has been to make them
as brieflmorle, sod piste as possible, saying no more than
seemed ataly necessary to tneir bring uuderstood."
Lest, however, the learued pram:tea is whose legal
hands the will had been thus expeaded should think them-
selves merisved, the Master had appended the followirig
note : It is not here inteeded term my blame oa those
geotlemm for this, as of coarse the evil lies, sot on any
fault of theirs, but co the customary legal mem» which
they are bound to follow, but that is mirth to be wished
could be corrected is sec stenos with common soma,
and for the benefit of all bet the presseioo." Ons
of the first bequests was of 1,0001. to the proprietary of
the Morning Advertiser, in aid of " the indepeodeot end
old English opposition to unequal privil'ges sad arbitrary
power " shows by that sowspoper. sad, • above all, for its
oonsistest sad 'Whacking oppesitles to the errrs sad
resistance to the enoroachmeute of Popery, and its support
of Protestantism." Theo followed a variety of charitable
and other legacies, including cedilla gifts of pictures sod
busts, " with reverent 'towage," to her Majesty. The
parties of the will, however, which tweeted the greatest
dielealty was a swiss of must elaborate directions as to the
pablication of his own MRS., inaludiag an auy
from 1812 to 1859, a new version of the Psalms, tierebiXlPUtts
from "Anaemia "and "Juveaal," "sty divine poems,"
epigrams, sooner, sad "llrenr. a maim of astronomical
poems. 1,5004 was devoted by the tester, toward.
the palliation of them precious memoranda, and " the
authorities of the Bodleian Library may, perbepa, be
consulted ;* though in a subsequent oodisal the testator
seems to have thought that the better way wooled be to
advertise for some "competent, ionseisolions, and suitable
person" to act as editor. That which was sot suitable far
pablication—tboogh the pester part was stated to be " well
worthy of having a last hand put to them'—was Is the
ens instance to be preserved hie some solace under his
affliction) for the perusal of the tes-dusy legatee. No vari-
ation was to be made in the orthomapby sad prietwitioe
which had " hem very earefully atiseded so upon the
justest principles, altogether my own." The testator trusted
that "a fully competent hand or more would be employed"
for revision, correction, sod srrsngemeot, but expressly
protested against having "the oompoWtiou of other lease
incoograously mixed with my owe." Nothing seems to
have souped his attentioo, no oae was forgotten ' • eves his
' landladies, his washerwomeo, and the wares' at his rah
receiving small legacies. Everythiag was provided for with
mob minute and elaborate care as to (series the greatest
perplexity, especially when them direetioss were rouged,
modified. revoked, sad again repeated is a series of ea
Isis Visa fear codicils. The emouters, find them elves
unequal to the task of solo* the many ocen tested ques-
tions arising out of this ex raordioary will, filod the pre.
mut bill for the purpose of having the estate administered
ander the direction of the court, end obtaining that legal
intervectios whir' was me mash deprerted by abs testator.
The present bill was filed in August, 1864, just a year after
the testator's death, sad is lass thee a year the mum has
been heard sod decided. We motion this as showing that
the evil of long and hout-breaktug delays an hardly now
be (Merged artier the Court of Chancery, whatever may
have been the ease in former days.
Mr. hrophlett. Q.C., and Mr. Swinge were for the plain-
tiff ; and Mr. Bolt. Q.C., Mr. Wtlleock, Q. 0.. Mr. Daniel,
Q. 0., Mr. W. Jaime Q. 0., Mr. Boyle, Mr. Begehswa,
D Mr. ram, Mr. Parer, Mr. Wilkins, and Mr. Weletenhohne
also appeared is the ease.
The Vies-Chaposilor, in a low sad elaborate jeslintstly,
disposed of the various gaselier that bad beam safest,
holding that she WA. pawed to the residuary tiptoe.
alibied to the right of the executors to direct publientilit
at snob, if any, of them as they should think fit, far wins'
the saint sums set sport by t he Mews; ua
Cle=idatirely 2,8001., Isiah; is the diesresissrt

eaeousans, be applied.. If, however, the esawalent
ebtsY
made maim* rilkaikoe, the money devoid la that pie,
pose snot fall into the residue ; far, although the tam*,
bad oostacaplatad • 1111011usiestunin ars perms ia obi
*Ababa et kis Its had tubed to maple Mt 4.6.
with • definite gift to soy dolma poem kg that
With respect to the various charities, MN
seoeserry for the purport et Salletalialag. sum—re:
shwas, the main iaatitatioas Intended by Ma Itatioi.