Northern Times.
Liverpool, Merseyside, England, 1857-11-21 00:00:00

A BLAVEHOLDER'S LEGACY•

A somewhat remarkable claim for payment ofstip
came before the Scotch law-courts last week 135 pOt
Henderson, a planter in Louisiana, died in vc:re
sessed of property valued at £300,000. He was oor
the parish of Dunblane, Perthshire, and his fort; RAI
appear to have been altogether self-acquired. _op
will, which set out by protesting against any °,,014.11
being taken to its form, writing, or spelling.. 116,10-60101
for the conversion of his Destrehan plantation in!cto
to be called Dunblane, and gives the following Plod et
his family :--" My whale family may be onside, cog
family of drunkards, and this misfortune must 113/0 s'/
upon the side of my father; although that 11%00,
antiquarian, learned and intelligent, yet to get dra..1.1.,011;
month was tohim a jubilee. My mother was a Drqeboti
descendant of the M'Gregors, good-natured, bei., •
much capacity. They were honourable and higfeilie
as respects their intercourse with others, bat Pro
and indolent as respects the management of th7stieti
concerns ; being poor they ware always in hi,ltt Ore
He then proceeds to direct that hie slaves silail,w;
with humanity, and that the adults shall reeeiv° to
good beef or pork per week He says :—" I °Lee 411
treated my blacks with much indulgence, and -
sonal kindness. I have always been opposed
but as it is properly recognised by the constitutlaedeol
United States, to take that away you would at cote; oie,
the greatest and best regulated Government in Tfees.°
New World. Therefore all attempts made by tut"!
or misguided people that is going about an,d_AA,P
like evil spirits, against slavery, turns the se°"iselvta
unfortunate negroes, and prepares them for the 000,0
of every kind of crime, which compels their lafstds%
limit the very liberty which they formerly 6.03 of dr
them." He gives directions for the emanciPslool
slaves by lot at intervals of five years, and the Aeili
of them with a free passage to " our settlementeilaa bee
but "it must be clearly understood that wotediol
now granted to my slaves is not to extend to offer of
or a thief, or a confirmed runaway, or for any ; got°,
oil
crime that can be legally proved." Among 'Lt
legacies, he leaves the two which form the can
present action in the following terms :—"2troel
per annum to be paid to the poor of the town et Ai-tedo
in Perthshire, North Britain (this sum to be
,7-erell)eei
the resident minister of the Presbyterian e'' be„rets
to the two highest civil officers in the tow ," '
twoop
upon due proof of their acceptance of their truelen"leoo
dollars ; 2 000 dollars for the erection of a seat: to ill
the town of Dunblane for ten years only, and fe,"oo et (I
pose of educating of the poor, this being the P',o 00,1
birth I feel no obligation, however, for W.fJ
charity ; it is only done to help the poor who .1 1074
may be thrown on the world without a pennY,,l of r I
My greatest object is to do the greatesteinse.";'neoett
and to the greatest number, and to the pores' e one
shall leave the world without regret, believing tbe,:otiej
to a better and happier one." The pursuers in Oro !reel
the Rev. James Boe, minister of the parish, seueleeeerte#
Substitute and Sheriff Clerk Depute of the ir,e'Ltstiteri
of Perthshire, Dunblano having no burghs.' `""0- Old
The defenders are the heirs-at-law, the brothers
P'io.
of the testator. domiciled, we believe, in SNOW; toPty
1838 proceedings have been going on in res,Pee,clo„odi
derson's will in the courts of Louisiana, &OAP-eel:0
legacies were there declared of none effect, on l'-tesrd
that there are three "Presbyterian" ministers to oinji
of Dunblane (that is the parish minister and tw,° 0404,
of Dissenting Presbyterians) and no 4chtilebelW
officere" in the town of Dunblane It 11,11.$",, IeCIP
represented to the Court that the effect of
paid, would not be to benefit Dunblane, but W ono
heritors of the county, seeing that the town I.y of
porated. The pursuers aver that the invall lel ref
bequest was declared in their absence and ellbi
da
evidence. The defenders meet the claim eo
preliminary pleas, first, that the pursuers hall gaLiJ
that the question is res judicafa by the Antal, The ,i 0
and that this is not a competent Court- .rf
Ordinary (Benholm) repelled these prelinlill7,,ioso
and the defenders reclaimed to the first diviel"oolLl,
has now found that the case is not res judicaca'be uqy
the Court of Session is forum. cow:pet ere.. 000
however, reserves the question of title as enter"
merits.

WITCHCRAFT' IN. STOCKPaRZ

Orr
h s Ptiersi
A shlrt time ago two glass bottles, filled wit-discsdv
fluid, and also containing a hard substance, waned 0 Pot
by some workmen who were lowering the Ird tbereiO4
wood, Stockport. That they had been'depetei'e, ths/.ooli
some time was evident from the eircumsteacie Wes 01'
grass was growing over the srot, although ibe a depth of sip ir.ches of analysilifirive, thetiol
discovered to consist of dragon's blood slo: opeall
substance being a number of brass pins. 4-14
mixtures of this description are -furniaae-ifeO",
tellers to their dupes for the purpose of"
unfaithful lovers. Some distance from the Pri-Pith rot.
these battles were found a canvass bags filiA'-t pectoft
tins,tin, was also dug up. The pins are presurn„e': fief 6451,
eart of tha person bewiched: These a'sdlthe,
caused considerable excitement in Eagle'', an
saeatio L'osl
port Advertiser, from whose report we haves ilcepers,b-05
particulars,. gives various instances of the "„hbow-hir
belief in witchcraft which prevails in the oelsched
One man imagines himself to have been bew'llibesP,,e, ttl
mother, and fancies that the bottle might be .aseti'
which he was bound, and that he would be rele,"e
discovery. On being asked how he knew th It
stitched, he replied that his mother had told bira so,lol
0014
he constantly felt in a state of nervous Pr°s raf 01 or
depr.es?ioo of spirits, together with a sensstlearer4rss
respiration and approachi g death. Be had, i,cl„it Phoil
stilted a fortuce-'eller and obtained from oo,isthj
whereby he could at any time break the spell'
~tistle"„tirc
pressed as to the nature of this charm, and cre'.4olo-
- had not adopted it, he stated that he had
with it, but had not persevered, and hence ea spri° O'
was as roll :ws :—He must stand over the fir!' thf
salt upon it, and say, "Silt, salt, I put thee drifirfotrli
May the person who bewitched me neither 61"dat'JoS
sleep until this spell is broken." This must
for
tiff,itl4°-
and be repeated erofese-cyr-
mornings in successien,
each occasion. Another instance is that of ePap a 101 „,e4
fortune-teller, and planet-ruler. This w 0 the sitve
that could the parties be detected who deP"te tbebeeeii;
in the earth, the evil influences devolving up ono, 10 "jet
ed parties, would recoil upot themselves. the b°.o4ji
protested against the immediate destruction °f ‘e grolloic
thro sing away the liquid in the cesspool, OP 'd opt it
the injury that would be stis'aitied by the 141: iri"el;
the manure might ultimately be spread
shed in the garden, or vege'ation would De 1-ilisersteo
the only way was t break the phial over a tlited;%i
whereby the pernicious fluid would 12113glei-is.wa'tegOcetl
current, and be imperceptibly, but irreveea,,a.,:'d' °De
bottle being also cast into the water. AV .
tom
the existing belief in witchcraft, is th 01 n tti
asserts that her sister was once bewitched. weave' uttueof
asserts: co::Id not be broken by ordiner%rtrsePices.ii
ageecy eves buried in the btd of the river Ir? oil call,;,
gton-brPge arch.
neath the
a'' wise woman," however, the
• it;
upon to stand in a paiticular spot, at a g splr for 5i it
an incintation was pronounced. Se
of fbe r 00'
y u
rygn
,dveorn;ft;eit,
ce,bo,le3,
before her, one of which remaiced in front
A c'hesel,l;ool"
tim To this the planet-ruler addressed
the ardia
n.
se•4l clisFpeared, together with
ailmen:s and forebotling..—Mancheseer
toi