The Portland daily press. [volume] (Portland, Me.) 1862-1921, 1894-11-26
THE RICH MEN OF EUROPE.
Vanderbilt Isn't in 1t With Those Old
World CrOesuses.

World CrOeSuseS.
| A Russian Is the Richest Man in the
| World-The Tremendous Charges on
English Fortunes-E Encountered Es-
tates in Germany and Russia
| In order to appreciate the sensation
| which has been created throughout the
| length and breadth of the British EMPIRE
| by the news of Capt. McCalmonts entry IN
to possession of the $40, 0,09O bequeathed
to him seven years ago by his uncle, Hugh,
| the Lombard street, London, banker anu
| stock broker, it is necessary to take INTO
| consideration the fact that this vast sum OF
money comes to him absolutely unfettered
and without any charge whatsoever upon
| if. 1t is tc all intents and purposes pocket
| monev-or. as the Duke of Devonshire calls
| it, male pin-money''-fre for him to dis
| pose of in whatsoever manner-short OF
| criminal that he may see fit. AS such it
| is absolutely unique in the United Kingdom,
| and the case of Capt. McCalmont is without
| parallel among his countrymen. True, sew
eral of the latter indeed quite respectable
| number, have fortunes that are consider
ably larger, such as for instance the Dukes
of Westminster, Devonshire, Bedford, Nor
folk and Buccleuh; Lords Derby, Butte,
Cadogan and Bath. But their possessions
are encountered by heavy charges of one
kind and another. which leave them each
year with an astonishingly small sum of
money at their untrammeled disposal. The
majority of these English fortunes are in
| land. Even when they have been acquired
| by trade ana industry. such as those of
| Lord Hillingdon, the banker; Lord Iveagh,
| the brew er. and Lord Masham. the manu-
| facturer and inventor of cottoE-sp1nnlng
| machinery, they always end by being in
| vested in real estate. and then become sub
| iect to the inevitable charges upon the
| same.
| What these charges are was pointed out
| by no less person than the Duke of Devon
| shire during the debate in the House Vt
! Lords upon the new death duties. They
| include interest ON mortgages, cost OF man
agement, expenditure states. cost of
new buildings and Of repairs to old ones,
allowances and remlssions of rents to tene-
ments, the cost of maintaining roads and
hedges, keeping up number OF country
seats, looking after the poor on the estates,
payment of annuities and jointures to rel
atives of one kind and another, pensions to
old servants and retaineIs, and the provis-
ion requisite for the younger children's
future. Nor, says this interesting writer in
the New York Tribune. is this expenditure
upon the estate of an altogether voluntary
character or prompted by self-interest.
since if the occupant fails to keep the prop
erty in good repair and condition the heir
presumptive to the entailed portion thereof
can.force him by legal process to devote
each year proportion of his income to that
particular use. Then, too. there is the turf.
which is to such an extent National insti-
tuition that many of the great English ter
ritorial magnates, titled and untitled, feel
convinced that they would be wanting in
their duty to their country if they were
not to devote both their time and their
money to this particular form of sport.
Few of the owners of English racing stables
oet-not even on their own horses. being OPP
posed to 1t on pIinciple-merely keeping a
racing stud because they think 1t necessary
to live up to the traditions of their anoes-
tors, and to fulfill what they believe toI be
their obligations ms patriotic citizens by
maintaining at no matter how great loss
that which they and their fathers before
them have always regarded as an essen
TALLY English institution.
How small is ''the male pin-money''-that
H.
is to say, the pocket-money-may be
gathered from the iact Lnat nay irea uen ~
iy heard men with incomes OF over oooo'ooo
year complain oitterly tnat they aiu hol
have even $4,000 o. that sum which they
could dispose of as they listed.
1t is obvious that English millionaires
whose property is fettered by SO many en-
forced expenditures as those which l have
endeavored briefly to enumerate. must re-
gard with sentiments of envy man in the
position of Capt. McCalmont, whose lot can
only be compared to that of the immnlehse-
ly wealthy foreigners who go to England
|, for the purpose of spending there the in
comes which they derive abroad, that is to
say. incomes free from any charges in Eng
land. 1t is Russians in particular who have
hitherto aroused the greatest feelings of
jealousy in London. Like the English mil
lionaires those of the Cars dominfons most
ly derive their revenues from landed prop
erty. While the Brlton. however, devotes
large part of his gross income toward i'm
rrovino his noasasaionS and tl the 8mali0.