A donation that the Twins Days festival is getting from the estate of two frugal bachelor farmers is enough to make some people do a double-take (1): as much as $5 million.

John and William Reiff, once recognized by Guinness World Records as the world's most identical twins, left most of their estate to the festival in Twinsburg (2), about 15 miles southeast of Cleveland. John Reiff died in 2005 and William five years earlier, but only recently have plans to develop part of the twins' suburban Philadelphia farm been worked out.

With the land deal expected to be completed this year, about $4 million to $5 million will go to the festival, according to a lawyer for the Twins Days Festival Committee. The festival committee intends to invest the money to help pay for operating costs (3).

The Reiffs, who attended their first Twins Days festival in the late 1970s, always dressed alike, talked alike and enjoyed dating other twins. The wiry, bespectacled pair won many "most identical" competitions over the years.

The annual Twins Days festival, a three-day event that begins Aug. 3 this year, attracts about 3,000 sets of twins, triplets (4) and quadruplets (5) and features contests such as those for the most alike and least alike twins. Over the years, it also has attracted scientists interested in genetic research.

Between trips to Twinsburg and to other twin events, the Reiffs lived frugally (6) on a 154-acre farm that had been in the family for three generations. It was no model of agriculture. A wood stove heated the house, and a 20-cow herd barely supported the dairy.

Before his death in 2005, John Reiff cut a deal with a development group that planned to use the farm, a rare piece of undeveloped land near Philadelphia, for residential housing.

Neighbors sued, but local officials, the developer and residents have finally agreed on a plan to build six houses and a park on the site, and 40 houses elsewhere.

The Reiff brothers, who never married, gave most of their fortune to the Twins Days festival but also left $250,000 to four churches. None of their four living sisters was named in their will.

兩位簡(jiǎn)樸的單身農(nóng)夫向雙胞胎日捐贈(zèng)了價(jià)值5百萬(wàn)美元的資產(chǎn)，足以讓人們?yōu)橹@訝。

約翰雷夫和威廉雷夫曾經(jīng)被吉尼斯世界紀(jì)錄認(rèn)為是世界上長(zhǎng)得最像的雙胞胎。他們把自己大多數(shù)的資產(chǎn)都贈(zèng)給了特溫斯堡市的雙胞胎節(jié)日，即在克里夫蘭東南部的15英里地。約翰于2005年去世，而威廉比約翰早去世5年。然而，直到最近，對(duì)這對(duì)雙胞胎兄弟在費(fèi)城城郊的農(nóng)場(chǎng)的開(kāi)發(fā)計(jì)劃才得以實(shí)現(xiàn)。

據(jù)一位雙胞胎節(jié)日委員會(huì)的律師稱(chēng)，隨著這項(xiàng)土地交易在今年的完成，雙胞胎節(jié)日將獲得4到5百萬(wàn)美元。節(jié)日委員會(huì)打算將這筆錢(qián)用于支付其運(yùn)營(yíng)成本。

雷夫兄弟倆第一次參加雙胞胎節(jié)日是在70年代末。他們總是穿同樣的衣服，用同樣的方式講話(huà)，喜歡和另外的雙胞胎姐妹約會(huì)。多年來(lái)，這對(duì)瘦但結(jié)實(shí)的雙胞胎兄弟參加了很多“最相像”比賽并獲獎(jiǎng)。

雙胞胎節(jié)日每年都會(huì)舉辦一次，一共持續(xù)三天。今年是在8月3日舉行的，吸引了有3000對(duì)雙胞胎、三胞胎和四胞胎的參與，舉辦了長(zhǎng)得最像和最不像之類(lèi)的比賽。很多年來(lái)，這項(xiàng)活動(dòng)同樣也吸引了那些對(duì)基因研究感興趣的科學(xué)家們。

在往返于參加特溫斯堡市和其他雙胞胎活動(dòng)之外，雷夫兄弟在一塊154英畝的農(nóng)場(chǎng)上過(guò)著儉樸的生活。這個(gè)家族有三代人在這塊農(nóng)場(chǎng)上生活過(guò)。這里不是模范的農(nóng)場(chǎng)。整個(gè)屋子靠一個(gè)木制火爐取暖，20頭牛勉強(qiáng)維持產(chǎn)奶。

一個(gè)開(kāi)發(fā)商原本打算在這塊費(fèi)城附近的稀有的未開(kāi)發(fā)土地上修建住房，但約翰雷夫在2005年去世以前和該公司締結(jié)了土地交易。

鄰居們起訴了他，但到最后，當(dāng)?shù)卣㈤_(kāi)發(fā)商和居民還是達(dá)成一致，計(jì)劃就在那修建6座房子和一個(gè)公園，然后在別的地再修40 座房子。

雷夫兄弟一生未婚，并把他們大多數(shù)財(cái)產(chǎn)都捐給了雙胞胎節(jié)日，把另外的25萬(wàn)美元贈(zèng)與了4座教堂。在遺囑里，他們根本沒(méi)有提及四個(gè)還健在的姐妹。