The Redwood gazette. [volume] (Redwood Falls, Minn.) 1873-1940, 1876-03-16
An Eccentric Will.

- An Eccentric Will.
The will of the late Hon. John Elwyn.
Of Portsmouth, N. H., which has just been
admitted to probate, is published in the
Portsmouth papers. 1t Is as follows, GER
6otsan ct l'tera:in, the words in capitals
being printed in the will in large Roman
letters:
We then JOHN ELWYN of Portsmouth
in the County of Rockingham and State Of
New Hampshire being Of sound mind and
this instrument for my LAST WILL and
TESTAMENT:
there seems to be little estate worth the
gathering in Of: careless it is to one
through my whole life of money wickedly
careless you may say if you choose though
Inever threw it very wilfully away l shall
die much poorer than I might: for full
very full my head always has been from
my earliest babyhOod of something or
other else and never of money, and l never
could do two things at one time, still and
Notwithstanding never once let my
thinkings about money stop tall, nor
slacken ever my book work nor head work
OF what kind soever it might be, still there
is little estate to gather in:
my lands in Portsmouth altogether some
seven hundred and fifty acres, this that l
am doing nothing with at all is worth we'll
more than fifty thousand dollars is Fighter
nearer seventy five thousand: then be-
lieve nearabout already hundred thou
sanG dollars besides to guess by what it
brings in year; though am going if I
live anothe: twelve month to spend a few
thousands on my ground, still the whole
is like to be getting always more, we'll
then it is worth tie looking after, it may
well be set at hundred ana fifty thousand
dollars, is worth more than that to keep
and want my heir to think he gets it
NOT from ME but his FOREFATHERS:
my brother and sister the only ones left
besides me of the once nine children of
Thomas and Eliza Elwyn, the others and
all their children long since dead. there
is though two nephews and l believe
thirteen great nephews and great nieces
yet, we'll then though none of us is rich
but there ought to be already should
guess some six hundred thousand dollars
amongst the whole at my death even if
soon, they arehot like to be in want nor am
a lnan of fortune, will not lengthen this
instrument with complimentary lcgacies.
l leave though SIX HUNDRED DOL
LARS for every year of her life to ELIZA
BECK of this village the daughter of John
Beck: she is only half dozen Of years
younger than me, was brought up on my
old homestead; my heirs must deal kindly
longed to me:
all but this six hundred dollars every
year of her life to her: we'll then l leave
the WHOLE of my estate for HIS LIFE
to nv NEPHEW my brother Alfreds son
to ALFRED ELWYN now of Philadel-
phia now in Holy Orders: next then at
his my nephews DEATH then mean all
my ESTATE to go to HIS my nephew
Altreds son in FEE SIMPLE: then if HE
should DIE the first and BEFORE my
NEPHEW then my said NEPHEW'S life
estate to be turned into a then full FEE
SIMPLE in himself.
clear enough to any court what mean:
should like to 60 straight on but this
cannot make it do in the states nor in En-
gland; neither is this little anything of
FORTU NE and this the childs mother is
very uncommonly clearly to understand
from me.
/ should like my great nephew but they
can do as they choose to call himself
THOMAS ELWYN only: the name OF my
father and his own father, of my great
grandfather and l believe of my great
great grandfather l know; all in Kent
and yeonen Of Kent from very early
day; they need not 60 to the General
Court ali at least that English law wants
to know is WHO the heir meant Is; with
q looking forward however to his calling
himself and being commonly called by
the lame the testatOr says: l should like
nv heir to call himself THOMAS Ell
WYN and the THOMAS ONLY.
should rather they would not sell any
of these lands in Portsmouth: NOT
ONLY not our old little homestead that
OF herself is worth very little but NONE
of these lands, to KEEP the WHOLE if
ANY: if my heir will come too let him
LIVE on THEM: it is good way in the
end this keeping Of your fathers lands,
it roots you deep in your own faith and
where you rightest belong and helps keep
you from the phantoms Of the world; not
that mean 1dolstry of Fcudalism, l
haze though the restless predatory spirit OF
this day and this nation, here is from
jeremiah his thirty-tifth chapter:
And jeremiah said unto the house of
Rechabites, thus saith the Lord OF hosts,
the God of Israel: because We have obeyed
the commandment of Jonadab your father
and done according unto all that hath
commanded you: therefore thus saith the
Lord of hosts, the God of Israel, Jonadab
the son of kechab shall not want man
to stand before me forever:
here i. another the harmony of the verse
to me is almost heavenly, it is one of the
best and sweet OF the Hebrews and puts
you in mind of our old Newengland way:
And they buried him in the BORDER
of his IN in Timna,h -serah
which is in mount Ephraim on the north
side of the hill of Cash:
All other things to he done can tell
my brother I make HIM and his SON
and MIR. JOSEPH X. CARPEN TER all
of Philadelphia the three EXECUTORS
of this nv last WILL and TESTAMENT
JOHN ELwYN.
witnessed on the fourth page:
this instrument on the first three pages
is signed sealed and acknow lodged to be
this LAST WILL and TESTAMENT in
our sight by JOHN ELWYN: this Sec
ond day of September in the year of our
Lord One Thousand Eight Hundred and
Seventy Two: JOHN ELwlN.
witnesses
JAMES S. PIERCE,
S. b. WOODWARD,
JOHN WENTWORTH, of Chicago, Ill.
~>-
A Phantom Burglar.
The neighborhood of Charles and Null