The Newberry herald and news. (Newberry, S.C.) 1884-1903, 1889-10-31
A STARTLING STATEMENT.
Enormous Concentration of Wealth in the
United States-Twenty-fve Hundred
Persons Own One-half the
Wealth of Sixty Millions.


Wealth of Sixty Millions.
In spite Of the rapid increase in the
number of millionairs in the United
States in recent years, the popular
notion is that wealth is yet very much
more evenly distributed in this country
than in England, Mr.. Thos. G. Shear
man, the we'll known New York sta
tistician, has been engaged for some
time in collecting facts to show as pre-
cisely the propotion of the wealth of
the country held by few rich men
and families; and he finds greater
concentration of wealth here than in
any other country. The results of his
investigation will appear in the Forum
for November, from advance sheets of
which the following facts are taken.
Mr.. Shearman makes the following
enumeration of owners of more than
$4,000, 600 each.
s15o,oo0,000: J. J. Astor, Trinity
Church.
Slo0,OOO,O00: C. Vanderbilt, ". K.
Vanderbilt, Jay Gould, Leland STAN
ford, J. D. Rockefeller.
S70,000,000: Estate of A. Packer.
s60,00o,00O: John I. Blair, Estate of
Charles Croker.
s50,000,00 VIM. Astor, w. w. Astor,
Russell Sage, E. A. Stevens, estate Of
Moses Taylor, estate of Brown & Ives.
S40,000,000: P. D. Armour, +. l..
Ames, VIM. Rockefeller, H. NJ. Flag
Ter, Powers & Weightman, estate of P.
Goelet.
$35,0o0,OoO: C. P. Huntington, D. O.
Mills, estate Of T. A. Scott, J. W. Gar
rett.
$9o,000,O0O: G. B. Roberts, Charles
Pratt, Ross Winans, Z. B. Coke, Claus
Spreckles, A. Belmont, R. J. Living
ston, Fred Weyarhauser, Mrs. Mark
Hopkins, Mrs. Hettie Green, estates of
S. M. Hardness, r. w. Coleman, T. n.
Singer.
S25,00O,OOO: A. J. Drexel, J. S. Nor
gan. ]. P. Morgan, Marshall Field,
David Dows, J. G. Fair, E. T. Gerry,
estates Of Governor Fairbanks, A. T.
Stewart, A. Schermerhorn.
22,5o0,0OO: O. H. Payne, estate of F.
A. Drexel, I. V. Williamson, w. F.
Weld.
S2O,OO0,O00: F. w. Vanderbilt, Theo.
Havemeyer, H. O. Havemeyer. W. G.
Warden, w. P. Thompson, Mrs.
Schenley, J. B. Haggin, H. A. Hutch
ins, estates of w. Sloane, c. S. Higgins,
G. Tower, VIM. Thaw.. DR.. Hostetter,
VIM. Sharon, Peter Donohue.; .-....
These seventy names represent an
aggregate wealth of s2,700,OOO,OOO, an
average ofmor than 37,50O,00O each.
Although Mr.. shearman, in making
this estimate, did not look for less than
twenty rnillionaires, be discovered in
cidentially fifty others worth more
than 100000 each; and he says that
list of ten persons can be made whose
wealth averages 500, O,O0O,0 600 each, and
that another list of one hundred persons
whose wealth averages $25 100000. No
such lists can be made up in any other
country. "The richest dukes of En-
gland" he says "fall below the average
wealth of a dozen American citizens;
while the greatest bankers, merchants,
and railways magnates of England can
not compare in wealth with many
Americans
The average annual iucome of the
richest hundred Englishmen is about
$450,0O0, but the average annual in
come of the richest hundred Americans
cannot be less than $l,2O0,O00, and
probably exceeds Sl,700,000. The rich
est of the Rothschilds, and the world
renowned banker, Baron Overstone,
each left about ST., 100000. Earl Dud-
ley, the owner of the richest iron mines,
left S20,000,0 900. The Duke of Buccleuch
land the Duke of Buccleuch carries half
of Scotland in his pocket lett about
s30,000,O00. The Marquis of Butte was
worth, in 1872, about s28,000,0OO in
land, and he may now\be worth s40,-
10000 in all. The Duke of Norfolk
may be worth SAC, ZOO, 900, and the Duke
of Westminster perhaps S5O,0O0,0O0.
Mr.. Shearman's conclusion is that
$4,000 persons own one-half the wealth
of the United States; and that the
whole wealth of the country is practi-
cally owned by 25O,00O persons, or one
in sixty Of the adult male population;
and he predicts, from the rapid recent
concentration of wealth, that under
present conditions $4,000 persons will
practically own all the wealth of the
country in thirty years-or less than
one in 500 Of the adult male popula-
ton.