Daily Kennebec journal. [microfilm reel] (Augusta, Me.) 1870-1975, 1881-02-19
MisfeIlaneous.
MEN OF MILLIONS.

The richest man in America. and near
" the richest man in the world, 10 Will
lam H. Vanderbilt His fortune is set at
about 500, 600. 900. Next to him comes
jaw Gould. who is reaching toward 300
0OO, 600 The immense estate Of the As
tors is worth much over *Jo.OOO.OD.
Fortunes ranging from lo,cc.JCJ to sl5
OOO, 600 are almost common-so frequent.
indeed, that the term millions" has al
most lost it. INNER 81 y a. q lure Of
speech, and is employed now where that
OF thousands used to be. Oar fa,hers
spoke of a man worth his hundreds
thousands, and we, the children. heard
them with the same awe a. that with
which we listened to the description OF the
tabled treasures of a fairy tale. Our chill
dren today do not call a man rich until
he has passed the goal their grandsires
only considered in such names as the
ROthschilds. who were regarded as types
Of wealth no man would ever peer.
Even David Jones. the brewer who died
last week. worth $4,000. 900, did not re-
ceive hali-column obituary notice in any
morning paper.
The man who wanted to make a census
of the mllionaircs Of New York for the
year 1881 would almost need whole
new spaper to do it in. Their name IS lit
erally legion. There are scores OF them
whose wealth can not be known, because
Il is invested in such a way that II Is not
required 10 pay taxes, and leaves no an
nual record % itself that can be arrived al
Dennis Kearney called these men bloated
bondholders. and they are, in so Tar as the
latter clause il concerned. They are men
who invest their vast accumulation IN gov
eminent bonds. draw the interest regular
ly, and add it to the principal and :" go
on heaping up a monstrous capital WIN
no labor on their part, and no expenditure
except the original one. But they are
lavish with their wealth in spite OF all that
NAV be said 10 the contrary, and that law
ishness has made the name OF New York
|. synonym for the openhanded bcneh-
eence which marks it in charity. science,
arts. and commerce the metropolis "f the
western hemisphere. Apart from the Hue
tuatng fortunes Of the speculative rlch
men, the jim keenes and his like, which
NAV be millions to-day or thousands to-
morrow, there are merchant princes and
quiet men of fortune, who, when they die,
will leave wills to run into the seven hg-
ures. and make people wonder why they
never heard of such rich men before.
Nor are these colossal capitals restrict
ed 10 the metropolis. Cincinnati has sew
eral well-to-do people. although forty
years ago she had but three who counted
their fortunes by millions. These were
Nicholas Langworth who died IN 1867.
leaving about $1,000, 900, and Jacob Bur
net and James Ferguson, who died in Is
81. each leaving about S2."","n or
the opulent people now residents OF Gin
cinrati. David Sinton is SAID 10 h. worth
1000 ,Wn; G.. ii. Shoenbergcr, SI.tn-
600; a. d. Breed. S.,.0~.oo": estate of
James w. Golf. Sj,ooo.D"; estate oi OH
yer Perrin, S.i.UoO. 900; H. X. Springer. 81
OoO, 900; Joseph Iongworth. Sj."","D;
estate offs y Pike. S},0oo.o Emory
brothers. S3.Oo.Ooo: \. ID. Bullock,
Charles and John kiloour. W. L. Hubert.
Samuel Fosdick. William J. GroeSbeck.
Jacob Sasongood. Frieberg Workum.
John Shilliito's estate. Samuel Wiggin
estate. Judge d. X Estes estate, j. c.
Shorts estate. General James Taylor's
estate, and X. T.. IIopblc are each worth
81. OOO, 600. while the list of single million
aires is too numerous To- mention.
Philadelphia Chicago. Pittsburg. Bos-
ton all make similarly splendid showingin
the matter ot hgnreS. fhlladeiphia anu
boston are very much alike in the fact
that. though there are fewer millionaires
in them in proportion Ia their population
than there are proportionatelv more men
Of solid fortune That i to say. while the
besiness men in New York or Chicago,
having won his 800 900. tries to double
il. and. having doubled. TO duplicate it
again. the sobersded citizens of the Hub
and the Quaker city are content to settle
when they find themselves at ease tinan-
ciallv 1t would quite start these conscr
vative commercial persons to think OF
collateral investment of from Sl.ooo.ooo
b26 900. 600 in mines to get coal to run
ros-fouudries with capitals of much great
er bulk. rs II score OF fittshurg iron-tound
ers do, or to hold reserve of $1,000
600 for grain operations. like half hun
dred of Chicagoans.