The Pacific commercial advertiser. [volume] (Honolulu, Hawaiian Islands) 1885-1921, 1885-10-07
ROrhSChILp.
How the House of the Red Shieid was
Founded.


How the House of the Red Shie1d was
Founded.
This famous firm of Hebrew bankers
aHsd capitalists which is known
througholsst. the world, originated in
the city of Frankfort, Germany.
In the Judengasse, ors~yews alley,
a short distance from the chAiet thor
oughfare, one hundred and forty-etSge
years ago, lived dealer in old clothes
who had red shield for a sign, which
in German reads roth schil' 1t was
in 1743 that a son was born to this
Israelite. The name given to the boy
was Anselm Meyer, who also became
clothes dealer and pawn-broker, sue
| ceeding to the business of his father.
BY degrees he extended his business,
| lending money at high rates of inter-
est during the wars of the last century,
! managing his affairs with such skill
| that Prince William the Landgrave
made him his banker. When Napoleon
| came across the Rhine in 1906 this
! clothes dealer was directed to take care
| of the treasures of the Prince, amount
| ing to twelve million dollars, which he
invested so judiciOusly that it brought
! large increase to the owner and es-
| pecially to the manager.
! This banker died in 1912, leaving an
estate estimated at five million dollars
! not a very large sum these days-but
| he left an Injunction upon his five sons,
| which was made binding by an oath
! given by the sons around his death-bed,
! which has had and still has a powerful
| influence upon the world. The sons
| bound themselves by an oath to follow
! their fathers business together, hold
ing his property in partnership, extend
ing the business, that the world might
! know but one house of the red shield!
! (Rothschild.)
! The sons were true to their oath.
The eldest, Anselm, born 1873, and
who died in 1885, was his fathers part
ner and successor at Frankfort. The
second, Solomon, born IVA, died in
| 1855, was established as the representa-
| tive of the house at Vienna. The third.
! Nathan Never, born IVA, and died
! 1886, settled at London and was the
| leading member and ablest tinancier Of
| the firm. The fourth, Charles, born
| 1888, died 1855, went to Naples, and
James, born 1898, died 1869, to Paris.
| The five brothers thus occupied great
financial centers, and were geograph-
| ically located in excellent positions to
use their financial power and skill to
the best advantage. Nathan, in Lon
don, amassed money with great rapid
ity, and the same may be said OF all
the others, the wars of Napoleon being
| favorable to the business of the house.
| Nathan went to the Continent to wit
ness the operations of Wellington in
his last campaign against Napoleon,
| prepared to act with the utmost en-
| erov, let the result be as it might. He
witnessed the battle of Waterloo, and
when assured of Napoleon's defeat,
| rode all night, with relays of horses, to
Ostend; went across the channel in a
fshing-smack-for it was before the
vance of all other messengers, and
spread the rumor that Wellington and
Butcher were defeated. The Goth of
June in that memorable year was dis
NAL day in London. The battle was
! fought on the 18th; Nathan Meyer, of
the house of the red shield by hard
| riding, reached London at midnight on
the 18th. On the morning of the goth
the news was over town that the cause
of the allies was lost, that Napoleon
had swept all before him. England
| had been the leading spirit in the strug-
gle against Napoleon. The treasury
of Great Britain, it will be remembered,
| had supplied funds to nearly all of the
allied powers.
If their cause was lost what hope
was there for the future? Bankers
flew from door to door in eager haste
to sell their stock. Funds of every des-
cription went down Anselm Never
was besieged by men who had funds
for sale, but he was not in the market;
10 70 10 70 bod
| stocks for sale What would they give?
But meanwhile he had scores of agents
| purchasing. Twenty-fOur hours later
Wellington's messenger arrived in
! London; the truth was known. The
nation gave vent to its joy; up went
the funds with rapidity. the general adj
vance pouring, it is said, So, 100000 into
the Golfers of this one branch of the
! house of the red shield!
The house of the red shield is the
greatest banking house of the world
the mightiest of all times, and has
made its policy felt the world over--in
the Tuileries of Paris, in the ministe-
rial chamber of Berlin, the Imperial
palace at St. Petersburg, the Vatican
at Rome, in the Bank of England, in
| Wall street, State street and by every
| New England freside. The house of
the red Snleld, by the exercise OF It's
| financial power, can make a difference
in the yearly account of every man
who reads these words of mine!
Though Anselm Meyer has been half
century dead-though several of his
sons have gone down to the grave
the house is the same The grand
children have the spirit of the children.
The children of the brothers have in
termarried, and it is one family, loyal to
each other, carrying out the desire of
the founder of the firm and animated
! by common purpose, that the world
| shall know only one red shield. Boston
| Commercial Gazette.