Omaha daily bee., 1897-11-30
DISSIPATION OF FORTUNES.
How Millions Inherited Arc Thrown to
tbp winds.

When John H. Inman died we supposed
he left an estate OF about 81 900 900. For
years he had been classed among the very
rich men of this city, says a writer in the
New York Press. l hear now, by way or
Atlanta that he left practically nothing;
that his fortune was diminished enormously
in disastrous speculation in the two years
Immediately preceding his death. Sam in
man, the head of the big cotton house in
Atlanta complained two years ago that he
done all for John that he could afford to do;
that he had sent him 100000, and didn t
intend to put up any more. The Inmans
have handled as many as 100000 bales OF
cotton annually.
1t is the talk in Atlanta that 1nman COM
mfttod suicide. People no longer speak OF
1t in whispers, but openly. He was the most
omniYorous OF men and thought he had the
stomach of an ostrich. Like Briguoli he
could eat dozen chops at sitting and re-
peat the performance within an hour. Not
withstanding his prodigious capacity for
food, he never was obliged to wear an alb
dominal supporter. His physique did not
run toward embonpoint. He was in no sense
'oon-YiVant; simply a gasronome-an Api-
Gus. If required to answer the old uues-
ton, DO you live to eat or eat to Iive?" he
would have said, II live to eat" He taxed
MS stomach to the utmost, destroyed the
mechanism and died at the early age of 52
are the great fortunes Of our plutocrats
u"lhulng? Are we not giving them too high
rating? We thought Ogden Goelet worth
at the very least 800, 100000 The most con-
serVatlVe mer placed his fortune ar SEQ OOn :
600; yet it dwindled to less than $40 900 900
me SSO,OOO,000 of "Spite-house" Richardson
uropped TO 100000 as soon as il struck the
court mouse. George M. Pullman was sup
posed TO be worth every cent of $50 900 900.
iilliheeuiately after his death s25 900 900 was
Ine nSufe; but the latest reports name 81 :
ooo'oOo as the value of the estate How Is
tniS Can 1t be that we are far wrong I'm
placlng the fortune of John D. RockefeIIer
at $zoo'oOO,OOO? VIII 1t dwndle to $50 900 :
SUs gUo When he shufles off? Is General Sam
lhomas, partner of Cal Brice and Inman,
worth $4,000, 900? 1 doubt it. What is Cal
worth? His Is about the only fortune that
no n one tries to estimate. From the way he
mes eS,, around he must have big money.
VINO can tell whether Uncle Collla Pacific
rIIntlngton Is worth SO 900, 900 or $50 900 900
ooV'ooo? Is 1t possible that James b. Col
gate Is worth $50, 900, 900? No, Is Iobn n
Ahdrus worth $40, 900 900? I think NOT To
=; J;, Jennings McComb worth $50 600 600
,.,t mnere dD did ne ne get it? Is Charles L. Tiffany
worth 10000 600? That is his rating an1
there are John d. Archbold. whose fortuna
IS estimated at 80 OOO, 900; r. e. HonkIns
WIN SoOOO.OOO, Asphalt AmZi Longeve RAJ
oed oer WI with $25 900 OOO John T. Terry with $40
qgo0Oo William Rockefeller with $50 900 OO0
g ~. "ttcl NeDO with $4,000, 600, Warren r
smith with $25,0O0O OOO Mrs. Elliott r. Shen.
ara with $5O,0OO 600, Cornelius Vanderbilt
W.T. with SllO OOO, 900, Willie K Vanderbilt with
SSO'OoO 600. Frederick Vanderbilt with $40 OOO :
OoV' George Vanderbilt with $40 OOO OOo
and so on '-D So ioi'h
me safest way to get at the size of
man fortune is take the public estimate
ana diVide 1t by ten. | generally find that
man who is rated at 500 900 600 cuts I'M for
euout S2,OOOOOO II is the custom in this dav
anu generation to converse in millions We
sccount .! man poor who has no more than
I;ooo'oOo' He is bstween the devil of enter
'athIheht and the deep sea OF financial stress
-too Wen or to be parsimonious and too
poor TO trot heats with the Croesuses Ue
cannot ahord $4,000 for a dinner and recen-
tlon without feeling it. 1t is SO easy 10 tall
the plural TUG "o'u III
Uur popular estimate of the fortunes of our
Iichest men reminds me of Maine Tin In
e ele STATE OF the pine tree and the foxes we
nhu great many miles to the mile. a great
aeal OF water to the gallon, a tremendous
amount OF air in the atmosphere and a now
erlui sight OF mountains to the hill And
30 win the fortunes down here-there are a
great many millions to the million.