Year: 1874

| The New York Graphic of late date says


The wealth of the Vanderbilt family has beer
| variously estimated. and the reticence of the
| Commodore himself has admitted of little else
| than mere conjecture on this point. There is a
| general opinion, however, among those who are
| in position to Judge most correctly that the
| wealth vested in Commodore Vanderbilt ex-
ceeds one hundred millions of dollars, and a
prominent member of the family recently said
that the "old man" was worth more than that
sum. This vast fortune was acquired by Cor


nelius Vanderbilt through his own effort, start
ing early in life without capital or influence.
His parents were poor, and his first money was


earned in conveying people to and fro in a row.


boat between New York and Staten Island. He


made large amount of money in steamb boat


ing, but the great bulk of his wealth has been


acquired in railroad combinations and in the


mani pulatOn of railroad stocks. He is and


has been all his life very remark able man.


His self reliance and pluck are as natural with


him as drawing breath, and his will and pur-


pose are indomitable A man of such tremen-


dous mental force has he been that he has


moved forward to the accomplishment of his


objects with power as Irresistible as one of


his steamboats,. His one purpose in life has


been the acquisition of money. To this end he


has trained his mental and physical resources


with the greatest care. He has made of him


self machine that has always obeyed the re-


quirements of his intellect and wherever he


has struck it has been with telling force and


effect. He has had very few vices. He has


always drank moderately and lived regularly,


taking just the requisite amount Of exercise


always. Smoking ard whist playing are the


only indulgences which he has permitted him


self to any considerable degree. Every day he


is to be seen driving on the road, with stump


Of cigar between his lips, and until year


past he has had every evening some of his cro-


MI nt xuh tO tol of


which he never tires Latterly, however, his


evenings have been passed very quietly. He


has always been strict man of business, kept


his own counsel, and admitted or known no


partners. He never allows the plea of sffection
or charity to interfere with his business mat
ters. Appeals to his sympathy have about as


much effect straw forced under the wheels
of locomotive. He has been we'll, active, and


in the harness all his life, and has never tired
or weakened. He will be eighty years Of age
in May, and his sixty odd years of constant
hard work show that he has had one of the
strongest physical constitutions ever given to
a man. Some people look at him and say that
he will never die, but it is well known that the
machine so admirably built and which has last
ed so long is slowly but surely wearing out
His mental faculties remain unimpaired, but
his gait is less steady than it was, and he no
longer trusts himself with the duties he used
to perform. He frequently complains of ex-
and when be drives out it is TO be no.
tced that he no longer drives FAST He is get
ting ready to lay his harness aside, and has,
doubtless, made full provision for the distribu-
tion of his colossal accumulations. For mum
Der of years his son in-law, D. B. Allen, was
his right-hand man, but of late years his son
William H. has represented him in carrying
out the more active duties of administration.
William Ii. is assiduous in his attention to
work as his father ever was, is scarcely, if ever,
seen in public, and can nearly always be found
during business hours at his desk in the Grand
Central Depot. Cornelius Vanderbilt was born
in May, 1894, at Stapleton, Staten Island, and
his parents were also born on Staten Island
Their parents came over from Holland. The
house in which he was born is still standing
and is owned by him. At the age of nineteen
he married Sophia Johnson, his second cousin,
who was then eighteen. She died five years
ago last August. She was as remarkable a
woman as he was man, possessed great firm
ness, very shrewd manager, strong principle,
and it is said she earned every dollar she spent
after her marriage. Thirteen children in all
were born to them, nine girls and four boys, of
whom are now living eight daughters and two
sons. u


Of course Commodore Vanderbilt is sur
rounded with vast NUM- Der of hangers on and
favorites, but he allows none around him that
are troublesome, and it is more than doubtful if
any of them have any influence over him to the
extent of making that influence pecuniarly
profitable. He receives thousands of begging
letters and never reads any of them. He keeps
his money continually invested, and keeps only
9 moderate amount on deposit. He has only
expedition during the war at an expense or
over 100000, and presented the steamer Van
derbilt to the Government after laying out ST.,
900 900 in fitting her as a ram to be used against
the Merrimac. He gave $5OO,OO to the Van
derbilt University at Nashville, paid for the
given large amounts in charities. He supports
a Moravian church at Staten Island, near which
is the tomb which he caused to be built for his
final resting place. He never gives money in
charities, and only gives when
he satisfies himself that his charity will accom-
nlish real good.