g her present coverture, and as if she was a
femme sole and unmarried,--shall think fit.--And this Indenture further
witnesseth, That for the more effectually carrying of the said covenant
into execution, the said Walter Shandy, merchant, doth hereby grant,
bargain, sell, release, and confirm unto the said John Dixon, and James
Turner, Esqrs. their heirs, executors, and assigns, in their actual
possession now being, by virtue of an indenture of bargain and sale for
a year to them the said John Dixon, and James Turner, Esqrs. by him the
said Walter Shandy, merchant, thereof made; which said bargain and sale
for a year, bears date the day next before the date of these presents,
and by force and virtue of the statute for transferring of uses into
possession,--All that the manor and lordship of Shandy, in the county
of..., with all the rights, members, and appurtenances thereof; and all
and every the messuages, houses, buildings, barns, stables, orchards,
gardens, backsides, tofts, crofts, garths, cottages, lands, meadows,
feedings, pastures, marshes, commons, woods, underwoods, drains,
fisheries, waters, and water-courses;--together with all rents,
reversions, services, annuities, fee-farms, knights fees, views of
frankpledge, escheats, reliefs, mines, quarries, goods and chattels
of felons and fugitives, felons of themselves, and put in exigent,
deodands, free warrens, and all other royalties and seigniories, rights
and jurisdictions, privileges and hereditaments whatsoever.--And also
the advowson, donation, presentation, and free disposition of the
rectory or parsonage of Shandy aforesaid, and all and every the tenths,
tythes, glebe-lands.'--In three words,--'My mother was to lay in (if she
chose it) in London.'

But in order to put a stop to the practice of any unfair play on
the part of my mother, which a marriage-article of this nature too
manifestly opened a door to, and which indeed had never been thought of
at all, but for my uncle Toby Shandy;--a clause was added in security of
my father which was this:--'That in case my mother hereafter should, at
any time, put my father to the trouble and expence of a London journey,
upon false cries and tokens;--that for every such instance, she should
forfeit all the right and title which the covenant gave her to the next
turn;--but to no more,--and so on, toties quoties, in as effectual a
manner, as if such a covenant betwixt them had not been made.'--This, by
the way, was no