Delaware state journal. [volume] (Wilmington, Del.) 1870-1883, 1881-05-26
THE MYSTERIOUS WILL.
tC0adsisd.l

That Was the beuue=t-as clear 20 the
sight as it was dark 10 the mind. Had
I been mistaken, and had Mis- Molloy
been insane after all II that were 50,
every penny OF the nve-and-iwenty
thousand pounds would have TO be
divided between the Count and the Major.
as the husbands Of her next OF kin. No,
surely that insanity was impossible.
twisted the document up and down,
and around and around. Those letter.
still obstinStsly remained as they were,
the alphabet, at any rate, had gone mad,
unless it was who had gone insane. |
needed some evidence OF my own s-nses,
and carried the will straight To my 60
executor, DR.. Kirwsn.
s'She was an odd old lady :" said he at
last. "But I'll bear witness in any court
you like that she Was ss sane A. anybody
that ever made q will.
'But what's TO be done,r
'Ah, vi hat indeed What's the effect
of this will As it stands ~
"rm Just hanged II | know. The
Wills otherwise without aaw. And in
all my practice, and all my reading too,
I never heard Of the alphabet's being
made residuary legstee. | don't like TO
say, without consideration, that there 5
no principle court OF equity would so
upon but don't know Of one. don't
see even how it would come within the
doctrine of Cy Pres"
Whats that 20
"Why, that when the conditions Of a
gift can't be literally carried out, the
Court Of Chancery will decree some
method conformable TO the general object,
and following the Intentions Of the donor
As nearly as possible"
"Then," said DR.. Kirwan, AZ should
say the Court would apply the estates to
the foundation Of a college for the study
Of conundrums. But-holloa, Lake,
here's something else dropped out Of the
envelope perhaps it's the answer. It's
letter addressed to you"
That, also, was sealed. When opened
it, found only these words:
" If you are puzzled, lift up the carpet
in the drawing-room in the corner be
tween the fire place and window, under
the chiffonier.-B. M"
We went together straight to the house
Of the late Miss Molloy, and, according tC
our instructions, turned up the carpet
in the corner Of the drawing-room. Sure
enough, We found another sealed nott
addressed TO me.
"Look," we read, sat page l73 in tbs
second volume OF Gibbons Decline anG
Fall 1t is on 8 shelf in the breakfast
room.-B. M"
was too vsxed at all this folly ant
mystifoation TO smile.
" By Jupiter !" exclaimed the doctor
"this accounts for that midnight rambl
over her house just before she died. Sh
was writing these notes and hiding them
Poor old lady-it's not an uncommon
thing, though, for people on their dealt
beds TO fancy themselves surrounded b,
spies and enemies. It isn't lunacy
though, Ell ~
"But it's the cause oflunacy in others,
grumbled /. "Well, now for Gibbon.
And there, exactly on page l13 {
volume H., was yet a third sealed not
for me. And this ran
key behind wainscot three inches u
ward cupboard from dressing-roor
uindow.-B. M
"At last !" said |. ~ was afraid "
were going TO be sent up in all the chin
nsys before we'd done
"By Jupiter, Lake, Just think viii
would have happened II there'd been OIL
link missing If one Of these pillar-t
post notes had bean lost or gone out
the way"
"It's too terrible chance 10 talk {
Il would have cost one Of those youi
people near twelve hundred a yea
Come, here's the dressing room let's
quick and have done with the who
thing"
IAN right here's loose board, ju
where we were told 70 go. Come, b
with you Hold match down, this
rather dark hole. There-and heres
holloa 70
DR.. Kirwan pulled out a fragment
an envelope 70 which the red sealing "
still chung, and on which could reaC
part OF my own name. There were a
come odds and ends OF blank paper Sc
tered round. We pulled all that Y
there. Alas, the fate Of the key was Of
TOO plainly 10 be learned from the u
and hslf-eaten scraps Of envelope 4
note-paper we found.
A scattering and scrambling behi
the wainscot Knocked us with the certain
that the mice had swallowed the key.