The Portland daily press. [volume] (Portland, Me.) 1862-1921, 1898-08-11
ADoLPH sUTRo, THE MILLIONAIRE.
Remarkable History of German Immi
grant in California,

Adolph Sutro, famous as the builder of
the Sutro tunnel, and long prominent
and picturesque figure in San Francisco
and California generally, has died, after
brief period of mental failure and phys
ical decay, being about 60 years old
Adolph Heinrich Joseph Sutro was born
in Aix-la-C hapelle, Rhenish Prussia,
his father being % cloth manufacturer.
On the death of the elder Sutro his wife
came over to this country with her seven
sons and four daughters, and Adolph, IN
enterprising youth, was caught by the
gold fever and went to California in 1855
having left the family in Baltimore. He
had studied mineralogy and engineering
in Germany, and was thus better fitted
than most of those who adventured for
gold. 1t was in 1860 that he planned the
great Sutro tunnel through the heart of
the Nevada mountains, where lay the
Comstock lode, which without it would
have had to be abandoned. with it's vast
and still inexhausted treasure. This tun-
mel il one of the triumphs of engineering.
The work occupied ten years, but its
beneficial effect was felt in part long be-
fore the end of this period. 1t penetrated
the moutain 20.OU0 feet before at the Saw
age mine, 1850 feet below the surface. it
struck the Comstock lode. Lateral tun-
nels connect it with the mines on either
side the main bore. When it was finished
Sutro became a multi millionaire.
| Strange to say Sutro, though man of
vast wealth, was strenuous opponent of
opolies-except his own, Of course.
He hated capitalists who seemed to him
to conspire against the people, and it had
been his an nounced purp to devote his
wealth to public uses. Thus he had col.
lected great library and picture gal
lery to give to the people, along with his
sumptuouS residence on Sutro heights,
with it's large plantations of trees, shrubs
and flowers. he built great hotel ad ia
cent to his house, and his sea baths are
worthy to be counted among the wonders
| of the world. An account of his life pub
lished few years ago contains these in
teresting facts:
| Sutro was nominated some years ago by
| the Populists to make the run for mayor
of San Francisco. He had five competi-
tors in the field-Mayor Ebert, Independ-
emit and Republican nominee for re-elec-
| d D6luOCBduS XII lIIcSpUuSlUlb ttSluft-
| tor of strength among class; q Socialist
| labor candidate and a Prohibitionist. FL
lert was supposed to be certain of cleo
ton. But Sutro kept at work and the
A. P. A. came IN to indorse him, al
though he was born abroad. Sutros
great card was his opposition to the
Southern Pacific monopoly. Sutro Heights
cent public park overlooking San Fran
cisco bay, but the Southern Pacific COM
pany. controlling the street car lines to
| the Heights, charged double fare. Sutro
| tried to have the fare reduced to five
cents, and as the company stood firm he
nut board fence about the heights and
charged all persons coming out ty the
| street car lines 20 cents admission. and
asked nothing from those coming by 9TH
ar oonyeyances finally he got a fran
chise to build a new street car line, and
when the Southern Pacific saw that he
really intended to build it, came down to
his terms of five-cent fares. Then the
fence was torn down, and all the people
| shou led over him as the first man ever to
beat the Southern Pacific. None of the
newspapers had been supporting him for
| mayor, but the tide at once began to set
his way. Then the old party bosses made
new combinations. But it was of no
USE Sutro got 3o,676 votes, as against
29, 200 for the other candidates combined.
| MIR, Sutro's baths are the achievement
of his great engineering genius. They
exceed anything known in history in this
line. The glazed roof that spans their
/ two acres of area is SO high that it looks
as if a six-story block could be set under
it. There are seats around the bathing
tanks for $500 people, and room for is. 900
more to stand and promenade. At the
outer end there is stage SO feet broad
for musicians. There are three restau-
rants, each on different tier of the
building, an aquarium and a conserve
tory.