The Nevada Democrat., 1858-09-08
Peter Thellusson,s xNln.
tFrOm the London Times of July Sth,l

Peter Thellusson, late of the city Of London,
merchant. II is partly detailed in the columns
Of our this days law report, but sea cely plain
enough to be understood without labor by non
legal minds.
1t is now sixty-two years since Peter Thelus-
son took stock of his worldly possessions, aud
found that be had 960O, 900 in money and land
of the annual value of e4.500. Peter Tbellus-
son had satisfied the ordinary ambition OF an
English Burgeos-he had founded family.
Peter lsaao the sou of bis youth, and the prop
OF his house, was heir to e35, 900 a year in
money and land-and might claim to be born
gentleman. Peers aud peeresses might hereaf-
ter spring in intermediate succession from the
lons of that denizen of dingy little back par
! lor behind the bank. The best men upon
Change envied the rich aud prosperous Peter
Thellusson, who had no object Of ambition un
satisfied. Peter was off different mind; he had
not nearly money enough Let other men be
satisfied TO found one family; Peter was lucky
enough to have three sons, and be would found
three families 1t was not that he loved his
sons, or his sons sons, but ii was the hope and
desire OF this inaguifcently posthumOus miser,
to associate his name in future generations with
three colossal fortunes. II he did not love his
sous, he did not hate them be was simply in
different 10 everything except 10 his one cher
ished object. Peter Thellusson took the very
best legal advice and made WILL He left
few trifing legacies, probably 10 show that no
unnatural antipatby to his children tainted that
will with mania. But bis great fortune was all
conveyed 10 trustees. 1t was to accumulate
until every man, woman and child of the off
spring of Peter. aud alive or begotten at the
moment of Peters death, should also be de-
funct No Que of the children or grandchildren
who had ever looked Peter in the face, or trem
bled in bis presence or squaIled at the sound of
bis harsh hard voice. should ever be the richer
! for Peters wealth. "And the rich man also
died" Twelve months after making this will,
and sixty-one years from the present time, Pc
ter was gathered to his unknown father. The
will was opened, and created sensations which
vibrated through the land in widening circles.
Our law books picture TO us the blank disap-
pontment of the then living relatives the gen
tie ordinations of past generation oflawyers
aud the gaping wonder OF the general public.
| There was three sons and six grandsons Of this
malignant old merchant then ave--al destined
to live the life of Tautalus; TO see this great pa
CODA tree growing up before them, yet never
| TO pluck one unit of its fruit. The terms Of the
will enjoined that when the last survivor Of the
nine children and grandchildren should yield
up his breath. then the chain was TO end; the
great mountain of accumulated wealth was to
be divided into three portions, and one-third
was 10 be given to each of the ''edest male lin
cal descendants" of his three sous Having
thus done what he liked with bis own. aud ex
! cluded all his living progeny from all benefit
he ends with whine TO the Legislature worthy
OF ShyiOck appealing against mercy-he had
earned his money with honesty aud industry,
ana ne hoped the Legislature would not alter
his will.
Ofcourse the first thing that followed, was
| chancery suit of the fattest bulk. The common
sense view OF the case would have been to set
aside the will, as the product o: diseased
mind-a mind rendered morbid as to its dispos-
/ iD0 hu tua In IRA ion l,l
ject. But Lords Loughborough and Alvanley,
and Eldon, and judges of kindred sympathies,
seem TO have been led by their love of art to
admire the skill with which the iechnicalities of
our blessed real property law had been adapted
to the object of this old trader. Perhaps also,
they saw something eminenily sane aud matter
of fact in the good old sordid voice OF accumu-
! lation, or were excited TO admiration by seeing
| the meaneet vice of man expanded into some
thing like subimity in its gigantic proportions.
! The litigation went mp TO the House OF Lords,
aud the will was confirmed. This affair natu
rally made great noise. Tho Legislature
took it up; and although they would not set
aside the will 10y eL post factO law, they
branded Peter Thellusson's memory with the
imputaticn of "vanity. lberaiiy aud folly;"
and enacted by statute 39th and 10th Of George !
ILL., cap SO, that the power Of devsing prop |
erty for the purpose of accumulation shall be !
restrained in general to FL years after the !
death of the testator. Persons of an arithmet-
ical and statistical turn Of mind also occupied
themselves with the matter and with the aid Of
life insurance tables and Cocker, they oalcula-
ted that this fund. accumuatIng at compound |
interest, could not amount TO less than nineteen |
millions at the moment of distribution, aud
would probably reach the tremendous figure of
thirty-two millions. But "nOthng 20 false as
facts and figures" The calculators had for |
gotten to take account of that unknown guam |
tity which must, in practical matters, be rep
resented, not by the letter ~" but by the |
word litigation" Contemporaneously with |
the Cbancery suit to set aside the will, there
was a cross suit to have the trusts of the will
performed under the direction of the Court of
Chancery. That suit is now sixty Years old.
and, although children aG6 grandchildren are
dead. the suit ls as hale and lively as it was in
their earlier youth That suit was the true
ncir TO Peter Thellusson. and ii is still spending
his money like frolicsome young coronet. !
Necessarily. there we're other suits. There
were suits about pOst-testament acquisitions OF
real property, there were suits about advow-
sons there were suits about other parties 30
numerous that even equity lawyers, not stlngy
OF their words, are fain TO describe them as'va-
rious." The careful and improving manage
nent of the Court of Chancery has also exer-
cised its influence upon this estate The YORK
shire estates have participated in that excellent
system, which has been SO uniform IN its actlOn
that when we see a house all windowless and
uupainted, totterng and decaying. we can
predicate with tone of undoubted conviction.
THAT property is in Chancery."
The last survivor of the nine lives died In
February, 1856. and four new bills were imme-
diately filed. The property is now to be dvld-
ed. not into thirds but into notifies. There ls
however question raised, to who nen-
titled. Who were the eldest male llneal de-
scendants of old Peter ThellussOn in February
| 1856? There are two who are eldest in point
Of lineage. and two who are eldest In point OF
personal age. THIS point is still Sul9nd'ee' IL
would not be very difficult to guess how IL VIII
be decided. but that is no matter Of ours nor
would it have been matter Of least interest TO
old Peter Thellusson. His object was to make
the heap very large; he evidently cared not one
lock of wool as to which of his descendants
might be the possessors The public interest In