The San Francisco call., 1896-10-03
This Port.

of several years and is now sojourning
with his wife at the Hotel Richelieu, on
Van Ness avenue.
Sir William was British Consul at San
Francisco for several years prior to 1883,
when, for efficient work in her Majesty S
service, be was promoted to the rank OF
Consul General and stationed at New
York, where he has been ever since.
In 1894, having reached the limit OF
service that entitled him to retirement, he
took advantage of the English law on the
matter and left active service on pension
of f100 per month, going at once to Eng
land to confer with the Home Government
on important IN alters.
Sir William Lane Booker is considered
one of the most astute and accomplished
diplomats to which British interests in
America have been intrusted and he has
repeatedly been honored for the able
manner in which he has upheld the re-
sponsibilities of his position.
Not long after being promoted to
the Consul Gene ralshlp at New York, he
began 10 observe closely the Pinkerton
detective system and soon decided that a
like sy stem could be advantageouSly used
in England. Many of the suggestions ne
made to his Government were adopted,
and 1t was at his instance that the Pinker-
tons were employed to watch the men,
bers of the Clan-na-Gael and other Irish
secret societies.
His return to America just about the
time lyman, the notorious No. l, was ar
rested in France, was considered signifi-
cant of his work in that line.
Having spent the last forty years on
United States soil, Sir William is thor
oughIy acquainte with America, and is
still further identified with the country
through having chosen two wives from
among American women. The fame OF
California gold fields brought him to
America in 1849, he having arrived in this
City in June of that year, after tedious
journey of nearly six months from Lon
don.
A year spent in the mines on the Yuba
River and on Butte Creek brought the
young Englishman, then plain William
Lane Booker, little wealth, and he r.
turned TO San Francisco, where he was
for year the agent of English insurance
companies. On the formation of the
British consulate in 1851 he became its
secretary and in 1856 was appointed Act
ing Consul. In May of the next year
Consul George Aiken was retired and
Booker became Consul. Under his en-
couragement and fostering care British
interests Oh tue dClAC OOdSb pJOSpcT6u.
1t was in recognition of his services mere
that Lord Granville. on the retirement of
Sir Edward Mortimer Archibal4 as Consul
General at New York, appointed him to
the vacancy. The compliment was a
marked one, as the position is one of the
best in the gift of the British Foreign OF
flee, paying $1S,500 per year and having
jurisdiction over New York, New Jersey,
Delaware. Rhode Island, Connecticut,
Kansas, Nebraska, Colorado, Dakota, Utah
and Wyoming.
In 1851, in this City, he married Miss
Elizabeth Page, daughter of The late
Gilbert Page of Morristown, N. j.. who
was then soiourning in San francisco.
Several years after the death of this lady
he married Mrs. P. Bispham, the widow
of retired New York merchant. The or
der of st. Michael and ST. George was
conferred on him in 1886, and in 1894 he
was knighted for distinguished service.
Sir William 5 visit to this coast is purely
one of health and pleasure, his long resi-
dence here having endeared the Pacific
Slope to him. He says that while his SER
vices are at the disposal of the British
Government whenever it may need them,
he is now on the retired list and is taking
no active interest in international affairs.