TOBACCO MAGNATE’S WILL

Taranaki Daily News, 6 August 1929, Page 12

TOBACCO MAGNATE’S WILL

FURTHER GIFTS TO CHARITY. •

By Telegraph—Press Assn.—Copyright.

United Service. London, Aug. 4> The tobacco millionaire, Mr. Bernhard Baron, made a characteristic wil. About a score of employees and personal servants received 100 to 500 Carreras shares each, at present worth over £l3. One housemaid gets 50 shares. The will appoints five executors as trustees* including his son Louis and Lord Reading, who gets £5OOO. The will directs the cremation of the body. The ashes will be deposited in the Jewish synagogue at Willesden, with a small Union Jack and Stars and Stripes, The factory shall be closed on the funeral day to enable the employees (“whom I really loved”) to attend tha funeral. He hopes they will all attend, but wishes the simplest ceremony. In order to avoid law suits, the will provides that, if the executors and trustees disagree, his son’s views shall ba final and decisive. All legacies shall be paid free of death duty. When all the bequests have been paid 70 per cent, goes to members of the family on trust, in named proportions, and 30 per cent, becomes a charity trust. Mr. Baron allots £60,000 to certain Jewish charities. The distribution of the remainder is left to the discretion of the trustees in the proportion of one-fifth to Jewish charities and four-fifths to Christian. “I loved my Christian brethren as much as my Jewish,” ho said.

The solicitors estimate that Mr. Baron was worth £5,000,000. The death duties will absorb £2,000,000; thus ' charities will receive £1,000,000.