The daily morning journal and courier., 1906-12-29
MRS SAGE DISADUSES
 THE MINDS OF MANY
NOT TO DISTRIBUTE AT ONCE VAST ESTATE LEFT BY
 HUSBAND.

ci"res She Does NVt 1nIenn 10 tive
 Everywhere and to Encyclopedias
 at Her Own Doors in New York
 Plenty of Cases of Need--Other Cities
 Must Meet Their Own Cases-Sets at
 Rest False Hopes of Poor and Ignor-
 ant for Whom She is sorry-Recelves
 Several Hundred Letters Day--Re-
 bukes Certain Applicants Who Should
 Know Better--Wants Respect for Her
 WidowhOod.
 New York, Dec. 28-Mrs. Russell Sage, widow of the fnancier, to-day gave out a statement in which she de- clared that it is not her intention to distribute immediately the money left to her by her husband, and much less do;s she intend to distribute it every where, and ito everybody She declares that she has at her own doors in New York city plenty of cases of need which have a nearer claim on har than the people of other cities, whose needs, she believes, can and should be met by the philanthropic psople of those cities. The earliest date at which her hus- bands estate can be closed, she says, is one year from his death, and, there fore, present application to her is pre- mature. Declaring that the appeals to her and efforts to secure interviews with her to obtain assistance amount Ito persecution if she chose to regard it so, she adds that she will give only aft CT the fullest investigation, and that all applications must be made to her in writing. She is impelled to make this statement, she says, because of her sympathy for the poor and ignorant paople whose needs are great, and in whom false hopes have been aroused by untrue reports of her intentions
 Mrs. Sage's statement follows
 T have been receiving ever since my husbands death several hundred let ters a day containing applications of every conceivable kind from so many different people
 These letters come in every possible way. Some are delivered at the door, most of them come in the usual course of the mail Some of these bear special delivery stamps; many of them are reg istered with the thought of making sure that I receive them. They come, too, from every part of the United States, and from foreign countries; from the greater cities, such as Chicago, Boston, Baltimore. Washington and from the al TAI s,, +I,,
 "A great many of these letters con tain absurd and unreasonable requests, based apparently on the idsa that was immediately going to distribute without examination or consideration a very large sum of money. The professional begging letter writer appears in large numbers, and also the people who have failed in business, and wish to estab- lish themselves afresh; those who would like to have the mortgages paid off their homes those who would like ito have me go into business with them, and those who have discovered perpet-. ual motion or the elixir of lfe,' and only nsed aid for them to take out patents and secure their and my ever- lasting fortunes
 Many of them unquestionably repre- sent real need in the opinion of the ap- plicants. Some of thsm are very pa- thetic The greater part of them relate to personal or family wants. Others relate to institutional needs, or it may be the establishment of some new in- stitution, or the initiation of some new branch of philanthropic enterprise. To read them all would involve the total loss of eyesight, which a woman at eev- enty-seven needs ito reserve.
 Moreover, innumerable people, some of them perhaps the writers of these letters, are constantly trying to secure interviews with me, and if I could see one-tenth of the people who so apply it would be one continuous in tervi5w day and night.
 This constitutes a real prosecution If should choose to so regard it, and l am frequently amazed at the charac- ter and standing of people who thus seek to press thems lives upon me in- stead of respecting my desire for se- clusion during this the first few months of my widowhood. T do not waste any sympathy on the
 z begging letter writers or those who pre- sent absurd or impossible demands, but cannot but sympathize with the per- sons, and there are some of them, whose needs are real, and should un- be met by somebody and , somehow. Many of them are poor and ignorant people whose expectations have be5n stimulated by the newspaper articles which have appeared from time z to time with regard to me and my phil~ an fhropic intentions. It is cruel to ex- cite hopes in them that cannot be rsal- lzed. To such I feel it peculiarly due to break my silence and make public ! statement, which I trust will be given ! the same currency by the press that has been given to the many articles regard ng my intentions, which have absolute y no warrant in fact.
 Tt is not my purpose to make any immediate distribution of the money 2 which my husband has left to me and ] which l expect to receive in due course | 1f administration. Much less am l in I ending to many any such contribu- f lions everywhere and to everybody.
 "! am to receive this money without my trust of any kind imposed by my husband, or even any expression of |, iesire on his part He has left me i md intended to leave me absolutely /, rec to do what I pleased with it. il
 (Continued on Eighth PaoeN l q