Wood County reporter. [volume] (Grand Rapids [i.e. Wisconsin Rapids], Wis.) 1857-1923, 1896-06-25
A VERY RICH GIRL.
Fair One Who Inherits Hirsch's Mil
lions

daughter OF the late Baron Maurice o.
Hirsch de Gereuth, will eventually in
herit 1t will make her the creates
heiress in the world.
The most curious fact about thi'
prospective young multi-million heir
ess is that the legitimacy of her birth
is doubtful. The young woman's
mother was a governess in Baror
Hirsch's family, and her father wa:
the baron's only son. By some it is
claimed that no marriage ever took
place, while friends of the baron as
sert that a secret church marriage was
performed. But, even if this were so
it does not constitute a legal marriage
according to French law.
Though the Baroness de Hirsch is
named in her late husbands testament
as his sole legatee, it is stated upon
unquestionable authority that. acting
under private instructions, which the
baron gave her not many months be-
fore his death, she will hold this vast
wealth until Lucienne comes of age
when she will turn it over to her with
out reserve.
The private lives and family affairs
of most men whose wealth and high
position have brought them much into
public notice are generally well
known. But this was not the case
with Baron de Hirsch. Before his
death few people, except those most
closely connected with him, knew OF
the existence of this child, who. though
her father was Hebrew, is now being
reared a strict Catholic.
This is the first authentic account OF
the personality and history of the
young girl These facts have been
gathered largely from people in this
city-few in number-WhO knew the
late Baron de Hirsch intimately. and
therefore have more or less knowledge
of his family life.
Lucienne Premelic Hirsch is IA years
old. She lives in Brussels, where she
is being educated. The possessor OF
great beauty, she gives promise when
she reaches maturity of being as pre-
eminent in good looks as in fortune
Of medium height and rather slender
she carries herself so gracefully and
With such dignity as to appear at the
first glance to be taller than she really
is. In her features she resembles her
mother, who was Frenchwoman, not
of the Hebrew race. In her EXPIRES
sion and the general contour of her
face the likeness TO her father. the
late Baron de Hirsch's only son, who
lied some years ago, is striking. This
IS especially noticeable about her eyes
and mouth. Her eyes are large and
dark and rather deeply set. They
have all the soft blackness, the pa
thence and gentlenesS which are the
characteristics of the Jewish race. Her
mouth is neither small nor large, and
the lips but moderately full. Fan
from being swarthy, her cheeks seem
even pale, their clear delicacy Of tint
being accumulated by her dark hair.
In religion, as said she is beng
reared a strict Catholic. In the great
mansion where she lives a little priv
ate chapel has been fitted up, where
she receives spiritual instruction each
day from a specially appointed priest
No more carefully could she be
brought up, in fact, in this respect if
she were princess of the blood royal
Mile. Hirsch's guardian and COVER
ness is Nine Hatime MOntefiore Levy
nee Bischoffsheim, sister of the Baron
ess de Hirseh. Nine. Levy is one OF
the wealthiest women in Europe in her
own right and the owner of half Of the
castles in Belgium. She is a strict and
orthodox Hebrew in her religious
faith, moreover; and how it has come
about that Lucienne should be brought
up in a religion Numerically opposed
to that of Judaism is one of the many
interesting things connected with this
girls parentage and history.
Baron de Hirsch, as every one
knows, was a man of the utmost liber-
ality and liberation in religious mat
tiers. AS long as a person was honest
it mattered little to him whether he
L 81
did so much for his co-religionists, he
rarely entered a synagogue for wor-
ship. AS was said by one of his many
eulogists, E'he carried his temple
within him" When the question OF
what Lucienne's religious belief and
training should be came up, it was
therefore, but natural that he should
readily accede to the request of her
mother an ardent Catholic, and allow
the daughter to continue in that faith
Indeed, as matter of fact, before the
child could have entered the Jewish
church she must necessarily have alb.
jured all other religions; and so it is
that, in Difference to her late brother
in-law's wishes, Nine. Levy, though {
stanch upholder of Judaism, allows hel
ward to become a follower of another
faith
According to the provisions of Baron
de Hirsch's will, 100000 has been sci
apart for the maintenance of Lucienne
until she reaches her majority. Hall
of the income of this will go to hel
guardian, or "gouvernante," who viii
not be called upon to render any &C
count of the same
Probably there is no other grea
heiress in the world who began life
under more inaUspicuous circum
stances. To fully explain what these
were, it will be necessary to go. bach
in the family history of Baron d.
Hirsch some sixteen or seventeen
years