The Cecil Whig. [volume] (Elkton, Md.) 1841-current, 1864-08-06
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OWE Oh TEE R0TIzsCilILDS.

ONE OE TEE kOElaSCifaLIsS.
A curious compound Of mcanncss and
shrcwdncss was old Nathan Rothschild,
who, upon the death of his father Mover
Ansclm Rothschid, became the head of the
great European banking house. lie, though
daily amassing thousands, was no payer of
liberal salaries. All went into the ucy-
chcst-the least possible amount w.. the
reward Of the hard working clerks who
assisted him In piling up his huge fortunes.
1t is said he never paid his employees u
larthng more than was necessary for their
bare subsistence-;!t least, not more than
they could compel him to pay. His career
was prosperous, almost without a single
interruption. From about the year 1919 his
transactions were spread over the entire
globe.
Notwithstanding his ayaricc he made great
display of his wealth in sumptuous enter
tainmcnts, to which the highest characters
in rank and wealth were invited. He was
not the man, however, 10 give grace to his
entertainments, He was almost without
education, rude in his manners, and sloven.
" aud awkward in his appearance These
traits made him frequent subject for carl
cature, while his oppressive extortions made
him many enemies and he was much an.
noyed through life by the reception of
threatening letters.
These threats sometimes took such an
effect upon him rs to haunt him like night.
mare. One day, two tall mouytachiood
neat must be remembered that this was
the anti mnustachc pcriod-were shown into
his private paror at the st. Swirhn's lane
counting house. Nathan bowed the visit.
ors bowed. Nathan AROSE and his bearded
visitors moved close mp to him, their hands
!UmJllng about in the pockets Of their great
Goats. Nathan saw it at a gancc-thc
moustachiOcd fellows had come to shoot him,
their hands searching for deadly weapons in
their pockets. Quick as lightning. Nathan
took up his brass bound ledger and hurled
it at the heads OF the strangers, at the same
time screaming Murdcr!" in,a paroxysm
Of fright. The screams brought all the
clerks and no!tcrs Of the house into the
sanctum of the millionaire Explanations
took place, when it was found that the two
moustachiocd strangers were rich bankers
from abroad. who, with q little nervous
anxiety i'll the presence of the Caesar of the
Stock Exchange, had tumbcd in their
pockets for letters OF introduction and other
necessary credentials on must be
happy man. Mr.. RothSchiId" said once a
gcntIcmar sitting Mt Nathams banquctting
table aud glancing round at the superb
appointments of the mansion of his host
liappy-me happy!' was the reply
What! happy, when just as you are going
to dine you have letter placed in your
hands, saying, : If you do not send me $500
will blow your brains out : Happy me
happy!o Nathan frequently slept with Il
pair Of loaded pistols by his side. Poor
Nathan.
In the year 1881 he drove q bargain with
the Spanish government by which he became
posscssor Of the Almadcn quicksilver mines
These mines and those OF ldra in lllyria
supplied all the mercury which was used in
the world. Having secured his title, he
Immediately doubled the price Of Almaden
mercury. The commercial world, much
astohished at this step, addressed itself to
ldria and then it was discovered that the
mines Of ldria had passed likewise, very
quietly, into the hands OF Nathan Rcthschild
who had settled, OF course, the price Of its
mercury on the same scale as that of Alma
den BY this little transaction the house of
Rotnschild obtained d complete monopoly
in the sale Of mercury, and Nathan was able
to settle the price of the article, indispensa-
bic for many Purposes. at his counting
house, without fear of competition. One
effect of this operation was, that mercural
preparations employed III medicine are no
more manufactured from the pure metal as
obtained from the mines, but from the
refuse Of other articles containing uuickSil.
yer, such as the foil of old mirrors. Per-
haps this had something to do with the
growing unpopularity of calome and other
mercurlal preparations as medicines.
To strengthen and perpetuate the family
co-partnership in business enioined by old
Meyer Anselm, Nathan called family
council at Frankfort in 1886, to establish
blood alliances between the various mem.
bers of the family, not only in his own but
in succeeding generations The congress
was to be inaugurated by the marriage OF
two first cousins of the family of his own
son with the daughter his brother Charles.
The marriage took place in the Jewish
synagogue at Frankfort, on the 18th of
June. 1896. On the very same day Nathan
fell Ill, and he being nigh sixty years of age.
it was suggested that his physician, MIR.
Travers, should be sent for at once from
London. But Of this he would not hear -
Physicians, he SAID, were very expensive
luXuries--too expensive for u man possess
ing bare three or four millions. A cheap
medical adviser was called in accordingly,
under whose hands Nathan grew rapidly
"SiHt' -hi' iidNtlS AZ ldSi WlS SulIliIloHcu
in by the family, but he came too late. On
the 2Gth of July Nathan grew delirious,
talking incohcrently of pounds, noriGs and
thalers; and on the 2Sth he was a corpse
The next day sportsman at Bridgton shot
a pigeon, which, when picked up, proved to
be one ofthe we'll known carrier pigeons of
the house of Rothschild. 1t had. under its
wings, small bit Of paper with the nscrip.
ton " est mart he is dead Who the
he was there could be no doubt. That day
there was complete panic at the Stock
Exchange, and a great fall in the funds
Great curiosity was felt by the public