The Portland daily press. [volume] (Portland, Me.) 1862-1921, 1894-11-26


ly encountered. That of the Esterhazys'
for insance, once the richest ana largest III
the dual Empire, is mcrtgaged up to the
very lilt. There, as in England, whenever
man acquires fortune, either i'll tIade'
speculation OF industry. he Immediately IN
vests goodly portion, if not ali. his wealth
in an estate, with a view of achieving the
social prestige that invariably attae hes
there to land owner With the exception
of the Berlin banker, Baron Bleichroeder;
of the guDmaier, krupp. of Essen; OIL
Offerman, the cotton-spinner, at rum. anu
two or three more, there is no enormously
rich subjects of Emperor William or Emper-
or Francis Joseph who does not belong to
the territ orial class.
In France there are practically no large
fortunes left. save those of the sugar re-
liners, Say and Lebaudy, and Henri Schnel-
der, counterpart of Herr Krupp, of Essen.
Great territorial possessions and estates
are now almost unknown, the entire land
being divided up into small holdings. TINS
being the inevitable result of the abolition
of primogeniture. and the obligation upon
each father to bequeath bis property IN
equal portions to his children. 1t is din
cult to know from what sources the french
aristocracy derives its revenues. 1t is GER
tain1y not from land, and the presumption is
that there are far more members of the ar
istooracy in trade, or allied thereto by mar
riage, than care to avow it. At least two
of the ducal families are indebted for what
ever wealth they possess to the manufac-
ture of champagne, namely. those of Uzes
and Montebello. The Due de Feltre. if l
remember Alright, enjoys considerable in
come derived from large four-mills; the
Dukes of Wagram and Grammont have
gilded their coats-of-arms by matrimonial
unions with ladies of the house of Roths-
child; the Due de la Tremouille's son and
heir married the daughter of a banker,
while the son of the DUO de al Rochefou-
cauld-D oudeauville may De said to have
found gold mine in the person of his wife.
who is a granddaughter and co-heirsess OF
old M. and Nine Blanc. the founders and
creators of the gambling establishment at
Monte Carlo. But for the most part the
great world of France is far from Itch, and
if its members are able in measure to
keep up appearances, it is mainly because
they have no such charges upon their for
tunes as the millionaires of England, Ger
many and Austria. When they choose to
economic they can do so by the mere sac
rifise of personal luxury. vanity and even,
comfort, without feeling, as is the case
with the landowners of the three countries
just mentioned, that by shutting up their
country-seats and reduoih ing the establish
ment they are throwing hundreds of fam
lilies. for generations in the service of their
house. out of employment, and depriving
them of their means of existence.
In Sweden there are about dozen great
fortunes-not more-and they are in each
case of territorial character several Of
them. such as those of the Count Hallwyl
and of Count Waohtmeister, having been de-
rived from coal and minerals. Others, in
lumber. In Belgium and Holland all the
great fortunes have been made in trade,
and are bound up therein. while in Spain.
Portugal and Italy there are no large for
tunes left to speak of. With the exception
of the Torlonias, who made their money by
banking; of the Galliera fortune, acquired
by building railroads. and the inherited
wealth of Prince Doria, and possibly, too,
of the Duke of Sermoneta, there is no one
in Italy whose wealth can be regarded as.
considerable from an English or American
point OF view In Spain the state Of fairs
Is VI IL SiulldE CudfdCL0T. udG ID " Sdys
there are a few large fortunes, such as
those of the Duke of Salamanca and of San
tonic. made in railroad contracting and Gu
ban trade respectively. while the hereditary
fortunes of the ducal houses of Medina
Coeli. Fernan-NuneZ and Villahermosa, stll
remain, like those of the Italian Princes
Diria and Sermoneta, invested in land. 1t
is the Duke of Villahermosa, by-the-by.
whose ancestors and predecessor in the title
figures in don Quixote' as the Duke, while
one of his minor titles is that of Condo de
Luna. of '.Trovadore" celebrity.
From this it will be seen that the vast
majority of large fortunes in Europe are in
the form of landed property encountered
with heavy Obligations of one kind and an
other. and that. Therefore, the case Of young
Capt. McCalmont, who finds himself sud
denly placed in the possession of S20,oOu.OG0
Of male pin money. without any kind Of
unique in the old world to call forth more
thar Jrdinarv attention.