EXHIBIT 23.1
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                         CONSENT OF INDEPENDENT AUDITORS


   The Board of Directors
   Rubbermaid Incorporated:

   We consent to the incorporation by reference in Newell Co.'s Form S-3
   Registration Statement File Nos. 333-53039, 333-47261 and 33-64225, of our
   report dated January 30, 1998, with respect to the consolidated balance
   sheets of Rubbermaid Incorporated and subsidiaries as of December 31, 1997
   and 1996, and the related consolidated statements of earnings, cash flows
   and shareholders' equity for each of the years in the three-year period
   ended December 31, 1997, which report is included in the Form 8-K/A of
   Newell Co. dated November 20, 1998.

   /s/ KPMG PEAT MARWICK LLP


   Cleveland, Ohio
   December 1, 1998