Eccentric IVilIs. benefit; to my faithful dog, Shock, and my well-beloved cat, Tib, each a pension of .£5 sterling, and I desire that in the case of the death of either of the three the lapsed pen sion shall pass to the other two, between whom it is to be equally divided. On the death of all three the sum appropriated to this purpose shall become the property of my daughter Gertrude, to whom I give this preference among my children, because of the large family she has, and the difficulty she finds in bringing them up." Another instance of a bequest for the sup port of domestic pets is thus related : In 1875 Mrs. Elizabeth Balls, of Streatham, Surrey, Eng., after liberal legacies to hos pitals and other charitable institutions, set apart the sum of ¿£65 per annum for the support of her late husband's cob mare, and £$ per annum for the keep and care of a greyhound; the mare to be kept in a com fortable, warm, loose box, and not to be put to work either in or out of harness, and that her back should not be crossed by any mem ber of her late husband's family, but that she should be ridden by a person of light weight, not above four days a week, and not more than one hour each day, at a walking pace. A curious and peculiarly hard case came before a Vice-Chancellor in London in 1880. The facts are as follows : A Miss Turner de vised large real estates to her father for life, and then to her brother on these conditions : "But if my brother shall marry during my life without my consent in writing, or if he shall already have married, or hereafter shall marry, a domestic servant," then such be quest to her brother to be void. The brother, it appears, came into possession of the said estates, and died in 1878, leaving a widow and two children. The suit was instituted against the widow and children, on the ground that testatrix's brother had forfeited his title to the legacy by marrying a domestic servant. It was contended on behalf of the widow that she had been a housekeeper, and not a domestic servant. The Vice-Chancellor, however, was of the opinion that a house
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keeper was a domestic servant, and thus the legacy was forfeited. A bequest made by a Frenchman may be styled " a new way to pay old debts," — that is, if it was availed of. Vaugelas, the famous French grammarian, was in receipt of several pensions; but so prodigal was he in his charities that he not only always re mained poor, but was rarely out of debt, and finally acquired among his intimates the soubriquet of " Le Hibou," from his com pulsory assumption of the habits of the owl, and only venturing into the streets at night. After disposing of the little he possessed to meet the claims of his creditors, he adds : "Still, as it may be found that even after this sale of my library and effects, these funds will not suffice to pay my debts, the only means I can think of to meet them is that my body should be sold to the surgeons on the best terms that can be obtained, and the product applied, as far as it will go, to wards the liquidation of any sums it may be found I still owe. I have been of very little service to society while I lived. I shall be glad if I can thus become of any use after I am dead." Dr. Dunlop, of Scotch origin, but at one time a Senator of the United States, left a very singular will. The doctor is described as having been a jovial and kindly man, and his will certainly bears witness to these char acteristics. Here are some of its peculiar features : " I leave the property at Gairbread, and all the property I may be pos sessed of, to my sisters and
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former because she is married to a minister whom — may God help him! — shehcnpecks; the latter because she is married to nobody, nor is she likely to be, for she is an old maid and not market-ripe. ... I leave my silver tankard to the eldest son of old John, as the representative of the family. I would have left it to old John himself, but he would have melted it down to make temperance medals, and that would have been a sacrilege. "However, I leave him my big horn snuff box; he can only make temperance horn
