Evening star. [volume] (Washington, D.C.) 1854-1972, 1908-12-26
CLAUS SPRECKElS DIES
San Francisco Sugar King
Victim of Pneumonia.
ILL ONLY A FEW DAYS
Active in Business Affairs Despite
His Advanced Age.
HIS RAPID RISE TO WEALTH
For Years a Power on the Pacific
Coast and Practically King
of Hawaii.
ILL ONLY A FEW DAYS
HIS RAPID RISE TO WEALTH

San FRANCISCO. December %
C1aus Spreckels. widely known as the
'.sugar king of the Pacific coast. died
at 40 am. today at his home i'll this
city. in his eightieth year. The imme-
date cause of death was an attack of
pneumonia, which had developed with
alarming symptoms during the past few
days.
His condition last night told his ply
scans that the end was near and rela-
tives remained at his bedside until the
hour of death. Rudolph Spreckels. his
son. who returned from Honolulu yester-
day on board the steamer Nippon Maru,
was one of the number. John D. Spreck-
els. proprietor of the San Francisco Call
and head of the Oceanic Steamship Com
pany. was also in attendance at his
fathers bedside, were Mrs. Harry Hol-
brook and Mrs W. Alexander Hamilton,
the daughters OF John d. Spreckels.
Despite his advanced age. Mr.. Spreckels
had devoted a large share of his attention
to the various enterprises in which he
was interested. and it is not more than a
month since he appeared before the ways
and means committee Of the House of
Representatives in Washington as an au-
thority on the subject Of sugar duties.
Two years ago he was attacked by Sc
we're illness, but his vigorous constitution
enabled him to withstand this, and he was
restored to his usual health.
Apart from the Importance which at
tached to Claus Spreckels as the pioneer
sugar refiner of the Pacific coast and as
an investor of millions in California and
the Hawaiian Islands, the Spreckels fam
lily has for many years been one of the
most prominent in the state
John d. Spreckels, his eldest son, has
been for years a deciding influence in
oriental trade. apart from his other in
ferests, and Rudolph, president Of the
First National Bank, has been a sup
porter Of the graft prosecutions in this
city to the amount of thousands of dol
lars in addition to his active par1icipa-
tion.
He established a monthly steamship line
10 Australia and New Zealand. Through
his influence with King Kaiakaua, he OBJ
1ained yearly subsidy of SJoVOO for this
line
BY this time Spreckels was practically
King of Hawaii, but in the latter part of
1880 a number of planters combined to
break his power and advanced kalakaua
enough funds 20 pay off Spreckels' claim
After that Spreckels was identified with
the Wilcox revolution against the king
and when this was stamped out by his
opponents he attempted by various otner
means to regain his control
Owing to the opposition against him
this object was never wholly achieved, al
have continued big features in the
market
His Restless Ambition.
Spreckels had Of late years made his
home in San Francisco. but he has been
unfailing in his Characteristic reaching
out for more power; lie has been identified
with much of the public work in San
Francisco and has held interests which
mn "A
An incident of his desire to be all-pOw-
erful was shown in 1903, when he started
an independent gas and electric company
in order to avenge himself on the San
Francisco Gas and Electric Company,
which had smudged a fine new building of
his with its smoke. He bought all the
other gas and electric plants in the city,
but could not get entire control AS the
San Francisco company got wind of his
scheme and refused to sell out to the
pretended eastern syndicate which ap-
preached II.
Claus Spreckels was always a fighter
and one of his greatest victories was
the downing of the alleged sugar trust.
That combination of companies saw how
the Spreckels sugar was reaping vast
harvest on the Pacific coast and took the
field to annihilate him by the usual
method of underseliing. Spreckels mere
Iy replied by coming easI. as his oppo-
nents went west. and building the larg-
est sugar refinery in the world in Phila-
midst Of the enemies country in that
way frightened those who We're against
him, and they relinquished the western
field to him again.
Spreckels followed his own ideas in
business, and to that he ascribed much
of his success. Various machines for
the refining of sugar were evolved by
him, and 1t was he who first produced in
his California refinery the cube and
crushed sugar now used universally
Began as a Grocer
Claus Spreckels was born in Lamstedt
Hanover, Germany, about 1s2S. He came
10 America in 1916. and when he landed
IN New York he had only few dollars
In his pocket and barely the rudimentS OF
AN education. with 10 knowledge of Eng
lish. But lie had a robust constitution
happy disposition and unlimited capac-
1tE for hard work.
In a few months after his arrival here
he had purchased small retail grocery
store on Churca street with the proceeds
OF his earnings as laborer. but the prof.
its were small, and when gold was dis
covered in California lie joined the tide
of emigrants
II was not as miner that he went to
the Pacific coast. however. but as a trad
or. and the wisdom of his decision was
shown in his success as a proyidel ol
necessaries and luxurieS for the gold
seekers. In score of years he auassed
S1.Vp and then gave up his grocery
business
Soon after this Claus Spreckels with his
brother who had followed him 10 Calffor.
MA. purchased a brewery in San Fran.
cisco In few years the investment
brought enormous returns. Even the
brewing business was too slow for Claus
SpreckelS. however and he cast abou,
for other interests He had already specu.
lated in sugar small scale and now
decided to deTote his entire time TO the
sugar market.
Hawaii His Opportunity.
That was his opportunity and Il,
grasped it. He became friendly Will
King Kalakaua and loaned him money
Soon he secured control of land gran
OF many thousand acres. When thi
tract had been prepared for the suga,
crop Spreckels and his sons incorporated
tue Hawaiian Commercial and SuSa1
Company, capitalized at l0Gn-UU o
which the members of the Spreckcis fam
ilv were tic chief stockholders.
When his annual output Of sugar eN
ceeded 10000 tons. Sprcckels grew rest
less again. He built two large steam
ships and established - fortnighily lin,
between the islands and San Francisco.