Memoir of George Heriot Author:William Steven General Books publication date: 2009 Original publication date: 1859 Notes: This is a black and white OCR reprint of the original. It has no illustrations and there may be typos or missing text. When you buy the General Books edition of this book you get free trial access to Million-Books.com where you can select from more than a million book... more »s for free. Excerpt: HlSTORY GEORGE HERIOT'S HOSPlTAL. CHAPTER I. 1624-1658. On opening the last Will and Testamentl of George Hbriot, dated 10th December 1623, it was found that, independently of lands and houses, his property consisted of a very valuable stock of jewels, of debts due by the royal family, and the nobility and gentry, also of money lent on heritable security. That Heriot had not forgotten his relations and intimate friends, as well as his dependants, while he bequeathed a large sum for a truly benevolent object in Edinburgh, will best be shown by an analysis of his last Testament. To Franchischetta Heriot, the only child of his deceased brother Patrick,2 he bequeathed 500 marks English. By the Disposition and Assignation,3 his sister, Margaret, had, 1 For a copy of the Will, see Appendix, NO. VI. 2 Patrick Heriot had settled at Genoa, and married there into an Italian familv. The only issue of this union was a daughter. The steps which she took in regard to her uncle's settlement are noticed on page 38. See Appendix, NO. V. in addition to her former allowance, a life-pension of one hundred pounds sterling; and her five children had been amply provided for. To the poor belonging to the parish of St Martin's-in-the-Fields he left £10, and double that amount to those of the French Reformed Congregation in London. To his step-brother, James Heriot, who succeeded Mm as court-jeweller, he leaves £2000, of which the fourth-part was to be given him in jewels, " such as he traded in." Thomas Heriot, another step-brother, gets £1000 in cash, besides India stock to the same value. To Christian Blaw, his f...« less