ENGLISH NOBLE FAMILIES, AND HOW THEY BECAME RICH.

Taranaki Daily News, Volume LII, Issue 221, 23 October 1909, Page 4

ENGLISH NOBLE FAMILIES, AND HOW THEY BECAME RICH.

THE DUKE 01? PORTLAND. s Royalty, knew how to {rcat their .'uvorite* well iu the old days, even chough they were in the habit of beheading those who' fell into disgrace, lake the case of the founder of the house of Portland, for instance. He was out a page-boy to William Prince of Jrauge, his name being Hans William Hentinek. Ultimately ho became conIhlenliul adviser to the Prince, and earned the hitter's gratitude by nursing him through mi attack of smallpox. , Royalty, it has been said, have short memories for services rendered, but ji this case the saying was belied. For ifter the Prince's accession to the-Brit-ish throne he proceeded to bestow lands mil titles on iiis former page with such lavish generosity that at last the Commons stepped in and insisted that some if the gifts should be cancelled. In spite of this, however, the former pageboy managed to secure nearly a dozen manors, which formed the nucleus of the 1S:I,U»(I acres which the present Duke of I'ortland owns, the Scottish portion of which, 100,-IoU acres, brings in a rental of close upon ±'.70,000. A 'STRIKING RECORD.

William 111. created his favorite successively a baron, a viscount, and an earl, and when the latter died ill 1701) he was worth '£Boo,ooo, and was '»;- lieved, thanks to the generosity of the King, to be the richest subject ill England. This is but two hundred years igo, and no other noble house can claim .<> have acquired niich rank and possesJons iu so short a spue:' of time. Successive marriages with great heir■sses have increased the wealth of tile 'iieiiliiirks I'liorinouslv. not the least investing of these being that of the second Duke lo Lilly Margaret llarley, .vho. ill addition to thousands of acres if land in Derbvshire. possessed Bolsover Castle and the famous We'lbeck Abbey; vhile liv another marriage with (he heiress of General Scott, of Fifeshiro, lliev' acquired 81.00.") iicres in Caithness

THU 1)K- WALDENS. Pour years before the death, which u-ciirred in 1870, of the eccentric fifth

ijtiki'--thc nijiii wlio pluc-pil Wclbeek \l.lm'\- in the builder's hands fur, close iipiiii twenty years, unci spent a fnrtu'le (•'in -ti'iu-tinj; underground rooms and •ia»sagcs~hi» income was estimated at

u:S(i(),il(IO n year, ami H was increasing every day. Exactly what llio income of ih.. present Duke is. it is doubtful if lie himself know-, lint il is probably nearer L.illlUmil liian c:i(in.(inO. in spite of (lie fact Unit Uie late Duke left his London |)i'n|ierlv. the innnor of Marvleliune. which inelniles all those valuable ground-rents which miiv be located bv the names of Wolbcck street. Cavendish Square. I'ortlainl Place. Croat I'ortla'.M Street, and (.'real Titchlich! Street, to his sisieiv. the Dowager Ladv Ossinglou and the Uowairer Ladv Howard de Waldon. ' - The latter was tlic irraiidnmthcr of the ])resent Lord Howard de Walib-n. the richest bachelor in England: for in addition to •!»! acre- in bunion, which bring him in an annual rental of C 2.-, 'JOO.fI(H). he possesses much propertv if Ayrshire, also inherited from his grandmother, and he is ground landlord of practically the whole town of Kilmarnock, with its llnnrisliiii;; carpet factories and iron foundries, SOME COlll) SALARIES.

fn addition., however. t<> wealth (h rived from land .yarned in th<* ways indicated. the Jknitineks lisive drawn hugu from the country in the way of salary for official positions which member* of the family have held at one timo <»r another. They certainly knew tlie art of gutting well-paid pasts. The t'hiid Duke hold in succession no fewer than fourteen public ollices, while a younger aoji- of the same house was (tovornor* fieneral of India—salary about .00.009 .) year and perquisite; Clerk of the Pipe, salary ClKfl; ami Colonel of Dragoons salary a year— C&UJ42 a rear in all. A brother-in-law of the Duke held places worth- C 2050 a year, a nephew places worth toOOO fi year;\ while portions at salaries have! alwavs been found for other members of| i family who wished to augment their I isx'onics'Tit-Bits. * ' i