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About Omaha daily bee. (Omaha [Neb.]) 187?-1922 | View Entire Issue (Jan. 23, 1916)
The Omaha Sunday Bee Magazine Page WW Baron Astor's DTS ( t CostE' orone C:d Ww & t The Coronet of Baron Is a Circle of Gold with Six Silver Balls Raised Immediately Above. The Cap Is of Crimson Velevt, Turned Up with Ermine with a Tassel of Gold on Top. Enormous Sums Mr. Astor Has Paid to Obtain His Peerage Contributions to Tory campaign fund la 25 years (oaUmatod) .... $3,500,000 Paid for Pall Mall Gaiatto, Observer and othar Tory organs - 2,500,000 Various contributions to hospitals and charities (estimated) 1,750,000 Contributions to war raliaf funds 1,250,000 Entertaining King Gaorgo and Queen Mary 750,000 Entertainments to influential politicians 750,000 Spent in entertaining tbe late King Edward . . . . Hiring Countess to cbaperon daugbter Retaining Tory politician to "train" oldest son la politics . House party to Tory political leaders To Queen Alexandra's Working Men's Dinner Fund GRAND TOTAL Very Peculiar Mr. Astor He left America, which gives him a fit country for a gentleman to live in. ; Offended King Edward by telling him how he would entertain him, instead of asking his pleasure. Ordered Admiral Sir Berkeley Milne out of his London house be cause ho came, without an invitation. Involved himself in a ridiculous quarrel with the Duke of "West minster about the visitors' book of the house the Duke had sold him. Presented to England the flag of Captain Lawrence's ship, the Chesapeake, captured by the British ship Shannon in 1813. "Fired" his noble newspaper editors for making fun of him. Expressed annoyance at a story that Queen Anne Boleyn declined to haunt her old home after Mr. Astor had bought it. Brought a libel suit against a London newspaper for saying he was going to entertain twenty-seven friends on a section of California redwood. WILLIAM WALDORF ASTOR, th largest owner of New York real estate, has finally obtained a peerage from tbe King ot England, after renouncing hla native country, perform ing the most amazing aeries ot antics ever committed by a social climber, and after paying incomparably the largest gum of money ever paid for tbe honor obtained. He has chosen for himself tbe title "Baron Astor of Hever Castle." For twenty-five years tbe largest owner ot New York real estate has been assiduously cultivating the King, Government and publlo of Great Britain with a view to obtaining a title, and only In this present period of acute na tional distress haa he been able to sat isfy his ambition. Mr. Astor left the United States with the remark that it was "no country for a gentleman to live in." His disgust wtth this country was due, first, to his failure In a political campaign, and, sec ondly, to the freedom with which the American press commented on him. As a very young millionaire, he conde scended to be elected to the State Leg islature. Then he ran for Congress.- In con sideration of his generous contributions to the party he was nominated for a ate Republican district. Politicians en joyed bis liberality and newspaper re- porters bad a good deal of fun with his social pretensions, all ot which annoyed Mr. Astor very much. To his disgust, he was defeated. The party tried to console him with a term as Minister to Italy, but the in gratitude of the Republic always rankled. He returned to America, and then his dignity was still more seriously af fronted. His wife, now deceased. In formed the postmaster at Newport1 that she was "the Mrs. Astor," and that all t letters so addressed were to be dellv- ' ered to her. The late Mrs. William Astor, who had long been the acknowl- . edged queen of New York society, ' calmly informed the postmaster that she was "the Mrs. Astor." This peculiar controversy became the subject of much humorous comment. Few people know that this was what finally disgusted Mr. W. W. Astor with America. His dignity was more offended than if he had been Czar of Russia. After putting his financial Interests la order he moved permanently to London In 1891. One of his first acts was to lease the finest house in London, Lansdowne House, whose owner was in need of ready money. Soon after that he pur chased Cliveden House, on the Thames, a beautiful house and estate, whose owner, the Duke of Westminster, al though the richest peer in England, felt unable to keep It. Then Mr. Astor plunged Into a career 550,000 250,000 250,000 150,000 60,000 , 511,750,000 Things That Has Bone his income, because it was not of social conquest. Of course, he planned to win the favor of the then Prince of Wales, afterward King Ed ward. The Prince was very favorably disposed toward persons with large ac cumulations of cash, whatever their an cestry might be. Mr. Astor gave balls and entertainments which cost nun-' dreds of thousands of dollars, and the Prince put in an appearance at on of these. Finally be accepted an lnvltiaon to stay over night at Cliveden, a very great honor. Mr. Astor Is said to have spent $200,000 on this affair alone. He did everything with Oriental splendor, but with his customary lack ot tact, he made a slip. When entertaining royalty it Is essen tial to find out just what they wish to do. Now, Mr, Astor planned to take the Prince In the morning for a tri umphal procession on the Thames in a glorified steam launch. Sometimes the Prince liked to lie about in the morn ing rather than take strenuous exer-" else, like riding on a boat. When he heard what Mr. Astor was going to do for him, his reply the Prince was noted for his pungent repartee is said to have been something like this: "What does the old bounder mean by telling me what he is going to do with meT Tell him I'm engaged and not to be disturbed." Tbe Prince went away from this af fair seriously ruffled, and It was long before he showed Mr. Astor any favor again. At this early period Mr. Astor pur chased the Pr'l Mall Gazette, a paper originally intended "to be written by gentlemen for gentlemen." It had be come a popular sheet under the late W. T. Stead, and then it had rapidly de clined. Mr. Astor paid a great sum tor it, said to have been $1,000,000. He made it a high Tory organ and , appointed an earl's son as editor. He also established the Pall Mall Magazine, and used it in the same way to further his social ambitions. Mr. Astor's cense of dignity and self esteem was so great, that in spite of his desire to win favor with the nobility and ruling classes, he was constantly getting Into hot water with them. He found that the earl's son on the paper had been making fun of bis employer, and lgnorainiouely discharged him. A duke's boo, Lord Frederick Hamilton, on the magazine, went the same way. Then Mr. Astor simply shocked so ciety by kicking a distinguished British naval officer. Admiral Sir Berkeley Milne, who bad been commander of the royal yacht, out of hla house. An Eng lish society woman, who had received an invitation to a gorgeous musicals given by Mr. Astor, asked Admiral Milne, who had not been Invited, to accompany her. When Ma Astor found that the naval officer haa com with Blunders, Lack of Tact and Enormous Expense of the Expatriated Amer ican Millionaire in His 25 -Years' Struggle to Win the Lowest ) .. XsP yr-vr I t X jv i.. vs , ', 1 . , , ,l . .... : .,.: ; : ; xrJ- ;, ' I ' ' ' ' ' l"" "T '.' ' . I . . Exactly How William Waldorf Astor Will Look la His Baron's Robes and Coronet as "Baron Astor of Hever Castle." out an Invitation, be ordered him out ot tbe bouse. Then he had a remarkable bickering with the late Duke of Westminster. He purchased Cliveden from the Duke, with all Its furniture, but after a while the Duke claimed possession of the visitors' book, with tbe autographs of all the royal and noble persons who had vis ited tbe place. After long and angry correspondence and threats of law suits, Mr. Astor held on to the book, although to Englishmen It neemed a personal pox sesslon of the former owner like a batch of letters. Mr. Astor became a naturalized Brit ish subject in lfctfi), and after that it was notorious that he was campaigning for a peerage. He gave millions of dollars to funds approved by the Kin or by Tory political, and social leaders. An Englishman becomes a lord through the nomination of tbe Prime Minister and is formally created by tbe King. The King does not have a free hand in cre ating peerages, because they affect the legislature, but he Is able to give them Copyright. 1916, by tha Star Company. Title in the British y Peerage to a certain number of his friends. On the other hand, it would be difficult for the Government to give a peerage to a man who was obnoxious to the King. It is well known that a common way of obtaining a peerage is to make a gen erous contribution to the campaign fund ot the party in power. Successful English stockbrokers and manufacturers of oilcloth obtained peer ages In return for contributions of $50,000 or so, while Mr. Astor, who was spending millions, got nothing. This disappointment almost threatened his reason. Tbe King would not think of giving him a title, and no Government bad the hardihood to propose hlro for one. Whatever the sum paid, there is always a pretence that the title is given for some genuine public service. Mr. Astor's quest of a title finally be came a joke in England. Weekly news papers made cartoons on tbe aubjoct. One showed hlin as an American eagle, loaded down with money bags. In pur Great Britain Rights Reiarvad. .1 Mrs. Waldorf Astor, Jr., the Charming Daughter ln-Law of the Baron, Who Will Some Day Be a Baroness. suit of a vanishing coronet. Labor Members of Parliament poured scorn on this "American money-bag who was seeking to undermine our free Institu tions." To increase his social splendor Mr. Astor purchased Hever Castle, near Sevenoaks, said to be the most perfect specimen of a mediaeval dwelling in Kngland. It was the birthplace of Anne Boleyn, King Henry VIU's beautiful and ill-fated wire No. t. A funny story about this place began to go the rounds of English society, that annoyed Mr. Astor exceedingly. It was said that Anne Boleyn's ghost had always haunted the castle, but after Mr. Astor went there sbe declined to appear. Perhaps the most ungraceful, and to Americana the most repulsive, thing Mr. Astor ever did was to present tbe flag of tbe American ship Chesapeake to the British United Service Museum. The Chesapeake was captured by the British ship Shannon in 1813. during a famous fight, in which the American captain, James Lawrence, uttered his immortal . f ' ' ' , r 1 1 i . ( The Drawbridge and Moat of Hever Castle. Here Baron Astor Can Realize the Ambition of His Life to Be a Ileal Baron in This Old Baronial Castle. , words. "Don't give up the ship." Tha flag fell into private bands In England and Mr. Astor bought it for $4,250 and gave it to the Institution named.- As Mr. Astor's children grew to ma turity his social pros ' pects in England im proved. His elder son, Waldorf Astor, a presentable young man, educated at Oxford, married Mrs. Nannie Langhorne Shaw, one ot the famously beautiful Langhorne sisters of Virginia. She has be come very popular In the smartest Eng lish society. She helped her husband to win his election to the House of Commons for Ply mouth. The second son, John Jacob Astor. .became an officer of the Life Guards, the premier regiment of the British army, and proved himself a good sportsman. He has been wounded in tbe present war. Tbe title which Mr. Astor sought so long to obtain from the Tories he has at last won from a coalition Govern ment that Is mainly Liberal. His greatest contribution of all to British funds is to pay the present in come tax, which amounts to one-third of a rich man's total income. In Mr. Astor's case this is estimated to be $1,260,000 per annum. He could have avoided all this by transferring bis res idence to New York. He has also given great sums to war relief funds. - The title now conferrei on Mr. Astor, that of baron, is the lowest in the peer age, but it gives hlra a seat in the House of Lords. It entitles him to wear a scarlet velvet robe, with two rows ot ermine, and a coronet surmounted with six silver balls. His oldest son will inherit the title, and the two sons will now be known as the Hon. Waldorf Astor and the Hon. John Jacob Astor.