Page:The Irish in Australia.djvu/143

 reported to have written to the Secretary of State for the Colonies to the effect that he had a servant named Buckley who was next-of-kin to the deceased, and airily requesting that the value of the estate should be transmitted to him by return of post. A similar appeal was made by Lord Henniker, of Eye, on behalf of a servant of his, who was also a Buckley. After a long delay, during which the responsible legal officers were busily engaged in examining the proofs and sifting the claims of hundreds of aspirants to the honour of relationship with the late lonely Gipps Land squatter, the Master-in-Equity finally reported to the Court that the following were first cousins and next-of-kin to the deceased Patrick Coady Buckley:—Mary Coady, wife of John Coady, of Kilkenny, Ireland; James Maher and Thomas Maher, of New York, America; Ellen Tobin, wife of John Tobin, of Newfoundland; Mary Grace and Edward Grace, of East Newark, United States; Patrick Coady, of Burrin, Newfoundland; Catherine Browne, wife of Hugh Browne, of Nova Scotia; and Bridget Murphy, of Benalla, Victoria. But, when the unlucky estate emerged from the ten years' conflict in the courts, only £20,500 out of the original £63,000, was left for distribution amongst the nine duly-certified first-cousins. That is to say, two-thirds of Buckley's wealth went into the capacious pockets of the lawyers, and one-third was divided amongst his poor relations. One cannot but feel a regret that the major part of the savings of a lifetime of courage and toil, energy and perseverance, should have been thus scattered to the four winds of heaven.