But with all
his exertions he had not, when death came upon him, cleared off much
more than half his obligations. There was still 54,000_l._ to pay. But
of this, 22,000_l._ was secured in an insurance on his life, and there
were besides a thousand pounds or two in the hands of the trustees,
which had not been applied to the extinction of the debt. Mr. Cadell,
his publisher, accordingly advanced the remaining 30,000_l._ on the
security of Sir Walter's copyrights, and on the 21st February, 1833,
the general creditors were paid in full, and Mr. Cadell remained the
only creditor of the estate. In February, 1847, Sir Walter's son, the
second baronet, died childless; and in May, 1847, Mr. Cadell gave a
discharge in full of all claims, including the bond for 10,000_l._
executed by Sir Walter during the struggles of Constable and Co. to
prevent a failure, on the transfer to him of all the copyrights of Sir
Walter, including "the results of some literary exertions of the sole
surviving executor," which I conjecture to mean the copyright of the
admirable biography of Sir Walter Scott in ten volumes, to which I
have made such a host of references--probably the most perfect
specimen of a biography rich in great materials, which our language
contains.
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