The Portland daily press., 1896-05-08
THE NITRATE KING.
Something About the Career of the Late
Col. North.

ted with the glamour which always ae-
companies the possession of stupendous
wealth. He was one Of tho richest men
in the world--was as rioh, probably, as
Lii Hung Chang, the Chinese statesman,
whose fortune is estimated ct 800, 900, 900.
The whole Of this amount of money he
made by his own unaided efforts, and ct
the cost of labors which would have killed
any man Of less energy and physical
stamina. At fifteen years of age the fu-
ture millionaire was apprenticed to a firm
of millwrights and engineers at Lesds,
Messrs. Shaw, North & Walsh, the North
OF the firm being cousin Of the boys
father. At twenty three he married Jane
Woodhead, daughter of Leeds town
councillor. Shortly afterward his father
died. Then young North did a very char
acteristio thing He told his widowed
mother to keep his share of his fathers
property, and with the confidence, energy
and courage which were part and parcel
Of the man, went with his young wife to
the west coast of South America.
When he landed at Valparaiso he had
about 500 In his pocket For the first
eighteen months after his arrival he
worked as an engineer for railway com
pany in Carrizal, Chill. At this time
the nitrate districts of Peru were begin
ming to be talked Of as a good field for
spectators. To Peru North peuook MIN.
self ut the end of the eighteen months,
thinking his engineering ability would
lind there fuller and moro profitable CD
portunity. His work was largely in the
nitrate fields. He was one of the first to
see the possibilities they afforded for
money making.
so ne began, in a small, modest way.
to purchase nitrate. For twenty years be
continued to purchase it. He mastered
every detail of the nitrate business, and
pp,egan to erect works here and there in
Larapaoa. There is an area of about one
hundred and fifty square miles in this
province where the deposits Of nitrate of
SOFA amount to millions of tons. Before
the war broke out between Chilli, Bolivia
ana Feru, he had realized fortune and
nad returned to England. having set on
1907 immense commercial enterprises in
Plsagua, Iquiquess Tarapaca and other
points on the west coast. The war COM
PEELED him to return to South America
10 LOOK after his interests.
Wnen the war came to an end Tarapaca
was Chilian territory. Colonel North
Understood better than anyone else the
resources Of the conquered provinces
He at once began to purchase at depre-
olated rates the Peruvian bonds which
had been issued to the nitrate companies.
and he also secured control of some of fine
nitrate railways. Colonel North sue
oeeded In forming companies with Eng
llsh capital tor working one nitrate bed
aIter another, and for operating and ex-
tending the railway system. He re-
manned for five years and then returned
TO England with an interest in no fewer
THAN ninetsen different companies which
he had formed. Gradually he got more
ana more the control of them, until
nnally his only partner was Mr.. Jewell.
the English Consul in Iquique
The Iquique Gas Works were made to
pay fifteen per cent. The nitrate railways
were brought to yield a profit of thirty
liery in South Wales, where he employed
., GOO men. But he regarded this as
bagatelle compared with such huge nj.
trate concerns as The Primitava, Liver
pool, Colorado, Buena Ventura and Las
Pampa Works. He also possessed cement
works in Belgium which brought him in
q fortune, and which were until he saw
them nothing but briokyard. Happen.
ing to pass by them on a trip to the Con-
tinent he noticed the clay, saw that it
was of o superior quality and at once
bought the whole field. He had presen
ly in that place, immense works which
employed thousands uf hands, and he put
up tor his employees sanitary cottages and
built then churches and schools.
Colonel North's home in England was
at Eltham, in the beautiful county of
10 zr1o i
residence called Avery Hill. It is a
vast brick house of two stories, situated
in the midst of 200 acres Of lawn and for
est. The house itsolf is about two hun
dred feet wide and has a wide entrance
way in the centre. A recent visitor to
Avery Hill has described the magnificence
of the interior.
The floor Of the entrance hall is tessela-
ted in colored marble, and the wainscot-
Ing is of rich red and green slabs Of the
same material, cleaning with q high
polish. At tbs left is an open fireplace,
glowing with brilliant South American
grasses. In one corner a good natllred
looking bear holds a salver for visitors
cards, and there are several figures in
coats of mail standing as silent guardi-
ans of the place.
At the right of the hall as you enter
is another hall, lined with statuary, and
beyond Is the Mormon picGture gallery,
which on occasions does duty as ball
room, with marble gallery for the mu-
sicians. This opens into room whose
sides are Of glass. AT this entrance to
the ballroom there are half dozen solid
Of beautiful Mexican ONYX.
Passing through the door at the left the
visitor finds himself in long corridor.
The floor here is in mosaic, with a pat
tern of arabesque in warm red running
through the centre. Al the end of this
corridor there is a pentagonal abutInent,
sach Of whose sides is plate glass win
dow. This is a charming gathering place
Tor afternoon tea, and here Mrs. NORTH
and her pretty daughter, Miss Emma
North, were fond of sitting at their work
OF talks. To the right of the corridor lie |
the dining room, billiard room, drawing
room and reception rooms all Of magnifi- |
cent proportions and luxuriously appoin- |
ted.
The stables are palatial, and contain |
some Of the finest and fastest horses in |
England. They are heated by steam, and |
under one of the stables is a Turkish |
bath, by which horse can be thrown |
into perspiration and the cold steamed |
out of him. The habitations for the dogs
are on the same expensive scale. In both |
his horses and dogs Colonel North, who
was all ardent sportsman and liberal |
patron Of the turf. took the liveliost in !
terest, and backed them in all contests |
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