The times and democrat. [volume] (Orangeburg, S.C.) 1881-current, 1908-03-13
TIE CARS VAST WEALTH.
So Rich He Can Scarcely Com
.pute the Amount.
HE E:AS MANY HOLIDAYS
With His Salary, Royalties From
Mines and Other Properties, His
Annual Income is About Fifty
Millions of Do!lirs.--Vast Sums
Left Him by Eis Subjects.

consequently, in the whole world. He
has palaces by the dozen, estates al
most without number, and mines that
bring him in fabulous sums OF money
every year, says London exchange
It was announced from St. Peters
burg recently that the Car had gwen
100000, 900 rubies (cbout St00,0C0,COO)
frcEl his private treasury to !sCSs!a' 5
war fund. Probably this Is the LARGEST
single gift ever made by an individual
donor to any cause.
But the Car can well afford it
He is unqueseionably the richest an
on earth. Even Mr.. Rockefeller's
many millions would look small by
comparison with his multitudinous
sources of wealth and the vast treas.
ures boarded for him by his ances-
tors, for the Romanoffs were always
a saving race. No living man can tell
the full extent of his wealth, not even
Baron Friedrichs. the controller of the
imperial household.
The official revenue Of Nicholas IL
salary, so to speaks nearly S10,-
100000 per annum. 1t is difficult to
arrive at it exactly, for it is paid in
various ways and under many heads,
and the sun total fuctuates from year
to year. Eut $10,0c0,0O0 may be taken
as fair average.
With the sole exception of the shah
of Persia, the Car owns a greater
fortune in diamonds and precious
stones than any man in the world.
The famous Orloff diamond is only
the greatest star in an immense con-
steilation.
When Nicholas H. was crowned q
few years ago the emir of Bokhara
and the khan of Khiva, his two pin.
cipal vassal princes, Wed with one
another in making him the richest
gifts within their power The khan
gave him priceless rope OF pearls
which is said to be the finest in the
world, besides diamonds, emeralds and
rubies galore. His presents are esti-
mated to have been worth, at the
lowest computation, s2,000,000, but
they were unique and no price could
really be put upon them. His rival,
the emir, was not far behind him, and
the hetman Of the Don Cossacks,
Prince Sviatopolsk Mirski H., came
forward with some handsome contri.
buttons, as did all the leading mobiles
and princes Of the empire. to say
,SS Y,CfopYofar
The Car Is the ,luckiest' man On
earth in the matter of "vfndfalls.
His loyal subjects are constantly leav-
ing him large sums Of money by'will,
which are not always accepted. Deli.
cate diplomacy is-reqptred to induce
the Gear to accept legacy.
These legacies, when accepted, are
never used by the Gear for his pri-
vate qualification. He regards them
as a trust fund and they have been
SO regarded by most Of his ancestors.
This fund is drawn upon for charit-
able and religious purposes.
Some of the legacies reach immense
sums. A merchant named Stephanoff,
who died at Nijni-Novgorod last year,
left the Car 100000 rubies ("to be
applied to any subject which his i'm
pt:-ial majesty may be graciously
pleased to consider for the good Of
holy Russia"). A Moscow banker
named Nicholas Nicholaevitch Ukh.
tansky left 100000 rubies two or
three years ago to the monarch, abb
solutely free Of any limitation or pro-
vision. Hardly a month passes with
out the Czar receiving by will what
most men would consider large for
tune.
The Gear pockets more mining roy
alties than any other man on earth.
The silver gold, platinum and lead
mines in the Ural Mountains are gov
eminent property. Most Of the pro-
ceeds go into the government treas
ury, but royalties ranging from 6 to
Is per cent. are paid over to the
empe-or's private purse. Ee receives
similar royalties on the numerous
government mines in Siberia, which
are worked by the free labor Of con-
victs. He also receives quit rents.
titbes and other payments for vast
tracts of crown lands in Siberia and
central Asia, as well as share Of
the large revenue accruing from the
exploitation Of the immense areas Of
government forest land in Siberia.
Whole blocks of real estate in ST.
Petersburg, Moscow, Odessa. Mini
Novgorod. Irkutsk, Omsk, and other
cities and towns in European Russia
and Siberia are owned by the emperor
and the rents are duly collected by
small army of agents under the super
vision of Baron Freidrichs.
He also possesses large financial
holdings in several Russian railways
and in numerous industrial undertak-
ings, such as ironwork and textile fac
tories, promoted or encouraged by
Julfewitsh De Witte when he was
finance minister. The investment Of
the Cars immense wealth is always
q serious and difficult problem.
"It is impossible to arrive at any
exact estimate Of the wealth OF his
imperial majesty" said an official con-
nected with the Russian legation at
Washington. from whom most OF the
facts set forth were obtained, "but |
should think that. on the most con-
servative estimate he must be worth
from al sources. far more than $780,
100000 year. This is actual rev.
enue and does not take :cto account