Evening star., 1933-07-02
Hoev the Wills Of WelI-Meaning, but
Misguided, Philanth'ypists O. ften Defeat
Their Intentions and Pile Up Fast Sums
of Money That Can't Be Given Awuy.

tempt to dispose Of the real estate must be sane
toned by the court, and the trustees have been
regularly trying. in vain to cast of Mr.. Mul-
lanphy's unearthly grip.
AS late as 1923 the ration Of expenditure was
the same, though the court was persuaded to
allow establishment of Travellers Aid Bureau.
HEN there was the kind old lady in a New
york village. Deciding to spur her towns
people cultureward, she had built on the Village
cnurch bell tower, placed in it a few books.
She left in trust few shares of stock, whose
income was to buy new books and keep the
tower in good condition
The shares, it so happened we're of the New
Jersey Zinc Co. They so fourished because Of
the war market that in 1914 the dividends in
creased SO per cent. BY 1916 the income alone
was worth two and one-half times the stocks
par value.
Books. according to the terms of her will,
were bought: As the income multiplied more
books were bought; and more and more Soon
there was no room in the tiny tower for ad-
ditional books
The trustees inquired of the court whether
new building might not be built to house the
overnow1ng store Of volumes. No, answered the
court, the will decidedly stipulates that the
books are to be kept in "the tower"
"hoS ~ NAlcIc - no IOOm LQcTe? deceased
had left the money under those conditions
Mans last words on earth are holy The trustees
had entered into contract the contract was
binding
There are other kinds of philanthropies. Our
Croesuses, until recently, have always inclined
toward endowing asylums. Modern social
thought recognizes that institutions are at best
1nept ways of caring for orphans
If they would look about them our pf,ilan-
thropists might find that money thus expended
Is. perhaps. not put to its best use. They should
profit by the well intentioned mistake of the
Pennsylvania manufacturer who established an
immense trust fund to create home and school
for orphan boys
Because Of the prevailing sentiment against
placing young children in soulless institutions
his fund is going begging
IOHN EDGAR THOMSON, one-time presi-
dent of the Pennsylvania Railroad, Of
course, had noble thought when he founded
an orphanage in Philadelphia, endowed It with
$4,000 900.
AS young engineer Mr.. Thomson had OBJ
served that railroading was hazardous pro-
fession. He proposed. therefore, to provide for
the daughters of railroad workers accidentally
killed in the service
vented, Mr.. Thomson's original purpose soon
grew obsolete. Because of this the scope of the
bequest was broadened to allow for care of
girls whose fathers-workers or passengers-
had been killed on any railroad.
Regardless, possible beneficiaries are so few,
comparatively, that the trustees few years ago
were forced to advertise to round up girls ELI
gible for aid under the provisions Of the fund.
Twelve girls in all were gathered together
Great Britain, too has her examples of the
futility of making legacies for the future, of
binding the trustees with strict injunctions
There is the worthy citizen Of Cork, Ireland
who put in trust a sum to support in that city
poor old men Of the Protestant religion that
had been soldiers" In the 2OO-odd years since
the legacy was made the fund has increased
enormously, but Protestants- that had -been-sol-
diers are so scarce in Cork that dent cannot
be made in the vast income.
Philanthropists these days are more and uaoro
coming to agree with the idea advanced by the
late Julius Rosenwald Rosenwald left an enor-
nous sum for philanthropic purposes, and stip-
ulated that every penny must be spent inside
OF rs years. He knew of the dangers of never
ending endowments-and avoided them,
Blameless Physician