RootsChat.Com

Thanks for that Pendlelad.

It usually cost around about £100 - but was on special offer at the time.  They said the results might take a couple of months, but they came through in half that time.

You are going to think me a bit stupid but I don't know the type of test.  It was just the standard test offered by Ancestry.co.uk.  They said that they tested against 700,000 markers.  Carl

Thanks Jorose - without a will then it seems that we are unlikely to solve this puzzle - even with a will we would have to say that an answer was unlikely.  We know that there were 7 legitimate children (6 sons) and the 1891 census lists 4 people (excluding servants) father, mother, and 2 sons 'Edgar' and Lloyd Tudor.  Everything is recorded as it should be except for the entry for 'Edgar'.  His age at 40 would suggest that he might be Horace - but Horace is visiting up in Halifax.  There were two sons either side of Horace - the eldest Frederic is married aged 41 and living nearby and the other son is Lloyd Tudor who is 38.  This 'Edgar' is listed as a 'Son' occupied as a 'Commercial Traveler' and there were no sons occupied as commercial travelers

Because all the other census details are as they should be then I guess that one possibility (the most likely?) is that 'Edgar' is a visiting friend of Lloyd who was erroneously listed as a son.  I think that it is unlikely that 'Edgar' was a nickname for another son due to age, occupation and his listing as 'Edgar C' - never heard of a nickname being linked to a letter.  Thanks for you help Carl 

Many thanks for all your help.  Very astute of you Craclyn (or dozy of me!) to connect Septimus with being the seventh child.  I've been studying this family for years and the penny never dropped.  The Edgar C (Edgar Cornelius), son of schoolmaster Darius has no connections with FTW's family and in any case this Edgar Cornelius is at home with his wife in 1891.  I too shared your excitement when I found him but my Eureka moment was short lived.  Thanks for the idea though Louisa Maud.
I cannot be absolutely certain that Edgar C is not a brother/cousin but I have all this family well mapped out (I am a direct descendant of FTW's brother) so I believe that the brother/cousin theory is most unlikely, but thanks for the suggestion Nanny Jan.
I haven't been able to locate FTW's will on Ancestry, but I know that it was valued at around £30k (£2m in today's money).  The wills listed on Ancestry seem quite comprehensive, so I have guessed that it may have been lost.  Any suggestions as to where else I might search for it?  Thanks rjknott.
Thanks also to Louisa Maud for your suggestion.  I have almost 100% of the records for this family bmd's and censuses, etc.  As one might imagine a Victorian barrister and his children were quite thorough and accurate with their records.  BUT this Edgar C just pops up in the 1891 census - nothing before and nothing after which leads to my conclusion that he had another surname (illegitimate?) and was visiting his sick father in 1891.  One possibility (guess) is that youngest child Frederick had a nurse who became pregnant with FTW's child and she and her child were looked after outside the immediate family by FTW - or have I been watching too many period dramas!
One more sensible question if I may.  In the 1891 Census do you agree that I have correctly interpreted the enumerators handwriting as "Edgar C"?  This "C" is not quite the same other C's but it definitely isn't an "E" because there is no bar across the middle and it is hard to think of another letter that fits.  Many thanks again for your interest and comments.