| Jemmy Wood's Will | |
|---|---|
|
Origin |
Jemmy Wood |
|
Type |
Will Amendment (Codicil) |
|
Effects |
Makes user shrewd with money, especially others |
|
Downsides |
Confounds language of legal documents |
|
Activation |
Financial responsibility |
|
Section |
|
| [Source] | |
Origin[]
James "Jemmy" Wood (7 October 1756 – 20 April 1836) was the owner of the Gloucester Old Bank who became nationally known as "The Gloucester Miser". His wealth of around £900,000 was stated at the time to have made him "the richest commoner in His Majesty's dominions". The bank reached its apotheosis under Jemmy, whose practice was to offer no interest on deposits of less than one year. At that time, the whole bank was believed to have consisted of just Jemmy and two clerks. Counterfeit coins were nailed to the counter as a warning to customers not to try to pass them off on the bank. Charles Dickens may have been inspired by the stories about the Gloucester Miser to create the character of Ebenezer Scrooge in A Christmas Carol, among other stories.
Wood never appeared in lists of city benefactors, despite serving as City Sheriff and Alderman. It is thought that he never became Mayor because the expense of the job was too great for him to bear. He was not averse to spending other people's money however. In 1818, 47 people dined at the city's expense at a dinner given for the Duke of Gloucester at which they ate a turtle weighing 150 lbs given to the city by Lord Henry Howard-Molyneux-Howard. After his death, problems over his will led to a long court case that soaked up much of the funds in the estate. A damaged codicil was found that left money to the City of Gloucester and to other beneficiaries and it was wrangling over the authenticity of the codicil that caused the settlement of the estate to be delayed.
Effects[]
Gives user a keen sense of handling money, especially when in a directly financial position or dealing with others money. Gives various skills such as detecting fraud, assessing risk, recognizing over-spending, budget management and even telling how much requires to be spent on a function. They become extremely frugal with payment and will not make transactions without reasonable expectation of equal return.
Confuses the wording in legal documentation to create as difficult, contradictory or ambiguous language as possible. Makes interpretation too varied for proper adherence, or too obtuse to understand how to proceed.