Idaho semi-weekly world. [volume] (Idaho City, Idaho Territory) 1875-1908, 1890-01-28
SEVENTY RICH FAMILlES.
A Startling Argument Concerning the
Concentration OF Wealth.

COnteutfHtion VI ssS"hth
Thomas G. Shearman, the well-known
New York statistician, has been engaged
for some time in collecting facts to show
as precisely as possible the proportion
of the wealth of the country held by a
few rich men and families and he finds
n greater concentration of wealth here
than in any other country. The results
ofh investigation appear in the Forum,
from which the following facts arc
taken. Mr. Shearman makes the follow
ing enumeration Of owners OF more than
$40, 600, 900:
$3.50, 900, OOO-J J. Aston, Trinity
Church.
800, 900, 000-C. Vanderbilt, W. X.
Vanderbilt, Jay Gould, Leland Stanford,
j. ID. Rockefeller.
$40, 900, 0OO-Estate of A. Packer.
$50. 900, 00O-,John |. Blair, estate Of
Charles Croker.
$50, 900, O0O-William Astor, w. w. AS
tor, Russell Sage, E. A. Stevens, estate
of Moses Taylor, estate of Brown ~ Ives.
$40, 900, O0O--P. ID. Armour f. l.. Ames,
William Rockefeller, Ii. M. Flaglcr,
Powers & Weighman, estate OF T.
Goelet.
S35, 900, OOO-C. P. Huntington, d. o.
Mills, estate of T. A. Scott, j. w. Gar
rett.
$50. 900, OO0-G b. Roberts, Charles
Pratt, Ross Winans, f. b. Coke, Claus
Spreckels, A. Belmont r. S. Livings-
ton, Fred Weyerhauser, Mrs. Mark Hop
kins, Mrs. Hetty Green, estates Of s. V.
Hardness, r. w. Coleman, j. M. Singer.
S25. 900. OOO-A. j. Drexel, j. S. Nor
gan, j. p Morgan, Marshal Field,
David BOWS, j. &. Fair, 3. 7. Gerry,
estate of Governor Fairbanks, A. Il.
Stewart, A. Schermerhorn.
So. 500, 600. II. Payne, estates Of F.
A. Drexel, |. V. Williamson, w. +.
Weld.
$40. 900. OOO-F. w. Vanderbilt, Theo-
dore Havemeyer. II. O. Havemeyer, W.
e. Warden, w. p. Thompson, Mrs.
Schenley. J. b. Haggin, II. A. Hutchins,
estates of w. Sloane, Il. s. Higgins, @.
Tower, William Thaw, DR.. Hostetter,
William Sharon, Peter Donohue.
These seventy names represent an ag
gregate wealth of ~, roo, 600, 900, an aver
age of more than S37, 500, 900. Although
Mr.. Sherman in making this estimate
did not look for less than 20-milliOnaires,
ne discovered incidentally fifty others
worth more than $4,000, 900 each; and
he says that list of 100 persons can be
made whose wealth averages $40, 900, 600
each, and another list of 100 persons
whose wealth averages IS, 600. 900. 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 dozen American citizens,
while the greatest banker, merchants
and railway magnates of England can
not compare in wealth with many
Americans"
The average annual income of the
richest 100 Englishmen is about $780,
900. but the average annual income of
the richest 100 Americans can not be
less than S1,200,000 and probably
exceeds $780, 900. The richest of the
Rothschilds and the world-renowned
banker, Baron Overstone, each
left about ST., O00 600 Earl Dudley, the
owner of the richest iron mines, left
$40, 600, 900. The Duke Of Buccleuch
land the Duke of Buccleuch carries half
of Scotland in his pocket left about
$50, 900, 900. The Marquis of Butte was
worth in 1872 about S2S, 900, 900 in land:
he may now be worth $40, 900, 900 in all
The Duke of Norfolk may he worth S4O,-
10000 and the Duke of Westminster
perhaps $50, 600 900.
Mr.. Shearman's conclusion is that 25,-
900 persons own one-half the wealth of
the United States and the whole wealth
of the country is practically owned by
$50. 600 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
jears-or less than one in 500 of the
adult male population.