Project Gutenberg 2018-09-16 Public domain in the USA. 285 Vine Hall, Edgar 1938 Hall, Edgar Vine The Romance of Wills and Testaments Preface -- The romance of wills -- Wills not fulfilled -- Dr. Johnson's will -- Death-bed dispositions -- Wills by word of mouth -- The polycodicillic will -- Eighteenth-century piety -- The dead hand -- Wills of fancy and of fantasy -- Strife -- Love and gratitude -- The servant problem -- Animals and pets -- The way of all flesh -- Burials and funerals -- Wills and ghosts. Produced by ellinora, Paul Marshall, MWS and the Online Distributed Proofreading Team at http://www.pgdp.net (This file was produced from images generously made available by The Internet Archive) "The Romance of Wills and Testaments" by Edgar Vine Hall is a collection of essays written in the early 20th century. The work explores the fascinating and varied nature of wills and testaments, delving into the personalities, histories, and societal nuances they reveal. The author emphasizes how these documents serve as profound reflections of human nature, showcasing emotions from humor to tragedy as they recount the final wishes of individuals from different walks of life. At the start of the collection, Hall introduces the concept of wills as more than mere legal documents; he describes them as revealing intimate aspects of their authors, both in terms of personality and the context of their times. He reflects on the social and historical significance of wills, recounting anecdotes about notable figures like John Milton and Bishop Corbet, whose testamentary dispositions offer insights into their lives and relationships. The opening establishes a tone that combines literary analysis with a passion for history, encouraging readers to appreciate the depth found in a seemingly mundane legal artifact. (This is an automatically generated summary.) Reading ease score: 60.8 (8th & 9th grade). Neither easy nor difficult to read. en Wills -- Great Britain -- Miscellanea CT K Text Category: Essays, Letters & Speeches Category: History - Other 425395 2025-09-23T06:41:52.165084 text/html 425997 2018-09-16T10:38:12 text/html 287577 2025-09-23T06:41:58.559520 application/epub+zip 286465 2025-09-23T06:41:53.526076 application/epub+zip 235997 2025-09-23T06:41:52.768069 application/epub+zip 386463 2025-09-23T06:42:02.394528 application/x-mobipocket-ebook 352242 2025-09-23T06:41:57.972553 application/x-mobipocket-ebook 301736 2022-09-26T08:08:31.929448 application/x-mobipocket-ebook 380462 2025-09-23T06:41:51.660085 text/plain; charset=us-ascii 380696 2018-09-16T10:38:04 text/plain; charset=us-ascii 18586 2025-09-23T06:42:02.531506 application/rdf+xml 14738 2025-09-23T06:41:52.852046 image/jpeg 1778 2025-09-23T06:41:52.810048 image/jpeg 150274 2018-09-16T10:38:14 application/octet-stream application/zip 249435 2018-09-16T10:38:14 application/octet-stream application/zip 255243 2025-09-23T06:41:52.201052 application/octet-stream application/zip Archives containing the RDF files for *all* our books can be downloaded at https://book.klll.cc/wiki/Gutenberg:Feeds#The_Complete_Project_Gutenberg_Catalog