Los Angeles herald., 1892-12-19
EAvESDROPPINGS.

Jay G0uld'5 death ls 6omewnat STATE
but his will is still fair topic for con-
versation and writing, without any par
ticular respect for the man who said
''De mortuis nil nisi bonum." As there
was nothing good to be said OF him in
the flesh, there can be but little said
now. 1t is said that there will never be
another like him, and God forbid there
should be. The only newspaper that l
have found to eulogize him is the New
York Mail and Express published by
Mr.. Sheppard, who made fortune
by going regularly to church with
MIR. Vanderbilt's daughter. "a fellow.
feeling makes us wondrous kind" and
as the Christian EDITORS wealth was
amassed by all kinds of jobbery on the
part of his wife's grandfather, it ia not
astonishing that he should slop over at
the tomb of the hero of "Black Friday"
x*#
People say that Gould was kind hus-
band and father. Nobody doubts that
a moment. Lions and bears will fight
for their young, and why not men? But
the mans utter defiance OF all CONNER
cial ethics, hie fondness for acquiring
money without the slightest regard as
to how it was obtained, were shocking
examples to the young. His will was
consistent with his life. 1t borrowed
the shibboleth of the defuhct Wander
bilt and virtually said: 1.-The public be
d-d." am glad he left not one cent to
charities. Had he done 80 there always
would have been somebody to eulogize
him and say that great man had fallen
in Israel. But why has his one hundred
milllone of wealth so suddenly shrunk
away aud abated 25 per cent within a
fortnight? Simply because, in order to
avoid the the legacy tag law of New
York, he probably gave his children
s25, ,000, 900 the week preceding his de-
mise.
x*x
That legacy tax law is good one. and
l hope to see similar law enacted here
during the approaching session of our
legislature. There are ten or q dozen
millionaires in this state whose estates
ought to be made Cat their deatbs) to
ewell the treasury of the state at least a
quarter million apiece. Fair, Mackay,
Phelan, Baldwin, the railroad magDates.
Spreckels aud a dozen more of them
should be compelled to make restitution
to the people to certain extent, Phelan
and Spreckels the least of all. Fair and
Mackay ought to get it the hardest, and
Huntington next. Stanford has done
something for the state, and so has the
estate of Charles Crocker. But the law
shou read so that every mans estate,
who devises by will $1,000,0o0 or up
ward, should pay a tax of 3 per cent
in IN the state tra9aurV.
x*x
Not only that, but 1 believe there
should be sliding scale on this matter
of colossal fortunes. All fortunes OF be-
tween three and seven millions should
be taxed at 4 per cent, and all above
seven millions should be taxed at per
cent. People will say this is legislation
characteristic OF monarchical form of
government, but is it any more SO than
The federal income tax which prevailed
during the civil war and abolished be-
fore it's close? 1t is claimed to be very
un-Americsn species of legislation, but
it must be likewise remembered that the
average American millionaire has very
un- American way OF impoverishing his
Therefore, if the Actor family are not to
high bridge across the Harlem, and if
the Phelans, Fairs, Mackays ct al. are
not to be the proprietors OF San Fran
cisco, in fee simple, some laws Of this
sort will have to be devised.
Look how the wealth of California has
been segregated since 1850. In that
year the two richest men in the state
were estimated to be Samuel Brannan
sch IL mi 10 lof hoir ~ q
tinancier, while the other had gotten
rich by robbing the Mormon church for
| a starter. Even as late as 1865 Alvinza
Hayward, then estimated at $1.200, 900,
was considered worth $500 000 more
than any other man in the state, except
Luning. The bonanza crowd had lees
than $500 600 between the four of them
in 1870; and az for the big four OF the
| Southern Pacific, they were begging for
credit on beef and -four to feed their
men as late as January, 1867. Since
| then there has been an accumulation of
| over 1920, 900, 900 in this state by less
than 40 men. These men differ in the
shape of their wealth. Haggin is eaid
| to be worth $4,000, 900, but be is, for
| all that, the biggest borrower of all our
millionaires, and pays more money out
| as interest in each year of his life than
I shall be able to earn between no W and
| the day am laid to rest.
In 1866 died Samuel J. Hensley, presi
dent OF the California Steam Navigation
/ company, leaving an estate appraised al
$500, 900, the largest estate devised by
will up to that time, in California
Money was plenty then, as compared
with now, for it was generally diffusec
throughout our population. The col
lapse of the great stock deal (Kentucf
and Crovn Point) of 1872 was the fire.
hard blow our people got. By ths
manipulation of that scheme the for
tunes OF William @. Ralston and William
Sharon were increased over millioI
dollars for each. In three years from
that time the former of these men wal
laid away in suicides grave. 1t wa
either that or San Quentin for him
1 But for him d. O. Mills, now worth
$30, 900, 10000 and living in New York
would have been country banker
worth perhaps 100000. He began lif
by peddliDg lemonade from bucket OF
the Sacramento levee in, 1S49 and hi
brother, at that very time, was driving
cab from stand alongside the Asto
house in Barclay street in New York
He is now worth s6,00o,000.
~
These fortunes have been accumulatet
too rapidly for the public good, especial
ly in the cases OF Flood, Fair, Sharon
and the big railroad ouartette. In 1856
To,v,oo pholan oc xr-ortl, ,.~ol,, hi e, eelO