The Cape Girardeau Democrat. (Cape Girardeau, Mo.) 1876-1909, 1900-12-29
DOES IT PAY TO
Be A KING.
The Salaries Received by Rulers and
the Amounts They Are Able TO Save
From the Income OF a
kingly Cropn,
Does it pay to be d king?

Does il pay to be d king?
THIS question. very often asked ana
as seldom answered, is ona that inter
ests the whole world. There are those
who think that besides the ono of 1t.
there is no elnolument associated with
the responsibility of ruling a great gov
eminent. IEut thu computed private
fortunes Of Inc To.id's greatest sover-
eiSn:. specially those Cf Europe, show
thai - :gn Uneasy may lie a kingly
h"a", - state OF unrest Is SO grandIy
re-..-n2. alive That it would allow a
most comfortable subsistence should
the Tepose7 be suddenly relieved of his
sovereignty ard compelled to live in
retirement,
Nfl:e 1t is Considered the worst of
rom n r6utt circles Ia Discuss the
Tlivt% Hcettil of kinra cpd queens, it
Is & Well-khaT 4 Ieit that their finances
are gossipea @>pGt, "a 90 loudly. too.
that Information regarding the pecu-
MARY s'andir3 Of monarchs escapes 10
the curious world without For in
stance, everyone knows hat Queen
Victoria is the richest sovereign in Itu-
rope. If not in TIE world.
lice IS an estimate of her private
possessions:
. s1.925. goo. q.
Revenues from Duchy of Lam .
" caster. $300.0G1. "
Estates in ireland. Scotland, .
" France, italy and Wales. I"
The aGIpu koh-i-2uor diamond .
. worth SIS. 500, go. q"
Money invested to the amount .
. of $50, GGG. 600. .
Yet. in spite of these figures. there
are those VINO claim that The sum of
Her Majesty'S fortune when made
known definitely will be comparatively
small They argue that Victoria is n
of the most sympathetic and generous
sovereigns in Europe, adding that her
money is eaten up by pet charities, pri-
vate salaries and PENSIONS: and then
there is the mise en- scene of royalty
to be kept UP which requires an enor-
nous amount of money. Her Majesty's
wealth consists principally of jewels
n cash: for since she relinquished
her claim to many of the land prope
ties of the crown in return for the $780,
600 civil list allowance, years ago, her
riches are exceeded in real estate pos
sessions by those of the Car of Russia.
But even these vast landed riches do
not place Nicholas ii. next on the list
of millionaires on thrones. This envi-
able position is reserved, strange as it
may seem. for Abdul Hamid. the Sultan
of European Turkey, who manages to
get away with s5.Gc0, 600 yearly in the
maintenance Of his harem and the pro-
vision of other luxuries. But il Abdul
Hamid's subjects were to rise in revolt
and dethTone him these are some. of
the possessions which he would have
to fall back on:
sssss
A private fortune of s12. 900. 900. .
. What he is aOle to "knock down" .
. from a civil! list of $4,000. 900.
Inyf5tr1ents in other countries .
. yielding an annua! income of .
" ST. 500, coo.
. A jeweI-embroidered wardrobe .
. worth sS.cGn, 600.
. Rings and other ornaments COM "
. puted to have cost 81, 500, 000.
But IL must not be thought for Il mo-
ment that the Sultan Is satisfied with
these riches. Far to h contrary. he
longs to be known as the wealthiest
man in all the world. and is constantly
reaching II for additional wealth,
while enjoying every luxury that money
can rocure. The magnificence OF the
Sultan's wardrobe IL proverbial. and a