American citizen. [volume] (Canton, Miss.) 1864-1890, 1873-03-15
Eccentric Wills.

Fortunatus Dreynul, of Strasburg, com.
menced his will by stating that his grand
father gave him twenty-four livres when
he was eight years old, which, in sixty
four years, had increased to 500. This
last named sum Dreynul directed should
be divided into five portions, and invest
ed to the best advantage. He calculated
that, by the end of a century, each por-
ton would be represented by $4,000
livres, and at that time the first portion
was to be expended in retaining mo-
rass near his native village. A hundred
years later, the next portion, increased to
!, roc, COO livres, was to be used to found
eighty prizes for the encouragement of
husbandry At the end of the third CEN
fury his executors would have 22O, OOO,-
600 livres at their disposal, which they
were to apply in establishing " Lomber
houses" where honest, industrious men
could obtain loans without interest; and
in building twelve museums and twelve
libraries in different cities, each endowed
with an income of 100000 livres for the
support of fifty scholars. At the end of
the fourth century, a hundred new towns
were to be built and peopled with 15OOO
inhabitants, for which the testator
thought the thirty milliards of livres
would suffice. The last fifth, swollen in
| 500 years to four thousand milllards of
livres, was to be devoted to paying off the
national debt of the testator's country,
and whatever remained was to be applied
in the same way for the benefit of En-
glishmen, Gin gratitude for Newton's
beautiful work, THE Universal Art of
Arithmetic"
Not long since clergyman left more
than SO, 900 for the purpose of estab-
| fishing school for illegitimate children
only A Presbyterian divine left legacy
to church in St. Ives, to provide half a
dozen Bibles year, for which SIX males
and six females were to throw dice on
Whit Tuesday in the church, while the
| minister knelt at the communion table
and prayed God to direct the lots to his
glory. Tulle, of Wath, near Rotterdam,
bequeathed one penny to every child who
attended his funeral 600 claimed their
pennies); one shilling to each poor wo-
man in Wath; half guinea to the ring
ers to strike off a peal of grand hobs as
his coffin was lowered into the grave; one
guinea to seven old navigators for pud-
ding him up in his grave; and only a
guinea to an old woman who had tucked
him up in bed every night for eleven
years. Lieutenant Colonel Nash left ESQ
per annum to the corporation of Bath fol
tue benefit of the ringers of the Abbey
Church, on the condition of their ringing
with muffied cappers, certain dolefu
changes, from eight in the morning til
|
/ wedding day. and ringing bob majors ano
mirthful peals in annual comnemoratior
of his happy release by death from do
nestle tyranny and Indebtedness.
In 1884, a loyal citizen, one Henry Bar
ton, devised certain houses and shops fo
people to live in, rent free, so long a
they devoutly prayed for the WHOLESOME
) estate of Henry VI, King of England
and his heirs, Kings of England, SO lon
as they should live, and for the souls o
the King and his heirs after their death
A German, troubled how to dispose of hi
money, bequeathed it to a poor MAJ
whom he detested upon the condition tina
he always wore thin white linen clothe
without any underclo'hiDg. A Mr. Sal
geant, of leicester, sought to improve III
: habits of his bed-loving nephews by pu
ting the following clause in his will:
: "As my nephews are fond of indulgin
! themselves in bed in the morning. and q
| wish them to prove, to the satisfactio
of my executors, that they have got OF
of bed in the morning, and either en-
c ployed themselves in business or takin
h exercise in the open air from five to eigi
/ O'Clock every morning from The 9th {
C April to the tenth of OctOber-bein
h three hours each day-and from seven +
, nine O'Clock in the morning from I'll
/ 10th of October to- the 5ih
d April, being two hours every mon
ing This is 10 he done for son
years, during the first seven years to II
r satisfaction of my executors, who ms
!, excuse them ia case Of illness; but 1t
& task must he made up when they a
well, and if they will not do this, the