The morning star and Catholic messenger. [volume] (New Orleans [La.]) 1868-1881, 1868-10-11
AoRNG nEssENGER SUNDAY OCTOBER
"EnaArEx.

An old bachelor in the north Of France,
alike famous for his avarice and his wealth,
iabored under misfortune not uncommon
to the greedy rich--thAt of being shunned
and hated BY everybody. He had required
from his domestics that their attention
should be - much beyond, - their frugality
was within, all bOunds; and the only
recompense he gave them consisted in
fattering hopes of being well remembered
ct his death. In spite of his large promises,
however, he could never prevail on any
person to remain mere than . single season
in his service; and, at length, his wretched
character rs q master became 80 notorious,
that he could not procure q servant on any
terms, and saw himself, with all his wealth,
reduced to perform the meanest offices for
himself.
In this emergency, he fell upon certain
ally device, which he thought would he sure
to counterfeit the odium under which he
labored, without obliging him to deviate
in the least from his inveterate habits of
saving and starving. He sent for his at
torney, and dictated to him q will, contain
ing, among other requests, the following /:
give and bequeath to the servant who
shall close my eyes, fifteen hundred ivres
and my domain of Varac."
Nothing, as will hereafter be seen, was
further from the old mans intention, than
that such a beqnest should ever have effect.
Auc ItpoFb VI HIS HhVlHS uiauc IL, however,
soon spread and, as cunningly anticipated,
hundreds of persons fastened to offer their
services. The fortunate candidate was q
stout Norman, in that middle period of life
when the appetite for food is generally to be
considered at it's l0west--a man who pro-
tested loudly that he cared not what he ate
or drank at all, so that he could only keep
life in him. The miser exulted in having
at last found a man after his own heart, and
installed him forthwith in the Office of his
servant of oil work.
The trial was severe one !; the penance
of a monk of La Trappe was nothing to it,;
according to the general opinion, the poor
ton, had the old miser lived six months
longer than he did. The day of the masters
death was day of JOY and reviving to his
servant; but on the next his hopes were
like to have been all blasted by the appear
ance of the heirs at-law. Although the in
heritance was immense, they possessed SO
much of the spirit of their departed rela-
tive, that they grudged exceedingly to find
the amount at all diminished by the few
legacies which the will contained. The
furnished valet endeavored to touch theil
feelings by-a representation of the suffer
ings he had misrepresentation which
years of comfort and good living would
scarcely repair; but all to no purpdse Ono
of the heirs called for a sight of the will
and having read these words: "Itgive and
Dequeath to the servant who shall close my
eyes, ETC." he exclaimed, with barbarous ex.
ultation:
"The donation is worth nothing!'
Why so I" asked the servant, trembling
"Why, don't you know my uncle wa
blind of an eyeR How then could you clos
! his eyesS"
The unfortunate lcgatee, repulsed by thil
observation, withdrew; but on proceeding
to take the advice of a lawyer, as to the
validity of the bequest, he had the salts
faction to learn that there was every proba-
bility of it's being sustained by the courts
A suit was accordingly instituted, and the
judges unanimously determined that the
intention of the testator was to be gathered
from the ordinary and fair meaning of the
words, and not from any quibbling con.
struction that it would be unjust to the
memory of the deceased to suppose that in
SO solemn an affair as his last will, he could
mean by verbal equivoque to commit
such fraud on the expectations of an
honest and faithful domestic; and, in short
that there could he no doubt, in. reason ol
bequeathed the fifteen hundred livres, and
the domain of Varac, to his Norman servant
The heirs appealed to the Parliament OF
Paris; but without success. The judgment
was confirmed. and they were at last obliged
to discharge the legacy. 1t is in ways like
this that the laws often do miracles of good
by making even dead men do what they
never intended, and what is yet abundantiy
consistent with right and justice.
PROTESTANT TESTIMONY TO CATHOLIC
FAITHFULNEss.-Ala large meeting of Protes-
tants, lay aud clerical, was recently held in
Liverpool, to inquire into the causes which
prevented SO many of the working classes
from attending any form of religious wor-