Evening star., 1941-08-17

by heart. AS he grew older all
that the great naval strategist wrote
interested him. and John Paul Jones,
Farragut and Perry were his heroes.
Consciously or unconsciously. during
the past fortnight he created one
Of the most battling international
sea mysteries of the century with
the entire world on the qui vive as to
whether he was having rendezvous
/ with Mr.. Winston Churchill.
The a Prime Minister of Eng
land should think of participating
IN such an extraordinary meeting
many think might be attributed to
the American influence and initia-
tive of Churchills New Yorker
grandfather, Leonard Jerome.
Yankee Ancestor
Displayed Courage.
At any rate. the fraternity to
which Mr. Jerome belonged at
Union College. the Sigma Phi So
ciety. makes out very good case
for such astheory in the June issue
in its national publication. the
Flame. According to the editors,
not all of the courage and tenacity
so characteristic of Churchill should
be attributed to the great Duke of
Marlborough, but very fair share
Of 1t to the Yankee ancestor who,
IS owner and publisher of the New
York Times, displayed these quail
ties in the troublous days of 1868.
1t will be recalled that Mr.. Jerome
was the father of the international
beauty. Jenny Jerome. who married
Lord Randolph Churchill, father of
the present Prime Minister 1t is
said that when Mr.. Jerome heard
that Lord Randolph's father, the
Duke, was making difficulties. the
king of the American turf pounded
on the table and asked whose busi-
ness it was to talk of mesalliance
when the most beautiful girl in New
York condescended' to an English
country squire?
Sigma Phi'S sketch, entitled ITO
Britain-a Legacy" says that "one
hot, sultry July day in 1868 anti
draft rioters ran amuck in New York
City, burning homes, shooting po-
licemen and attacking Horace Gree
leys Tribune Fearing his news
paper was due for the same treat
ment at the hands of these maraud-
ing fifth columnists of their day,
the hard-headed Yankee owner of
the Times equipped his entire staff
down to the office boys-with
rifles, mounted gatling gun
grandfather of the present-day ma
chine gum on the roof of the build
ing and set two or more up inside
the office. The invaders got wind
Of all this and quickly called off the
attack-the man who owned that
famous New York paper was Leon
ard Walter Jerome, Sigma Phi at
Union College in the delegation of
1889"
Grandfather Gave Funds
For Union Warship.
Mr.. Jerome, sportsman, financier
and journalist, was a one-man COL
lector of funds for the Union during
the War Between the States. pour
ing money into the Treasury. The
Flame also says that from his private
fortune Mr.. jerome gave S35 900 to
construct the warship Meteor, a
boat fast enough to run down the
Confederate Alabama That, how
over has not been verified, but it is
q fact the Alabama, a steamship of
1,040 tons. which was built for the
Confederate Navy in Birkenhead,
England, and commanded by the
great Confederate naval hero. Ad-
miral Raphael Semms, was captured
by the Kearserge on June II, 1864, !
off Cherbourg, France, where she
had put in for repairs.
Mr.. Jerome, the farmer boy from
upstate New York, who won fame |
and fortune on Wall Street and in