THE LATE BARON HIRSCH.

New Zealand Mail, Issue 1266, 4 June 1896, Page 17

THE LATE BARON HIRSCH.

PORTRAIT OF THE PAPON AND SKETCH OF HIS REMARKABLE CAREER.

Tho late Baron de Hirsch, who died of apoplexy on bis estate at Presburg in Hungary, on tho 21st April, was perhaps one of the greatest philanthropists of our day. And, besides, the news of his death struck more than cue Royal house with dismay. He was not only the richest man in the world, but the most generous. None knows this so well as Royal and other patrons of the turf, to whoso rescue he often advanced when illluck overtook them. The news of his death, according to a cable despatch, made a profound impression in London, and it was feared the racing arrangements for the whole season would be upset by his death.

fie has "accommodated" so many disappointed racing men that his disappearance will cause almost a collapse in certain circles which are the greatest ornaments and chief support of the European turf. The question which everybody in the London clubs asked when the news of the Baron's death was received was: "What will become of the Prince of Wales ?" By this was meant what will be dune about the enormous indebtedness which, common rumour lung has had if. is due from the Prince to tho wealthy Baron. Current report puts the amount at the incredible ligure of £1,500,000. This must be a great exaggeration, but. the sum, probably, is very large. Hence the public curiosity as to how the claim of the Hirsch estate will bo met. The private loans of the generous Baron to other eminent personages are also known to bo very large, but the details are naturally unknown. His public and private charities will also suffer severely unless tho Baron's will makes provision for the continuation of his princely benefactions. Nobody knows tin; amount of the. Huron's fortune, but it is probably secondonly to that of the Rothschilds in Europe. Most of it was derived from those sources of fabulous wealth- -railway and other concessions in Turkey, eastern Europe and Asia Minor.

Baron Maurice de Hirsch de Gereuth was born in Bavaria about 01 years ago. He inherited from his father his title to nobility and a part of his wealth. His father, who had started life as a cattle merchant, vas ennobled for his services to the State. After his father's death, Baron do Hirsch became a member of the banking firm of Bischoffsheim and Goldschmidt of London, and when, a few years later, ho married Miss Bischoffsheim, she brought him a large fortune, lie began tho accumulation of bis great wealth in banking, and later began the construction of railroads. Ho was one of three contractors who undertook the building of the Bul-garian-Constantinople line, and although his section of the road was the mosl difficult to build, and the one least likely to yield a profit, Baron Hirsch's fortune was largely increased by the enterprise. lie commenced bis philanthropic endeavours some years ago, and before his liberality to the persecuted Russian Jews became famous he had spent large sums of money in founding and maintaining oducat ional and industrial schools throughout the East, in Egypt and in European and Asiatic Turkey. He gave jCHjo.mk) to educational uses in Galiciu, and at one time later be offered .£2,000,000 to the Russian Government to be used in public instruction on condition that no distinction be made between creed and race in profiting by its expenditure. The Russian Government refused the offer. Baron Hirsch's wife has always been interested with him in his chaiitablo and benevolent schemes. In l.SilO Baron Hirsch became known in America through the establishment of the Baron Hirsch Fund, which was founded for the relief of tho needy Russian Jews in New York and tho United States. Shortly after the Russian Government had refused tho offer of .£2,000,000, Baron Hirsch became acquainted with tho condition of tho Russian Jews in the United States through a conversation with Mr Oscar S. Straus, at the time United States Minister to Turkey. Tho trust established at that time consisted of .£500,000, and it yields a yearly income of .£2.">,000. The Hebrew Institute was afterwards established at Jefferson street and East Broadway, New York- city. Baron Kirch's greatest charitable project was tho Jewish Colonization Association. It is a limited liability company capitalised at .£2,000,000 in .£IOO shares. All but ten of these shares were taken by Baron Hirsch, and the remainder were allotted to gentlemen interested in tho benevolent objects of tho Society. The principal one of these was to found agricultural colonies of Jews in North and South America, and tho country first selected was the Argentine Republic. The

Government of that country favoured tho project, but there was great popular prejudice against it, and that location was abandoned. His labours in this enterprise resulted in a serious illness.

Baron Hirsch bad one son, Lucien, and he died several years ago. He afterwards adopted two boys. He had lino homes in London, Paris and Vienna, and his principal country seat was in Moravia, in Austria. He was a mail of simple personal tastes, and extravagant only in his charities. He was at one time an intimate friend of the Prince of Wales, and this relation was very unfavourably regarded, as neither in France nor his own country, Austria, had ho ever received social recognition. He was the owner of a line racing stable, aud although not; a, man of broad education had become an accomplished linguist.