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Miilionaries' Homes

Miilionaries' Homes image
Parent Issue
Day
2
Month
March
Year
1888
Copyright
Public Domain
OCR Text

Entering San Francisco through Golden Gate, the stranger sees a succession of hills, rising one behind the other westward f rom the water front. Passing Fort Point, the green shores of Marin county stretch out to the southward on the left until they are merged into the glistening church spires and house tops of Berkeley and Oaklund. To the right lies San Francisco, and as the eye glances over the well kept walkx, gardens and barrack houses of the military reservation they rest pon a gronp of handsome residences perched on the top of the highest hills. In the difitance they look not vnlike palaces seen on the banks of continental waters. The Btructures are half a dozen or more in nnmber, and three of them are the homes of the California railroad millionaires - Stanford, Crocker and Hopkins. The most showy of the trio is the Hopkins house. It is built after the style of au English castle, with túrrete rising skyward from all corners, and a center tower from which a tnagnificent view of thesurrounding country is obtained. As one rides up California Street the ilrst house passect is that of United States Senator Leiand Stanford, president of the great Soutliern Paciflc railroad system. Kxteriorly it is an unpretentious building, at the same time having an air of solid refinenient abont it. In other words, it looks the home of a gentleman. Adjoining it on the west, and perched on the top of the hill is the Hopkins structure, mention of which lias been I made. Unlike the Staniord residence, however. the llopkins house is pretentious to a fault, and in the gingerbreacl and fllagree work the term "shoddy" i.s plainly markf.i. An immense colpred grauite wall sni'n.unds it. A block distant brings one to he Crocker mansión, on the corner of California and Taylor streets. The lirst thing that attracts attention in lookiug at the Crocker house is a high board fence that rears itself to the air on the Sacramento Street side. It is not altogether au unsightly object, as the skillful hands of a gardner have trained vines and ciimbing flowers about it; but even these do not climb high enough to hide the painted boards. The main interest in an exterior view of the Crocker mansion rests in that fence. It is a famous fence and, iu coneequence, has a history. Any bright 6un6hiny day you climb the hill you wil! find from three to a dozen persons standing around gazing at the fence and listeniug to its history. It is the biggest part of a San Francisco guide's stock in trade and he never tires of telling it. ' 'That fence you see," nárrales the guide, "was put up there coz the manasownsthelot wouldn't sell out sous Crocker could have the huil lot." Relieved of its verbiage the story of the fence is that something like ten years ago, when Crocker built his home on the tiill, he owned all but a lot 23x100 feet ia size, ■with a frontage on Sacramento street. This little strip of ground was the property of one Ynng, an underlaker, who owned and oocupied a small dwelling which was located on it. Prior to building an agent of the millionaire negotiated for the property in a quiet inanuer and got a price of $3,000 on it. He did not close the bargain, preferring fii-st to see his principal. Pending this, Yung in some inanner became aware that the property was to 1 bought for Crocker and tv hop the agent retarned to close the bargain he advaneed ite price to ?G,000. This necessitated tbr ageiit's maiclng a second trip to his principal, and afte: somc discnssion Crocker, who wanted the whole block. decided to pay tlie price rather thau spoil the appearance of liis property, and toia bis agent to parchase tit $0,000. With a check for th;it ainount the agent eonght Yung. only to find that property cm Sacramento streel had again odvanccd. and that Yting's 25x100 foot lot and a ovthless building were quoted at $J),000, or jnst about Í 7.000 more than they were worth. Agsin nas Crocker conBiilted. and again did he teil his agent to iBCcede to the nndortaker's demands. The Jatter, hpwever, had not reaehed the top price jet, and vvhen i check for $9.000 was offemd hini for the property he coolly informeel the milllonaire'a representativa that he mu-t have $12,000 for the property ov he would not sell. This was too niuch even for Crocker. It was not so much the money he carctl ior ae it was the ontrageoas (iemands of the undertaker. The millionaire lost all desire o own the lot and went on building his palace and devising means to teach Yung a lesson. At last he hit upon a plan. llt would fence his place in so high and tight that no ray of suiishine conld reach the house. The underUiker and lus family watehed the building of the palace f rom their back windows and argued thut the uould have to come to time. They deidded that the next time the agent came around the price would be i{!l5,000. The agent ucver came, and jnc fine moriiii, a groap of carpeciers pui, in au appearance Post ..holes of great depth and large caliber were sunk in t he ground. Koon great poles Ihat would put to blush (he tallest telephone sticks ere planted, and t.heu it dawned npou tlie Yungs thal the wereto befenced in. They protestedand pleaded ín vain. They offered the propertj at S,9,000, then $6,000. and then imaüy offered to give it to Crocker for the ld original $3,000. Bilt the milliohaire would have none of it. He wanted to feuco in hia yard, and as the structure grew under the hanimer his ittachnient for it grew, and today tlie millionalre is said to ndmire it more thau any portipti of hia handsome place. The disgruntled body embalmeé, after flnding he had overreached himself, devised all sorts of means to annoy his millionaire ueighbor. He and his family stuck it out in the house ;is long as (hcy possibly Cimld, but they became sick flnally for the want of Bunsbina and were conipelled to move away. They (he hit upon, as they thought, a happy plau oí getting oven. They gave the house rent free to a Chinese laundrymau, stipulating only that the pagan should rig a bcailülding and stretch his lines so thal (.he washing of m.iny families would be visible from the windows of the ïriillionaire. Crocker rebelled at this, and after vainly endeavoring to have the wash muse removed t lie iniilionaire's carpenters Bpliced the long posts and the fence was Imilt 6O high that save from the front uo light whatevcr eutered the üiclosed wah iiouse. This move served the puipose, the pngan gave up his establishment and, as no öne would rent ir. Yung sold it to a (XJiiU-actor and it was moved away. - San Frantsco Cor. Sau Uiego Union.

Article

Subjects
Ann Arbor Argus
Old News