It is impossible for a will to be always and in all events binding1. If Virgil’s will had been scrupulously2 observed, his fame would have been grievously curtailed3; for the “?neid” should never have been published. It is said that he gave directions for its burning, and that his executors, Varius and Tucca, received his manuscripts on condition that they published nothing he had not edited himself.
“For Poetry is nothing if not perfect,” and the three years which he was to devote to its polish and perfecting were not granted in his allotted4 span. But Augustus, and Virgil’s executors, were wiser than he himself, though the touch of the vanished hand could not mould its beauty to perfection. It was unfinished: but only as Turner’s “Canal at Chichester,” or Schubert’s “Symphony,” are unfinished. [Pg 60]
There are such occasions: but it is easy to understand with what desire the testator desires his wishes to be fulfilled. His will, he feels, should be inviolable. “Finally,” says George Ludewig Count von der Schulenburg in 1774, “as I hope that this my disposition5 and last will will be strictly6 and inviolably observed by my dear children, provided they do not mean to merit my paternal7 displeasure and the wrath8 and punishment of the supreme9 Being, so on the other hand I heartily10 wish them every fatherly blessing11 and the grace of the Almighty12, and do earnestly recommend them to His omniscient13 guidance.”
Thomas Rigden, of the County of Kent, shows a lively desire that nothing should be done amiss. “June 24th, 1746. This in the name of God, the Father Son and Holy Ghost. I Thomas Rigden, having a very great desire that my last will and testament14 may be fulfilled after that I am dead, for the good of my wife and children, have taken upon me to write these few lines. Now this is my desire as follows. Now with my free will do I give all that I have or all that I shall leave ... to my wife Alice Rigden, for her use and for the use of bringing up my children. And my desire is by all means that my children may all agree and live in love one with another, which I pray God grant they may all do. So fare you all well, my dear wife and my dear children. This is my last will, and I hope you will fulfil it.” [Pg 61]
Times without number the most insistent15 thought of mortal man must be, whether his wife and children will be kindly16 treated when he is gone. How can a parent endure the thought of such scorn and suffering as a Jane Eyre is forced to undergo? “As I remember, Adam,” says Orlando in the opening of “As You Like It,” “it was upon this fashion bequeathed me by will but a poor thousand crowns; and, as thou say’st, charged my brother on his blessing to breed me well: and there begins my sadness.” Hinc illae lacrimae. There indeed begins the sadness, it may be feared, of many outside fiction and the drama, in spite of prayer or threat.
Elenor Clarke (Cp. p. 52), widow of Bartholomew Clarke, of Clapham, whose will was proved in 1594, gave the custody17 of her son Francis to her brother John Haselrigge, “charging my said brother as he will answer before the Tribunal seat of God to deal honestly and faithfully with him and by him.” But how he fared we do not know. “And I charge you Ed. Lascelles my sole executor before God to be punctual,” says Robert Knox, for twenty years a captive in Ceylon, “in performing all this that I have given, lest the cries of the widow and fatherless come up to heaven against you, and your lot be a curse instead of a blessing” (1711: died 1720).
Bishops19 and kings of old were next to none in the vigour20 of their language. Theodred, Bishop18 of London in Edgar’s reign21, is aggressively violent: “And whosoever takes from my testament, may God take him from [Pg 62] the Kingdom of Heaven, unless he amend22 it before his death.” In the same spirit, if with less directness, Henry VI. requires the fulfilment of his will: “And that this my said will in every point before rehearsed may the more effectually be executed ... I ... not only pray and desire, but also exhort23 in Christ require and charge, all and every of my said feoffees, my executors and surveyor or surveyors, in virtue24 of the aspersion25 of Christ’s blessed blood and of His painful passion that they having God and mine intention before their eyes, not letting for dread26 or favour of any person living of what estate degree or condition that he be, truly faithfully and diligently27 execute my same will and every part thereof, as they will answer before the blessed and dreadful visage of our Lord Jesu in His most fearful and last doom28, when every man shall most strictly be examined and deemed after his demerits. And, furthermore, for the more sure accomplishment29 of this my said will, I in the most entire and most fervent30 wise pray my said heirs and successors and every one of them, that they show themselves well willing faithful and tender lovers of my desire in this behalf; and in the bowels31 of Christ our altogether just and strict judge exhort them to remember the terrible comminations and full fearful imprecations of Holy Scripture32 against the breakers of the law of God, and the letters of good and holy works.” [Pg 63]
If Bishops and Kings must write with such vehemence33, how shall the humble34 citizen fare? The possibility of the deceased’s wishes being neglected or overridden35 was so real that old writers advise the charitable to exercise their charity in their lifetime, and not to trust to executors or friends. Their faithlessness had even passed into a proverb: “three executors make three thieves.” Thus John Stow, in his “Survey of London,” remarks how often wills were proved but not performed: “Thus much for famous citizens have I noted36 their charitable actions, for the most part done by them in their lifetime. The residue37 left in trust to their executors. I have known some of them hardly (or never) performed, wherefore I wish men to make their own hands their executors, and their eyes their overseers, not forgetting the old proverb:
“Women be forgetful, children be unkind, Executors be covetous38, and take what they find. If any body ask where the dead’s goods became, They answer, So God help me and holydom, he died a poor man.”
Jeremy Taylor, in “The Rule and Exercises of Holy Dying,” has the same thought and the same proverb in his mind: “He that gives with his own hand shall be sure to find it; but he that trusts executors with his charity, and the economy and issues of his virtue, by which he must enter into his hopes of heaven and pardon, shall find but an ill account when his executors complain he died poor: ‘think on this.’” [Pg 64]
This interesting proverb was written upon a wall in St. Edmund’s Church, Lombard Street, and is thus quoted in Weever’s “Funeral Monuments”:—
“Man, the behoveth oft to have this in mind, That thow geveth wyth thin hond, that sall thow fynd. For widowes be sloful, and chyldren beth unkynd, Executors beth covetos, and kep al that they fynd. If eny body ask wher the deddys goodys becam, They answer, So God help me and Halidam, he died a poor man. think onthis.”
Other proverbial lines are quoted by Thomas Fuller, and a fresh turn is given to the thought, in his “Cambridge History.” “It is the life of a gift, to be done in the life of the giver; far better than funeral legacies39, which, like Benjamin, are born by the loss of a parent. For, it is not so kindly charity, for men to give what they can keep no longer: besides, such donations are most subject to abuses.
“Silver in the living Is gold in the giving; Gold in the dying Is but silver a-flying; Gold and silver in the dead Turn too often into lead.”
It is pitiable to think how many elaborate and kindly dispositions40 never bore fruit, and legitimate41 to believe that executors are more honest now. But, in spite of failures, English life and customs are [Pg 65] largely bound up with bequests42. Innumerable gifts meant for perpetuity never took effect or have passed into oblivion; but a goodly number remains44, to which year by year additions are made. Picturesque45 survivals may often be traced to some will, no less than studentships or professors’ chairs, almshouses or doles46, institutions or the treasures that adorn47 them. Such a record as Johnson’s “Annuities to the Blind” suggests how much one class owes to beneficent testators.
For nearly two hundred years a quaint48 custom has marked February 2nd at Wotton, in Surrey, in pursuance of the will of William Glanvill. Boys of twelve to sixteen stand bareheaded round the testator’s tomb, recite the Lord’s Prayer, the Ten Commandments, and the Apostles’ Creed49, read the 15th chapter of the First Epistle to the Corinthians, and write down two verses therefrom. After these tests five boys are selected, and receive 40s. apiece. As an instance of a school founded by a will, John Neville, Lord Latimer (1542), may be quoted. “After my decease the Master and Vicar (of Well, in Yorkshire) shall take all the rents of the parsonage of Saint George Church in York, for the term of forty years, and therewith to find a schoolmaster at Well for keeping a school and teaching of grammar there, and to pray for me and them that I am most bounden to pray for.” The school exists, but does the master pray for the worthy50 founder51 still? [Pg 66]
There are various reasons why wills should sometimes not be fulfilled. The estate, for instance, may not be adequate. It is strange how vague are the ideas of some testators in this respect, and one recalls what Dr. Johnson said of a certain bequest43 to erect52 a hospital for “ancient maids” that the word maintain should be expunged53 and starve inserted, so insufficient54 were the funds. It is amusing (to the outsider) when legacies are given with effusive55 expressions of admiration56 or gratitude57, while all the time there is no money to pay them.
Some admit frankly58 that they have no material blessings59 to bestow60. Thomas Johnson, otherwise John Plummer (proved January 22, 1780), left everything to his “dearly beloved and most deservedly esteemed61 ever loving affectionate friend Ann Watson ... being thoroughly62 sure she will take good care of the dear boy, J. H. Plummer, to whom unfortunately I have nothing to leave but the wide world to seek his fortune, excepting my prayers for his success.” Queen Elizabeth Woodville, in her will dated April 10, 1492—a death-bed will—pathetically says: “Whereas I have no worldly goods to do the Queen’s Grace, my dearest daughter, a pleasure with, neither to reward any of my children, according to my heart and mind, I beseech63 Almighty God to bless her Grace, with all her noble issue; and with as good heart and mind as is to me possible, I give her Grace my blessing, and all the aforesaid my children.” Maeonides nullas ipse reliquit opes. Even Homer died penniless. [Pg 67]
Another cause of non-fulfilment may be a legal barrier. There is no legal method of enforcing a testator’s wishes for the disposal of his body, except for anatomical purposes. The bequest is void if money be given to expend64 the interest in keeping up a grave. In England there is a legal obstacle against a bequest for the celebration of masses for the repose65 of the soul: it is termed a “superstitious trust” and is invalid66. The famous decision in 1835 in the case of West v. Shuttleworth has not been superseded67. The Master of the Rolls, Sir Charles Pepys, afterwards Lord Cottenham, held that in this country gifts to priests “that I may have the benefit of their prayers and masses,” or “for the benefit of the prayers for the repose of my soul, and that of my deceased husband,” were void, and void such bequests remain.
Personal reasons, lastly, may bring about the breaking of a will. Sir Edmund Bury Godfrey’s recommendations for his funeral have been quoted: he desired to be buried in the meanest place, without pomp or pageantry, without numerous attendants either of friends or relations, very early in the morning or very late at night, as privately68 as possible, without sermon or harangue69. But the excitement and notoriety of his end, the passions that it aroused or signified, could not suffer him so to depart. His death and funeral are part of the history of his time. On October 12, 1678, he disappeared: on the 17th he was found dead in a ditch on the southern side of Primrose70 Hill. The funeral was [Pg 68] postponed71 till the 31st, when his body was borne to Old Bridewell, and publicly lay in state. A solemn procession accompanied it through Fleet Street and the Strand72 to St. Martin’s Church, where it was buried and a sermon preached by the vicar, William Lloyd. Thus was his will wholly set at nought—a remarkable73 but perhaps a pardonable violation74.
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1
binding
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| 有约束力的，有效的，应遵守的 | |
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scrupulously
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| adv.一丝不苟地；小心翼翼地，多顾虑地 | |
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3
curtailed
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| v.截断，缩短( curtail的过去式和过去分词 ) | |
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allotted
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| 分配，拨给，摊派( allot的过去式和过去分词 ) | |
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disposition
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| n.性情，性格；意向，倾向；排列，部署 | |
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strictly
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| adv.严厉地，严格地；严密地 | |
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paternal
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| adj.父亲的，像父亲的，父系的，父方的 | |
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wrath
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| n.愤怒，愤慨，暴怒 | |
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supreme
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| adj.极度的，最重要的；至高的，最高的 | |
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heartily
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| adv.衷心地，诚恳地，十分，很 | |
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blessing
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| n.祈神赐福；祷告；祝福，祝愿 | |
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almighty
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| adj.全能的，万能的；很大的，很强的 | |
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omniscient
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| adj.无所不知的；博识的 | |
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testament
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| n.遗嘱；证明 | |
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insistent
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| adj.迫切的，坚持的 | |
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kindly
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| adj.和蔼的，温和的，爽快的；adv.温和地，亲切地 | |
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custody
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| n.监护，照看，羁押，拘留 | |
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bishop
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| n.主教，（国际象棋）象 | |
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bishops
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| （基督教某些教派管辖大教区的）主教( bishop的名词复数 )； （国际象棋的）象 | |
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vigour
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| （=vigor）n.智力，体力，精力 | |
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reign
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| n.统治时期，统治，支配，盛行；v.占优势 | |
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amend
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| vt.修改，修订，改进；n.[pl.]赔罪，赔偿 | |
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exhort
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| v.规劝，告诫 | |
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virtue
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| n.德行，美德；贞操；优点；功效，效力 | |
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aspersion
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| n.诽谤，中伤 | |
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dread
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| vt.担忧，忧虑；惧怕，不敢；n.担忧，畏惧 | |
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diligently
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| ad.industriously;carefully | |
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doom
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| n.厄运，劫数；v.注定，命定 | |
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accomplishment
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| n.完成，成就，（pl.）造诣，技能 | |
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fervent
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| adj.热的，热烈的，热情的 | |
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bowels
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| n.肠，内脏，内部；肠( bowel的名词复数 )；内部，最深处 | |
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scripture
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| n.经文，圣书，手稿；Scripture:(常用复数)《圣经》，《圣经》中的一段 | |
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vehemence
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| n.热切；激烈；愤怒 | |
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humble
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| adj.谦卑的，恭顺的；地位低下的；v.降低，贬低 | |
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overridden
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| 越控( override的过去分词 )； （以权力）否决； 优先于； 比…更重要 | |
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noted
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| adj.著名的，知名的 | |
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residue
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| n.残余，剩余，残渣 | |
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covetous
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| adj.贪婪的，贪心的 | |
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legacies
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| n.遗产( legacy的名词复数 )；遗留之物；遗留问题；后遗症 | |
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dispositions
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| 安排( disposition的名词复数 )； 倾向； （财产、金钱的）处置； 气质 | |
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legitimate
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| adj.合法的，合理的，合乎逻辑的；v.使合法 | |
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bequests
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| n.遗赠( bequest的名词复数 )；遗产，遗赠物 | |
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bequest
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| n.遗赠；遗产，遗物 | |
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remains
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| n.剩余物，残留物；遗体，遗迹 | |
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45
picturesque
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| adj.美丽如画的，（语言）生动的，绘声绘色的 | |
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46
doles
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| 救济物( dole的名词复数 )； 失业救济金 | |
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47
adorn
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| vt.使美化，装饰 | |
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48
quaint
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| adj.古雅的，离奇有趣的，奇怪的 | |
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creed
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| n.信条；信念，纲领 | |
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50
worthy
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| adj.(of)值得的，配得上的；有价值的 | |
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51
Founder
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| n.创始者，缔造者 | |
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52
erect
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| n./v.树立，建立，使竖立；adj.直立的，垂直的 | |
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53
expunged
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| v.擦掉( expunge的过去式和过去分词 )；除去；删去；消除 | |
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54
insufficient
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| adj.(for，of)不足的，不够的 | |
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55
effusive
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| adj.热情洋溢的；感情(过多)流露的 | |
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56
admiration
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| n.钦佩，赞美，羡慕 | |
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gratitude
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| adj.感激，感谢 | |
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frankly
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| adv.坦白地，直率地；坦率地说 | |
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blessings
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| n.（上帝的）祝福( blessing的名词复数 )；好事；福分；因祸得福 | |
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60
bestow
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| v.把…赠与，把…授予；花费 | |
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61
esteemed
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| adj.受人尊敬的v.尊敬( esteem的过去式和过去分词 )；敬重；认为；以为 | |
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thoroughly
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| adv.完全地，彻底地，十足地 | |
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beseech
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| v.祈求，恳求 | |
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expend
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| vt.花费，消费，消耗 | |
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repose
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| v.(使)休息；n.安息 | |
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invalid
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| n.病人，伤残人；adj.有病的，伤残的；无效的 | |
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67
superseded
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| [医]被代替的，废弃的 | |
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privately
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| adv.以私人的身份，悄悄地，私下地 | |
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harangue
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| n.慷慨冗长的训话，言辞激烈的讲话 | |
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primrose
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| n.樱草，最佳部分， | |
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71
postponed
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| vt.& vi.延期，缓办，（使）延迟vt.把…放在次要地位；[语]把…放在后面（或句尾）vi.（疟疾等）延缓发作（或复发） | |
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strand
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| vt.使（船）搁浅，使（某人）困于（某地） | |
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73
remarkable
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| adj.显著的，异常的，非凡的，值得注意的 | |
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violation
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| n.违反(行为)，违背(行为)，侵犯 | |
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