Curiosities Of The Search Room.*

The old story of the testamentary difficulty may well be inserted here , though rather long . Among the rhyming wills we may extract the following : — One of these , proved at Doctors' Commons in 1789 ( 17 th July ) , runs thus : — I give and bequeath ,

When I ' m laid underneath , To my tAvo loving sisters most dear , The whole of my store , Were it twice as much more , Which God's goodness has given me here . And that none may prevent This my will and intent , Or occasion the least of laAv-racket

, With a solemn appeal I confirm , sign , and seal This the true act and deed of Will Jackett . In 1804 a similarily indited Avill obtained probate ; the testator in this case signs ( or rather rhymes ) himself Joshua West , and states his last Avishes in the folio-wing terms -.

Maybe I am not worth a groat , But should I die AA'orth something more , I leave it all , with my old coat , And all my manuscripts in store , To those ivho will the goodness have To cause my poor remains to rest Within a fitting shell and grave .-This is the will of Joshua West .

The folloAving is the -will of Pat O'Kelly , an Irish schoolmaster , who wrote on the leaf of a copybook which he had just finished ruling ( thus exemplifying the ruling- passion strong in death ) the lines Ave transcribe .-I , having neither kith nor kin , Bequeath all I have named herein To Harriet- my dearest wife , To have and hold as hers for life .

While in good health , and sound in mind , This codicil I've undersigned . We give an equall y abnormal will , which we are assured was the authentic production of an attorney of London , by name Smithers : — As to all my Avorldly goods UOAV , or to be , in store , I give to my beloved Avife , and hers for evermore . I give all freely , I no limit fix : This is my will , and she's executrix .

As regards vindictive wills , we think the following examples will suffice .- — ARBITRARY BEQUEST . An estate of some value Avas left to his eldest son by a certain John Budd , on condition that he shaved off his moustache and never allowed it to grow again . WILL OF A YORKSHIRE RECTOR . A rector of a Yorkshire parishAvho died in 1804 left a considerable propertto his onl

, , y y daughter under the following conditions : 1 st . That she should not marry unless AA'ith the consent of his Wo executors , and 2 nd . That she should dress Avith greater propriety than theretofore . This clause Avas Avoided thus .- " Seeing that my daughter Anna has not availed herself of my advice touching- the objectionable practice of going about with her arms hare up to the elboAvs , my Avill is that , should she continue after my death in this violation of the modesty of her sex , all the goods , chattels , moneys , land , and other that I have devised to her for the maintenance

of her future life shall pass to the oldest of the sons of my sister Caroline . Should anyone take exception to this my wish as being too severe , I auSAA'er that license in dress in a Avoman is a mark of a depraved mind . " WILL OF DR . DUNLOP . The humorous will of Dr . Dimlop of Upper Canada is worth recording , though there is a spice of malice in every bequest it contains .