Yorkville enquirer. [volume] (Yorkville, S.C.) 1855-2006, 1907-07-09
PARTLY A HOAX.
The "WiI" of a Supposed Lunatie the
Work of a Sane Writer.

The "Will" Of a Supposed lunatic the
Work of a Sane Writer.
or late many newspapers Of the
country have devoted space to the
pathetic story of an insane man who,
dying at the Dunning, ILL.,, hospital
for insane, left a will unique for
beauty Of conception and exquisite
literary style, says the Rochester Post
Express. Justice Walter Lloyd Smith.
who presides over the third depart
ment of the supreme court, read this
last will and testament of Charles
Lounsberry'' at the recent dinner Of
the New York University Law School
Alumni association, prefacing the
reading by the statement that the
will" was 1.-The most remarkable doc
ument that ever came into his pos
session." The day following the BAN
auet the "will' was printed in the
New York Times. The Post Express,
recognizing the beauty Of the prose
poem, Immediately reprinted the con-
ceit. The New York Independent, in
its issue Of May 80, copied the "will," )"
and under the heading "A Wise Leg
acy," made 1t the subject Of a seri-
Gus editorial. 1t commended the
will for its spiritual quality, In con-
trast to the practical tone of the num-
dane documents Of the wealthy, and 1t
declared that the endowments 1t
made gave stronger indications OF the
worlds insanity than Of the testator's.
For the benefit of our readers who
have not read the article we repub-
lished several Of its most striking
passages:
Item: I give to good fathers and
mothers, in trust for their children,
all good little words Of praise and en-
couragement, and all quaint pet
names and endearments, and I charge
said parents to use them justly and
generously as the needs Of their chill
dren may require.
Item: leave to children inclusively,
but only for the term of their child
hood, all and every, the flowers Of the
fields and the blossoms Of the woods,
with the right to play among them
freely according to the customs OF
children, warning them at the same
time against thistles and thorns. And
1 devise to children the banks Of the
brooks and the golden sands beneath
the waters thereof, and the odors OF
the willows that dip therein, and the
white clouds that float high over the
giant trees. And 1 leave the children
the long, long days to be merry In, In
a thousand ways, and the night and
the moon and the train Of the Milky
Way to wonder at, but subject, never
theless, to the rights hereinafter given
to lovers.
Item: I devise to boys Jointly all
the useful idle fields and commons
where ball may be played; all pleas
ant waters where one may swim; all
snowclad hills where one may coast,
and all streams and ponds where one
may fish, or where, when grim winter
comes, one may skate; to have and to
hold the same for the period OF their
boyhood. And all meadows with the
clover blossoms and butterflies there
of, the woods and their appurtenances,
the squirrels and birds, and echoes OF
the strange noises, and all distant
places which may be visited, together
with the adventures there found. And
1 give to said boys each his own place
at the flreside at night, with all pic
lures that may be seen in the burning
wood, to enjoy without let or him
drance and without any incumbrance
or care.
Item: To lovers I devise their i'm
aginary world. with whatever they
may need, as the stars Of the sky, the
red roses by the wall, the bloom OF
the hawthorn, the sweet strains OF
music, and aught else by which they
may desire to figure to each other
the lastingness and beauty Of their
love.
This remarkable document" was
not written by an insane man at Dun
ming. Its author is Williston Fish, a
former army officer, a Chicago at
torney, and an infrequent contributor
to the magazines. A decade ago his
name was occasionally seen in Puck
and Life, but after the appearance of
"A Last WILL" in the issue Of Har-
per's Weekly for September 3, 1898,
Mr.. Fish dropped out Of the literary
world. The exquisite conceit attract
ed no attention at its initial publica-
ton, but Judge Smiths reading OF the
document" at the alumni dinner, and
his attributing 1t to a dying, insane
man rescued it from obscurity. or
his lost child Mr.. Fish says:
Charles Lounsberry was my great
great-grandfather. He lived in New
York state, and was giant in stature.
Various members of our family have
been named after him. After I was
graduated from West Point, my army
life gave me an opportunity to write.
I used to write for Puck and Life,
and "A Last VIII was just one OF
those little fancies that sometimes
occur to you. didn't think much or
it at the time. 1t was published, paid
for, and, as 1 believed, forgotten. Its
revival a decade later comes In the
nature of surprise"
It's revival may also result In keep
ing the authors name from being for
gotten. The Last VIII" is something
rho world can Ill afford to lose.