Waterbury evening Democrat., 1895-03-23
IT COMES HIGH.
I5uS Young George Vanderbilt win Have the Finest Estate In America
 E,rrCSrDpdcnca I


 Especial Currespondcnce.l
 NASHVILLE, N. C., March 1s.-George Vanderbilt Is 26 years old, unmarried and will soon Do the owner of the finest estate in the world. He Is very quiet in his tastes, preferring his books and pictures to the pleasures of society. It Is for this req son he will 1.-Two in the solitude of majestic mountains instead of tho atmosphere of clubs and thcators.
 For tho last thrcc years tho youngest son of William II. VnndcrDut has given his attention and money to tho erection of his new homo at Ashcville. He comes hero every few months and remains n few weeks nt tho Red Farm House." his temporary residence. It will probably be seven years before his homo and grounds arc completed, in spite of tho fact that 600 workmcn arc employed daily upon the work. Mir. Vanderbilt will probably cat his Christmas dinner In 1896 in his palace, for it Is nothing clsc.
 He has acquired tho title to loo, 900 acres of land (about 160 square milcs) in and around AsheviIlc. It is said he may drive 37 miles in straight line from his chateau and still bc on his own posses sions. Already 70 miles of macadam roads have been built, which nre linod with brilliant hucd, hardy tropical plants and myriad colored rhododendrons. These roads lead down to tho valley or up hill after hill to tho heaven aspiring peak of tho famous Mount Pisgah, or perhaps they wind toward that blue, hazy curtain which on nearer inspection proves to be tho Smoky ranSN or clse wcnd their way toward tho grandeur of the Black noun tains.
 The chateau when finished will testify to the magnificent work of man, as tho scenery does to tho wOndrOus work of na- ture The houso stands on an osplanade of 700 by 300 feet. This was made by cut ting down tho summit of a hill and filling in the Impressions. \ perfect level is tho result. Tho architecture is purc Italian. It is built of Maryland limestone and is four stories high.
 Let tho imagination run riot, and even then ono can havo but a faint conception of tho magnitude of this sumptuous home. As a starting point, recolleCt n troop of cavalry might walk though the loggias and a regiment march down tho stairways. | The banquet hall and reception room is as large as any ordinary church, and a city house might Do comfortably ensconced in the library. The magnificent carvings about tho principal entrances aro in the hands of Karl Bitter. One of the guardians q | d'Arc. Beyond tho driveway is n terraccd | stairway in imitation of the famous Porto Aggatio. Possibly these two facts show l tho historic eclecticism of the ownor. On | tho right is the tennis ground, with its | quaint teahouse and stone fountain about | LOGO years old, brought from tho vicinity of tho Nile. Still farther Is tho consarva- l tory, tho only spot that invites criticism, it being very small and unprctontious. On | the left of the chateau are situated the | stables, carriage houses and dog kennels. l A branch of the Southern railroad runs | from Biltmoro tO tho back of the house, thus enabling n private car to run directly to the door of tho mansion. Besides the | railroad ono finds a stone quarry, where all the stone used for walls, roads, foun- | dations, etc, has been procured; also a dairy of 250 cows and brick kiln. From the private nurseries over 1000, l 900 plants and ornamental trees have been transplnnted into tho grounds. In an. | other year n game preserve and hundreds | of deer will bo an acquisition to tho parks. l About that time 20 cottages, costing SEQ, l 900 each, will have been erected. These houses will be rented to tho personal friends of MT. Vanderbilt. A $l00, O0C church Is alSoady in an advanced state oi | erection and last, but not least of hi: | many possessions, is tho country storo at Biltmore owned by this millionaire.
 Mir. Vanderbilt had no trouble in secur ing the property he wished, with one ex | ception. Charles Collins, a thrifty negro | owns plot of seven acres right in the mid dc of the rich mans domains. Collin! has scornfully refused $7, 500 and will con tinue to Do Mir. Vanderbilt s nearest neigh
 bor until he gets his own price, said to bt | $12 900. No one Is allowed on the ground: without n special permit, and all camera:
 are oonfscated and not returned until tht
 visitor leaves the gates.
 An impartial observer cannot but com
 mend tho young millionaire, who is i'm
 proving a vast territory, giving employ
 ment to thousands of men, seemingly in
 vesting his money wisely and building th'
 most magnificent estate in the world. | MAUpR JAMES CHILToN.