Omaha daily bee. (Omaha [Neb.]) 187?-1922, 1906-02-11
BONI MADE The MONEY FLY
Frivolous French Count Burned Hole in
Jay GOuld's Fortune.
THE CASTeLlANES as, ThElR TROUBLES
Another American Heiress Gets the
Usual Shake from n TITLED For
eigner-American Money for
Degenerate Royalty.
THE cASTELLANEs 49,, TIER TROUBLES

There is nothing unusual in the proceed
ing for divorce instituted by Countess de
Castellane in Paris. 1t Is the usual fate
Of American girls who exchange their pa
trimony for foreign titles Exceptions to
the rule there are, but they are mighty
rare, and the second daughter of jay
Gould is treading the thorny path along
which scores have travelled in heart an
guish and misery.
The Castelanes were married March 4,
1895. at the New York home of George
Gould. brother OF the countess. 1t was a
wonderful wedding-wonderful in appoint
ments, in lavish display and in the vast
crowd that almost Blocked the neighboring
streets. The late Archbishop Corrigan tied
the nuptial knot, and bride and bridegroom
as usual gave solemn pledges to remain
faithful until death. A ton Of southern
ciematis, 5000 blossoms and 1000 yards of
vines were used in decorating the Gould
home. "A series of arches in the hall, /"
said the New York Sun on the day fol-
lowing the wedding ''were hung with
southern clematis, and the edges OF the
suspended vines were finished with a
framework Of smilax. Wire frames were
made to At in the arched doorways, leading
from the hall into the reception room at
the left. and the East India, music and
dining rooms at the right. The framework
were first hung with asparagus and then
into the thick bed of feathery green were
thrust thousands Of yellow and pink roses.
The woodwork of the doors was entirely
lost from view. Passing under the arches
of clematis, under the rotunda of the hall,
the guest found himself under a tent OF
asparagus. The apex of the tent was in
the stained glass ceiling Of the hall. sixty
feet above the floor of the hall. and the
roof OF the tent was formed by numerous
strands Of asparagus vine falling in grace
full sweeps from the ceiling to the hall,
where the strands were caught up The
strands Of asparagus were studded full of
yellow roses and Faster liiv flowers
'In the East India room against the
front wall was a purple canopy, under
which the bride and bridegroom were mar
ried. Everything else in the room was
white and green from myriads of lilies of
the valley. The wire frames were made 20
At the walls of the room, and into the
frames lilies of the valley were thrust In
a deep bed of asparagus. The count and
countess received under a canopy OF lilies
OF the valley and the arch over the door
was mass OF lilies OF the valley The
music room opening into the East India
room was treated in an equally lavish
manner with American Beauty roses. The
halusters OF the stairs to the uppermost
landing were covered with cut palm leaves,
and to this foundation OF green were fast
ered about a thousand long-stemmed
Faster lilies.
1.-THE heavily draped walls of the hall
and adjoining chambers produced pc
Guitar effect. In the thick decorations the
Natural tint Of the walls was lost and the
'-to-,or OF the house had the appearance
OF being a dense thicket with blooming
walls, and IN the center a gigantic flower
ing vine winding up to the apex OF the
green grotto.
what difference IN the morning eleven
years after!
In the LimeIight.
From the day of the wedding to the pres
en- time the Castellanes have been consplc-
nous in the publicNprints. due chiefly to the
extravagances and political ambitions OF
the frivolous count. When the couple left
this country the countess, who was then IN
her 18th year, had as her share of the Jay
Gould estate fortune OF $1s,000.O0O, which
yielded her an income of over 10000 a
year. This looked enormous to every one
but the count but II became evident within
a few weeks that he intended to show how
to live up TO It,
Here are few more ways Boni made
money fly. not yet mentioned in the dis
patches:
He bought $4,000 equipage and EN-.
ployed the outrider Mont Jarret. formerly
in the service of the president of France.
He bought a $50, 900 clock.
He bought $Ss 0O0 antique cabinet.
He purchased a mantelpiece for $4,000.
He purchased a necklace at $4,000 halt
of which he gave. his wife. No one knows
who got the other half.
Burning the Money.
Max Nordau, the French novelist, who
knows Boni de Castellane, is one OF the
many to criticise the extravaganza OF thu
count. The following is Nordau's scathinf
account OF the extravagant expenditure o.
money for an $4,000 fete in Paris and a few
other extravagances;
From the tree branches 10000 blue Vene
tian lanterns were suspended On the green