The Hawaiian star. [volume] (Honolulu [Oahu]) 1893-1912, 1894-04-25
THE MAN WHO MADE MONTE CARLO.
traits Of the Man whose Peculiar Enter
prise KnIneh IhnnsanIs.

One evening In the days Of the second
empire n crowd Of men were reading the
evening pc per in salon in the Rue de Ri
Volt
"Ah, - lid one. breaking the silence,
$50 hN lions are still wanted 30 finish
the new o era house"
A II tnt listener took up pen and fill
ed in and iguei check for that amount
without woId. BY and By, when the
pew ol ara house was finished, that silent
man " ts 1mehow the only person forgot
Ten in Il distribution OF seats for the
grand ope ing night.
Chai les Munselct is responsible for this
curious lii le aneCdote, the hero of which
was Fam 'is Blanc, director Of the Casino
Of MOI ,e arlo. Blanc was n nun of vast
ambition, / born fnancier and admins
traitor, VIII might, under certain cuudi-
tions, Law been a Rofhschild, but who
lives H. h tory ~ "A mighty organizer Of
gambling enterprise and was really one
of the i'm lest Of men. To see him In his
brown ov rcoat, his gold spectacles half
dropping II his nose, one would have tax
en- him fol petit RENTER, whose widest
dreams W, e Of the construction Of n little
grotto IN is little garden, with little plas-
ter rabbit and fountain which like
Wemm ok g, would almost wet the back
Of ones hG i'd
Before b Monte Carlo days he had been
the guiding spirit in the direction Of the
Casino of 1Iomburg. Benazet. according
to his ilati erers, was the Louis Quator2e
of Bad,nBaden. Blanc, who was impcr.
vious to huttery, might with equal justice
have been called the Colbert of Homburg.
hard headed, silent man Of bourgeois
exterior, a man without enthusiasm and
weaknesses, who kept IA lavish table and
ate sparingly, who directed huge gam
bling machine and permitted himself no
more exciting dissipation than quiet
game Of billiards after dinner. have
heard it said in the Tattersall family that
old Dick, the founder of the historic cor
ner, never made bet of more than a pair
of gloves in his life.
So Francois Blanc rose superior to the
attractions Of his own table, despiscd
trente-et-quarante and was afraid of rou-
lette. What he was not afraid of, how
ever, was spending money. To compass
his business ends he laid IL out lavishly,
and he might, SO they say, have been cred
tied with many acts of genuine benevo-
lence and public spirit, whereof the story
of the opera house at Paris may serve as
an example.
After the war the glories of Homburg
and Baden departed, and on their ruins
rose Monte Carlo. Monte Carlo was the
great, the crowning achievement of Fran
co.'s Blanc's life-the desert cape, which.
by mere force of millions, he turned into
one of the most wonderful of the gardens
of the Mediterranean littoral. But it was
not done without keen opposition. lie
made the fortunes of the Nicols in spite Of
themselves. At every fresh opposition he
simply opened his purse, and the golden
shower fell in the sacred name of local in
terests. Nine. Blanc, the most excellent
Of wives, was tower of strength to him.
Where questions of art and elegance
came in, hers was the directing spirit, and
the good man, whose thoughts and talk
were of figures and finance, was content
that her taste should crown his work II
needed n hard head to Withstand the at
tacks that were made upon him. Every
days post brought with it hundred prop
ositions and threats. They were people
who had los their money and demanded
it's return ith fierce menaces-specula-
tive and in entive people who proposed
com binattol 8; there were even tempta-
tions oflere of the kind which assailed
the sainied anthony, pitiful supplications
and warning df intending rsuicides-place
and date ca eiully specified, SO that there
should be NJ mistake.
Once, eve Mt Monte Carlo, the Villa
Blanc was ,tually assailed, and two serv-
ants Were Sc iously wounded in its defense
But the equ nimity Of Francois Blanc was
equal to ADJ antures. Threats, prayers, all
temptations left him untouched. lie liked
best TO say in his own family circle, re-
fusing ali il citations and indulging him
self only wi h good dinner, IA bottle of
Chateau La lite, cigar, chat about
financial OF rations-which would some
times excite him-and n game of billiards.
The Only 'utlet which he allowed for
his irrepres ible energy was frequent
change o. al ode. In one year he lived in
Paris, Avif non, Monaco, Dieppe and
Loueche-le les iains in Switzerland, where
he died a5 !, st of asthma-a respectab ble
man, as res ectability goes, fond of his
family and good citizen, but withal per
haps the bes abused man in Europe, and
certainly the indirect cause Of as much
mischief as any man in Europe,
Mall Budget.