Omaha daily bee., 1890-01-05
BONANZA HEIRS.
Only a Few Promising Rich Young
Men in San Francisco.

Men in San Francisco.
That the famous Golden Gate city is
in its commercial decadence nobody
here with an ounce of presclence denies.
Even local pride is compelled to yield
before the crushing truth, says n San
Francisco correspondent OF the New
York Herald. What is going to be the
future of San Francisco is n problem
that few care to dicuss lest further UNI
welcome intelligence be the outcome.
One discouraglng feature is that so
much OF the brain and wealth of Cali
fornia-the sons Of pioneers who once
made the state famous-are seeking
homes and opportunities elsewhere.
There is nothing to tempt the rich
young men of this decade to business
enterprise of any kind. Most of those
who have inherited the wealth OF their
fathers are either idle dawdlers or
wasteful spendthrifts. Some are lack
ing in either mental or physical capac-
ity to perpetuate h usefulness or fame
of their sires. Scores of young men
who have inherited the wealth of bo-
nanza days have left the state for other
fields-some for Europe, others for New
Eork-all with intent never to return
to the land in which their fathers toiled
for their wealth and their children's in
dependence. In this way millions AVE
been carried away from California,
which in justice should have remained
here to assist in the states development
and prosperity.
The young men who remain are not
all OF benefit to the community. With
the SINGLE exception of the Crocker
family, the younger members of which
are now in possession OF their fathers
immense fortune, there is scarcely a
millionaire's son who has shown any
business ability. public enterprise or
any other tendency than the selfish en-
joyment of suddenly acquired riches.
There are Il dozen more of these young
Crpsi in San Francisco, and the city
would be better off If there were lone.
| An explanation might be made in the
cases OF Colonel Mervyn Donahue, who,
| as the heir OF his father, Peter Dona-
hue, came into a piece of railway prop
erty worth several millions. The
| colonel has shown some sagacity in get
ting the property in such shape that it
is available for sale to some eastern
company who may want terminal facili-
| ties in San Francisco, but further than
that his genius has not wandered. The
| colonel, like many of the other young
millionaires, wants to sell out and take
up his abode in New York, where in
deed he now spends most Of his time.
By-reason of their vast railway and
real estate interests the Crocker boys
are probably anchored to the coast.
They are worth from 81, 000, 900 to Sl0,-
OO0, 600 each. and it may in truth be said
they are pretty good boys. Fred
Crocker, the eldest, has succeeded his
father as vice president of the vast
Southern Pacific system, and will ulti-
mately be at the head Of that great cor
poration. He is an active man of bust
nacc md iS al pa w6 and plrafu1. He ia
n worthy successor Of the man whose
energy did so much to build that great
tra%nscontinental railroad. The second
brother, William H., is a banker and is
the society man of the family 1t was
| feared at one time that Will, as he is
invariably called, was going to develop
into n cigarette tiend and a dude, but
he rose above it and is now the head of
one OF the best banks in the city and
manager of the millions of real estate
left by his father. George, the youngest
son, who in his youth was wilder than a
partridge, has taken his millions and
gone into the cattle business in Nevada
and Utah. He is n kind OF rough dia-
mond, young George is, and he is not apt
to polish up much in his new surround
ings, but he has money enough to see
him through in any enterprise. The
three Crocker boys have been happily
free from scandals-their names have
mover been associated with any but re-
putable women, which is so unusual in
California that it is worthy of remark.
Rich young men here care little for the
proprieties in their relations with the
other sex. They seem as a rule to have
no respect for mothers and sisters. They
will set up a siren in a gilded cage right
in the shadow of the parental roof, and
think they are doing something manly
and creditable.
Young Flood is the most conspicuous
offender in this respect. His conduct
both during and after the life of his
father ostracized him socially. He is
even said to have married the inmate
of his dove cot, and that San Francisco,
tolerant as it is in many things, will
never forgive. The result is that Jim
ME" Flood, as he is called, is never in
vited anywhere. He belongs to no
clubs and his society is politely avoided
by the pest people Of both sexes. Yet
he is worth five millions or more and is
president of the big Nevada bank and
owner Of two of the finest palaces in
America. But his tastes and instincts
are low, n when on one of his tearing
sprees there are no depths to which the
young mar will not descend, Jimmie
does not enjoy the the full confidence OF
the business community, so IL he were
disposed to go into mercantile or other
business enterprises he would not find
much encouragement from other CAPT
talists.
OF al! the California millionaires the
most unfortunate with his sons is ex-
Senator Fair. He has two-James g.,
Jr., and Charles. The elder is well
known from the Atlantic to the Pacific
for his sprees and scrapes. Charley is
following in the same path and both are
incorrigible. The senator is bitterly
disappointed in the development of his
heirs, but he does not get the sympathy
that one might expect. The breaking
up of the family by that very foolish di-
vorce is in the main the cause of the
boys worthlessness. They have had nc
training and have simply grown VI
wild with the Usual result. If the fu-
ture Of San Francisco depended upon
the wealth and enterprise of such citi'
zens as the Fair boys promise to make
hers would be a sorry fate.
Timothy Hopkins, adopted son OF ole
Mark Hopkins, and prospective heir o.
the present Mrs. Hopklns-Searle O
Great harrington, Mass, belongs II
the Croker category. He is in the