The Appeal. [volume] (Saint Paul, Minn. ;) 1889-19??, 1899-01-07


The Banks Crowned Customers.
N spite Of her icoatly way 81 ltRing, the
empress Of Austria has left an Immense
personal fortune. During the forty-four
years that she enjoyed the magnificent
civil list of an empress-qu OF Austria
Hungary she habttually> lived within her
income. In the early part of her mar
ried Life her savings, which amounted to
a large sum annually, were invested In,
the purchase of real estate in the suburbs
OF Vienna, the land then unbuilt upon,
being now covered with residences of one
kind and another, and having Increased
almost a hundred-fold in value. The
sums thus realized, together with the UNI ;.
spent balance Of, her yearly income
throughout the latter half of her married
life, were invested in stocks dealt with,
on the London market, her scrip and ce
tihcates being lodged In the Bank Of
England. In this manner almost the
whole Of her vast fortune. amounting to
many millions of dollars Is ut the present
moment in the possession OF the Bank
Of England, and very awkward ques-
posal. +: .-s s.
Only week or two ago the house of
lords, sitting as tho supreme court of
appeal Of the British empire, decided that
bonds, stocks and other property belong
ing to foreigner domiciled abroad could
not be placed at the disposal OF his or
her executors after death until the viii
had been admitted to probate by the
English courts, and the extremely heavy
succession duties, amounting to as much
as per cent, had been paid on the es-
tate. No matter whether the stock is
that Of some foreign enterprise or gov
eminent, says "Ex-Attache" in the New
York Tribune, the mere circumstance
that the scrip is deposited in some bank
or kindred institution in England renders
it subject to British probate duty, and
the test case which has brought about
this decision was that of a citizen of New
York owning an immense amount Of
stock in New York breweries, who died
in New York. but who for one reason O"
another HAD deposited the greater part @,
his American debentures and bonds In
English banks. He died here III the
United States. and not, In England. Yet
according to the decision of the house of
lords, his American executors cannot
touch his American scrip deposited in
English banks until they have prohated
the document in the English courts and
paid the British succession duties.
Empress E4izabeth's property, deposited
almost in its entirety in the Bank of Eng
land, is at the present moment the sub
5ect of somewhat acrimonious discus
sion between the Austro-Hungarian EN-
bassy in London, the English foreign Of
flee, the great law officers Of the British
crown, the revenue authorities and the
management of the bank. The revenue
department claims succession duty on the
whole of the property Of the dead en-
press that happens tc be in the possession
of the bank, while the law officers have
mtimated to the latter that the executors
of her Austrian majesty's will are de-
barred from touching the estate, and
must be looked upon as perfect strangers
with regard to the latter until the docu-
ment has been probated by the English
court of probate, and they have obtained
proper representation. The Austrian en-
bassy, on the other hand, demurs to this
pretension on the part of the British
treasury, and denounces the demand in
connection with the empress's fortune as
breach of the rules governing interna-
tional comfy, taking the ground that for
eign soveragns, like their ambassadors,
possess extraterritorial privileges, ex-
empting them, as we'll as their property,
from the jurisdiction of the native courts,
as we'll as from local taxation. -
Very much the same question arose at
The death OF the late car, who left .
sum amounting to several millions Of doi.
lars deposited In the Bank of England
An attempt was made by the revenue
authorities to collect English succession
duties on the property in question But,
in defiance to the protests of the Russian
ambassador, Baron de Staal, Sir William
Vernon Harcourt, then chancellor of the
exchequer, gave way, and agreed to re-
NIT the duties, the understanding being
at the time that the funds in question
constituted a legacy from the late czar
10 his stster-in-law, the Princess Of Wales,
TO whom he was deeply attached. Mem
oers OF the reigning house of Great Brit
ain are constitutionally exempted from
every species of taxation, and thus the
plea OF the Russian ambassador for the
Bank OF England acquired additional
force In the eyes Of Sir William, who is
one OF the foremost of British experts In
international law. But at that epoch the
house of lords had not given its final
judgment IN the question of the treatment
OF property in England belonging; to- for
e1gners, and it Is exceedingly doubtful
under, the circumstances, whether the
Bank OF England will consent to release
Inc austrian empress's fortune confided
TO its charge until the issue between the
Engnsh courts and revenue officials on
the one side and the London foreign office
ana austrian embassy on the other hand
mas been decided: either by means OF a
compromise or in British court Of law.
Ihere is every reason, however, to be-
AeVe that the difficulties which have been
caused by the British authorities in con.
nection with the disposal of the properly
OF the late empress of Austria. as wei,
as of Gar Alexander III, viii have the
result OF checking the practice which
p torelEh monarchs and royal personages
nave been following for the last hundred
years or so of deDositing their savings
TOT ,sale-keeping In the Bank Of England,
Which In their eyes, apparently u the
only institution of it's kind in the world
by reason Of It's solidity and inealculable
resources. that; offers a sufficient degree
of security against loss.
Empress Elizabeth and Alexander TT.
have been by no means the only crowned
customers of the Old Lady Of Thread
needle Street. When Gear Alexander III.
wished to provide for the future Of his
niorgantic wife, Princess Jourieffska, and
OF his tllegttimate children, he deposited
sum amounting, 1t is stated, to about
$2O, 100000 in her name In the Bank Of
England firmly convinced that In no
otherSfnstitution would this large fortune
be secure either from seizure BY his auc-
cessors on the throne or from disaDnear.
ance through the collapse of the bank.
Had the money In question been placed,
Tor instance, in the Banque de France or
In any analogous establishment in vi.
emma, Berlin or Amsterdam, the local
registration Of decree Of injunction OBJ
tanned BY the Russian CROWN from the
Aaacoydtea courts would have been per.
1ectly sufficient to dehar tla .,.Ao,...ll
s SESss 81 81 y IS ssss