The San Francisco call., 1904-06-11
Many OF the Leaders
Not in New Peer
age Book.
Unable to Show That Purple
Blood Courses in Their
Veins.
Names of Several Well Known Cali
iOrnianS Will Appear in the Reg
isty When 1t Is Published.
Special D-pateh to The Call.

NEW YORK, June IA representa-
tive Of The Call has been permitted to
examine the advance sheets OF the
forthcoming "Peerage Book" about
which the social set Of New York has
been egog for several weeks. The lines
drawn by the Genealogical Association
Of New York. under whose direction
the volume has been prepared BY VII
liam Armstrong Crozier, viii prove a
shock to the Four Hundred. for many
OF them win look IN vain through It's
pages for their names. This registry
OF American families entitled to coat
OF arms is the first Of it's kind to be
published in the United States. Brit
ishers' have for a long time turned Up
their aristocratic noses at America A
fine country but too new" they have
declared. We have lacked ancient ira
ditions. hoary ruins. and. worst OF ALL
a ''peerage book that has enabled
Britishers and the nations OF Cont
mental Europe to trace their ancestry
for centuries and prove that purple
blood runs in their veins. We have had
out social registers" published by en-
terprising "genealo gists'' who charged
fees for designing coats OF arms. crests
and notices for the worthy and ambi-
tious people. but genuine peerage
book. such as Burke's Peerage. pub
lished in England, has for many years
been a long felt want in families OF
America who have great social preten-
sions.
WEALTH COUNTS FOR NOTHING.
For the most part the names found in
the American Peerage Book are OF
those descended from the proud
Knickerbocker families Of New York.
Puritans Of New England. Quakers OF
Pennsylvania, HuguenOt exiles OF noble
blood and cavaliers Of the South. Fore
most among the Knickerbocker fami-
lies stands the name OF Roosevelt. in
cluding Theodore, descendant Of Claes
Martensen Van Roosevelt. who came
from Holland and settled in New York
in 1851 The coat of arms OF the ROOss-
velt family is thus stated in technical
heraldic terms: Argent, on a mount
vert. a rOsebush with three roses. p.
p. R" Translated into plain English
this means a coat Of arms, the design
a green hill on silver background, a
rosebush showing three roses. etc.
Family names have been inserted
only when actual history has clearly
shown the family TO be entitled to the
distinction and in no case has any
compensation, direct or indirect. been
accepted for the publication In other
words, ones right 10 a coat Of arms
must be genuine-blOwn in the bottle
Mere wealth counts for nothing. for
such families as the Vanderbilts. the
Astors, the Whitneys. the Stuyvesant
Fishes and the Belmonts are conspic-
ously absent from the American list
The Astors and Vanderbilts could trace
their origin back to the days OF Little
Old New York" or New Amsterdam.
when their fOrefathers we're engaged
in the honorable occupation OF trading
coonskins in the Northwest Territory,
but here the trail stopped and they
could not show they were descended
from a line Of Kings like j. Pierpont
Morgan. who boasts Of descent from
Gwynned Cymrie. who was King OF
all Wales.
CALIFORNIAN ON THE LIST.
The work abounds in such old names
as the Lees. CAROLS. Adamses. Frank
lins. Jays and Livingstons. while that
OF Colonel washington IS especially
prominent All kinds Of evidence has
been submitted to the genealogical So
ciety by applicants for distinction
Some send photographs Of inscriptions
and ar1noriaI designs engraved on
tombstones centuries old. county court
records and old official documents.
pieces OF old silver plate with names
and armorial designs engraved thereon
and panels OF old carriage doors. Let
II be remembered. however, that there
is still extant and in full force in Eng
land a statute prescribing both fine
and Imprisonment for the use OF coat
of arms by those not entitled. and as
MANY Of the old English laws are still
operative in the States OF the Union. It
would be wise for ambitious apph-
cants not to attempt 70 ring in any
spurious relics
The California list is conspieuously
lacking in such prominent names as
stanford. Huntington. CrOcker. Mills.
Fair. Oelrichs and Mackay- This does
,ot NEAR. necessarily that these proud
family names are cot entitled to reg
is+rv They may have neglected to
establish their rights Thus, for in
stance the ultra democratic Colonel
Iohn P. Irish might have no difficulty
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