The Baltimore County union. [volume] (Towsontown, Md.) 1865-1909, 1886-12-04

A number of New York journalists
have married rich wives and have en-
joyed, and still enjoy, the freedom and
ease which their vastly improved cir
cumstances allow. They nave not all
been salaried, either. Not few among
the most prosperous of their calling, so
that it may be reasonably supposed that
they were drawn to their partners by
other than monetary considerations.
The most conspicuous among these is
Whitelaw Ried, whose wife is the only
daughter of D. o. Mills, estimated to
be worth anywhere between fifteen and
twenty-five million dollars. The ante
cedents of the millionaire were humble.
He began, it is said, by keeping small
tavern in one of the Westchester towns
went to California as an Argonaut, and
by energy, enterprise and good luck
made great fortune. His daughter,
according to her intimateS, is a very
sensible, kindhearted, estimable young
woman, and she and her husband are
Her influence on him is described as
having been excellent, which is fortu-
nate since he became Benedict late in
life, when one S ways and habits are or
dinarily fixed. AS the editor of the
z1z6une was thought to have property
valued at $500, 900 before marriage, he
should not be suspected of mere fortune
hunting. But he had ffty-one shares
of the newspaper stock mortgaged, as is
generally believed, to Jay Gould, which
he could not release. His wife received
81, ,ooo, 900 from her father as her we'd
ding portion, and she, as the story goes,
most generously gave her lege half of
it to pay off that claim. He must have
deeply appreciated the gift, for it placed
him in an independent position, which
he had not for years enjoyed. The
bulk of the Tribune shares are now own
ed by the Rieds and the Mills, so that
the newspaper is strictly held by the
two families.
Ried, in his days of poverty and
struggle, was exceedingly industrious,
one of the hardest workers in Washing
ton, when he was correspondent of the
Cincinnati Gazette. And he was also
very capable and won his way to dis
tinction. Since he has grown very rich
he takes things leisurely, although he
still looks sharply after the z'76Hne's
interests in the business and editorial
departments. He considers himself
publisher as well as editor, and he is
credited with being an excellent fnan-
cial manager. He is considered practi-
cal to his fnger-tips. Of Scotch ex-
traction, he understands the worth of
money as well as when he could earn
only fifteen or twenty dollars a week.
No man, it is said, relishes more what
money will purchase or has a greater
admiration for money kings. He is not
very robust. He comes of fragile stock,
and present wealth enables him to save
himself. When in town-he has lately
spent his summers at Millbray, his fa-
ther-in-law's fine estate, near Alameda,
California-he gives about four hours
day to the Office and six or seven to So
ciety, for which he has weakness shar-
ed by few members OF his profession.
He derives much pleasure, | am told,
from the fact that d. O. Mills is more
likely to be mentioned as Whitelaw
Ried's father-in-law than he is to be
mentioned as D. o. Mills son-in-law.
That is certainly a natural and proper
Dride