The Fairmont West Virginian. (Fairmont, W. Va.) 1904-1914, 1906-07-18

i
burg, and # appears that he never.
fully regained his health. Since that
time he had lived in London.
THE MONTE cHRlsror
OF SOUTH AFRICA.
Alfred Belt was born In 1853 ut
Hamburg. He was life governor Of
the DeRtsers Consolidated Mines, a
partner in the firm OF Wernher. Belt
81 Co. and director Of the Rand
Mines, Rhodesia Railways, Bechuan-
aland Railway Trust, Consolidated
Company Buitfontein Mine and Brit
ish Chartered South Africa Company.
He was reported to have been i'm
pllcated in the jameson raid. Later
suit was brought against Mr.. Belt on
the ground OF completely in the raid,
and his prosecution was demanded by
DR.. Leyd, the representative of the
Transvaal in Europe, and in 1896 his
resignation from the board of direc-,
tors Of the British Chartered South
Africa Company was accepted
When Cecil Rhodes died, in 1902,
it was found that Mr.. Belt was appoint
ed one OF his executors, and Mr.. Deit
thereupon returned to the board Of
directors of the British Chartered
South Africa Compass.
a Poor Young Man.
The career of Belt from 1875, when
poor and unknown young man, he
landed in South Africa to seek his
fortune was enc of absorbing inter-
est. He went into the diamond fields
Of Kimberley and Johannesburg, early
associated himself with that far-see-
ing empire builder and arch-fmperlaI-
list, Cecil Rhodes, and when, 10 years
later, he returned to England he was
literally rolling in diamonds" He be-
came known as the Monte Cristo o.
South Africa" and by 1908 he was
spoken of in London as t'le worlds
first billfonaire.
Notwithstanding the fact that Belt
had the reputation of being case-harfl
lened woman-hater, with a far greater
aversion to everything in pcttlconts
than had his lifelong friend, Cecil
Rhodes, he was reported to have been
engaged to Miss Mary Moore. one of
the most beautiful actresses in Eng
land, and again in 1903 the goss'psf
had him engaged to the brilliant New
York society woman, Mrs. AdoIph
Ladenburg. Both, however. vigorous
" denied any serious attachment. "No
marriage bonds for mel" he annount.
ed at the time, with characteristic
brusquesness.
Fortune-hunters After Him.
At the same time Belt was not at
all ayerse to society and entertained
lavfshly. 1t was said that he was lriv-
en- back to the wilds of South At"lca
by the horde of fortune hunters who
saw in him desirable match for
daughters whom Mr.. Belt did not re-
gard as suited to his temperament
While Alfred Belt had no means of
estimating the exact amount of his
vast wealth he was believed in E"G-
land to be as rich, If not richer, than
John D. Rockefeller, and to possess
more ready money than either the oil
king or Senator William A. Clask.
Notwithstanding the fact that he
owned or commanded the companies
which owned the only diamond mines
of Importance in the world, and con-
trolled their output and their prices,
he did not affect jewelry at all for
personal adornment anc never wore
diamonds.
This colossus of finance, like Rookie
Teller, was seldom seen. hardly
known, except to the coterie of friends
whom he entertained at his bachelor
apartments at 2G Park Lane, Lon
don. and had a horror of notoriety.
Nervous and Tlmld.
His friends called him "Alf' and