The Omaha Sunday Bee Magazine Pace
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ouj Two Ocean Tragedies Gave Back
in Each Case to the First Wives
All They Had Lost
Baby Alfred Vanderbilt Whose Hopes of Social
Leadership Were Wrecked With the Lutitania.
by Divorce
and Took
Away from the Second All They
Had Hoped to Gain by Marriage
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PERHAPS the most extraordinary par
allel that ban ever occurred In the
aocial hlHtory of New York la found
In the deaths of Alfred Gwjnne Vanderbilt
and Colonel John Jacob Aator.
Each man belonged to a imalr group of
the world'i richest men. Each perished In
a surprising, shocking ana coloasal ocean
tragedy. Each left a divorced wife with
an only son. Each left a recently wedded
widow who had secured her position as
head o' a great multi millionaire's house- '
hold after some rsther surprising social
adventures. '
And here comes the most surprising'
parallel of all. In each case the divorced
wife, who had been thrown Into more or
less obscurity by the divorce, regained ber
original position through the traglo death
of her former husband and became once
more practically the bead of one of the
world's colossal fortunes.
There are evidently some striking moral
lessons to be drawn from these events,
which It "ould not be polite to define too
closely.
The divorced wife who galna so much by
Alfred Vanderbllt'a desth Is known as Mrs.
Krench-Vanderbllt. Bhe was formerly Miss
Elsie French, a member of a family long
socially prominent In New York and New
port. The widow who passes into obscur
ityia Mrs. Margaret Emerson Vanderbilt,
daughter of Captain Isaac Emerson, of
Baltimore, and for a time the wife of Dr.
Smith Holllns McKIm.
The divorced wife who became a great
social figure by Colonel John Jacob Astor'a
death Is Mrs. John Astor, formerly Ava
Willing, of Philadelphia, and celebrated on
two continents as a queenly representative
of American beauty. The widow who by
the si me tragedy paeses Into relative ob
scurity is Mrs. Madeleine Force Astor, a
very hsndsome young woman, who before
her marriage to the late millionaire was
not a prominent social figure In New York.
Young. Mrs. Alfred Owynne Vanderbilt
had been planning an extensive aoclal
campaign In London and New York, when
a Herman submarine sauk the Lualtanla
on May 7, plunged her into mourning and
ended all her plans and hopes., Young
Mrs. Madeleine Force Astor similarly was
thinking, three years ago, how, after a
brief period of travel and rest, she would
embark on a great campaign for the con
quest of New York society with her hus
band's millions. Hut an iceberg, not less
ruthless than the German submarine, came
la. the night and sank the mighty Titanic
on April 14, 1912, during her maiden voy
age, drowned Colonel Astor and with It
bla wife's hopes.
By her former husband's death Mrs.
French Vanderbilt was restored to the full
enjoyment of the hlgheet position she
could have had while married to him. As
a divorced wife she was under no obliga
tion to waste time in mourning and to re
main in aoclal retirement during that
period. She becomes the dominant per
sons in the house of Vanderbilt of the
younger generation.
In the same way Mrs. Ava Willing Astor
was made by death once more the dominant
figure tn the Astor family. . Her son, W'lll
lan Vincent Ajttor, was left fully nlne
tentha of the Astor fortune, with the
family country seat- Ills mother, to
whom he was devoted, became his princi
pal guide and raentot. It was even re
marked by an acute social observer that
death gave Mrs. Astor back her on son,
for before the tragedy he had been com
pelled to spend a great deft I of his time
with his father.
When Alfred Vanderbllt'a will was made
known. New York society was surprised to
find to what extent bis son by his first
wife had been made the head of the family.
Indeed the details are not yet fully known
to the public. ' He acted just as John
Jacob Astor did when he left the bulk of
his property to hla son by his neglected
first w lie. In spile of the romance that'
filled the few montha of bis life before
bis death.
Alfred Vanderbilt had known and loved
his little son. William II. Vanderbilt, who
was a boy of twelve at the time of his
leatrangemeut from his first wife. Doubt-
tess the imperative promptings of bis con
clonce and fatherly love told him that he
had not a right to discriminate agalnvt
Uia own son because he had quarrelled
lth one woman or fallen In love with
another.
Therefore he left to his oldest son the
Uxnily homestead, Oakland Farm, near
Newport, and every heirloom and token
that denoted headship of the family. .This
place was particularly dear to the first
Mrs. Vsnderbllt, because it was there that
she had passed her honeymoon, when
expectations of happiness were unclouded.
It yas there hat he bad bis finest horses,
that he accumulated-' his most valuable
personal belongings and that he made his
real home. '
Hla second wife was equally attached
to Oakland Farm, for she had planned to
make it the principal scene of her social
triumphs. After her husband's will was
read she paid a sad farewell visit to the
beautiful place. She said goodby to the'
old employes, looked over the gardens
and stables and packed up all her belong
ings. Mrs. French Vanderbilt, who has
been living at Harbour View, Newport, Is
resdy to move Into Oakland Farm with
her son.
How much Importance Alfred Vanderbilt
attached to Oakland Farm la partly shown
by the wording of his will, In which he
says:
"I hereby give to the executors of this,
my will, as trusteea of the trusts and of
each of the trusts created by this, my will,
full power and authority, In their discre
tion, to sell at public auction or private
sale, at such times or places, in such man
ner, and upn such terms and conditions
as they shall deem expedient, or to lease or
to rent or to otherwise dtspose of. In such
manner, for such periods and upon such
terms as they shall deem expedient, any
and all my real estate, wheresoever the
same may be situated, excepting only my
said real estate known as Oakland Farm,
as well as any and all personal property,
constituting a part of any such trust, and
to execute and deliver any and all deeds,
leases or other instruments necessary or
proper for the accomplishment of such
purposes."
Alfred Vanderbilt left to his oldest son
the coach Venture, which first made the
reputation of Its owner as the leading
amateur coachman of the world. The
testator also left to this son the family
portraits and the busts of his father, Cor
- nellus Vanderbilt. bequeathed to htm by
hla father's will, and finally the cherished
gold medal voted by Congress to the little
lellow's great-great-grandfather, Commo
dore Vanderbilt, at tne cloae of the Civil
War. This medal Is regarded as a great
honor In the Vanderbilt -family. Alfred
Vanderbilt further desired that In the
event of his oldest son's death without
sons, the medal should go to the testator's
oldest brothes, Cornelius Vanderbilt, who
was partly disinherited for marrying Miss
Grace Wilson against his father's wishes.
The provisions of the will on these points
say:
"I give and bequeath to my son, William
)!. Vanderbilt, my coach known as the
Venture.
"I give and bequeath to my son, William
II. Vanderbilt. the portraits and bustr be
queathed to me. by the first article of the
will of my father, Cornelius Vanderbilt,
and the gold medal voted by the Congress
of the I'ulted States to my great-grandfather,
Cornelius Vanderbilt, at the close
of the war of the rebellion. In 1S65, and
which medal was bequeathed to me by the
sixteenth article of the will of my father.
If my said son shall not survive me, then
I rive and bequeath aald portraits and said
bust end said gold medal to my b"ther,
Cornelius Vanderbilt"
' With all these heirlooms and tokens of
distinction as bead of the family, Alfred
Vanderbilt left a proportionate shsre of his
estate to his oldest son. For Instance, he
stipulated that his trustees should set
aside ample funds for the upkeep of Oak
land Farm and other property left to the
oldest son.
A trust fund of $3,000,000 established by
Alfred Vanderbllt'a father for his benefit
was left entirely to the oldest son. Alfred
had already settled $16,000,000 on his first
wife on their divorce, and this, of course,
will go to her son.
It Is significant that Alfred Vanderbllt'a
Place In the Adlronducks, Sagamore Lodge,
waa bequeathed to his widow, Mrs. Mar
garet Emerson Vanderbilt. It was this
place to which the deceased sportaman
used to retire for relaxation when his re
lations with his first wire were becoming
strained. It had'uo pleasant associations
for ber and would have been an unwelcome
- gift, even if It had hren left to her son.
In leaving Oakland to his oldest son.
Alfred Vanderbilt followed the example of
Colonel John Jacob Aslor, who bequee'hed
Little John Jacob Astor, Whom
the Titanic' Sinking Forced In
to the Same Relatively Insignifi
cant Position a That in Which
the Lusitania's Los Placed
Baby Alfred VanderbUt.
(And Below)
William H. Vanderbilt, Who Oc
cupies Exactly the Same Place
in tne Vanderbilt Case as Vin
cent Astor Does in the
Astor Case.
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The First Mrs. Alfred Vanderbilt,
Who Like the Firtt Mrs. Astor,
Regains by Death Practically All
She Lost by Divorce.
the old Astor family place, at Rhlnebeck-on-the-Hudson,
and th secondary country
seat, Deechwood, at Newport, to his son
by his first wife. To his young widow
Colonel Astor left for life his town house
In New York, but she haa been complain
ing with some show of reason that the
fortune he left was hardly adequate for
Mrs. Margaret tmerson Vanderbilt, the Sec
ond Wife of Alfred Vanderbilt Who Passes by
the Lusitania's Sinking Into the Same Social
Obscurity That the Sinking of the Titanic
Brought to the Second Mrs. John Jacob Astor.
the maintenance of this place and her son.
Alfred Vanderbilt left n,o New York
house, but It Is generally understood In
eociety that his father's great town house,
at Fifth avenue and Fifty-seventh to Fifty
eighth streets, and Beaulleu, the Newport
villa, will eventually pass to his oldest eon,
William H. Vanderbilt.
The second Mrs. Alfred Vanderbilt Is left
In a position with regard to European
society curiously similar to that of the
second Mrs. John Jacob Astor. The first
Mrs. Vanderbilt has a sister married 'to
Oeneral Lord Cheylesmore In England, and
consequently ber own position In English . '
society is of the best. Alfred Vanderbllt's
recent associations in England had been
largely with sporting characters, and his
widow can expect no warm reception from
high society.
Similarly Mrs. Madeleine Force Astor
must find herself emtarra6sed in England,
for her predecessor had already entrenched
herself very securely there.
One of the oddities of the situation is
that each millionaire - gave his own.
Christian nam to a som by hla second
wife, while he gave a family name and
the bulk of the property to a son by the
first wife.
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Some Easy Ways for You to Break Up a Cold
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MANY physicians are convinced that the
proper treatment of a cold depends In
some degree upon the way the person
has taken the cold. We must go back to the
beginning and begin where the cold began.
For Instance, If one catches cold by- getttn?
the teet cold, say by going out with thin shoes,
and getting wet and chilled, it Is. not the cold,
but the long chilling that does the harm. The
best measure Is to take a hot toot bath. The
cold got In through the feet, o It should be
driven out through the feet.
If one gets cold by exposing the back of the
neck to a draft, resulting in a lame neck, sore
ness, cold and stiffness in the neck, then bot
applications should be made to the back of the
neck. - -
ir the cold Is the result of general exposure
spd a lowering of the general bodily tempera
ture, then a general hot bath Is good, and that
really Is about the best thing for any person
w ho Is taking or has taken cold.
When the cold first shows Itself, take a hot
bath, but not In the morning. Take the hot
bath at night. Drink a couple of glasses of hot
water, get Into the bot bath and stay there
about half an hour.
Have the bath bot enough to set up perspir
ation. It may be aa hot as one likes In the
beginning, but when perspiration begins, lower
the temperature to about one hundred degrees,
snd keep It there for about half an hour more.
Then lower tt to about ninety-five degrees and
stay In tha bath another hour. One may safely
remain in the bath two hours If suffering with
a really bad cold. -
Drink some more water at the close of the
bath and go to bed. It is well to drink just as
much water as one can.
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.opyriaht. 115. by the Blar Connrv. Great rttn Rirhi nervd
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