Charles Vance Millar (1853 - October 31, 1926) was a Canadian lawyer and financier. Though highly successful in the law and in his investments, Millar is now known primarily for his love of jokes and pranks which played on people's greed and hypocrisy. One favorite was to leave money on a sidewalk and watch from hiding as passers-by furtively pocketed it. 1853 was a common year starting on Saturday (see link for calendar). ... October 31 is the 304th day of the year (305th in leap years) in the Gregorian Calendar, with 61 days remaining. ... Year 1926 (MCMXXVI) was a common year starting on Friday (link will display the full calendar). ... English barrister 16th century painting of a civil law notary, by Flemish painter Quentin Massys. ... Financier (IPA: /ˌfi nãn ˈsjei/) is an elegant term for a person who handles large sums of money, usually involving money lending, financing projects, large-scale investing, or large-scale money management. ...

Millar's greatest and final prank was his will, which says in part, In the common law, a will or testament is a document by which a person (the testator) regulates the rights of others over his property or family after death. ...

This Will is necessarily uncommon and capricious because I have no dependents or near relations and no duty rests upon me to leave any property at my death and what I do leave is proof of my folly in gathering and retaining more than I required in my lifetime.

The will was full of playful bequests. Anti-gambling and temperance advocates were left shares in race tracks and breweries. Three men who were known to despise each other were granted joint lifetime tenancy in Millar's vacation home in Jamaica. A cartoon from Australia ca. ...

But the final bequest was the largest and strangest. The balance of Millar's estate was to be converted to cash and given to the woman who gave birth to the most children in the 10 years following Millar's death. In the event of a tie, the bequest would be divided equally. The resulting contest became known as the Great Stork Derby. The Great Stork Derby was a period from 1926 to 1936 where women in Toronto competed to produce the most babies. ...

Although the Government of Ontario attempted to invalidate the will as against public policy, Millar had prepared it with care. The will survived ten years of litigation and the Derby continued uninterrupted. Because of Millar's long-term investments, particularly with the Detroit-Windsor Tunnel, his estate increased drastically during the 10 years, and was worth $750,000 when it was finally liquidated. Most of this prize was shared by four Toronto women who each had 9 children. The estate also settled $25,000 on two women with dubious claims to a share in the prize. The childless Millar ended up "fathering" 36 children. Motto: Ut Incepit Fidelis Sic Permanet (Latin: Loyal she began, loyal she remains) Official languages None Flower White Trillium Tree Eastern White Pine Bird Common Loon Capital Toronto Largest city Toronto Lieutenant-Governor James K. Bartleman Premier Dalton McGuinty (Liberal) Parliamentary representation  - House seats  - Senate seats 106 24 Area Total... A lawsuit is a civil action brought before a court in order to recover a right, obtain damages for an injury, obtain an injunction to prevent an injury, or obtain a declaratory judgment to prevent future legal disputes. ... The Detroit-Windsor Tunnel connects Detroit, Michigan in the United States, with Windsor, Ontario in Canada. ...

It was speculated that Millar prepared this clause in his will as a means to discredit indiscriminate births and prohibitions against birth control. Birth control is a regimen of one or more actions, devices, or medications followed in order to deliberately prevent or reduce the likelihood of a woman becoming pregnant or giving birth. ...

External links

• "The Great Stork Derby" on Snopes.com