Manchester Democrat. [volume] (Manchester, Iowa) 1875-1930, 1899-03-08
ODDITIES IN WILLS.
SOME PECULIAR REQUESTS AND cuRI.
GUS CONDITIONS.

A Patriotic Americans Desire to De
Heard After Death - Wills Which
Proved That In the Cases of Their
Makers Marriage Was a Failure.
The admiration of our American cous.
ins for their country is prominent
characteristic Of their daily life, and
some years ago Mr.. Sanborn desired
that in death as in life his body should
proclaim the glory of the republic. He
left ei, 000to the late Professor Agassiz,
in return for which he was, by an ex-
tremely scientific process set forth in
the will to tan his (Sanborn's) skin
into leather and from it have drum
made. Two of the most suitable bones
of his body were to be made into drum
sticks, and with these a Mr.. Warren
Simpson-to whom Sanborn left the re-
mainder Of his property-was "on every
18th of June to repair to the foot Of
Bunker hill and at sunrise beat on the
drum, the parchment of which had been
made out of the testator's skin, the
spirit stirring strains of Yankee Doo-
de-"
A somewhat similar bequest was
made by a German in 1887. He died in
Pittsburg and by his will directed that
his body should be cremated and the
ashes forwarded to the German consul
at New York, who was to deliver them
to the captain of the steamship Elbe.
When IN midocean, the captain was to
request;a passenger to dress himself In
nautical costume, and, ascending with
the funeral urn to the topmast, to scat
ter the ashes to the four winds of heav-
en-. These strange directions were faith
fully carried out.
Quite as peculiar were the directions
for the funeral of a Mr.. John Under
wood. He willed that he was to be
buried in q green coffin with copy Of
Horace under his head and of Milton
under his feet, a Greek testament in
his right hand and small Horace in
his left. Six friends, who were not to
wear mourning, were to follow him to
the grave and there to sing a verse of
the twentieth ode of the second book of
Horace. After this they were to "take
a cheerful glass and think no more Of
John Underwood.
Wills may also be admitted as evi.
dence of the mixed blessings of the
matrimonial state. A nobleman wrote,
II give and bequeath to the worst of
women, whom unfortunately married,
40 brass halfpence, which will buy her
a pullet for supper" ;"
A Glasgow doctor, dying some ten
years ago left the whole of his estate to
his two sisters, and then came this ex-
traordinary clause: '"ro my wife, as a
recompense for deserting me and leav-
ing me inspeace. expect the said sister
Elizahethsto make her gift Of 10 shil-
lings stars to buy her q pocket hand
1-!!..eses Weep IN after my decease..' .
A Mr.. Sydney Dickenson bequeathed
to his wife the sum of g6O, 600, "on
condition that she undertakes to pass
two hours day at my graveside, for
the ten years following my decease, in
company with her sister, whom have
reason to know she loathes worse than
she does me-.
Another husband stated that he would
have left his widow e10, 900 if she had
allowed him to read his newspaper in
peace, but as she always commenced
playing and singing when he started to
read he left her only 1000. Such in
stances could be multiplied indefinitely,
but one other is worthy of note.
A husband left his wife G12, 900, to be
increased to 924,O00 provided that she
wore widows cap after his death. She
accepted the larger amount, wore the
cap for six months and then put it off.
A lawsuit followed, but the judge held
that the testator should have inserted
the word always" and gave judgment
in favor of the widow, who the day aft
er re-entered the state Of matrimony.
Thus the husbands little plan for pre-
venting his widow marrying again fail
ed
But the most curious will which the
writer has ever come across is that o1
M. Zalesky, Polish landlord, who dice
in 1889, leaving property valued a
100, 900 rubles. His will was inclosed il
an envelope bearing the words, 'To Bt
Opened After My Death" Inside thil
was another envelope, "To Be Opened
Six Weeks After My Death" When thi
time had passed, the second cnvelop,
was opened and a third uncovered, SIT
Be Opened One Year After My Death. ;
At the end Of the year fourth en-
velope was discovered, to be opened tw'
years after the testator's s death, and s,
the game went on until 1894, when tn
actual will was discovered and read
1t was quito as eccentric in its disposi
tions as the directions attached to it
opening. The testator belueathed hal
his fortune TO such of his heirs as ha,
the largest number Of children. Th
rest of the property was to be placed ii
q bank and u hundred years after hi
death to be divided, with the accumu
lated interest, among the will maker
| descendants. Thus by 1889, at 5 pc
cent compound interest, the 10000 ru
bles will have swelled into 5000, O0
rubles. But what will this be among s
many Observation-Disclosures Words
/