Wood County reporter. [volume] (Grand Rapids [i.e. Wisconsin Rapids], Wis.) 1857-1923, 1895-05-16


Estate.
Since the fist John Jacob Aston. the
Badenese peasant, began to grow very
rich in this city, mainly by the pur-I
chase OF New York real estate, some
ninety years ago, he gave whatever al
tentiOn was not occupied with the &C
emulation of money to the founding
Of 4 family. He himself looked after
the c0nnubial branch of his financial
accumulation with vigilant and Jealous
eyes. And when he had seen his son,
William 3. AStOr, married 10 the
daughter of i prominent American
politician, or statesman if you choose,
of excellent social position, who had
held high offices under the government,
he believed his scheme had been favor
ably introduced and would yield the
desired results. His second son was
imbecile from birth. and though every
possible means was taken to cure his
mental intirmity, it grew worse with
years and lie finally died here, past 80,
| in a prlyat e residence, where he was
secluded ard had the very best Of care.
! On this account the paternal John
| Jacob was all the more anxious that
his sane son should carry out his in
! tentions and projects matrimOniauy as
we'll as mOnetarily.
He believed in primOgeniture as the
! English manage it, and wished to have
it followed, so far as the laws of this
country would allow, in his immediat e
! descendants. William 3. Aston natur-
! ally became the head of the family and
| the representative Of the estate, stead
| lily increasing its millions, to which he
was entirely devoted, until he died al
the ripe age Of 81. His eldest son
| John Jacob, in turn succeeded to the
headship Of the family, and exhibited
even more amaSsing talent than his
father had done Meanwhile, the mar
! rying industry had been satisfactorily
! arranged among the AstOrS, who haC
stood closely together on all questions
those of matrimonial kind partlcu
| larIy, and everything had gone on as
! the founder of the estate would have
wished and advised. Family councils
I had been instituted early in the cen
fury and been regularly held, very
! much as if the AstorS were a princely
or royal line, instead of a consan
| guineous convention of money grub
! berS.
Until within the last ten or twelve
years, says a correspondent of the st
| Louis GlObe-DemOcrat, certainly mos
things had prOspered with the AstOrs
! Their enormous income had SWelleC
continually and their cOnjugal ALI
| ances had thriven-and these were
| what chiefly concerned them. They
had had no internal troubles, so far az
known; no external misfortunes be
yOnd occasional deaths and some in
sanity; no divorces, no scandals, N
permanent worries. The gods ap
peared to smile on their plutOcracy
and they may have grown to believe
as they have ever been uncOmprOmis
ing Episcopalians, tenGing to higl
church forms, that their course hat
been approved by heaven. But latterl.
change, a series of changes, ha
|
Jacob AStor died at about So, when hi
father and grandfather had ive(
nearly twenty years longer, and hi
brother William died soon after 60, in
dicating a marked decline Of life il
the third generation. Then Mrs. JOIN
Jacob AStor had had but one child,
son, William Waldorf AstOr, an eX
ception to the general fertility Of tn
wives of the family. Other adversitie
soon ensued, and, as they have beer
made public by the persons most in
terested, comment on them would al
pear to be wholly legitimate.
Every Body remembers what an ex
| traordinary disturbance was caused
few years ago at Newport by the mo
. mentous dispute. "Who is Mrs. Aston?
Then Mrs. William AstCr and Mrs
: William Waldorf Aston were bot
there, and as letters came for Mrs AS
tor the postmaster naturally delivered
them to the first person calling 70
: them But as he was severely in
| formed that Mrs. William Aston wa
the only Mrs AstOr, he acted on tn
) information until appraised that thu
name belonged to Mrs. William VALID
orr Astor. He was in a quandary; h.
= knew not what to do. He begged thu
: ladies to settle the matter for them
selves. But they could not, or at leas
r would not. All the cottagers took par
t in the controversy, which furnished
gossip and jokes to the newspapers fol
>, months. Childish and ridiculous as
! the thing was, the Asturs were Of 81
, much consequence to themselves tina
J it made an irreparable breach in the
y hitherto compact, harmonious family
? The different members took sides, anC
, they are still divided on that issue
!: The general public laughed and forgO
:; the affair, which still rankles like Pc
) tent poison IN their veins, as poor Mrs
:. William Waldorf AstOr's funeral ha;
r just disclosed.
r Not long after this storm in a saucer
: the domestic trouble between Mr.. anC
: Mrs. Coleman Drayton, the latter q
daughter Of Mrs. William Aston was
II revealed and various accounts Of i
= published in the press. The scandal
I might easily have been kept out OF
/ print: but Coleman DraytOn had seen
fit to challenge the man he charged
! with being his wife's lover, and 50 ad-
)! vertised it to the world. His indiscre-
! ton is amazing; but he is so convinced