The Savannah morning news., 1901-08-04
TITLES +! WHO'LL BUY =?
Warranted Fresh and Genuine at
the San Marine Shop.


pecially of the millionaire brand, are
constantly being accused of saving up
their daughters to sell them for Euro
pean titles, or, rather, for titled Euro
pean sons-in-law. And certainly the
glory of speaking casually of my
daughter, the Contesse de Chateau la
Deche." has occasionally tempted some
of our compatriots beyond their
strength. One is impelled, thinking of
these things, to ask, why sell both
your daughter and your ducats for
| title, when you can acquire one, to be
your very own, and to go down to your
children's children, for the ducats
alone?"
Good American dollars can buy in
the open market titles of absolute au-
thenticity without any disagreeable at
tachment of broken-down sons-in-law
or colossal mortgages on ruined cha
teaus. There are several ways of Sc
curing such purchased nobility. The
rightful possessors of authentic char
ters can generally sell them. l be-
! lieve, indeed, that English titles are
absolutely the only ones that cannot
be so transferred. These depend upon
the recognition of the sovereign and
are inalienable. When an English no.
BILE family dies out in the course of ma
| ture, the title "lapses to the CROWN"
and only the King or Queen, or the
English Parliament acting for the SOW
| ereign, can confer it. But the titles
| Astounding on the continent of Europe
| can be sold like butter or cheese by
| the proud possessor and the pur-
| chaser becomes, instanter, just as no
! BILE as legal recognition can make him.
San Francisco people will remember
| the history of the poverty-stricken
Italian Marquis who, ten years ago,
showed a push-cart laden with bananas
| about the town until one day ne
| learned to his amazement that his title
was marketable. A shrewd lawyer
agreed to vend the right to a coronet
| for the needy push-cart man. An
English visitor bought it at a stiff
| price and is now splurging around
Paris with a magnificent coat-of-arms
emblazoned on his brougham, and
passes everywhere, as is his undoubted
| right, as the Marquis George del Bos-
chini, while the eX-banana seller, re-
duced to the rank of a private citizen,
| lives humbly, but without having to
work for his bread. in a tiny vine-clad
| cottage near Brinsidi. That was a case
in which the bargain worked out very
well for both parties. But things do
not always happen so.
At an elaborate New York club where
high play is often INDUCED in,
| French ''vicomte," who had been re-
ceiyed into the best society on the
strength of his alleged family and title,
| staked his mobility" against a large
Sc nd Lost rIA univ
we'll known gentleman of Knicker-
booker stock, insisted that the charter
| of nobility be turned over to him. He
! had, of course, no intention of wear
| ing a title so acquired, but 1t rather
| pleased him to possess under lock and
| key the papers demonstrating his right
| to do so if he chose. He laughingly
| stated indeed, that he meant to make
a cabinet collection of foreign titles as
other men collected stamps or book
plates.
when you come across a priceless
| stamp say an early three-cornered
| Cape of Good Hope, you don't stick it
on your hat to show every one that
you possess it," said he. You just put
it in your album and look at it now
| and then to help you feel good. That's
what l am going to do with this Wis
| countship-just collect it,"
But that's just what he could not do.
| The "viscountship" did not exist, even
| on paper. The noble Frenchman was
| fakir, wearing a home made title not
| found in any court guide. He was dis
| creetly hustled out of the club and out
| of New York society. Probably he had
reasons of his own for not returning to
! Europe, as two or three seasons ago
he was running a shooting gallery on
| Coney Island and doing a roaring
trade on the strength of being a much
wronged nobleman.."
Other bearers of foreign titles are
even more INSCRIPTIONS; they forge the
charters and sell them for large sums.
| Quite recently in Paris a rascal was
unmasked who had lived in princely
state for years on the proceeds of
bureau at which he sold dukedoms,
countships and all the rest of the truck
| at prices varying according to the
purse and gullibility of his victims.
| That he had carried his swindle to the
perfection of fine art is sufficiently
| proved by the fact that among his
| clients was the genuine posSessor OF
an authentic and ancient title OF count.
| The count in question was discomfort
ed with his rank, which in truth does
not amount to much in Paris, where
| every one numbers some half dozen
counts among his acquaintance. he
| coveted the title of marquis" to dis
| tinguish himself from the common herd
of counts. and he bought it at the cost
of a heavy check. His confusion and
shame in society were painful to wit
ness after he had discovered that
| he had paid high price
for a yard or so of absolutely
The one way of being sure that you
are getting the genuine article is to
buy your nobility over the counter of
a sovereign state. And there is at least
one sovereign state that lives and
grows fat on supplying the demands
for charters of aristocratic prestige.
! It's rather paradoxical that 1t should
| be a republic that ministers thus to
| the vanity of mankind. but the little
! Democratic border state Of san Mari
no between Italy and France makes
a handsome profit out of these trans
actions. Its $500 inhabitants live free
| of all rates and taxes under their re-
| publican independent flag on the mon
! ey constantly flowing into the state
/ treasury in return for the magic
| stamped and sealed parchments which
------------~---------