"Gentlemen，thesealedenvelopewhichyouhaveseenmeopenisendorsed’MyLastWillandTestament——ROGERMELTON，June，1906。’

Thisdocument"——holdingitup——"isasfollows：

"’IRogerMeltonofOpenshawGrangeintheCountyofDorset；ofnumberonehundredandtwenty—threeBerkeleySquareLondon；andoftheCastleofVissarionintheLandoftheBlueMountains，beingofsoundminddomakethismyLastWillandTestamentonthisdayMondaytheeleventhdayofthemonthofJuneintheyearofOurLordonethousandninehundredandsixattheofficeofmyoldfriendandAttorneyEdwardBinghamTrentinnumberonehundredandseventy—sixLincoln’sInnFieldsLondonherebyrevokingallotherwillsthatI

mayhaveformerlymadeandgivingthisasmysoleandlastWillmakingdispositionsofmypropertyasfollows：

"’1。TomykinsmanandnephewErnestHalbardMeltonEsquire，justiceofthePeace，HumcrofttheCountyofSalop，forhissoleuseandbenefitthesumoftwentythousandpoundssterlingfreeofallDutiesTaxesandchargeswhatevertobepaidoutofmyFivepercentumBondsoftheCityofMontreal，Canada。

"’2。Tomyrespectedfriendandcolleagueasco—trusteetotheWillofmylatesisterPatiencelatewidowofthelateCaptainRupertSentLegerwhopredeceasedher，Major—GeneralSirColinAlexanderMacKelpie，Baronet，holderoftheVictoriaCross，KnightCommanderoftheOrderoftheBath，ofCroominthecountyofRossScotlandasumofTwentythousandpoundssterlingfreeofallTaxesandchargeswhatsoever；tobepaidoutofmyFivepercentumBondsoftheCityofToronto，Canada。

"’3。ToMissJanetMacKelpiepresentlyresidingatCroomintheCountyofRossScotlandthesumofTwentythousandpoundssterlingfreeofallDutiesTaxesandChargeswhatsoever，tobepaidoutofmyFivepercentumBondsoftheLondonCountyCouncil。

"’4。TothevariouspersonscharitiesandTrusteesnamedinthescheduleattachedtothisWillandmarkedA。thevarioussumsmentionedtherein，allfreeofDutiesandTaxesandchargeswhatsoever。’"

HereMr。Trentreadoutthelistherefollowing，andannouncedforourimmediateunderstandingofthesituationthetotalamountastwohundredandfiftythousandpounds。Manyofthebeneficiarieswereoldfriends，comrades，dependents，andservants，someofthembeingleftquitelargesumsofmoneyandspecificobjects，suchascuriosandpictures。

"’5。TomykinsmanandnephewErnestRogerHalbardMeltonpresentlylivinginthehouseofhisfatheratHumcroftSalopthesumofTenthousandpoundssterling。

"’6。TomyoldandvaluedfriendEdwardBinghamTrentofonehundredandseventy—sixLincoln’sInnFieldssumofTwentythousandpoundssterlingfreefromallDutiesTaxesandChargeswhatsoevertobepaidoutofmyFivepercentumBondsofthecityofManchesterEngland。

"’7。TomydearnephewRupertSentLegeronlysonofmydearsisterPatienceMeltonbyhermarriagewithCaptainRupertSentLegerthesumofonethousandpoundssterling。IalsobequeathtothesaidRupertSentLegerafurthersumconditionaluponhisacceptanceofthetermsofaletteraddressedtohimmarkedB，andleftinthecustodyoftheaboveEdwardBinghamTrentandwhichletterisanintegralpartofthismyWill。Incaseofthenon—acceptanceoftheconditionsofsuchletter，IdeviseandbequeaththewholeofthesumsandpropertiesreservedthereintotheexecutorshereinappointedColinAlexanderMacKelpieandEdwardBinghamTrentintrusttodistributethesameinaccordancewiththetermsoftheletterinthepresentcustodyofEdwardBinghamTrentmarkedC，andnowdepositedsealedwithmysealinthesealedenvelopecontainingmylastWilltobekeptinthecustodyofthesaidEdwardBinghamTrentandwhichsaidletterCisalsoanintegralpartofmyWill。Andincaseanydoubtshouldariseastomyultimateintentionastothedisposalofmypropertytheabove—mentionedExecutorsaretohavefullpowertoarrangeanddisposeallsuchmattersasmayseembesttothemwithoutfurtherappeal。AndifanybeneficiaryunderthisWillshallchallengethesameoranypartofit，ordisputethevaliditythereof，heshallforfeittothegeneralestatethebequestmadehereintohim，andanysuchbequestshallceaseandbevoidtoallintentsandpurposeswhatsoever。

"’8。ForpropercompliancewithlawsanddutiesconnectedwithtestamentaryproceedingsandtokeepmysecrettrustssecretIdirectmyExecutorstopayallDeath，Estate，Settlement，Legacy，Succession，orotherdutieschargesimpositionsandassessmentswhateverontheresidueofmyestatebeyondthebequestsalreadynamed，atthescalechargedinthecaseofmostdistantrelativesorstrangersinblood。

"’9。IherebyappointasmyExecutorsMajor—GeneralSirColinAlexanderMacKelpie，Baronet，ofCroomintheCountyofRoss，andEdwardBinghamTrentAttorneyatLawofonehundredandseventy—sixLincoln’sInnFieldsLondonWestCentralwithfullpowertoexercisetheirdiscretioninanycircumstancewhichmayariseinthecarryingoutmywishesasexpressedinthisWill。AsrewardfortheirservicesinthiscapacityasExecutorstheyaretoreceiveeachoutofthegeneralestateasumofonehundredthousandpoundssterlingfreeofallDutiesandimpositionswhatsoever。

"12。ThetwoMemorandacontainedinthelettersmarkedBandCareIntegralPartsofthismyLastWillareultimatelyattheProbateoftheWilltobetakenasClauses10and11ofit。TheenvelopesaremarkedBandConbothenvelopeandcontentsandthecontentsofeachisheadedthus：BtobereadasClause10ofmyWillandtheotherC

tobereadasClause11ofmyWill。

"13。Shouldeitheroftheabove—mentionedExecutorsdiebeforethecompletionoftheaboveyearandahalffromthedateoftheReadingofmyWillorbeforetheConditionsrehearsedinLetterCtheremainingExecutorshallhaveallandseveraltheRightsandDutiesentrustedbymyWilltoboth。AndifbothExecutorsshoulddiethenthematterofinterpretationandexecutionofallmattersinconnectionwiththismyLastWillshallrestwiththeLordChancellorofEnglandforthetimebeingorwithwhomsoeverhemayappointforthepurpose。

"’ThismyLastWillisgivenbymeonthefirstdayofJanuaryintheyearofOurLordonethousandninehundredandseven。

"’ROGERMELTON。

"WeAndrewRossiterandJohnColsonhereinthepresenceofeachotherandoftheTestatorhaveseentheTestatorRogerMeltonsignandsealthisdocument。Inwitnessthereofweherebysetournames"’ANDREWROSSITERclerkof9PrimroseAvenueLondonW。C。

"’JOHNCOLSONcaretakerof176Lincoln’sInnFieldsandVergerofSt。

Tabitha’sChurchClerkenwellLondon。’"

WhenMr。Trenthadfinishedthereadingheputallthepaperstogether，andtiedthemupinabundleagainwiththeredtape。

Holdingthebundleinhishand，hestoodup，sayingashedidso：

"Thatisall，gentlemen，unlessanyofyouwishtoaskmeanyquestions；inwhichcaseIshallanswer，ofcourse，tothebestofmypower。Ishallaskyou，SirColin，toremainwithme，aswehavetodealwithsomematters，ortoarrangeatimewhenwemaymeettodoso。Andyoualso，Mr。SentLeger，asthereisthislettertosubmittoyou。Itisnecessarythatyoushouldopenitinthepresenceoftheexecutors，butthereisnonecessitythatanyoneelseshouldbepresent。"

Thefirsttospeakwasmyfather。Ofcourse，asacountygentlemanofpositionandestate，whoissometimesaskedtotakethechairatSessions——ofcourse，whenthereisnotanyonewithatitlepresent——

hefoundhimselfunderthedutyofexpressinghimselffirst。OldMacKelpiehassuperiorrank；butthiswasafamilyaffair，inwhichmyfatherisHeadoftheHouse，whilstoldMacKelpieisonlyanoutsiderbroughtintoit——andthenonlytothedistaffside，bythewifeofayoungerbrotherofthemanwhomarriedintoourfamily。

FatherspokewiththesamelookonhisfaceaswhenheasksimportantquestionsofwitnessesatQuarterSessions。

"Ishouldlikesomepointselucidated。"Theattorneybowed（hegetshis120thou’，anyway，sohecanaffordtobeoily——suave，Isupposehewouldcallit）；sofatherlookedataslipofpaperinhishandandasked：

"Howmuchistheamountofthewholeestate？"

Theattorneyansweredquickly，andIthoughtratherrudely。Hewasredintheface，anddidn’tbowthistime；Isupposeamanofhisclasshasn’tmorethanaverylimitedstockofmanners：

"That，sir，Iamnotatlibertytotellyou。AndImaysaythatI

wouldnotifIcould。"

"Isitamillion？"saidfatheragain。Hewasangrythistime，andevenredderthantheoldattorney。Theattorneysaidinanswer，veryquietlythistime：

"Ah，that’scross—examining。Letmesay，sir，thatnoonecanknowthatuntiltheaccountantstobeappointedforthepurposehaveexaminedtheaffairsofthetestatoruptodate。"

Mr。RupertSt。Leger，whowaslookingallthistimeangrierthaneventheattorneyormyfather——thoughatwhathehadtobeangryaboutI

can’timagine——struckhisfistonthetableandroseupasiftospeak，butashecaughtsightofbotholdMacKelpieandtheattorneyhesatdownagain。Mem。——Thosethreeseemtoagreetoowell。Imustkeepasharpeyeonthem。Ididn’tthinkofthispartanymoreatthetime，forfatheraskedanotherquestionwhichinterestedmemuch：

"MayIaskwhytheothermattersoftheWillarenotshowntous？"

Theattorneywipedhisspectaclescarefullywithabigsilkbandannahandkerchiefbeforeheanswered：

"Simplybecauseeachofthetwolettersmarked’B’and’C’isenclosedwithinstructionsregardingtheiropeningandthekeepingsecretoftheircontents。Ishallcallyourattentiontothefactthatbothenvelopesaresealed，andthatthetestatorandbothwitnesseshavesignedtheirnamesacrosstheflapofeachenvelope。

Ishallreadthem。Thelettermarked’B，’directedto’RupertSentLeger，’isthusendorsed：

"’ThisletteristobegiventoRupertSentLegerbytheTrusteesandistobeopenedbyhimintheirpresence。HeistotakesuchcopyormakesuchnotesashemaywishandisthentohandtheletterwithenvelopetotheExecutorswhoareatoncetoreadit，eachofthembeingentitledtomakecopyornotesifdesirousofsodoing。TheletteristhentobereplacedinitsenvelopeandletterandenvelopearetobeplacedinanotherenvelopetobeendorsedonoutsideastoitscontentsandtobesignedacrosstheflapbyboththeExecutorsandbythesaidRupertSentLeger。

"’（Signed）ROGERMELTON1/6/’06。

"Thelettermarked’C，’directedto’EdwardBinghamTrent，’isthusendorsed：

"’ThisletterdirectedtoEdwardBinghamTrentistobekeptbyhimunopenedforatermoftwoyearsafterthereadingofmyLastWillunlesssaidperiodisearlierterminatedbyeithertheacceptanceorrefusalofRupertSentLegertoaccepttheconditionsmentionedinmylettertohimmarked’B’whichheistoreceiveandreadinthepresenceofmyExecutorsatthesamemeetingasbutsubsequenttotheReadingoftheclauses（exceptthosetobeultimatelynumberstenandeleven）ofmyLastWill。ThislettercontainsinstructionsastowhatboththeExecutorsandthesaidRupertSentLegeraretodowhensuchacceptanceorrefusalofthesaidRupertSentLegerhasbeenmadeknown，orifheomitorrefusetomakeanysuchacceptanceorrefusal，attheendoftwoyearsnextaftermydecease。

"’（Signed）ROGERMELTON1/6/’06。’"

Whentheattorneyhadfinishedreadingthelastletterheputitcarefullyinhispocket。Thenhetooktheotherletterinhishand，andstoodup。"Mr。RupertSentLeger，"hesaid，"pleasetoopenthisletter，andinsuchawaythatallpresentmayseethatthememorandumattopofthecontentsisgivenas—

"’B。TobereadasclausetenofmyWill。’"

St。Legerrolleduphissleevesandcuffsjustasifhewasgoingtoperformsomesortofprestidigitation——itwasverytheatricalandridiculous——then，hiswristsbeingquitebare，heopenedtheenvelopeandtookouttheletter。Weallsawitquitewell。Itwasfoldedwiththefirstpageoutward，andonthetopwaswrittenalinejustastheattorneysaid。Inobediencetoarequestfromtheattorney，helaidbothletterandenvelopeonthetableinfrontofhim。Theclerkthenroseup，and，afterhandingapieceofpapertotheattorney，wentbacktohisseat。Mr。Trent，havingwrittensomethingonthepaper，askedusallwhowerepresent，eventheclerkandtheshorthandman，tolookatthememorandumontheletterandwhatwaswrittenontheenvelope，andtosignthepaper，whichran：

"WethesignatoriesofthispaperherebydeclarethatwehaveseenthesealedlettermarkedBandenclosedintheWillofRogerMeltonopenedinthepresenceofusallincludingMr。EdwardBinghamTrentandSirColinAlexanderMacKelpieandwedeclarethatthepaperthereincontainedwasheaded’B。TobereadasclausetenofmyWill’andthattherewerenoothercontentsintheenvelope。Inattestationofwhichweinthepresenceofeachotherappendoursignatures。"

Theattorneymotionedtomyfathertobegin。Fatherisacautiousman，andheaskedforamagnifying—glass，whichwasshortlybroughttohimbyaclerkforwhomtheclerkintheroomcalled。Fatherexaminedtheenvelopealloververycarefully，andalsothememorandumattopofthepaper。Then，withoutaword，hesignedthepaper。Fatherisajustman。Thenweallsigned。Theattorneyfoldedthepaperandputitinanenvelope。Beforeclosingithepasseditround，andweallsawthatithadnotbeentamperedwith。

Fathertookitoutandreadit，andthenputitback。Thentheattorneyaskedusalltosignitacrosstheflap，whichwedid。Thenheputthesealing—waxonitandaskedfathertosealitwithhisownseal。Hedidso。ThenheandMacKelpiesealeditalsowiththeirownseals，Thenheputitinanotherenvelope，whichhesealedhimself，andheandMacKelpiesigneditacrosstheflap。

Thenfatherstoodup，andsodidI。Sodidthetwomen——theclerkandtheshorthandwriter。Fatherdidnotsayawordtillwegotoutintothestreet。Wewalkedalong，andpresentlywepassedanopengateintothefields。Heturnedback，sayingtome：

"Comeinhere。Thereisnooneabout，andwecanbequiet。Iwanttospeaktoyou。"Whenwesatdownonaseatwithnoneothernearit，fathersaid：

"Youareastudentofthelaw。Whatdoesallthatmean？"Ithoughtitagoodoccasionforanepigram，soIsaidoneword：

"Bilk！"

"H’m！"saidfather；"thatissofarasyouandIareconcerned。Youwithabeggarlytenthousand，andIwithtwenty。Butwhatis，orwillbe，theeffectofthosesecrettrusts？"

"Oh，that，"Isaid，"will，Idaresay，beallright。UncleRogerevidentlydidnotintendtheoldergenerationtobenefittoomuchbyhisdeath。ButheonlygaveRupertSt。Legeronethousandpounds，whilsthegavemeten。Thatlooksasifhehadmoreregardforthedirectline。Ofcourse——"Fatherinterruptedme：

"Butwhatwasthemeaningofafurthersum？"

"Idon’tknow，father。Therewasevidentlysomeconditionwhichhewastofulfil；butheevidentlydidn’texpectthathewould。Why，otherwise，didheleaveasecondtrusttoMr。Trent？"

"True！"saidfather。Thenhewenton："IwonderwhyheleftthoseenormoussumstoTrentandoldMacKelpie。Theyseemoutofallproportionasexecutors’fees，unless——"

"Unlesswhat，father？"

"Unlessthefortunehehasleftisanenormousone。ThatiswhyI

asked。"

"Andthat，"Ilaughed，"iswhyherefusedtoanswer。"

"Why，Ernest，itmustrunintobigfigures。"

"Right—ho，father。Thedeath—dutieswillbeannoying。Whatabeastlyswindlethedeath—dutiesare！Why，Ishallsufferevenonyourownlittleestate……"

"Thatwilldo！"hesaidcurtly。Fatherissoridiculouslytouchy。

Onewouldthinkheexpectstoliveforever。Presentlyhespokeagain：

"Iwonderwhataretheconditionsofthattrust。Theyareasimportant——almost——astheamountofthebequest——whateveritis。Bytheway，thereseemstobenomentioninthewillofaresiduarylegatee。Ernest，myboy，wemayhavetofightoverthat。"

"Howdoyoumakethatout，father？"Iasked。Hehadbeenveryrudeoverthematterofthedeath—dutiesofhisownestate，thoughitisentailedandIMUSTinherit。SoIdeterminedtolethimseethatI

knowagooddealmorethanhedoes——oflaw，atanyrate。"Ifearthatwhenwecometolookintoitcloselythatdogwon’tfight。Inthefirstplace，thatmaybeallarrangedinthelettertoSt。Leger，whichisapartoftheWill。Andifthatlettershouldbeinoperativebyhisrefusaloftheconditions（whatevertheymaybe），thenthelettertotheattorneybeginstowork。Whatitiswedon’tknow，andperhapsevenhedoesn’t——IlookedatitaswellasIcould—

—andwelawmenaretrainedtoobservation。ButeveniftheinstructionsmentionedasbeinginLetterCfail，thenthecorpusoftheWillgivesfullpowertoTrenttoactjustashedarnpleases。

Hecangivethewholethingtohimselfifhelikes，andnoonecansayaword。Infact，heishimselfthefinalcourtofappeal。"

"H’m！"saidfathertohimself。"Itisaqueerkindofwill，Itakeit，thatcanoverridetheCourtofChancery。Weshallperhapshavetotryitbeforewearedonewiththis！"Withthatherose，andwewalkedhometogether——withoutsayinganotherword。

Mymotherwasveryinquisitiveaboutthewholething——womenalwaysare。FatherandIbetweenustoldherallitwasnecessaryforhertoknow。Ithinkwewerebothafraidthat，woman—like，shewouldmaketroubleforusbysayingordoingsomethinginjudicious。

Indeed，shemanifestedsuchhostilitytowardsRupertSt。Legerthatitisquiteonthecardsthatshemaytrytoinjurehiminsomeway。

Sowhenfathersaidthathewouldhavetogooutshortlyagain，ashewishedtoconsulthissolicitor，IjumpedupandsaidIwouldgowithhim，asI，too，shouldtakeadviceastohowIstoodinthematter。

TheContentsofLettermarked"B"attachedasanIntegralParttotheLastWillofRogerMelton。

June11，1907。

"ThisletteranintegralpartofmyLastWillregardstheentireresidueofmyestatebeyondthespecificbequestsmadeinthebodyofmyWill。ItistoappointasResiduaryLegateeofsuchWill——incasehemayacceptindueformtheConditionshereinlaiddown——mydearNephewRupertSentLegeronlysonofmysisterPatienceMeltonnowdeceasedbyhermarriagewithCaptainRupertSentLegeralsonowdeceased。OnhisacceptanceoftheConditionsandthefulfilmentofthefirstofthemtheEntireresidueofmyestateafterpaymentsofallspecificLegaciesandofallmydebtsandotherobligationsistobecomehisabsolutepropertytobedealtwithordisposedofashemaydesire。Thefollowingaretheconditions。

"1。HeistoacceptprovisionallybyletteraddressedtomyExecutorsasumofninehundredandninety—ninethousandpoundssterlingfreeofallDutiesTaxesorotherimposts。ThishewillholdforaperiodofsixmonthsfromthedateoftheReadingofmyLastWillandhaveuseroftheaccruementstheretocalculatedattherateoftenpercentumperannumwhichamountheshallundernocircumstancesberequiredtoreplace。AttheendofsaidsixmonthshemustexpressinwritingdirectedtotheExecutorsofmyWillhisacceptanceorrefusaloftheotherconditionshereintofollow。ButifhemaysochooseheshallbefreetodeclareinwritingtotheExecutorswithinoneweekfromthetimeoftheReadingoftheWillhiswishtoacceptortowithdrawaltogetherfromtheresponsibilityofthisTrust。Incaseofwithdrawalheistoretainabsolutelyandforhisownusetheabove—mentionedsumofninehundredandninety—

ninethousandpoundssterlingfreeofallDutiesTaxesandimpostswhatsoevermakingwiththespecificbequestofonethousandpoundsaclearsumofonemillionpoundssterlingfreeofallimposts。Andhewillfromthemomentofthedeliveryofsuchwrittenwithdrawalceasetohaveanyrightorinterestwhatsoeverinthefurtherdispositionofmyestateunderthisinstrument。ShouldsuchwrittenwithdrawalbereceivedbymyExecutorstheyshallhavepossessionofsuchresidueofmyestateasshallremainafterthepaymentoftheabovesumofninehundredandninety—ninethousandpoundssterlingandthepaymentofallDutiesTaxesassessmentsorImpostsasmaybeentailedbylawbyitsconveyancetothesaidRupertSentLegerandthesemyExecutorsshallholdthesameforthefurtherdisposalofitaccordingtotheinstructionsgiveninthelettermarkedCandwhichisalsoanintegralpartofmyLastWillandTestament。

"2。Ifatorbeforetheexpirationofthesixmonthsabove—mentionedthesaidRupertSentLegershallhaveacceptedthefurtherconditionshereinstated，heistohaveuseroftheentireincomeproducedbysuchresidueofmyestatethesaidincomebeingpaidtohimQuarterlyontheusualQuarterDaysbytheaforesaidExecutorstowitMajorGeneralSirColinAlexanderMacKelpieBart。andEdwardBinghamTrenttobeusedbyhiminaccordancewiththetermsandconditionshereinaftermentioned。

"3。ThesaidRupertSentLegeristoresideforaperiodofatleastsixmonthstobeginnotlaterthanthreemonthsfromthereadingofmyWillintheCastleofVissarionintheLandoftheBlueMountains。

AndifhefulfiltheConditionsimposedonhimandshalltherebybecomepossessedoftheresidueofmyestateheistocontinuetoresidethereinpartforaperiodofoneyear。HeisnottochangehisBritishNationalityexceptbyaformalconsentofthePrivyCouncilofGreatBritain。

"AttheendofayearandahalffromtheReadingofmyWillheistoreportinpersontomyExecutorsoftheexpenditureofamountspaidorduebyhiminthecarryingoutoftheTrustandiftheyaresatisfiedthatsameareingeneralaccordwiththeconditionsnamedinabove—mentionedlettermarkedCandwhichisanintegralpartofmyWilltheyaretorecordtheirapprovalonsuchWillwhichcanthengoforfinalProbateandTaxation。OntheCompletionofwhichthesaidRupertSentLegershallbecomepossessedabsolutelyandwithoutfurtheractorneedoftheentireresidueofmyestate。Inwitnesswhereof，etc。

"（Signed）ROGERMELTON。"

ThisdocumentisattestedbythewitnessestotheWillonthesamedate。

（PersonalandConfidential。）

MEMORANDAMADEBYEDWARDBINGHAMTRENTINCONNECTIONWITHTHEWILLOF

ROGERMELTON。

January3，1907。

TheinterestsandissuesofallconcernedintheWillandestateofthelateRogerMeltonofOpenshawGrangearesovastthatincaseanylitigationshouldtakeplaceregardingthesame，I，asthesolicitor，havingthecarriageofthetestator’swishes，thinkitwelltomakecertainmemorandaofevents，conversations，etc。，notcoveredbydocumentaryevidence。Imakethefirstmemorandumimmediatelyaftertheevent，whilsteverydetailofactandconversationisstillfreshinmymind。Ishallalsotrytomakesuchcommentsthereonasmayservetorefreshmymemoryhereafter，andwhichincaseofmydeathmayperhapsaffordasopinionscontemporaneouslyrecordedsomeguidinglighttootherorotherswhomaylateronhavetocontinueandcompletethetasksentrustedtome。

I。

CONCERNINGTHEREADINGOFTHEWILLOFROGERMELTON。

When，beginningat11o’clocka。m。onthistheforenoonofThursday，the3rddayofJanuary，1907，IopenedtheWillandreaditinfull，excepttheclausescontainedinthelettersmarked"B"and"C"；therewerepresentinadditiontomyself，thefollowing：

1。ErnestHalbardMelton，J。P，nephewofthetestator。

2。ErnestRogerHalbardMelton，sonoftheabove。

3。RupertSentLeger，nephewofthetestator。

4。Major—GeneralSirColinAlexanderMacKelpie，Bart。，co—executorwithmyselfoftheWill。

5。AndrewRossiter，myclerk，oneofthewitnessesofthetestator’sWill。

6。AlfredNugent，stenographer（ofMessrs。Castle’soffice，21，Bream’sBuildings，W。C。）。

WhentheWillhadbeenread，Mr。E。H。Meltonaskedthevalueoftheestateleftbythetestator，whichqueryIdidnotfeelempoweredorotherwiseabletoanswer；andafurtherquery，astowhythosepresentwerenotshownthesecretclausesoftheWill。Iansweredbyreadingtheinstructionsendorsedontheenvelopesofthetwolettersmarked"B"and"C，"whichweresufficientlyexplanatory。

But，lestanyquestionshouldhereafterariseastothefactthatthememorandainlettersmarked"B"and"C，"whichweretobereadasclauses10and11oftheWill，IcausedRupertSentLegertoopentheenvelopemarked"B"inthepresenceofallintheroom。TheseallsignedapaperwhichIhadalreadyprepared，totheeffectthattheyhadseentheenvelopeopened，andthatthememorandummarked"B。TobereadasclausetenofmyWill，"wascontainedintheenvelope，ofwhichitwastobethesolecontents。Mr。ErnestHalbardMelton，J。P。，beforesigning，carefullyexaminedwithamagnifying—glass，forwhichhehadasked，boththeenvelopeandtheheadingofthememorandumenclosedintheletter。Hewasabouttoturnthefoldedpaperwhichwaslyingonthetableover，bywhichhemighthavebeenabletoreadthematterofthememorandumhadhesodesired。Iatonceadvisedhimthatthememorandumhewastosigndealtonlywiththeheadingofthepage，andnotwiththematter。Helookedveryangry，butsaidnothing，andafterasecondscrutinysigned。Iputthememoranduminanenvelope，whichweallsignedacrosstheflap。

Beforesigning，MrErnestHalbardMeltontookoutthepaperandverifiedit。Ithenaskedhimtocloseit，whichhedid，andwhenthesealing—waxwasonithesealeditwithhisownseal。SirColinA。MacKelpieandIalsoappendedourownseals。Iputtheenvelopeinanother，whichIsealedwithmyownseal，andmyco—executorandI

signeditacrosstheflapandaddedthedate。Itookchargeofthis。

Whentheotherspresenthadtakentheirdeparture，myco—executorandI，togetherwithMr。RupertSentLeger，whohadremainedatmyrequest，wentintomyprivateroom。

【推荐阅读】幽幽深宫，醒来一梦似千年，重生于下堂妃身躯中的她，将如何手刃仇人? 点击阅读