Evening star., 1899-06-10
Dean Hoffman is the Richest Of
All Ministers.
NOW HEAD OF UNION SEMINARY
Always Takes Great Interest in the
Welfare Of Workingmen.
LONG AND ACTIVE CAREER
Written for The Evening Star.

AT seventy the Rev. Eugens Augustus
Hoffman. D. D., multi-millionaire and rich
est clergyman in America, If not in the
| world, is a busy. shrewd, clever man. As
dean Of the Union Theological Seminary in
New York. he is at the head of the chief
divinity school of the Protestant Episcopal
Church, and in the twenty years he has
filled this post he has exercised a tremen-
deus formative influence upon the Episco-
pal clergy of the country, a very large pro-
portion of whom have been trained under
his eye.
Atured in non-distinc tive dress, Dean
Honmans appearance would suggest al
most any station in life save that Of theo-
logical teacher Perhaps he would more
closely resemble an opulent. self-made
banker than any other type one, however.
who was born with gentlemanly instincts,
and who. by dint of keeping his eyes
stantly about him. has developed into an
alert and courteous man of the world, albeit
there is much bluff heartiness in his cour-
tesy. His figure Is tall and rotund, his
strong features are deeply scanned and his
hair and full beard griZzled. His voice
Is by no means unpleasant but by no means
melodious; 1t suggests the voice of a veteran
admiral who has sailed over many seas and
fought many desperate fight
Dean Hoffman is sixth in descent from
Martinus Hoffman, who came to America
In 1910, and OF the late Samuel Ver-
planck Hoffman. The family has been
factor in the social, commercial and poiti-
cal life of New York city for two and half
centuries
The dean was born just east of Broad
way in White street, when that now down.
town thoroughfare was an aristocratic resi-
dence center. After courses of study at
Columbia, Rutgers and Harvard he sighed
for adventure and was allowed to join
expedition formed by Prof. Agassiz to ex-
plore the region north of Lake Superior
Some months of rOngh pYpprencaS that
expedition were quite enough for g. life
time, and he returned to civilization and
studied theology at the seminary of which
he Is now the head, and in 1851, when only
twenty-five began the life of a clergyman
only to lay it down for the broader work in
which he is still active.
An Enormous Estate.
Conservative capitalists estimate the pres
ent value of the Hoffman estate at from
s15,OOO,OO0 to 800 900 900 but no one not
even the dean himself can appraise 1t with
certain accuracy. 1t was founded before
the republic was born. and under the never
faulty Hoffman mana cement has been
growing year by year and decade by decade,
almost without inteTmssion, ever since. 1t
now takes in row of downtown
structures and block after block uptown.
The HOFFMAN House, itself worth more
than a million. with it's world-famed bar
is part of the property. which was divided
by inheritance a few years ago between the
dean ana MS DrOtner, also an Episcopal
clergyman, by far the larger share falling
to the dean.
Dean Hoffman has been very lavish of
his wealth in the seminary's behalf. Since
he assumed its heaiship the two or three
almost shabby gray buildings at Goth street
and 9th avenue. In which the institution
was then housed, have been increased to
noble cluster Of structures surrounding a
beautiful quadrangle. and the school itself
has advanced to the very first place.
Throughout his service to date his salary
has been allowed to accumulate and in
time will be added to the endowment fund.
Just how large his various benefactions
have been no one knows but himself and
he won't tell. From sources that should
be reliable the writer is informed that the
total is certainly more than million. His
gifts to the seminary include the beautiful
deanery, and have been supplemented by
the Chapel of the Good Shepherd. rected
by his mother in memory Of her husband
The deans outside benefactions comprise
churches, chapels and endowments in va
rious parts Of the country, a theological
seminary for colored students in Tennessee
being among them.
First WOrkingmen's Club.
From the beginning Of his career to the
present time. Dean Hoffman. rich, cul-
tured, courted by society, has been a friend
of the workingman. He has no sympathy
with the gradual desertion by the churches
Of those city regions which are crowded
with Industrial population. He believes the
entire downtown church" problem COM
paratiI ely simple and easy of solution along
lines long since found out in PhiIadelphia
where he established the first workingmans
Club ever organized in America That was
just three decades ago, in 1863 the first
year Of his service as rector of st. Marks
one Of the most fashionable churches in the
city Of brotherly love. Socially considered
the roll Of 400 communicates was ire
proachabe. The congregation included
many of the most prominent personages in
the tow1. Most rectors would have thought
such assemb age DIR. Hoffman off,
ciated before every Sunday ideal one.
But from his viewpoint there was some
thing lacking. Few or working persons
were ever to be seen in the pews Of ST.
Marks. despite the fact that the neighbor-
hood supported a large Industrial popula-
ton.
The founding of the ST. Marks Working
mems Club was DR.. Hoffmans first move
toward interesting the toiers in st. Marks
Church. Some members Of the church dis
approved the organization, but the labor
went ahead just the same.
I'VE got the workingmens club notion
from printed descriptions of English work.
ingmens clubs said Dean Hoffman to
the writer recently. but conditions in Phil
adelphia being not exactly like those OBJ
tanning in England, we had to work out
plan of our own. The first thing we did
was to take quarters over a market place.
Our conversation room was fitted up COM
fortably with chairs and tables and sup
piled with current reading matter, the
daily papers and such class periodicals as
we thought would interest the men, spe-
cially predominating In one room games
were allowed. There were rooms where the
men could smoke and others where they
could not. We aimed to give them every
thing that could make their evenings pleas
ant and helpful. and in a very short time
we had a membership Of about 1000. In
the ten years / was with st. Marks there
was not one unpleasant incident in the
club. and its hold upon its members in
creased steadily. Itis still prosperous.
It's Practical WORKINGS.
How did we conduct the st. Marks
| club? In the simplest manner possible
To begin with, we didn't talk too much re-
| lgion to the members and We didn't worry
them much about going to church We
asked them to pay, % cents a month for
their privileges, and. having furnished
them with various means of comfort and
amusement in return for this charge, let
them do about as they pleased, within GER
tain limitations. We gave them coffee and