The Salt Lake herald. [volume] (Salt Lake City [Utah]) 1870-1909, 1895-03-18
who had the advantage of personal
NELLIE NEUsTRETTER.

who had the advantage of personal
observa ton:
Nellie Neustretter-"A rather tall
| blonde woman, about twenty-five OF
twenty-siX years old. said to have come
to Paris from Brussels, and before that
to have lived in Holland. Some say
she is Swedish or half Swedish. De-
| scribed now as the luckiest woman in
Paris. Was, before Vanderbilt took her
up, in rather hard luck, but was not
known at any time 20 frequent places
were women pick up strangers. In
chned to be reserved, quiet and shrewd.
Prior to the Vanderbilt regime was
somewhat promiscuous, but held her.
self well in hand and always esti-
mated herself highly. Not wonder
fully handsome, but yet a commanding
and rather striking woman in appear
ance.''
Nellie Neustretter, who is not known
by that name at present. is the mother
of two children. One of these is very
young, the older is little more than
one year old.
The story OF the meeting of the
American millionaire and the adven-
turess is interesting. In the early
summer of 1893 W. K. Vanderbilt had
been gradually learning the tricks of
the high society of the Old World.
On June II, 1894, he went out to the
races at Longchamps to see the Grand
PriX. Before many races had been
run ne had won 10000 francs. He was
wandering about under the trees back
of the grand stands admiring the
beauty and exquisite gowns of the
women of the demi-monde, who were
assembled there, as usual. in force. He
saw one woman who TO his mind far
outshone any of the others and asked
to be introduced to her. Before the
day was over ne had taken the last
step. He threw into the lap of this
woman the $4,000 he had won, and he
had offered her his left nand' and she
had accepted it.
Within the next week all Paris was
talking of the friendship between the
American Croesus and Nellie Neu-
stretter.
And so Vanderbilt came and laid his
fortune at her feet-or at least as
much of it as even her extravaganza
would care for. Soon Mrs. Vanderbilt,
driving in the Bois, met a carriage
more splendid than hers, with servants
in livery SO like hers that at first
glance she thought it was the same.
And then she made some inquiries,
and then she LEFT lrer husband forever.
Her friends told her she must not stay
in Paris under such circumstances.
the Neustretter q house in Paris and
another at Deauville. He fixed her al
1owance at s20n,0 or whereabouts. and
in every way he made it notorious that
the grandson of the Staten island fer
ryman had begun TO waste the great
fortune in open dissipation; that the de- |
cayed grandson of the American mil
lionaire proposed to rival the decayed
children of Europe's great men in the
so-called refinement of vice.
And a queer figure this newcomer in
the lists of degeneracy cut-with nis
stolid, forid face, his quaint side
whiskers, his short, rather ungainly |
figure, his air of a laundering boy. For |
this new atmosphere was not of the
sort he had breathed all his life. He
was in no way except in wealth and
In folly, fitted to set his clumsy feet
a-dancing after the gaudy butterflies
that are bred in Paris. HIS splendors
of extravaganza did not dazzle the
Parisians They looked and winked
and thrust their tongues in their
cheeks. This staid-iooking business
man of forty-five. turned suddenly gal
ant, was too much for their gravity
san Francisco Examiner.