ODD HALFPENCE WITH SHILLING

Otago Daily Times, Issue 21538, 9 January 1932, Page 12

ODD HALFPENCE WITH SHILLING

, “crueL and Unjust ” 1egacy.,,,;,.,, ; Cut-off}, by-the terms of-hep-husbamPs--will, nbt with the proverbial i shilling, but" with a . shilling arid three halfpence,, Mrs R. M. Grant, of. Streatham Hill, London, -;; is puzzled as to the exact significance of ’ •the odd halfpence. The testator, Mr 3»nry Grant, a retired superintending clerk of the Royal Marines, *■. who died on January ,?, 1930, left,f 100 to his brother, and in further disposition of ; • his property he stated: ' ‘ •.•- • “I give and bequeath to my wife. Rose •Margaret, Grant, the sunv of la l|d. X give, and LeqUeath to .Miss Johanna Betty-. Hedwig, Galuski, -in recognition of her'* many -kindnesses extended, to"me'during the years of my Services in the Naval, Inter-allied Commission of Control in Ger-' many;-the whole of my residuary estate ■' after payment thereout. Probate of the will has' been granted t 0..! Miss Galuski. She has valued the property at £1667. “ It is certainly a most extraordinary will,” said Mrs Grant to a reporter, “ and the part that mystifies me most is the penny-halfpenny. , . , “ Bequests of ;a shilling, are fairly common, of course—though' usually t¥ey ; are';. made to wayward sons,-not,to loyal wives.' “ I can only surmise that my husband’,had some vague idea of paying postage'•? on the shilling. 1 j - “I think I am legally entitled to the entire sum bequeathed to me and any postal . charges T>aid Out of the estate”’ “The-will, .1 consider, is,very cruel imF&unjust to ■ me. It reflects a quite plicable, bitterness on the part of my husband; I was - a good , wife to him throughout the 25 years bf our married “It would not have been so bad if he had treated me as. he has treated our two ... boys' 1 and,, left me 1 out of the, will altoy / geiher..; " 'ey' ' “I sincerely hope that before very long, ',r ‘as seems likely-legislatlon will, be,passed... to protect the derm'* I *-** 0 f married mdft'froth Such Indignities/*- i-VVv'fi.j;' Mr- Alien GraYitv-lit S. ii.Uer ofwMrr- * Grant’s grown-iip-sons, has. bis own-theory •about-.the mysterious halfpence. ; ■ ■

.v. “My father.” he-said. “had •jio- sense of humoiJE- whatever. % !Possibp.,. r ' he thqpfrht, that as lie had ...never made’_a ( f. joke. in hig life .it, would jhe a gopd'dde?'"’ to arrantic'for one to be perpetrated his death” ' a ini