Evening star. [volume] (Washington, D.C.) 1854-1972, 1899-07-15
CURIOUS WILLS.
TestatOrs Who Made Unusual Disp0-
sition of Property Left by Them.

TestatOrs Who Made Unusual DiSpO-
sition of Property Left by Them.
From Ally SloIer.
A testator, who evidently intended to
thWart his relatives and be q benefactor to
the lawyers, gave to certain persons "as
many acres of land as shall be found equal
to the area inclosed by the track of the
center of oscillation of the earth in a revo-
luton round the sun, supposing the mean
distance of the sun 81 600 semi-diameters
of the earth from it,
Sir Joseph Jekyll left his fortune to pay
off the national debt. When Lord Mansfield
heard of this he said Sir Joseph was a
good man and good lawyer, but his be-
quest was a foolish one: he might as well
have attempted to stop the middle arch of
Blackfr.ars bridge with his full-bottomed
wig!"
Lord Pembroke gave nothing to Lord
Say, which legacy l give him because 1
know he will bestow it upon the poor" and
then, after giving other equally peculiar
legacies, he finished with: Item, l give up
the ghost
Dean Swift's character was exemplified in
his will. Among other things he be-
queathed to Mr.. John Grafton of Clonme-
than silver match box, lin which 1 desire
the said John to keep the tobacco he usually
cheweth, called pig-tal.'
In an interesting book called "Curiosities
OF the Search Room" published by Chap
man & Hall, some eighteen years or SO ago
VIII be found the following remarkable be-
quest made by a Mr.. Jonathan Jackson of
Columbus, Ohio In his will he left orders
TO his executors to erect cats home, the
plans and elevation of which he had drawn
out with great care and thought. The build
ing was to contain dormitories a refectory
areas for conversation, grounds for exer-
else and gently sloping roofs for climbing
with rat holes for sport and an "audito-
rium,' within which the inmates were to be
assembled daily to listen to an accordion,
which was to be played an hour each day
by an attendant, that instrument being the
nearest approach to their natural voices
An lnhrmary, to which were attached a
surgeon and three or four professional
nurses, was to adjoin the establishment
No mention seems to have been made of a
chapel or a chaplain! The testator gives
as his reason for thus disposing of his prop
erty that 1t is mans duty as lord of ami
mas TO watch over and protect the lesser
and feebler, even as God watches over and
protects man.
In cases of emergency there is sometimes
no time to call in a solicitor so YOU must
either make your own will or die intestate
There was a case once where a gentleman
went out shooting, and in getting over a
hedge the contents of the gun were lodged
IN his body. A friend and a gamekeeper
Immediately ran to his assistance but the
unfortunate man found he was sinking fast
and had but a few minutes to live He
asked for a pencil and paper, and his friend
bringing out his pocket book, the wounded
man wrote on one of the blank leaves. NV
will leave all to Peggy" He then signed
1t, his friend and the gamekeeper doing the
same, and in a few minutes later the poor
fellow died, with his wife's name on his
lips.
By this will which was perfectly valid
the wife to whom he was fondIy devoted
was properly provided for Without it she
would have starved, as her husbands prop
erty would have gone to his heir-at-law,
who was reprobate cousin.