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diff --git a/old/64059-0.txt b/old/64059-0.txt deleted file mode 100644 index d05f51f..0000000 --- a/old/64059-0.txt +++ /dev/null @@ -1,8870 +0,0 @@ -The Project Gutenberg eBook, How They Succeeded, by Orison Swett Marden - - -This eBook is for the use of anyone anywhere in the United States and most -other parts of the world at no cost and with almost no restrictions -whatsoever. You may copy it, give it away or re-use it under the terms of -the Project Gutenberg License included with this eBook or online at -www.gutenberg.org. If you are not located in the United States, you'll have -to check the laws of the country where you are located before using this ebook. - - - - -Title: How They Succeeded - Life Stories of Successful Men Told by Themselves - - -Author: Orison Swett Marden - - - -Release Date: December 16, 2020 [eBook #64059] - -Language: English - -Character set encoding: UTF-8 - - -***START OF THE PROJECT GUTENBERG EBOOK HOW THEY SUCCEEDED*** - - -E-text prepared by Tim Lindell, Barry Abrahamsen, and the Online -Distributed Proofreading Team (http://www.pgdp.net) from page images -generously made available by Internet Archive (https://archive.org) - - - -Note: Project Gutenberg also has an HTML version of this - file which includes the original illustrations. - See 64059-h.htm or 64059-h.zip: - (http://www.gutenberg.org/files/64059/64059-h/64059-h.htm) - or - (http://www.gutenberg.org/files/64059/64059-h.zip) - - - Images of the original pages are available through - Internet Archive. See - https://archive.org/details/howtheysucceeded00mardrich - - -Transcriber’s note: - - Text that was in italics is enclosed by underscores (_italics_). - - - - - -HOW THEY SUCCEEDED - - -[Illustration] - - -Life Stories of Successful Men Told by Themselves - -by - -ORISON SWETT MARDEN - -Editor of “Success.” Author of “Winning Out,” etc., etc. ❧ - -Illustrated - - - - - - -Lothrop Publishing Company -Boston ❧ - - -[Illustration] - -Copyright, -1901, by -Lothrop Publishing Company. - -All Rights Reserved - - -[Illustration] - - - - ------------------------------------------------------------------------- - - - - - CONTENTS - -[Illustration] - - - CHAPTER I - - - PAGE - - MARSHALL FIELD 19 - - “Determined not to remain poor” 20 - - “Saved my Earnings, and Attended 20 - strictly to Business” - - “I always thought I would be a 21 - Merchant” - - An Opportunity 21 - - A Cash basis 23 - - “Every Purchaser must be enabled to 24 - feel secure” - - The Turning-Point 25 - - Qualities that make for Success 27 - - A College Education and Business 27 - - - CHAPTER II - - - BELL TELEPHONE TALK 30 - HINTS ON SUCCESS BY ALEXANDER G. - BELL. - - A Night Worker 30 - - The Subject of Success 31 - - Perseverance applied to a Practical 32 - End - - Concentration of Purpose 34 - - Young American Geese 36 - - Unhelpful Reading 36 - - Inventions in America 37 - - The Orient 38 - - Environment and Heredity 38 - - Professor Bell’s Life Story 40 - - “I will make the World Hear it” 41 - - - CHAPTER III - - - WHY THE AMERICAN PEOPLE LIKE HELEN 44 - GOULD - - A Face Full of Character 45 - - Her Ambitions and Aims 45 - - A Most Charming Charity 46 - - Her Practical Sympathy for the Less 49 - Favored - - Personal Attention to an Unselfish 52 - Service - - Her Views upon Education 55 - - The Evil of Idleness 56 - - Her Patriotism 56 - - “Our Helen” 59 - - “America” 60 - - Unheralded Benefactions 60 - - Her Personality 63 - - - CHAPTER IV - - - PHILIP D. ARMOUR’S BUSINESS CAREER 65 - - Footing it to California 68 - - The Ditch 70 - - He enters the Grain Market 71 - - Mr. Armour’s Acute Perception of 72 - the Commercial Conditions for - Building up a Great Business - - System and Good Measure 73 - - Methods 74 - - The Turning-Point 75 - - Truth 75 - - A Great Orator and a Great Charity 75 - - Ease in His Work 77 - - A Business King 78 - - Training Youth for Business 79 - - Prompt to Act 82 - - Foresight 83 - - Forearmed against Panic 84 - - Some Secrets of Success 85 - - - CHAPTER V - - - WHAT MISS MARY E. PROCTOR DID TO 87 - POPULARIZE ASTRONOMY - - Audiences are Appreciative 88 - - Lectures to Children 89 - - A Lesson in Lecturing 90 - - The Stereopticon 91 - - “Stories from Starland” 93 - - Concentration of Attention 94 - - - CHAPTER VI - - - THE BOYHOOD EXPERIENCE OF PRESIDENT 96 - SCHURMAN OF CORNELL UNIVERSITY - - A Long Tramp to School 98 - - He Always Supported Himself 100 - - The Turning-Point of his Life 101 - - A Splendid College Record 103 - - - CHAPTER VII - - - THE STORY OF JOHN WANAMAKER 105 - - His Capital at Fourteen 106 - - Tower Hall Clothing Store 107 - - His Ambition and Power as an 108 - Organizer at Sixteen - - The Y. M. C. A. 109 - - Oak Hall 109 - - A Head Built for Business 110 - - His Relation to Customers 111 - - The Merchant’s Organizing Faculty 113 - - Attention to Details 115 - - The Most Rigid Economy 115 - - Advertising 116 - - Seizing Opportunities 117 - - Push and Persistence 117 - - Balloons 119 - - “To what, Mr. Wanamaker, do you 120 - Attribute your Great Success?” - - His Views on Business 121 - - Public Service 124 - - Invest in Yourself 124 - - At Home 126 - - - CHAPTER VIII - - - GIVING UP FIVE THOUSAND A YEAR TO 129 - BECOME A SCULPTOR - - - CHAPTER IX - - - QUESTIONS AND ANSWERS BUSINESS 139 - POINTERS BY DARIUS OGDEN MILLS. - - Work 139 - - Self-Dependence 140 - - Thrift 141 - - Expensive Habits—Smoking 141 - - Forming an Independent Business 142 - Judgment - - The Multiplication of Opportunities 142 - To-day in America - - Where is One’s Best Chance? The 143 - Knowledge of Men - - The Bottom of the Ladder 144 - - The Beneficent Use of Capital 145 - - Wholesome Discipline of Earning and 146 - Spending - - Personal: A Word about Cheap Hotels 146 - - - CHAPTER X - - - NORDICA: WHAT IT COSTS TO BECOME A 149 - QUEEN OF SONG - - The Difficulties 150 - - “The World was Mine, if I would 152 - Work” - - “It put New Fire into me” 154 - - “I was Traveling on Air” 156 - - In Europe 159 - - “Why don’t you Sing in Grand 161 - Opera?” - - This was her Crowning Triumph 162 - - She was Indispensable in “Aida” 166 - - The Kindness of Frau Wagner 167 - - Musical Talent of American Girls 169 - - The Price of Fame 170 - - - CHAPTER XI - - - HOW HE WORKED TO SECURE A FOOT-HOLD 171 - WILLIAM DEAN HOWELLS. - - A Lofty Ideal 172 - - Acquiring a Literary Style 174 - - My Workshop 175 - - How to Choose Between Words 177 - - The Fate following Collaboration 179 - - Consul at Venice 180 - - My Literary Experience 182 - - As to a Happy Life 184 - - - CHAPTER XII - - - JOHN D. ROCKEFELLER 185 - - His Early Dream and Purpose 186 - - School Days 188 - - A Raft of Hoop Poles 191 - - The Odor of Oil 192 - - His First Ledger and the Items in 193 - it - - $10,000 196 - - He Remembered the Oil 197 - - Keeping his Head 197 - - There was Money in a Refinery 198 - - Standard Oil 200 - - Mr. Rockefeller’s Personality 201 - - At the Office 202 - - Foresight 203 - - Hygiene 204 - - At Home 205 - - Philanthropy 206 - - Perseverance 207 - - A Genius for Money-Making 207 - - - CHAPTER XIII - - - THE AUTHOR OF THE BATTLE HYMN OF 209 - THE REPUBLIC HER VIEWS OF - EDUCATION FOR YOUNG WOMEN. - - “Little Miss Ward” 211 - - She was Married to a Reformer 212 - - Story of the “Battle Hymn of the 214 - Republic” - - “Eighty Years Young” 215 - - The Ideal College 217 - - - CHAPTER XIV - - - A TALK WITH EDISON DRAMATIC 220 - INCIDENTS IN HIS EARLY LIFE. - - The Library 221 - - A Chemical Newsboy 223 - - Telegraphy 225 - - His Use of Money 227 - - Inventions 228 - - His Arrival at the Metropolis 231 - - Mental Concentration 232 - - Twenty Hours a Day 233 - - A Run for Breakfast 234 - - Not by accident and Not for Fun 235 - - “I like it—I hate it” 236 - - Doing One Thing Eighteen Hours is 237 - the Secret - - Possibilities in the Electrical 238 - Field - - Only Six Hundred Inventions 238 - - His Courtship and his Home 239 - - - CHAPTER XV - - - A FASCINATING STORY BY GENERAL LEW 241 - WALLACE. - - A Boyhood of Wasted Opportunities 242 - - His Boyhood Love for History and 244 - Literature - - A Father’s Fruitful Warning 245 - - A Manhood of Splendid Effort 246 - - “The Regularity of the Work was a 247 - Splendid Drill for me” - - Self-Education by Reading and 247 - Literary Composition - - “The Fair God” 249 - - The Origin of “Ben-Hur” 250 - - Influence of the Story of the 251 - Christ upon the Author - - - CHAPTER XVI - - - CARNEGIE AS A METAL WORKER 253 - - Early Work and Wages 254 - - Colonel Anderson’s Books 255 - - His First Glimpse of Paradise 256 - - Introduced to a Broom 258 - - An Expert Telegrapher 259 - - What Employers Think of Young Men 261 - - The Right Men in Demand 262 - - How to Attract Attention 263 - - Sleeping-Car Invention 264 - - The Work of a Millionaire 266 - - An Oil Farm 267 - - Iron Bridges 268 - - Homestead Steel Works 269 - - A Strengthening Policy 270 - - Philanthropy 271 - - “The Misfortune of Being Rich Men’s 273 - Sons” - - - CHAPTER XVII - - - JOHN B. HERRESHOFF, THE YACHT 276 - BUILDER - - PART I. - - “Let the Work Show” 278 - - The Voyage of Life 279 - - A Mother’s Mighty Influence 280 - - Self Help 281 - - Education 282 - - Apprentices 283 - - Prepare to Your Utmost: then Do 284 - Your Best - - Present Opportunities 284 - - Natural Executive Ability 285 - - The Development of Power 286 - - “My Mother” 287 - - A Boat-Builder in Youth 288 - - He Would Not be Discouraged 288 - - The Sum of it All 289 - - PART II. What the Herreshoff - Brothers have been Doing. - - Racing Jay Gould 291 - - The “Stiletto” 293 - - The Blind Brother 296 - - Personality of John B. Herreshoff 297 - - Has he a Sixth Sense? 299 - - Seeing with His Fingers 300 - - Brother Nat 301 - - - CHAPTER XVIII - - - A SUCCESSFUL NOVELIST: FAME AFTER 304 - FIFTY PRACTICAL HINTS TO YOUNG - AUTHORS, BY AMELIA E. BARR. - - Value of Biblical and Imaginative 305 - Literature - - Renunciation 306 - - Delightful Studies 307 - - Fifteen Hours a Day 308 - - An Accident 309 - - Vocation 310 - - Words of Counsel 310 - - - CHAPTER XIX - - - HOW THEODORE THOMAS BROUGHT THE 314 - PEOPLE NEARER TO MUSIC - - “I was Not an Infant Prodigy” 315 - - Beginning of the Orchestra 316 - - Music had No Hold on the Masses 320 - - Working Out His Idea 323 - - The Chief Element of his Success 326 - - - CHAPTER XX - - - JOHN BURROUGHS AT HOME: THE HUT ON 327 - THE HILL TOP - - - CHAPTER XXI - - - VREELAND’S ROMANTIC STORY HOW HE 341 - CAME TO TRANSPORT A MILLION - PASSENGERS A DAY. - - - CHAPTER XXII - - - HOW JAMES WHITCOMB RILEY CAME TO BE 357 - MASTER OF THE HOOSIER DIALECT - - Thrown on His Own Resources 357 - - Why he Longed to be a Baker 359 - - Persistence 361 - - Twenty Years of Rejected 362 - Manuscripts - - A College Education 364 - - Riley’s Popularity 365 - - ------------------------------------------------------------------------- - - - - - INTRODUCTORY NOTE - -[Illustration] - - -THE GREAT INTEREST manifested in the life-stories of successful men and -women, which have been published from time to time in the magazine -SUCCESS, has actuated their production in book form. Many of these -sketches have been revised and rewritten, and new ones have been added. -They all contain the elements that make men and women successful; and -they are intended to show that character, energy, and an indomitable -ambition will succeed in the world, and that in this land, where all men -are born equal and have an equal chance in life, there is no reason for -despair. I believe that the ideal book for youth should deal with -concrete examples; for that which is taken from real life is far more -effective than that which is culled from fancy. Character-building, its -uplifting, energizing force, has been made the basic principle of this -work. - -To all who have aided me I express a grateful acknowledgment; and to -none more than to those whose life-stories are here related as a lesson -to young people. Among those who have given me special assistance in -securing those life-stories are, Mr. Harry Steele Morrison, Mr. J. -Herbert Welch, Mr. Charles H. Garrett, Mr. Henry Irving Dodge, and Mr. -Jesse W. Weik. I am confident that the remarkable exhibit of successful -careers made in this book—careers based on sound business principles and -honesty—will meet with appreciation on the part of the reading public. - - ORISON SWETT MARDEN. - - ------------------------------------------------------------------------- - - - - - I - -MARSHALL FIELD - - -THIS world-renowned merchant is not easily accessible to interviews, and -he seeks no fame for his business achievements. Yet, there is no story -more significant, none more full of encouragement and inspiration for -youth. - -In relating it, as he told it, I have removed my own interrogations, so -far as possible, from the interview. - -“I was born in Conway, Massachusetts,” he said, “in 1835. My father’s -farm was among the rocks and hills of that section, and not very -fertile. All the people were poor in those days. My father was a man who -had good judgment, and he made a success out of the farming business. My -mother was of a more intellectual bent. Both my parents were anxious -that their boys should amount to something in life, and their interest -and care helped me. - -“I had but few books, scarcely any to speak of. There was not much time -for literature. Such books as we had, I made use of. - -“I had a leaning toward business, and took up with it as early as -possible. I was naturally of a saving disposition: I had to be. Those -were saving times. A dollar looked very big to us boys in those days; -and as we had difficult labor in earning it, we did not quickly spend -it. I however, - - - DETERMINED NOT TO REMAIN POOR.” - -“Did you attend both school and college?” - -“I attended the common and high schools at home, but not long. I had no -college training. Indeed, I cannot say that I had much of any public -school education. I left home when seventeen years of age, and of course -had not time to study closely. - -“My first venture in trade was made as clerk in a country store at -Pittsfield, Massachusetts, where everything was sold, including -dry-goods. There I remained for four years, and picked up my first -knowledge of business. I - - - SAVED MY EARNINGS AND ATTENDED STRICTLY TO BUSINESS, - -and so made those four years valuable to me. Before I went West, my -employer offered me a quarter interest in his business if I would remain -with him. Even after I had been here several years, he wrote and offered -me a third interest if I would go back. - -“But I was already too well placed. I was always interested in the -commercial side of life. To this I bent my energies; and - - - I ALWAYS THOUGHT I WOULD BE A MERCHANT. - -“In Chicago, I entered as a clerk in the dry-goods house of Cooley, -Woodsworth & Co., in South Water street. There was no guarantee at that -time that this place would ever become the western metropolis; the town -had plenty of ambition and pluck, but the possibilities of greatness -were hardly visible.” - -It is interesting to note in this connection how closely the story of -Mr. Field’s progress is connected with Chicago’s marvelous growth. The -city itself in its relations to the West, was - - - AN OPPORTUNITY. - -A parallel, almost exact, may be drawn between the individual career and -the growth of the town. Chicago was organized in 1837, two years after -Mr. Field was born on the far-off farm in New England, and the place -then had a population of a little more than four thousand. In 1856, when -Mr. Field, fully equipped for a successful mercantile career, became a -resident of the future metropolis of the West, the population had grown -to little more than eighty-four thousand. Mr. Field’s prosperity -advanced with the growth of the city; with Chicago he was stricken but -not crushed by the great fire of 1871; and with Chicago he advanced -again to higher achievement and far greater prosperity than before the -calamity. - -“What were your equipments for success when you started as a clerk here -in Chicago, in 1856?” - -“Health and ambition, and what I believe to be sound principles;” -answered Mr. Field. “And here I found that in a growing town, no one had -to wait for promotion. Good business qualities were promptly discovered, -and men were pushed forward rapidly. - -“After four years, in 1860, I was made a partner, and in 1865, there was -a partial reorganization, and the firm consisted after that of Mr. -Leiter, Mr. Palmer and myself (Field, Palmer, and Leiter). Two years -later Mr. Palmer withdrew, and until 1881, the style of the firm was -Field, Leiter & Co. Mr. Leiter retired in that year, and since then it -has been as at present (Marshall Field & Co.).” - -“What contributed most to the great growth of your business?” I asked. - -“To answer that question,” said Mr. Field, “would be to review the -condition of the West from the time Chicago began until the fire in -1871. Everything was coming this way; immigration, railways and water -traffic, and Chicago was enjoying ‘flush’ times. - -“There were things to learn about the country, and the man who learned -the quickest fared the best. For instance, the comparative newness of -rural communities and settlements made a knowledge of local solvency -impossible. The old State banking system prevailed, and speculation of -every kind was rampant. - - - A CASH BASIS - -“The panic of 1857 swept almost everything away except the house I -worked for, and _I learned that the reason they survived was because -they understood the nature of the new country, and did a cash business_. -That is, they bought for cash, and sold on thirty and sixty days; -instead of giving the customers, whose financial condition you could -hardly tell anything about, all the time they wanted. _When the panic -came, they had no debts, and little owing to them_, and so they -weathered it all right. _I learned what I consider my best lesson, and -that was to do a cash business._” - -“What were some of the _principles_ you applied to your business?” I -questioned. - -“_I made it a point that all goods should be exactly what they were -represented to be. It was a rule of the house that an exact scrutiny of -the quality of all goods purchased should be maintained, and that -nothing was to induce the house to place upon the market any line of -goods at a shade of variation from their real value. Every article sold -must be regarded as warranted, and_ - - - EVERY PURCHASER MUST BE ENABLED TO FEEL SECURE.” - -“Did you suffer any losses or reverses during your career?” - -“No loss except by the fire of 1871. It swept away everything,—about -three and a half millions. We were, of course, protected by insurance, -which would have been sufficient against any ordinary calamity of the -kind. But the disaster was so sweeping that some of the companies which -had insured our property were blotted out, and a long time passed before -our claims against others were settled. We managed, however, to start -again. There were no buildings of brick or stone left standing, but -there were some great shells of horse-car barns at State and Twentieth -streets which were not burned, and I hired those. We put up signs -announcing that we would continue business uninterruptedly, and then -rushed the work of fitting things up and getting in the stock.” - -“Did the panic of 1873 affect your business?” - -“Not at all. We did not have any debts.” - -“May I ask, Mr. Fields, what you consider to have been - - - THE TURNING POINT - -in your career,—the point after which there was no more danger?” - -“Saving the first five thousand dollars I ever had, when I might just as -well have spent the moderate salary I made. Possession of that sum, once -I had it, gave me _the ability to meet opportunities_. That I consider -the turning-point.” - -“What trait of character do you look upon as having been the most -essential in your career?” - -“_Perseverance_,” said Mr. Field. But Mr. Selfridge, his most trusted -lieutenant, in whose private office we were, insisted upon the addition -of “_good judgment_” to this. - -“If I am compelled to lay claim to such traits,” added Mr. Fields, “it -is because I have tried to practise them, and the trying has availed me -much. I have tried to make all my acts and commercial moves the result -of definite consideration and sound judgment. _There were never any -great ventures or risks._ I practised honest, slow-growing business -methods, and tried to back them with energy and good system.” - -At this point, in answer to further questions, Mr. Field disclaimed -having overworked in his business, although after the fire of ’71 he -worked about eighteen hours a day for several weeks:— - -“My fortune, however, has not been made in that manner. I believe in -reasonable hours, but close attention during those hours. I never worked -very many hours a day. People do not work as many hours now as they once -did. The day’s labor has shortened in the last twenty years for -everyone.” - - - QUALITIES THAT MAKE FOR SUCCESS - -“What, Mr. Field,” I said, “do you consider to be the first requisite -for success in life, so far as the young beginner is concerned?” - -“The qualities of _honesty_, _energy_, _frugality_, _integrity_, are -more necessary than ever to-day, and there is no success without them. -They are so often urged that they have become commonplace, but they are -really more prized than ever. And any good fortune that comes by such -methods is deserved and admirable.” - - - A COLLEGE EDUCATION AND BUSINESS - -“Do you believe a college education for the young man to be a necessity -in the future?” - -“Not for business purposes. Better training will become more and more a -necessity. The truth is, with most young men, a college education means -that just at the time when they should be having business principles -instilled into them, and be getting themselves energetically pulled -together for their life’s work, they are sent to college. Then -intervenes what many a young man looks back on as the jolliest time of -his life,—four years of college. Often when he comes out of college the -young man is unfitted by this good time to buckle down to hard work, and -the result is a failure to grasp opportunities that would have opened -the way for a successful career.” - -_As to retiring from business_, Mr. Field remarked:— - -“I do not believe that, when a man no longer attends to his private -business in person every day, he has given up interest in affairs. He -may be, in fact should be, doing wider and greater work. There certainly -is no pleasure in idleness. A man, upon giving up business, does not -cease laboring, but really does or should do more in a larger sense. He -should interest himself in public affairs. There is no happiness in mere -dollars. After they are acquired, one can use but a moderate amount. It -is given a man to eat so much, to wear so much, and to have so much -shelter, and more he cannot use. When money has supplied these, its -mission, so far as the individual is concerned, is fulfilled, and man -must look further and higher. It is only in the wider public affairs, -where money is a moving force toward the general welfare, that the -possessor of it can possibly find pleasure, and that only in constantly -doing more.” - -“What,” I said, “in your estimation, is the greatest good a man can do?” - -“The greatest good he can do is to cultivate himself, develop his -powers, in order that he may be of greater use to humanity.” - - ------------------------------------------------------------------------- - - - - - II - -BELL TELEPHONE TALK - - - HINTS ON SUCCESS BY ALEXANDER G. BELL. - -EXTREMELY polite, always anxious to render courtesy, no one carries -great success more gracefully than Alexander G. Bell, the inventor of -the telephone. His graciousness has won many a friend, the admiration of -many more, and has smoothed many a rugged spot in life. - - - A NIGHT WORKER - -When I first went to see him, it was about eleven o’clock in the -morning, and he was in bed! The second time, I thought I would go -somewhat later,—at one o’clock in the afternoon. He was eating his -breakfast, I was told; and I had to wait some time. He came in -apologizing profusely for keeping me waiting. When I told him I had come -to interview him, in behalf of young people, about success—its -underlying principles,—he threw back his large head and laughingly said: - -“‘Nothing succeeds like success.’ Success did you say? Why, that is a -big subject,—too big a one. You must give me time to think about it; and -you having planted the seed in my brain, will have to wait for me.” - -When I asked what time I should call, he said: “Come any time, if it is -only late. I begin my work at about nine or ten o’clock in the evening, -and continue until four or five in the morning. Night is a more quiet -time to work. It aids thought.” - -So, when I went to see him again, I made it a point to be late. He -cordially invited me into his studio, where, as we both sat on a large -and comfortable sofa, he talked long on - - - THE SUBJECT OF SUCCESS. - -The value of this article would be greatly enhanced, if I could add his -charming manner of emphasizing what he says, with hands, head, and eyes; -and if I could add his beautiful distinctness of speech, due, a great -deal, to his having given instruction to deaf-mutes, who must read the -lips. - -“What do you think are the factors of success?” I asked. The reply was -prompt and to the point. - - - PERSEVERANCE APPLIED TO A PRACTICAL END - -“Perseverance is the chief; but perseverance must have some practical -end, or it does not avail the man possessing it. A person without a -practical end in view becomes a crank or an idiot. Such persons fill our -insane asylums. The same perseverance that they show in some idiotic -idea, if exercised in the accomplishment of something practicable, would -no doubt bring success. Perseverance is first, but practicability is -chief. The success of the Americans as a nation is due to their great -practicability.” - -“But often what the world calls nonsensical, becomes practical, does it -not? You were called crazy, too, once, were you not?” - -“There are some things, though, that are always impracticable. Now, -take, for instance, this idea of perpetual motion. Scientists have -proved that it is impossible. Yet our patent office is continually beset -by people applying for inventions on some perpetual motion machine. So -the department has adopted a rule whereby a working model is always -required of such applicants. They cannot furnish one. The impossible is -incapable of success.” - -“I have heard of people dreaming inventions.” - -“That is not at all impossible. I am a believer in unconscious -cerebration. The brain is working all the time, though we do not know -it. At night, it follows up what we think in the daytime. When I have -worked a long time on one thing, I make it a point to bring all the -facts regarding it together before I retire; and I have often been -surprised at the results. Have you not noticed that, often, what was -dark and perplexing to you the night before, is found to be perfectly -solved the next morning? We are thinking all the time; it is impossible -not to think.” - -“Can everyone become an inventor?” - -“Oh, no; not all minds are constituted alike. Some minds are only -adapted to certain things. But as one’s mind grows, and one’s knowledge -of the world’s industries widens, it adapts itself to such things as -naturally fall to it.” - -Upon my asking the relation of health to success, the professor -replied:— - -“I believe it to be a primary principle of success; ‘mens sana in -corpore sano,’—a sound mind in a sound body. The mind in a weak body -produces weak ideas; a strong body gives strength to the thought of the -mind. Ill health is due to man’s artificiality of living. He lives -indoors. He becomes, as it were, a hothouse plant. Such a plant is never -as successful as a hardy garden plant is. An outdoor life is necessary -to health and success, especially in a youth.” - -“But is not hard study often necessary to success?” - -“No; decidedly not. You cannot force ideas. Successful ideas are the -result of slow growth. Ideas do not reach perfection in a day, no matter -how much study is put upon them. It is _perseverance_ in the pursuit of -studies that is really wanted. - - - CONCENTRATION OF PURPOSE - -“Next must come concentration of purpose and study. That is another -thing I mean to emphasize. Concentrate all your thought upon the work in -hand. The sun’s rays do not burn until brought to a focus. - -“I am now thinking about flying machines. Everything in regard to them, -I pick out and read. When I see a bird flying in the air, I note its -manner of flight, as I would not if I were not constantly thinking about -artificial flight, and concentrating all my thought and observation upon -it. It is like a man who has made the acquaintance of some new word that -has been brought forcibly to his notice, although he may have come -across it many times before, and not have noticed it particularly. - -“_Man is the result of slow growth_; that is why he occupies the -position he does in animal life. What does a pup amount to that has -gained its growth in a few days or weeks, beside a man who only attains -it in as many years. A horse is often a grandfather before a boy has -attained his full maturity. The most successful men in the end are those -whose success is the result of steady accretion. That intellectuality is -more vigorous that has attained its strength gradually. It is the man -who carefully advances step by step, with his mind becoming wider and -wider,—and progressively better able to grasp any theme or -situation,—persevering in what he knows to be practical, and -concentrating his thought upon it, who is bound to succeed in the -greatest degree. - - - YOUNG AMERICAN GEESE - -“If a man is not bound down, he is sure to succeed. He may be bound down -by environment, or by doting parental petting. In Paris, they fatten -geese to create a diseased condition of the liver. A man stands with a -box of very finely prepared and very rich food beside a revolving stand, -and, as it revolves, one goose after another passes before him. Taking -the first goose by the neck, he clamps down its throat a large lump of -the food, whether the goose will or no, until its crop is well stuffed -out, and then he proceeds with the rest in the same very mechanical -manner. Now, I think, if those geese had to work hard for their own -food, they would digest it better, and be far healthier geese. How many -young American geese are stuffed in about the same manner at college and -at home, by their rich and fond parents!” - - - UNHELPFUL READING - -“Did everything you ever studied help you to attain success?” - -“On the contrary, I did not begin real study until I was over sixteen. -Until that time, my principal study was—reading novels.” He laughed -heartily at my evident astonishment. “They did not help me in the least, -for they did not give me an insight into real life. It is only those -things that give one a grasp of practical affairs that are helpful. To -read novels continuously is like reading fairy stories or “Arabian -Nights” tales. It is a butterfly existence, so long as it lasts; but, -some day, one is called to stern reality, unprepared.” - - - INVENTIONS IN AMERICA - -“You have had experience in life in Europe and in America. Do you think -the chances for success are the same in Europe as in America?” - -“It is harder to attain success in Europe. There is hardly the same -appreciation of progress there is here. Appreciation is an element of -success. Encouragement is needed. My thoughts run mostly toward -inventions. In England, people are conservative. They are well contented -with the old, and do not readily adopt new ideas. Americans more quickly -appreciate new inventions. Take an invention to an Englishman or a Scot, -and he will ask you all about it, and then say your invention may be all -right, but let somebody else try it first. Take the same invention to an -American, and if it is intelligently explained, he is generally quick to -see the feasibility of it. America is an inspiration to inventors. It is -quicker to adopt advanced ideas than England or Europe. The most -valuable inventions of this century have been made in America.” - - - THE ORIENT - -“Do you think there is a chance for Americans in the Orient?” - -“There is only a chance for capital in trade. American labor cannot -compete with Japanese and Chinese. A Japanese coolie, for the hardest -kind of work, receives the equivalent of six cents a day; and the whole -family, father, mother and children, work and contribute to the common -good. A foreigner is only made use of until they have absorbed all his -useful ideas; then he is avoided. The Japanese are ahead of us in many -things.” - - - ENVIRONMENT AND HEREDITY - -“Do you think environment and heredity count in success?” - -“Environment, certainly; heredity, not so distinctly. In heredity, a man -may stamp out the faults he has inherited. There is no chance for the -proper working of heredity. If selection could be carried out, a man -might owe much to heredity. But as it is, only opposites marry. Blonde -and light-complexioned people marry brunettes, and the tall marry the -short. In our scientific societies, men only are admitted. If women who -were interested especially in any science were allowed to affiliate with -the men in these societies, we might hope to see some wonderful workings -of the laws of heredity. A man, as a general rule, owes very little to -what he is born with. A man is what he makes of himself. - -“Environment counts for a great deal. A man’s particular idea may have -no chance for growth or encouragement in his community. Real success is -denied that man, until he finds a proper environment. - -“_America is a good environment for young men. It breathes the very -spirit of success. I noticed at once, when I first came to this country, -how the people were all striving for success, and helping others to -attain success. It is an inspiration you cannot help feeling._ AMERICA -IS THE LAND OF SUCCESS.” - - - PROFESSOR BELL’S LIFE STORY - -Alexander Graham Bell was born in Edinburgh, Scotland, March 3, 1847. -His father, Alexander Melville Bell, now in Washington, D.C., was a -distinguished Scottish educator, and the inventor of a system of -“visible speech,” which he has successfully taught to deaf-mutes. His -grandfather, Alexander Bell, became well known by the invention of a -method of removing impediments of speech. - -The younger Bell received his education at the Edinburgh High School and -University; and, in 1867, he entered the University of London. Then, in -his twenty-third year, his health failing from over-study, he came with -his father to Canada, as he expressed it, “to die.” Later, he settled in -the United States, becoming first a teacher of deaf-mutes, and -subsequently professor of vocal physiology in Boston University. In -1867, he first began to study the problem of conveying articulate sound -by electric currents; which he pursued during his leisure time. After -nine long years of research and experiment, he completed the first -telephone, early in 1876, when it was exhibited at the Centennial -Exposition, and pronounced the “wonder of wonders in electric -telegraphy.” This was the judgment of scientific men who were in a -position to judge, and not of the world at large. People regarded it -only as a novelty, as a curious scientific toy; and most business men -doubted that it would ever prove a useful factor in the daily life of -the world, and the untold blessing to mankind it has since become. All -this skepticism he had to overcome. “A new art was to be taught to the -world, a new industry created, business and social methods -revolutionized.” - - - “I WILL MAKE THE WORLD HEAR IT” - -“It does speak,” cried Sir William Thompson, with fervid enthusiasm; and -Bell’s father-in-law added: “I will make the world hear it.” In less -than a quarter of a century, it is conveying thought in every civilized -tongue; Japan being the first country outside of the United States to -adopt it. In the first eight years of its existence, the Bell Telephone -Company declared dividends to the extent of $4,000,000; and the great -sums of money the company earns for its stockholders is a subject of -current comment and wonder. Some fierce contests have been waged over -the priority of his invention, but Mr. Bell has been triumphant in every -case. - -He has become very wealthy from his invention. He has a beautiful winter -residence in Washington; fitted up with a laboratory, and all sorts of -electrical conveniences mostly of his own invention. His summer -residence is at Cambridge, Massachusetts. - -His wife, Mabel, the daughter of the late Gardiner G. Hubbard, is a -deaf-mute, of whose education he had charge when she was a child. - -Mr. Bell, with one of his beautiful daughters, recently made a visit to -Japan. The Order of the Rising Star, the highest order in the gift of -the Japanese Emperor, was bestowed upon him. He is greatly impressed by -the character of the people; believing them capable of much greater -advancement. - -Mr. Bell is the inventor of the photophone, aiming to transmit speech by -a vibratory beam of light. He has given much time and study to problems -of multiplex telegraphy, and to efforts to record speech by -photographing the vibrations of a jet of water. - -Few inventors have derived as much satisfaction and happiness from their -achievements as Mr. Bell. In this respect, his success has been ideal, -and in impressive contrast with the experience of Charles Goodyear, the -man who made india-rubber useful, and of some other well-known -inventors, whose services to mankind brought no substantial reward to -themselves. - -Mr. Bell is in nowise spoiled by his good fortune; but is the same -unpretending person to-day, that he was before the telephone made him -wealthy and famous. - - ------------------------------------------------------------------------- - - - - - III - -Why the American People Like Helen Gould - - -MISS HELEN GOULD has won a place for herself in the hearts of Americans -such as few people of great wealth ever gain. Her strong character, -commonsense, and high ideals, have made her respected by all, while her -munificence and kindness have won for her the love of many. - -Upon my arrival at her Tarrytown home, I was made to feel that I was -welcome, and everyone who enters her presence feels the same. The grand -mansion, standing high on the hills overlooking the Hudson, has a -home-like appearance. Chickens play around the little stone cottage at -the grand entrance, and the grounds are not unlike those of any other -country house, with trees in abundance, and beautiful lawns. There are -large beds of flowers, and in the gardens all the summer vegetables were -growing. - -Miss Gould takes a very great interest in her famous greenhouses, the -gardens, the flowers, and the chickens, for she is a home-loving woman. -It is a common thing to see her in the grounds, digging and raking and -planting, like some farmer’s girl. That is one reason why her neighbors -all like her; she seems so unconscious of her wealth and station. - - - A FACE FULL OF CHARACTER - -When I entered Lyndhurst, she came forward to meet me in the pleasantest -way imaginable. Her face is not exactly beautiful, but has a great deal -of character written upon it, and it is very attractive. She held out -her hand for me to shake in the good old-fashioned way, and then we sat -down in the wide hall to talk. Miss Gould was dressed very simply. Her -gown was of dark cloth, close-fitting, and her skirt hung several inches -above the ground, for she is a believer in short skirts for walking. Her -entire costume was very becoming. She never over-dresses, and her -garments are neat, and naturally of excellent quality. - - - HER AMBITIONS AND AIMS - -In the conversation that followed, I was permitted to learn much of her -ambitions and aims. She is ambitious to leave an impression on the world -by good deeds well done, and this ambition is gratified to the utmost. -She is modest about her work. - -“I cannot find that I am doing much at all,” she said, “when there is so -very much to be done. I suppose I shouldn’t expect to be able to do -everything, but I sometimes feel that I want to, nevertheless.” - - - A MOST CHARMING CHARITY - -One of her most charming charities is “Woody Crest,” two miles from -Lyndhurst, a haven of delight where some twoscore waifs are received at -a time for a two weeks’ visit. - -Years before Miss Gould’s name became associated throughout the country -with charity, she was doing her part in trying to make a world happier. -Every summer she was hostess to scores of poor children, who were guests -at one of the two Gould summer homes; little people with pinched, wan -faces, and crippled children from the tenements, were taken to that home -and entertained. They came in relays, a new company arriving once in two -weeks, the number of children thus given a taste of heaven on earth -being limited only by the capacity of the Gould residence. This was her -first, and, I am told, her favorite charity. - -Little children do things naturally. It was when a child that Helen -Gould commenced the work that has given her name a sacred significance. -When a little girl, she could see the less fortunate little girls -passing the great Gould home on Fifth avenue, and she pitied them and -loved them, and from her own allowance administered to their comfort. - -“My father always encouraged me in charitable work,” she writes a -friend. How much the American people owe to that encouragement. A frown -from that father, idolized as he was by his daughter, would have frosted -and killed that budding philanthropy which has made a great fortune a -fountain of joy, and carried sunshine into many lives. - -“Woody Crest” is a sylvan paradise, a nobly wooded hill towering above -the sumptuous green of Westchester, a place with wild flowers and -winding drives, and at its crest a solid mansion built of the native -rock. One can look out from its luxuriant lawns to the majestic Hudson, -or turn aside into the shadiest of nooks among the trees. What a place -for the restful breezes to fan the tired brows from the tenements. Do -the little folks enjoy it? Ask them, and their eyes will sparkle with -gladness for answer. Ask those, too, who are awaiting their turn in hot -New York, and watch the eagerness of their anticipation. For two long -and happy weeks they become as joyous as mortals are ever permitted to -be. - -Miss Gould has a personal oversight of the place, and, by her frequent -visits, makes friends with the wee visitors, who look upon her as a -combination of angel and fairy godmother. Every day, a wagonette drawn -by two horses takes the children, in relays, for long drives into the -country. Amusements are provided, and some of those who remain for an -entire season at Woody Crest are instructed in different branches. Twice -a month some of the older boys set the type for a little magazine which -is devoted to Woody Crest matters. There are several portable cottages -erected there, one for the sick, one for servants’ sleeping rooms, and a -third for a laundry. - -And the munificent hostess of these children of the needy gets her -reward in eyes made bright, in cheeks made ruddy, in the “God bless -you,” that falls from the lips of grateful parents. - -All winter long, instead of closing “Woody Crest” and waiting for the -summer sunshine to bring about a return of her charitable opportunities, -Miss Gould has kept the place running at full expense. During the winter -she herself occupies her town residence. Ordinarily she would not keep -“Woody Crest” open longer than Thanksgiving Day, but in the past winter -fifteen small boys were entertained for six months. Six of these were -cripples, and nine were sound of limb. Though it required many servants, -I am told that the little guests were given as much consideration as the -same number of grown people would have received. They had nurses and -physicians for those who needed them, governesses and instructors for -those who were well. - - - HER PRACTICAL SYMPATHY FOR THE LESS FAVORED - -When, one day, I was privileged to meet Miss Gould at Woody Crest, I saw -a hundred children scattered around the lawn in front of the stately -mansion. It had been an afternoon of labor and anxiety on her part, for -she felt the responsibility of entertaining and caring for so many -little ones. As she finally cooled herself on the piazza and looked at -her little charges romping around on the lawn, I asked her if she -thought any of the little ones before her would ever make their mark in -the world. - -“That’s hard to say,” she replied, after a moment’s hesitation, “but no -one can tell what may be in children until they have grown up and -developed. But the hardest thing to me is to see genius struggling under -obstacles and in surroundings that would discourage almost anybody. I do -not see, for my part, how any child from the poorest tenements could -ever grow up and develop into strong, successful men or women. Many of -them, of course, have no gifts or endowments to do this, but even if -they had, the surroundings are enough to stifle every spark of ambition -in them. It is a mystery to me how they can preserve such bright and -eager faces. What would we do if we were brought up in such -environments! I know I should never be able to survive it, and would -never succeed in rising above my surroundings. And it is harder on the -girls than the boys! The boys can go forth into the world and probably -secure a position which in time will bring them different companionship -and surroundings; but the poor girls have so few opportunities. They -must drudge and drag along for the bare necessities of life. My heart -aches sometimes for them, and I wish I had the power to lighten the -burdens of everyone.” - -“The hardest thing, I suppose, is to see real ability fighting against -odds, with no one to help and encourage?” - -“Yes, that seems the worst, and I think we all ought to make it possible -for such ones to get a little encouragement and help. When a boy is -deserving of credit it should be given unstintedly. It goes a long way -toward making him more hopeful for the future. We don’t as a rule -receive enough encouragement in this world. Certainly not the poor. -Everybody seems so busy and intent upon making his own way in the world -that he forgets to drop a word of cheer for those who have not been so -fortunate by birth or surroundings.”[1] - -Footnote 1: - - NOTE.—For four paragraphs preceding I am indebted to GEORGE ETHELBERT - WALSH, whose interview was published in the _Boston Transcript_, Oct. - 12, 1900. - -For a number of years, Miss Gould has supported certain beds in the -Babies’ Shelter, in connection with the Church of the Holy Communion, -New York, and the Wayside Day Nursery, near Bellevue Hospital, has -always found in her a good friend. Once a year she makes a tour through -the day nurseries of New York, noting the special needs of each, and -often sending money or materials for meeting those needs. - - - PERSONAL ATTENTION TO AN UNSELFISH SERVICE - -Her charities, says Mr. Walsh, in the article above cited, are probably -the most practical on record. She does not go “slumming,” as so many -fashionable girls do, but she does go and investigate personal charities -herself and apply the medicine as she thinks best. She puts herself out -in more ways to relieve distress around than she would to accommodate -her wealthiest friend. Not only has she always pitied the sufferers in -the world less fortunate than herself, but she has always had a great -desire to help those struggling for a living in practical ways to get -along. It is this side of her noble work that stands out most -conspicuously to-day. The public realizes for the first time that this -young woman, who first came into actual fame at the time of our war with -Spain, has been supporting and encouraging young people in different -parts of the country for years past. These protéges are all worthy of -her patronage, and _they have been sought out by her. Not one has ever -approached Miss Gould for help, and in fact such an introduction would -undoubtedly operate against her inclination to help them_. _She has -discovered them_; and then through considerable tact and discretion -obtained from them their ambitious desires and hopes. Through equally -good tact and sense she has then placed them in positions where they -could work out their own destinies without feeling that they were -accepting charity. This is distinctly what Miss Gould wishes to avoid in -helping her little protéges. She does not offer them charity or do -anything to make them dependent upon her if it can be helped. By her -money and influence she obtains for them positions which will give them -every chance in the world to rise and develop talents which she thinks -she has discovered in them. - -Some of her protéges, continues Mr. Walsh, have been sent away to -schools and colleges. One of the easiest ways to accomplish this is to -offer a scholarship in some institution and then place her young protége -in such a position that he or she can win it, and in this way have four -years of tuition free. Fully a dozen different scholars are now enjoying -the benefits of Miss Gould’s kindness in this and other respects. Four -others have been enabled to attend art schools, and two are studying -music under the best teachers through the instrumentality of this young -woman. Two of these scholars were literally rescued from the tenement -dregs of New York, and they showed such aptitude for study and work that -Miss Gould undertook to give them a fair start in the world. Unusual -aptitude, brightness, or kindness on the part of children always attract -Miss Gould, and she has become the patron saint of more than a hundred. -When her name is mentioned they show their interest and concern, not by -looks of awe and fear but of eagerness and happiness. Those of their -number who have been lifted from their low estate and put in high -positions to carve out a life of success through their common patron -saint, bring back stories of her kindness and consideration that make -the children look upon her as they would the Madonna. But she is a -youthful Madonna, and the very idea of posing as such, even before the -poor and ignorant of her little friends, would amuse her. Nevertheless, -that is the nearest that one can interpret their ideas concerning her. - -Miss Gould’s beneficiaries have been sometimes aided in obtaining the -most advanced schooling in the land; and she visits with equal interest -the industrial classes of Berea and the favored students of the College -Beautiful. - - - HER VIEWS UPON EDUCATION - -Miss Gould is well educated, and a graduate of a law school. I tried to -ascertain her views regarding the education of young women of to-day, -and what careers they should follow. This is one of her particular -hobbies, and many are the young girls she has helped to attain to a -better and more satisfactory life. - -“I believe most earnestly in education for women,” she said; “not -necessarily the higher education about which we hear so much, but a -good, common-school education. As the years pass, girls are obliged to -make their own way in the world more and more; and to do so, they must -have good schooling.” - -“And what particular career do you think most desirable for young -women?” - -“Oh, as to careers, there are many that young women follow, nowadays. I -think, if I had my own way to make, I should fit myself to be a private -secretary. That is a position which attracts nearly every young woman; -but, to fill it, she must study hard and learn, and then work hard to -keep the place. Then there are openings for young women in the fields of -legitimate business. Women know as much about money affairs as men, only -most of them have not had much experience. In that field, there are -hundreds of things that a woman can do. - - - THE EVIL OF IDLENESS - -“But I don’t think it matters much what a girl does so long as she is -active, and doesn’t allow herself to stagnate. There’s nothing, to my -mind, so pathetic as a girl who thinks she can’t do anything, and is of -no use to the world.” - - - HER PATRIOTISM - -The late Admiral Philip, he of the “Texas” in the Santiago fight, -regarded Miss Gould as an angel, and the sailors of the Brooklyn navy -yard fairly worship her. A hustling Y. M. C. A. chap, Frank Smith by -name, started a little club-house for “Jack Ashore,” near the Brooklyn -navy yard. Miss Gould heard of this club, and visited it. At a glance -she grasped the meaning, and, on her return home she wrote a letter and -a check for fifty thousand dollars, and there sprang from that letter -and check, a handsome building in which there are sixty beds, a library, -a pipe organ, a smoking-room, and a restaurant. Do you wonder that the -“Jackies” adore her, and that the gale that sweeps over the ship out in -the open sea is often freighted with the melody of her name? - -“When I visited Cuba and Porto Rico,” says Congressman Charles B. -Landis, of Indiana,—to whom I am greatly indebted in preparing this -article,—“I talked with officers and privates everywhere along the -journey, visited camps and hospitals in cities and isolated towns, and -everywhere it seemed that the sickness and suffering and heart yearning -of the American soldier had been anticipated by Helen Gould. Voices that -quivered and eyes that moistened at the mention of the name of this -young American girl were one continuous tribute to her heart and work. -She cannot fully realize how far-reaching have been her efforts.” - -A business man looks for results. What impressed me most with Miss -Gould’s work was the visible, tangible results. Every dollar spent by -her seemed to go, straight as a cannon-ball, to some mark. Miss Gould -has a business head, and is not hysterical in her work. She gives, but -follows the gift and sees that it goes to the spot. She has studied -results and knows which charity pays a premium in smiles, and tears, and -joy, and better life, and very little of her money will be wasted in -impracticable schemes. She has a happy faculty of getting in actual -touch with conditions, realizing that she cannot hit an object near at -hand by aiming at a star. - -Miss Gould’s practical business sense was beautifully exemplified at -Montauk Point. Hundreds of soldiers from the hospitals in Cuba and Porto -Rico were suddenly unloaded there. Elsewhere were government -supplies—tents and cots and rations,—but there the sick soldiers were -without shelter, were hungry, had no medicine, and were sleeping on the -ground. - -Why? Because of red tape. This young lady appeared in person and amazed -the strutters in shoulder-straps and the slaves to discipline by having -the sick soldier boys made comfortable on army cots, placed in army -tents, and fed on army rations,—and this, too, without any -“requisition.” She grasped a situation, cut the ropes of theory and -introduced practice. From her own purse she provided nurses and -dainties, and bundled up scores of soldier boys and sent them to her -beautiful villa on the Hudson. - -The camp rang with this refrain:— - - You’re the angel of the camp, - Helen Gould, - In the sun-rays, in the damp, - On the weary, weary tramp, - To our darkness you’re a lamp, - Helen Gould. - - Thoughts of home and gentle things, - Helen Gould, - To the camp your coming brings; - All the place with music rings - At the rustle of your wings, - Helen Gould. - - - “OUR HELEN” - -On the day of the Dewey parade in New York, Miss Gould was in front of -her house, on a platform she had erected for the small children of -certain Asylums. Mayor Van Wyck told Admiral Dewey who she was, and the -Admiral stood up in his carriage and bowed to her three times. Then the -word went down the line that Miss Gould was there, and every company -saluted her as it passed. - -But it was when a body of young recruits stopped for a moment before her -door that the real excitement began. - -“She shan’t marry a foreign prince,” they cried, tossing their hats and -stamping their feet. “She’s Helen, our Helen, and she shall not marry a -foreign prince.” - - - “AMERICA” - -Miss Gould’s patriotism is very real and intense, and is not confined to -times of war. Two years ago, she caused fifty thousand copies of the -national hymn, “America,” to be printed and distributed among the pupils -of the public schools of New York. - -“I believe every one should know that hymn and sing it,” she declared, -“if he sings no other. I would like to have the children sing it into -their very souls, till it becomes a part of them.” - -She strongly favors patriotic services in the churches on the Sunday -preceding the Fourth of July, when she would like to hear such airs as -“America,” “Hail Columbia,” and “The Star Spangled Banner,” and see the -sacred edifices draped in red, white, and blue. - - - UNHERALDED BENEFACTIONS - -Miss Gould has a strong prejudice against letting her many gifts and -charities be known, and even her dearest friends never know “what -Helen’s doing now.” Of course, her great public charities, as when she -gives a hundred thousand dollars at a time, are heralded. Her recent -gift of that sum to the government, for national defense, has made her -name beloved throughout the land; but, had she been able, she would have -kept that secret also. - -The place Helen Gould now holds in the love and esteem of the republic -exemplifies how quickly the nation’s heart responds to the touch of -gentleness, and how easy it is for wealth to conquer and rise -triumphant, if only it be seasoned with common sense and sympathy. - -I will not attempt to specify the numerous projects of charity that have -been given life and vigor by Miss Gould. I know her gifts in recent -years have passed the million-dollar mark. - -“It seems so easy to do things for others,” said Miss Gould, recently. -It is easy to do good, if the doing is natural and without thought of -self-glorification. - -Miss Gould’s views upon “How to Make the Most of Wealth,” are well set -forth in her admirable letter to Dr. Louis Klopsch, as published in the -_Christian Herald_:— - -“The Christian idea that wealth is a stewardship, or trust, and not to -be used for one’s personal pleasure alone, but for the welfare of -others, certainly seems the noblest; and those who have more money or -broader culture owe a debt to those who have had fewer opportunities. - -“And there are so many ways one can help. Children, the sick and the -aged especially, have claims on our attention, and the forms of work for -them are numerous; from kindergartens, day-nurseries and industrial -schools, to ‘homes’ and hospitals. Our institutions for higher education -require gifts in order to do their best work, for the tuition fees do -not cover the expense of the advantages offered; and certainly such -societies as those in our churches, and the Young Woman’s Christian -Association and the Young Men’s Christian Association, deserve our -hearty cooperation. The earnest workers who so nobly and lovingly give -their lives to promote the welfare of others, give far more than though -they had simply made gifts of money, so those who cannot afford to give -largely need not feel discouraged on that account. After all, sympathy -and good-will may be a greater force than wealth, and we can all extend -to others a kindly feeling and courteous consideration, that will make -life sweeter and better. - -“Sometimes it seems to me we do not sufficiently realize the good that -is done by money that is used in the different industries in giving -employment to great numbers of people under the direction of clever men -and women; and surely it takes more ability, perseverance and time to -successfully manage such an enterprise than to merely make gifts.” - - - HER PERSONALITY - -Miss Gould’s life at Tarrytown is an ideal one. She runs down to the -city at frequent intervals, to attend to business affairs; but she lives -at Lyndhurst. She entertains but few visitors, and in turn visits but -seldom. The management of her property, to which she gives close -attention, makes no inconsiderable call upon her time. “I have no time -for society,” she said, “and indeed I do not care for it at all; it is -very well for those who like it.” - -Would you have an idea of her personality? “If so,” replies Landis, “you -will think of a good young woman in your own town, who loves her parents -and her home; who is devoted to the church; who thinks of the poor on -Thanksgiving Day and Christmas; whose face is bright and manner -unaffected; whose dress is elegant in its simplicity; who takes an -interest in all things, from politics to religion; whom children love -and day-laborers greet by reverently lifting the hat; and who, if she -were graduated from a home seminary or college, would receive a bouquet -from every boy in town. If you can think of such a young woman, and -nearly every community has one (and ninety-nine times out of a hundred -she is poor), you have a fair idea of the impression made on a plain man -from a country town by Miss Gould.” - -Helen Miller Gould is just at the threshold of her beautiful career. -What a promise is there in her life and work for the coming century? - -She has pledged a Hall of Fame for the campus of the New York -University, overlooking the Harlem river. It will have tablets for the -names of fifty distinguished Americans; and proud will be the -descendants of those whose names are inscribed thereon. - -The human heart is the tablet upon which Miss Gould has inscribed her -name, and her “Hall of Fame” is as broad and high as the republic -itself. - - ------------------------------------------------------------------------- - - - - - IV - -Philip D. Armour’s Business Career - - -I MET Mr. Armour in the quiet of the Armour Institute, his great -philanthropic school for young men and women. He was very courteous, and -there was no delay. He took my hand with a firm grasp—reading with his -steady gaze such of my characteristics as interested him,—and saying, at -the same time, “Well, sir.” - -In stating my desire to learn such lessons from his business career as -might be helpful to young men, I inquired whether the average American -boy of to-day has equally _as good a chance to succeed in the world_ as -he had, when he began life. - -“Every bit and better. The affairs of life are larger. There are greater -things to do. There was never before such a demand for able men.” - -“Were the conditions surrounding your youth especially difficult?” - -“No. They were those common to every small New York town in 1832. I was -born at Stockbridge, in Madison county. Our family had its roots in -Scotland. My father’s ancestors were the Robertsons, Watsons, and -McGregors of Scotland; my mother came of the Puritans, who settled in -Connecticut.” - -“Dr. Gunsaulus says,” I ventured, “that _all these streams of heredity -set toward business affairs_.” - -“Perhaps so. I like trading well. My father was reasonably prosperous -and independent for those times. My mother had been a schoolteacher. -There were six boys, and of course such a household had to be managed -with the strictest economy in those days. My mother thought it her duty -to bring to our home some of the rigid discipline of the school-room. We -were all trained to work together, and everything was done as -systematically as possible.” - -“Had you access to any books?” - -“Yes, the Bible, ‘Pilgrim’s Progress,’ and a History of the United -States.” - -It is said of the latter, by those closest to Mr. Armour, that it was as -full of shouting Americanism as anything ever written, and that Mr. -Armour’s whole nature is yet colored by its stout American prejudices; -also that it was read and re-read by the Armour children, though of this -the great merchant did not speak. - -“Were you always of _a robust constitution_?” I asked. - -“Yes, sir. All our boys were. We were stout enough to be bathed in an -ice-cold spring, out of doors, when at home. There were no bath tubs and -warm water arrangements in those days. We had to be strong. My father -was a stern Scotchman, and when he laid his plans they were carried out. -When he set us boys to work, we worked. It was our mother who insisted -on keeping us all at school, and who looked after our educational needs; -while our father saw to it that we had plenty of good, hard work on the -farm.” - -“How did you enjoy that sort of life?” I asked. - -“Well enough, but not much more than any boy does. Boys are always more -or less afraid of hard work.” - -The truth is, I have heard, but not from Mr. Armour, that when he -attended the district school, he was as full of pranks and capers as the -best; and that he traded jack-knives in summer and bob-sleds in winter. -Young Armour was often to be found, in the winter, coasting down the -long hill near the schoolhouse. Later, he had a brief term of schooling -at the Cazenovia Seminary. - - - FOOTING IT TO CALIFORNIA - -“When did you leave the farm for a mercantile life?” I asked. - -“I was a clerk in a store in Stockbridge for two years, after I was -seventeen, but was engaged with the farm more or less, and wanted to get -out of that life. I was a little over seventeen years old when the -California gold excitement of 1849 reached our town. Wonderful tales -were told of gold already found, and the prospects for more on the -Pacific coast. I brooded over the difference between tossing hay in the -hot sun and digging up gold by handfuls, until one day I threw down my -pitchfork and went over to the house and told mother that I had quit -that kind of work. - -“People with plenty of money could sail around Cape Horn in those days, -but I had no money to spare, and so decided to walk across the country. -That is, we were carried part of the way by rail and walked the rest. I -persuaded one of the neighbor’s boys, Calvin Gilbert, to go along with -me, and we started. - -“I provided myself with an old carpet sack into which to put my clothes. -I bought a new pair of boots, and when we had gone as far as we could on -canals and wagons, I bought two oxen. With these we managed for awhile, -but eventually reached California afoot.” - -Young Armour suffered a severe illness on the journey, and was nursed by -his companion Gilbert, who gathered herbs and steeped them for his -friend’s use, and once rode thirty miles in the rain to get a doctor. -When they reached California, he fell in with Edward Croarkin, a miner, -who nursed him back to health. The manner in which he remembered these -men gives keen satisfaction to the friends of the great merchant. - -“Did you have any money when you arrived at the gold-fields?” - -“Scarcely any. I struck right out, though, and found a place where I -could dig, and I struck pay dirt in a little time.” - -“Did you work entirely alone?” - -“No. It was not long before I met Mr. Croarkin at a little mining camp -called Virginia. He had the next claim to mine, and we became partners. -After a little while, he went away, but came back in a year. We then -bought in together. The way we ran things was ‘turn about.’ Croarkin -would cook one week, and I the next, and then we would have a clean-up -every Sunday morning. We baked our own bread, and kept a few hens, which -kept us supplied with eggs. There was a man named Chapin who had a -little store in the village, and we would take our gold dust there and -trade it for groceries.” - - - THE DITCH - -“Did you discover much gold?” I asked. - -“Oh, I worked with pretty good success,—nothing startling. _I didn’t -waste much, and tried to live carefully._ I also _studied the business -opportunities_ around, and persuaded some of my friends to join me in -buying and developing a ‘ditch,’—a kind of aqueduct, to convey water to -diggers and washers. That proved more profitable than digging for gold, -and at the end of the year, the others sold out to me, took their -earnings and went home. I stayed, and bought up several other -water-powers, until, in 1856, I thought I had enough, and so I sold out -and came East.” - -“How much had you made, altogether?” - -“About four thousand dollars.” - -This was when Mr. Armour was twenty-four years old,—his capital for -beginning to do business. - - - HE ENTERS THE GRAIN MARKET - -“Did you return to Stockbridge?” - -“A little while, but my ambition set in another direction. I had been -studying the methods then used for moving the vast and growing food -products of the West, such as grain and cattle, and I believed that I -could improve them and make money. The idea and the field interested me -and I decided to enter it. - -“My standing was good, and I raised the money, and bought what was then -the largest elevator in Milwaukee. This put me in contact with the -movement of grain. At that time, John Plankington had been established -in Milwaukee a number of years, and, in partnership with Frederick -Layton, had built up a good pork-packing concern. I bought in with those -gentlemen, and so came in contact with the work I liked. One of my -brothers, Herman, had established himself in Chicago some time before, -in the grain-commission business. I got him to turn that over to the -care of another brother, Joseph, so that he might go to New York as a -member of the new firm, of which I was a partner. It was important that -the Milwaukee and Chicago houses should be able to ship to a house of -their own in New York,—that is, to themselves. Risks were avoided in -this way, and we were certain of obtaining all that the ever-changing -markets could offer us.” - -“When did you begin to build up your Chicago interests?” - -“They were really begun, before the war, by my brother Herman. When he -went to New York for us, we began adding a small packinghouse to the -Chicago commission branch. It gradually grew with the growth of the -West.” - - -MR. ARMOUR’S ACUTE PERCEPTION OF THE COMMERCIAL CONDITIONS FOR BUILDING - UP A GREAT BUSINESS - -“Is there any one thing that accounts for the immense growth of the -packing industry here?” I asked. - -“System and the growth of the West did it. Things were changing at -startling rates in those days. The West was growing fast. Its great -areas of production offered good profits to men who would handle and -ship the products. Railway lines were reaching out in new directions, or -increasing their capacities and lowering their rates of transportation. -These changes and the growth of the country made the creation of a -food-gathering and delivering system necessary. Other things helped. At -that time (1863), a great many could see that the war was going to -terminate favorably for the Union. Farming operations had been enlarged -by the war demand and war prices. The state banking system had been done -away with, and we had a uniform currency, available everywhere, so that -exchanges between the East and the West had become greatly simplified. -Nothing more was needed than a steady watchfulness of the markets by -competent men in continuous telegraphic communication with each other, -and who knew the legitimate demand and supply, in order to sell all -products quickly and with profit.” - - - SYSTEM AND GOOD MEASURE - -“Do you believe that system does so much?” I ventured. - -“System and good measure. _Give a measure heaped full and running over, -and success is_ _certain._ That is what it means to be the intelligent -servants of a great public need. We believed in thoughtfully adopting -every attainable improvement, mechanical or otherwise, in the methods -and appliances for handling every pound of grain or flesh. Right -liberality and right economy will do everything where a public need is -being served. Then, too, our - - - METHODS - -improved all the time. There was a time when many parts of cattle were -wasted, and the health of the city injured by the refuse. Now, by -adopting the best known methods, nothing is wasted; and buttons, -fertilizers, glue and other things are made cheaper and better for the -world in general, out of material that was before a waste and a menace. -I believe in finding out the truth about all things—the very latest -truth or discovery,—and applying it.” - -“You attribute nothing to good fortune?” - -“Nothing!” Certainly the word came well from a man whose energy, -integrity, and business ability made more money out of a ditch than -other men were making out of rich placers in the gold region. - - - THE TURNING POINT - -“May I ask what you consider the turning-point of your career?” - -“The time when I began to save the money I earned at the gold-fields.” - - - TRUTH - -“What trait do you consider most essential in young men?” - -“Truth. Let them get that. Young men talk about getting capital to work -with. Let them get truth on board, and capital follows. It’s easy enough -to get that.” - - - A GREAT ORATOR, AND A GREAT CHARITY - -“Did you always desire to follow a commercial, rather than a -professional life?” - -“Not always. I have no talent in any other direction; but I should have -liked to be a great orator.” - -Mr. Armour would say no more on this subject, but his admiration for -oratory has been demonstrated in a remarkable way. - -It was after a Sunday morning discourse by the splendid orator, Dr. -Gunsaulus, at Plymouth Church, Chicago, in which the latter had set -forth his views on the subject of educating children, that Mr. Armour -came forward and said:— - -“You believe in those ideas of yours, do you?” - -“I certainly do,” said Dr. Gunsaulus. - -“And would you carry them out if you had the opportunity?” - -“I would.” - -“Well, sir,” said Mr. Armour, “if you will give me five years of your -time, I will give you the money.” - -“But to carry out my ideas would take a million dollars!” exclaimed -Gunsaulus. - -“I have made a little money in my time,” returned Mr. Armour. And so the -famous Armour Institute of Technology, to which its founder has already -given sums aggregating $2,800,000, was associated with Mr. Armour’s love -of oratory. - -One of his lieutenants says that Gerritt Smith, the old abolitionist, -was Armour’s boyhood’s hero, and that to-day Mr. Armour will go far to -hear a good speaker, often remarking that he would have preferred to be -a great orator rather than a great capitalist. - - - EASE IN HIS WORK - -“There is no need to ask you,” I continued, “whether you believe in -constant, hard labor?” - -“I should not call it hard. I believe in close application, of course, -while laboring. Overwork is not necessary to success. Every man should -have plenty of rest. I have.” - -“You must rise early to be at your office at half past seven?” - -“Yes, but I go to bed early. I am not burning the candle at both ends.” - -The enormous energy of this man, who is too modest to discuss it, is -displayed in the most normal manner. Though he sits all day at a desk -which has direct cable connection with London, Liverpool, Calcutta, and -other great centers of trade, with which he is in constant -connection,—though he has at his hand long-distance telephone connection -with New York, New Orleans, and San Francisco, and direct wires from his -room to almost all parts of the world, conveying messages in short -sentences upon subjects which involve the moving of vast amounts of -stock and cereals, and the exchange of millions in money, he is not, -seemingly, an overworked man. The great subjects to which he gives calm, -undivided attention from early morning until evening, are laid aside -with the ease with which one doffs his raiment, and outside of his -office the cares weigh upon him no more. His mind takes up new and -simpler things. - -“What do you do,” I inquired, “after your hard day’s work,—think about -it?” - -“Not at all. I drive, take up home subjects, and never think of the -office until I return to it.” - -“Your sleep is never disturbed?” - -“Not at all.” - - - A BUSINESS KING - -And yet the business which this man forgets, when he gathers children -about him and moves in his simple home circle, amounts in one year, to -over $100,000,000 worth of food products, manufactured and distributed; -the hogs killed, 1,750,000; the cattle, 1,080,000; the sheep, 625,000. -Eleven thousand men are constantly employed, and the wages paid them are -over $5,500,000; the railway cars owned and moving about all parts of -the country, four thousand; the wagons of many kinds and of large -number, drawn by seven hundred and fifty horses. The glue factory, -employing seven hundred and fifty hands, makes over twelve million -pounds of glue. In his private office, it is he who takes care of all -the general affairs of this immense world of industry, and yet at -half-past four he is done, and the whole subject is comfortably off his -mind. - - - TRAINING YOUTH FOR BUSINESS - -“Do you believe in inherited abilities, or that any boy can be taught -and trained, and made a great and able man?” - -“I recognize inherited ability. Some people have it, and only in a -certain direction; but I think men can be taught and trained so that -they become much better and more useful than they would be, otherwise. -Some boys require more training and teaching than others. There is -prosperity for everyone, according to his ability.” - -“What would you do with those who are naturally less competent than -others?” - -“Train them, and give them work according to their ability. I believe -that life is all right, and that this difference which nature makes is -all right. Everything is good, and is coming out satisfactorily, and we -ought to make the most of conditions, and try to use and improve -everything. The work needed is here, and everyone should set about doing -it.” - -When asked if he thought the chances for young men as good to-day as -they were when he was young. “Yes,” he said, “I think so. The world is -changing every day and new fields are constantly opening. We have new -ideas, new inventions, new methods of manufacture, and new ways to-day -everywhere. There is plenty of room for any man who can do anything -well. The electrical field is a wonderful one. There are other things -equally good, and the right man is never at a loss for an opportunity. -Provided he has some ability and good sense to start with, is thrifty, -honest and economical, there is no reason why any young man should not -accumulate money and attain so called success in life.” - -When asked to what qualities he attributed his own success, Mr. Armour -said: “I think that thrift and economy had much to do with it. I owe -much to my mother’s training and to a good line of Scotch ancestors, who -have always been thrifty and economical. As to my business education, I -never had any. I am, in fact, a good deal like Topsy, ‘I just growed.’ -My success has been largely a matter of organization. - -“I have always made it a point to surround myself with good men. I take -them when they are young and keep them just as long as I can. Nearly all -of the men I now have, have grown up with me. Many of them have worked -with me for twenty years. They have started in at low wages, and have -been advanced until they have reached the highest positions.” Mr. Armour -thinks that most men who accumulate a large amount of money, inherited -the money-making instinct. The power of making and accumulating money, -he says, is as much a natural gift as are those of a singer or an -artist. “The germs of the power to make money must be in the mind. Take, -for instance, the people we have working with us. I can get millions of -good bookkeepers or accountants, but not more than one out of five -hundred in all of those I have employed has made a great success as an -organizer or trader.” - -Mr. Armour is a great believer in young men and young brains. He never -discharges a man if he can possibly avoid it. If the man is not doing -good work where he is, he puts him in some other department, but never -discharges him if he can find him other work. He will not, however, -tolerate intemperance, laziness or getting into debt. Some time ago a -policeman entered his office. In answer to Mr. Armour’s question, “What -do you want here?” he replied: “I want to garnishee one of your men’s -wages for debt.” “Indeed,” said Mr. Armour, “and who is the man?” Asking -the officer into his private room he sent for the debtor. “How long have -you been in debt?” asked Mr. Armour. The clerk replied that he had been -behind for twenty years and could not seem to catch up. “But you get a -good salary, don’t you?” “Yes, but I can’t get out of debt.” “But you -must get out, or you must leave here,” said Mr. Armour. “How much do you -owe?” The clerk then gave the amount, which was less than a -thousand-dollars. “Well,” said Mr. Armour, handing him a check, “there -is enough to pay all your debts, and if I hear of you again getting into -debt, you will have to leave.” The clerk paid his debts and remodeled -his life on a cash basis. - - - PROMPT TO ACT - -In illustration of Mr. Armour’s aptitude for doing business, and his -energy, it is related that when, in 1893, local forces planned to defeat -him in the grain market, and everyone was crying that at last the great -Goliath had met his David, he was all energy. He had ordered immense -quantities of wheat. The opposition had shrewdly secured every available -place of storage, and rejoiced that the great packer, having no place to -store his property, would suffer immense loss, and must capitulate. He -foresaw the fray and its dangers, and, going over on Goose Island, -bought property at any price, and began the construction of immense -elevators. The town was placarded with the truth that anyone could get -work at Armour’s elevators. No one believed they could be done in time, -but three shifts of men working night and day, often under the direct -supervision of the millionaire, gradually forced the work ahead, and -when, on the appointed day, the great grain-ships began to arrive, the -opposition realized failure. The vessels began to pour the contents of -their immense holds into these granaries, and the fight was over. - - - FORESIGHT - -The foresight that sent him to New York in 1864, to sell pork, brought -him back from Europe in 1893, months before the impending panic was -dreamed of by other merchants. It is told of him that he called all his -head men to New York, and announced to them:— - -“Gentlemen, there’s going to be financial trouble soon.” - -“Why, Mr. Armour,” they said, “you must be mistaken. Things were never -better. You have been ill, and are suddenly apprehensive.” - -“Oh, no,” he said, “I’m not. There is going to be trouble;” and he gave -as his reasons certain conditions which existed in nearly all countries, -which none of those present had thought of. “Now,” said he to the first -of his many lieutenants, “how much will you need to run your department -until next year?” - -The head man named his need. The others were asked, each in turn, the -same question, and, when all were through, he counted up, and, turning -to the company, said:— - -“Gentlemen, go back and borrow all you need in Chicago, on my credit. -Use my name for all it will bring in the way of loans.” - - - FOREARMED AGAINST PANIC - -The lieutenants returned, and the name of Armour was strained to its -utmost limit. When all had been borrowed, the financial flurry suddenly -loomed up, but it did not worry the great packer. In his vaults were -$8,000,000 in gold. All who had loaned him at interest then hurried to -his doors, fearing that he also was imperiled. They found him supplied -with ready money, and able to compel them to wait until the stipulated -time of payment, or to force them to abandon their claims of interest -for their money, and so tide him over the unhappy period. It was a -master stroke, and made the name of the great packer a power in the -world of finance. - - - SOME SECRETS OF SUCCESS - -“Do you consider your financial decisions which you make quickly to be -brilliant intuitions?” I asked. - -“I never did anything worth doing by accident, nor did anything I have -come that way. No, I never decide anything without knowing the -conditions of the market, and never begin unless satisfied concerning -the conclusion.” - -“Not everyone could do that,” I said. - -“I cannot do everything. Every man can do something, and there is plenty -to do,—never more than now. The problems to be solved are greater now -than ever before. _Never was there more need of able men. I am looking -for trained men all the time._ More money is being offered for them -everywhere than formerly.” - -“Do you consider that _happiness_ consists in labor alone?” - -“_It consists in doing something for others._ If you give the world -better material, better measure, better opportunities for living -respectably, there is happiness in that. You cannot give the world -anything without labor, and there is no satisfaction in anything but -such labor as looks toward doing this, and does it.” - - ------------------------------------------------------------------------- - - - - - V - -What Miss Mary E. Proctor Did to Popularize Astronomy - - -“YOU can never know what your possibilities are,” said Miss Proctor, -“till you have put yourself to the test. There are many, many women who -long to do something, and could succeed, if they would only banish their -doubts, and plunge in. For example, I was not at all sure that I could -interest audiences with talks on astronomy, but, in 1893, I began, and -since then have given between four and five hundred lectures.” - -Miss Proctor is so busy spreading knowledge of the beauties and marvels -of the heavens, that she was at home in New York for only a two days’ -interval between tours, when she consented to talk to me about her work. -This talk showed such enthusiasm and whole-souled devotion to the theme -that it is easy to understand Miss Proctor’s success as a lecturer, -although she is physically diminutive, and is very domestic in her -tastes. - - - AUDIENCES ARE APPRECIATIVE - -“I am always nervous in going before an audience,” she said, “but there -is so much I want to tell them that I have no time at all to think of -myself. I find that if the lecturer is really interested in the subject, -those who come to listen usually are; and it is certainly true, as I -have learned by going upon the platform, tired out from a long journey, -that you cannot expect enthusiasm in your audience, unless you are -enthusiastic yourself. But I think that audiences are very responsive -and appreciative of intelligent efforts to interest them, and, -therefore, I am sure, that if a woman possesses, or can acquire a -thorough knowledge of some practical, popular subject, and has -enthusiasm and a fair knowledge of human nature, she can attain success -on the lecture platform. - -“The field is broad, and far from over-crowded, and it yields -bountifully to those who are willing to toil and wait. There is Miss -Roberts, for instance, who commands large audiences for her lectures on -music; and Mrs. Lemcke, who has been remarkably successful in her -practical talks on cooking; and Mary E. Booth, who gives wonderfully -instructive and entertaining lectures on the revelations of the -microscope; and Miss Very, who takes audiences of children on most -delightful and profitable imaginary trips to places of importance. - - - LECTURES TO CHILDREN - -“Children, by the way, are my most satisfactory audiences. Grown-up -people never become so absorbed. It is the greatest pleasure of my -lecturing to talk to the little tots, and watch them drink it all in. -Indeed, I prepared my very first lecture for children, but didn’t -deliver it. That episode marked the beginning of my career as a -lecturer. - -“Do you ask me to tell you about it? My father, Richard A. Proctor, -wrote, as you know, many books on popular astronomy. When I was a girl I -did not read them very carefully; my education at South Kensington, -London, following a musical and artistic direction. In fact, I was -ambitious to become a painter. But when my father died, in 1888, I found -comfort in reading his books all over again; and as he had drilled me to -write for his periodical, ‘_Knowledge_,’ I began to write articles on -astronomy for anyone who would accept them. One day, in the spring of -1893, I received a letter from Mrs. Potter Palmer, asking me if I would -talk to an audience of children in the Children’s Building at the -World’s Fair. The idea of lecturing was new to me, but I decided that I -would try, at any rate, and so I took great pains to prepare a talk that -I thought the children would understand, and be interested in. But when -I reached the building, I found an audience, not of children, but of men -and women. _There was hardly a child in all the assembled five hundred -people._ It would never do to give them the childish talk I had -prepared, and as it was my first attempt to talk from a platform, you -can imagine my state of mind. I was determined, however, that my first -effort should not be a fiasco, so I stepped out upon the platform and -talked about the things that had most interested me in my father’s books -and conversations.” - - - A LESSON IN LECTURING - -“I have lectured a great many times since then, but my first lecture was -the most trying. I am now glad that things happened as they did, for -that experience taught me a valuable lesson. I learned not to commit my -talks to memory, but merely to have the topics and facts and general -arrangement of the lecture well in mind. By this method, I can change -and adapt myself to my audience at any time; and I often have to do -this. I am able to feel intuitively whether I have gained my listeners’ -sympathy and interest, and when I feel that I have not, I immediately -take another tack. Another great advantage of not committing what you -are going to say to memory, word for word, is the added color and -animation and spontaneity which the conversational tone and manner gives -the lecture.” - - - THE STEREOPTICON - -“My stereopticon pictures of the heavenly bodies are of great help to -me. They naturally add much to the interest, and are really a revelation -to most of my audiences, for the reason that they show things that can -never be seen with the naked eye. How my father would have delighted in -them, and how effectively he would have used them. But celestial -photography had not been made practical at the time of his death; it is, -indeed, quite a new art, although its general principles are very -simple. A special lens and photographic plate are adjusted in the -telescope, and the plate is exposed as in an ordinary camera, except -that the exposure is much longer. It usually continues for about four -hours, the greater the length of time the greater being the number of -stars that will be seen in the photograph. After the developing, these -stars appear as mere specks on the plate. That they are so small is not -surprising, for most of them are stars that are never seen by the eye -alone. When the photograph is enlarged by the stereopticon, the result -is like looking at a considerable portion of the heavens through a -powerful telescope. - -“The children utter exclamations of delight when they see the -pictures,—the children, dear, imaginative little souls, it is my -ambition to devote more and more of my time to them, and finally talk -and write for them altogether. They are greatly impressed with the new -world in the skies which is opened to them, and I like to think that -these early impressions will give them an understanding and appreciation -of the wonders of astronomy that will always be a pleasure to them.” - - - “STORIES FROM STAR LAND” - -“For the children, my first book, ‘Stories From Starland,’ was written. -I tried to weave into it poetical and romantic ideas, that appeal to the -imaginative mind of the child, and quicken the interest without any -sacrifice of accuracy in the facts with which I deal. I wrote the book -in a week. The publisher came to me one Saturday, and told me that he -would like a children’s book on astronomy. I devoted all my days to it -till the following Saturday night, and on Monday morning took the -completed manuscript to the publishing house. They seemed very much -surprised that it should be finished so soon; but as a matter of fact it -was not much more than the manual labor of writing out the manuscript -that I did in that week. _The little book itself is the result of ten -years’ thought and study._ - -“It is much the same with my lectures. I deliver them in a hasty, -conversational tone, and they seem, as one of my listeners told me -recently, to be ‘just offhand chats.’ But in reality I devote a great -deal of labor to them, and am constantly adding new facts and new -ideas.” - - - CONCENTRATION OF ATTENTION - -“I learned very soon after I began my work, that _I must give myself up -to it absolutely_ if I were to achieve success. There could be no side -issues, nothing else to absorb any of my energy, or take any of my -thought or time. One of the first things I did was to take a thorough -course in singing, for the purpose of acquiring complete control of my -voice. I put aside all social functions, of which I am rather fond and -have since devoted my days and nights to astronomy,—not that I work at -night, except when I lecture; I rest and retire early, so that in the -morning I may have the spirit and enthusiasm necessary to do good work. - -“_Enthusiasm_, it seems to me, is an important factor in success. It -combats discouragement, makes work a pleasure, and sacrifices easier. - -“A great many women fail in special fields of endeavor, who might -succeed if they were willing to sacrifice something, and would not let -the distractions creep in. There is more in a woman’s life to divert her -attention from a single purpose than in a man’s; but if the woman has -chosen some line of effort that is worthy to be called life work, and -if—refusing to be drawn aside,—she keeps her eyes steadfastly upon the -goal, I believe that she is almost certain to achieve success.” - - ------------------------------------------------------------------------- - - - - - VI - -The Boyhood Experience of President Schurman of Cornell University - - -AT ten years of age, he was a country lad on a backwoods farm on Prince -Edward Island. - -At thirteen, he had become a clerk in a country store, at a salary of -thirty dollars a year. - -At eighteen, he was a college student, supporting himself by working in -the evenings as a bookkeeper. - -At twenty, he had won a scholarship in the University of London, in -competition with all other Canadian students. - -At twenty-five, he was professor of philosophy, Acadia College, Nova -Scotia. - -At thirty-eight, he was appointed President of Cornell University. - -At forty-four, he was chairman of President McKinley’s special -commission to the Philippines. - -In this summary is epitomized the career of Jacob Gould Schurman. It is -a romance of real life such as is not unfamiliar in America. Mr. -Schurman’s career differs from that of some other self-made men, -however. Instead of heaping up millions upon millions, he has applied -his talents to winning the intellectual prizes of life, and has made his -way, unaided, to the front rank of the leaders in thought and learning -in this country. His career is a source of inspiration to all poor boys -who have their own way to make in the world, for he has won his present -honors by his own unaided efforts. - -President Schurman says of his early life:— - -“It is impossible for the boy of to-day, no matter in what part of the -country he is brought up, to appreciate the life of Prince Edward Island -as it was forty years ago. At that time, it had neither railroads nor -daily newspapers, nor any of the dozen other things that are the merest -commonplaces nowadays, even to the boys of the country districts. I did -not see a railroad until late in my ’teens. I was never inside of a -theatre until after I was twenty. The only newspaper that came to my -father’s house was a little provincial weekly. The only books the house -contained were a few standard works,—such as the Bible, Bunyan’s -‘Pilgrim’s Progress,’ Fox’s ‘Book of Martyrs,’ and a few others of that -class. Remember, too, that this was not back at the beginning of the -century, but little more than a generation ago, for I was born in the -year 1854. - -“My father had cleared away the land on which our house stood. He was a -poor man, but no poorer than his neighbors. No amount of land, and no -amount of work could yield much more than the necessaries of life in -that time and place. There were eight children in our family, and there -was work for all of us.” - - - A LONG TRAMP TO SCHOOL - -“Our parents were anxious to have their children acquire at least an -elementary education; and so, summer and winter, we tramped the mile and -a half that lay between our house and the district school, and the snow -often fell to the depth of five or six feet on the island, and -sometimes, when it was at its worst, our father would drive us all to -school in a big sleigh. But no weather was bad enough to keep us away. - -“That would be looked upon as a poor kind of school, nowadays, I -suppose. The scholars were of all ages, and everything, from A,-B,-C, to -the Rule of Three, was taught by the one teacher. But whatever may have -been its deficiencies, the work of the school was thorough. The teacher -was an old-fashioned drillmaster, and whatever he drove into our heads -he put there to stay. I went to this school until I was thirteen, and by -that time I had learned to read and write and spell and figure with -considerable accuracy. - -“At the age of thirteen, I left home. I had formed no definite plans for -the future. I merely wanted to get into a village, and to earn some -money. - -“My father got me a place in the nearest town,—Summerside,—a village of -about one thousand inhabitants. For my first year’s work I was to -receive thirty dollars and my board. Think of that, young men of to-day! -Thirty dollars a year for working from seven in the morning until ten at -night! But I was glad to get the place. It was a start in the world, and -the little village was like a city to my country eyes.” - - - HE ALWAYS SUPPORTED HIMSELF - -“From the time I began working in the store until to-day, I have always -supported myself, and during all the years of my boyhood I never -received a penny that I did not earn myself. At the end of my first -year, I went to a larger store in the same town, where I was to receive -sixty dollars a year and my board. I kept this place for two years, and -then I gave it up, against the wishes of my employer, because I had made -up my mind that I wanted to get a better education. I determined to go -to college. - -“I did not know how I was going to do this, except that it must be by my -own efforts. I had saved about eighty dollars from my store-keeping, and -that was all the money I had in the world.” _Out of a hundred and fifty -dollars, the only cash he received as his first earnings during three -years, young Schurman had saved eighty dollars; this he invested in the -beginnings of an education._ - -“When I told my employer of my plan, he tried to dissuade me from it. He -pointed out the difficulties in the way of my going to college, and -offered to double my pay if I would stay in the store.” - - - THE TURNING-POINT OF HIS LIFE - -“That was the turning-point in my life. On one side was the certainty of -one hundred and twenty dollars a year, and the prospect of promotion as -fast as I deserved it. Remember what one hundred and twenty dollars -meant in Prince Edward Island, and to a poor boy who had never possessed -such a sum in his life. On the other side was my hope of obtaining an -education. I knew that it involved hard work and self-denial, and there -was the possibility of failure in the end. But my mind was made up. I -would not turn back. I need not say that I do not regret that early -decision, although I think that I should have made a successful -storekeeper. - -“With my eighty dollars capital, I began to attend the village high -school, to get my preparation for college. I had only one year to do it -in. My money would not last longer than that. I recited in Latin, Greek -and algebra, all on the same day, and for the next forty weeks I studied -harder than I ever had before or have since. At the end of the year I -entered the competitive examination for a scholarship in Prince of Wales -College, at Charlotte Town, on the island. I had small hope of winning -it, my preparation had been so hasty and incomplete. But when the result -was announced, I found that I had not only won the scholarship from my -county, but stood first of all the competitors on the island. - -“The scholarship I had won amounted to only sixty dollars a year. It -seems little enough, but I can say now, after nearly thirty years, that -the winning of it was the greatest success I have ever had. I have had -other rewards, which, to most persons, would seem immeasurably greater, -but with this difference: that first success was essential; without it I -could not have gone on. The others I could have done without, if it had -been necessary.” - -For two years young Schurman attended Prince of Wales College. He lived -on his scholarship and what he could earn by keeping books for one of -the town storekeepers, spending less than one hundred dollars during the -entire college year. Afterwards, he taught a country school for a year, -and then went to Acadia College in Nova Scotia to complete his college -course. - - - A SPLENDID COLLEGE RECORD - -One of Mr. Schurman’s fellow-students in Acadia says that he was -remarkable chiefly for taking every prize to which he was eligible. In -his senior year, he learned of a scholarship in the University of -London, to be competed for by the students of Canadian colleges. The -scholarship paid five hundred dollars a year for three years. The young -student in Acadia was ambitious to continue his studies in England, and -saw in this offer his opportunity. He tried the examination and won the -prize. - -During the three years in the University of London, Mr. Schurman became -deeply interested in the study of philosophy, and decided that he had -found in it his life work. He was eager to go to Germany and study under -the great leaders of philosophic thought. A way was opened for him, -through the offer of the Hibbard Society in London; the prize being a -traveling fellowship with two thousand dollars a year. The honor men of -the great English universities like Oxford and Cambridge were among the -competitors, but the poor country boy from Prince Edward Island was -again successful, greatly to the surprise of the others. - -At the end of his course in Germany, Mr. Schurman, then a Doctor of -Philosophy, returned to Acadia College to become a teacher there. Soon -afterwards, he was called to Dalhousie University, at Halifax, Nova -Scotia. In 1886, when a chair of philosophy was established at Cornell, -President White, who once met the brilliant young Canadian, called him -to that position. Two years later, Dr. Schurman became Dean of the Sage -School of Philosophy at Cornell; and, in 1892, when the President’s -chair became vacant, he was placed at the head of the great university. -At that time, he was only thirty-eight years of age. - -President Schurman is a man of great intellectual power, and an -inspiring presence. Though one of the youngest college presidents in the -country, he is one of the most successful, and under his leadership -Cornell has been very prosperous. He is deeply interested in all the -affairs of young men, and especially those who, as he did, must make -their own way in the world. He said, the other day:— - -“Though I am no longer engaged directly in teaching, I should think my -work a failure if I did not feel that my influence on the young men with -whom I come in contact is as direct and helpful as that of a teacher -could be.” - - ------------------------------------------------------------------------- - - - - - VII - -The Story of John Wanamaker - - -IN a plain two-story dwelling, on the outskirts of Philadelphia, the -future merchant prince was born, July 11, 1837. His parents were -Americans in humble station; his mother being of that sturdy -Pennsylvania Dutch stock which has no parallel except the Scotch for -ruggedness. His father, a hardworking man, owned a brickyard in the -close vicinity of the family residence. Little John earned his first -money, seven big copper cents, by assisting his father. He was too small -to do much, but turned the bricks every morning as they lay drying in -the summer sun. As he grew older and stronger, the boy was given harder -tasks around the brickyard. - -He went to school a little, not much, and he assisted his mother in the -house a great deal. His father died when John was fourteen, and this -changed the whole course of his life. He abandoned the brickyard and -secured a place in a bookstore owned by Barclay Lippincott, on Market -Street, Philadelphia, at a salary of one dollar and twenty-five cents a -week. - -It was a four-mile walk from his home to his place of business. -Cheerfully he trudged this distance morning and night; purchasing an -apple or a roll each noon for luncheon, and giving his mother all the -money that he saved. He used to deny himself every comfort, and the only -other money that he ever spent was on books for his mother. This seems -to have been the boy’s chief source of pleasure at that period. Even -to-day, he says of his mother: “Her smile was a bit of heaven, and it -never faded out of her face till her dying day.” Mrs. Wanamaker lived to -see her son famous and wealthy. - - - HIS CAPITAL AT FOURTEEN - -John Wanamaker, the boy, had no single thing in all his surroundings to -give him an advantage over any one of hundreds of other boys in the city -of Philadelphia. Indeed, there were hundreds and hundreds of other boys -of his own age for whom anyone would have felt safe in prophesying a -more notable career. His capital was not in money. Very few boys in all -that great city had less money than John Wanamaker, and comparatively -few families of average position but were better off in the way of -worldly goods. John Wanamaker’s capital, that stood him in such good -stead in after life, comprised good health, good habits, a clean mind, -thrift in money matters, and tireless devotion to whatever he thought to -be duty. - -People who were well acquainted with John Wanamaker when he was a book -publisher’s boy, say that he was exceptionally promising as a boy; that -he was studious as well as attentive to business. He did not take kindly -to rough play, or do much playing of any kind. He was earnest in his -work, unusually earnest for a boy. And he was saving of his money. - -When, a little later, he went to a Market street clothing house and -asked for a place, he had no difficulty in getting it, nor had he any -trouble in holding it, and here he could earn twenty-five cents a week -more wages. - - - TOWER HALL CLOTHING STORE - -Men who worked with him in the Tower Hall Clothing Store say that he was -always bright, willing, accommodating, and very seldom out of temper. -His effort was to be first at the store in the morning, and he was very -likely to be one of the last, if not the last, at the store in the -evening. If there was an errand, he was always prompt and glad to do it. -And so the store people liked him, and the proprietor liked him, and, -when he began to sell clothing, the customers liked him. He was -considerate of their interests. He did not try to force undesirable -goods upon them. He treated them so that when they came again they would -be apt to ask, “Where is John?” - - - HIS AMBITION AND POWER AS AN ORGANIZER AT SIXTEEN - -Colonel Bennett, the proprietor of Tower Hall, said of him at this -time:— - -“John was certainly the most ambitious boy I ever saw. I used to take -him to lunch with me, and he used to tell me how he was going to be a -great merchant. - -“He was very much interested in the temperance cause; and had not been -with me long before he persuaded most of the employees in the store to -join the temperance society to which he belonged. He was always -organizing something. He seemed to be a natural-born organizer. This -faculty is largely accountable for his great success in after life.” - - - THE Y. M. C. A. - -Young Wanamaker’s religious principles were always at the forefront in -whatever he did. His interest in Sunday School work, and his skill as an -organizer became well known. And so earnestly did he engage in the work -of the Young Men’s Christian Association, that he was appointed the -first salaried secretary of the Philadelphia branch, at one thousand -dollars a year. Never since has a secretary enrolled so many members in -the same space of time. He passed seven years in this arduous work. - - - OAK HALL - -He saved his money; and, at twenty-four, formed a partnership with his -brother-in-law Nathan Brown, and opened Oak Hall Clothing store, in -April, 1861. Their united capital was only $3,500; yet Wanamaker’s -capital of popular good-will was very great. He was already a great -power in the city. I can never forget the impression made upon my mind, -after he had been in business but a few months, when I visited his -Bethany Sunday School, established in one of the most unpromising -sections of the city, which had become already a factor for good, with -one of the largest enrollments in the world. And he was foremost in -every form of philanthropic work. - -It was because of his great capacity to do business that Wanamaker had -been able to “boom” the Young Men’s Christian Association work. He knew -how to do it. And he could “boom” a Sunday School, or anything else that -he took hold of. He had - - - A HEAD BUILT FOR BUSINESS, - -whatever the business might be. And as for Oak Hall, he knew just what -to do with it. - -_The first thing he did was to multiply his working capital by getting -the best help obtainable for running the store._ - -At the very outset, John Wanamaker did what almost any other business -man would have stood aghast at. He chose the best man he knew as a -salesman in the clothing business in Philadelphia,—the man of the most -winning personality who could attract trade,—and agreed to pay him -$1,350 for a year,—one-third of the entire capital of the new concern. - -It has been a prime principle with this merchant prince not only to deal -fairly with his employees, but to make it an object for them to earn -money for him and to stand by him. Capacity has been the first demand. -_He engaged the very best men to be had._ There are to-day dozens of men -in his employ who receive larger salaries than are paid to cabinet -ministers. All the employees of the Thirteenth Street store, which he -occupied in 1877, participate in _a yearly division of profits. Their -share at the end of the first year amounted to $109,439.68._ - - - HIS RELATION TO CUSTOMERS - -A considerable portion of the trade of the new store came from people in -the country districts. Mr. Wanamaker had a way of getting close to them -and gaining their good will. He understood human nature. He put his -customer at ease. He showed interest in the things that interested the -farmer. An old employee of the firm says: “John used to put a lot of -chestnuts in his pocket along in the fall and winter, and, when he had -one of these countrymen in tow, he’d slip a few of the nuts into the -visitor’s hand and both would go munching about the store.” - -Wanamaker was the first to introduce the “one-price system” into the -clothing trade. It was the universal rule in those days, in the clothing -trade, not to mark the prices plainly on the goods that were for sale. -Within rather liberal bounds, the salesman got what he could from the -customer. Mr. Wanamaker, after a time, instituted at Oak Hall the plan -of “but one price and that plainly marked.” In doing this he followed -the cue of Stewart, who was the first merchant in the country to -introduce it into the dry-goods business. - -The great Wanamaker store of 1877 went much further:— - -He announced that _those who bought goods of him were to be satisfied -with what they bought, or have their money back_. - -To the old mercantile houses of the city, this seemed like committing -business suicide. - -It was, also, unheard-of that special effort should be made to add to -the comfort of visitors; to make them welcome whether they cared to buy -or not; to induce them to look upon the store as a meeting-place, a -rendezvous, a resting-place,—a sort of city home, almost. - - - THE MERCHANT’S ORGANIZING FACULTY - -was so great that General Grant once remarked to George W. Childs that -Wanamaker would have been a great general if his lot had been that of -army service. - -Wanamaker used to buy goods of Stewart, and the New York merchant -remarked to a friend: “If young Wanamaker lives, he will be a greater -merchant than I ever was.” - -Sometime in recent years, since Wanamaker bought the Stewart store, he -said to Frank G. Carpenter:— - -“A. T. Stewart was a genius. I have been surprised again and again as I -have gone through the Broadway and Tenth Street building, to find what a -knowledge he had of the needs of a mercantile establishment. Mr. Stewart -put up a building which is to-day, I believe, better arranged than any -of the modern structures. He seemed to know just what was needed. - -“I met him often when I was a young man. I have reason to think that he -took a liking to me. One day, I remember, I was in his woolen department -buying some stuffs for my store here, when he came up to me and asked if -I would be in the store for fifteen minutes longer. I replied that I -would. At the end of fifteen minutes he returned and handed me a slip of -paper, saying:— - -“‘Young man, I understand that you have a mission school in -Philadelphia; use that for it.’ - -“Before I could reply he had left. I looked down at the slip of paper. -It was a check for one thousand dollars.” - -Wanamaker early showed himself the peer of the greatest merchants. He -created the combination or department store. He lifted the retail -clothing business to a higher plane than it had ever before reached. In -ten years from the time he began to do business for himself, he had -absorbed the space of forty-five other tenants and become the leading -merchant of his native city. Four years later, he had purchased, for -$450,000, the freight depot of the Pennsylvania Railroad, covering the -entire square where his present great store is located. The firm name -became simply John Wanamaker. His lieutenants and business partners -therein are his son Thomas B. Wanamaker, and Robert C. Ogden. Their two -Philadelphia establishments alone do a business of between $30,000,000 -and $40,000,000 annually. Mr. Wanamaker’s private fortune is one of the -most substantial in America. - - - ATTENTION TO DETAILS - -Yet in all these years he has been early and late at the store, as he -was when a boy. He has always seen to it that customers have prompt and -careful attention. He early made the rule that if a sale was missed, a -written reason must be rendered by the salesman. There was no hap-hazard -business in that store,—nothing of the happy-go-lucky style. Each man -must be alert, wide-awake, attentive, or there was no place for him at -Oak Hall. - - - THE MOST RIGID ECONOMY - -has been always a part of the system. It is told of him that, in the -earlier days of Oak Hall, he used to gather up the short pieces of -string that came in on parcels, make them into a bunch, and see that -they were used when bundles were to be tied. He also had a habit of -smoothing out old newspapers, and seeing that they were used as wrappers -for such things as did not require a better grade of paper. - -The story has been often related of the first day’s business at the -original store in ’61, when Wanamaker delivered the sales by wheeling a -push-cart. - - - ADVERTISING - -The first day’s business made a cash profit of thirty-eight dollars; and -the whole sum was invested in one advertisement in the next day’s -“_Inquirer_.” - -His advertising methods were unique; he paid for the best talent he -could get in this line. - -Philadelphia woke one morning to find “W. & B.” in the form of six-inch -square posters stuck up all over the town. There was not another letter, -no hint, just “W. & B.” Such things are common enough now, but then the -whole city was soon talking and wondering what this sign meant. After a -few days, a second poster modestly stated that Wanamaker & Brown had -begun to sell clothing at Oak Hall. Before long there were great signs, -each 100 feet in length, painted on special fences built in a dozen -places about the city, particularly near the railroad stations. These -told of the new firm and were the first of a class that is now seen all -over the country. Afterwards - - - BALLOONS - -more than twenty feet high were sent up, and a suit of clothes was given -to each person who brought one of them back. Whole counties were stirred -up by the balloons. It was grand advertising, imitated since by all -sorts of people. When the balloon idea struck the Oak Hall management it -was quickly found that the only way to get these air-ships was to make -them, and so, on the roof of the store, the cotton cloth was cut and -oiled and put together. Being well built, and tied very tightly at the -neck, they made long flights and some of them were used over and over -again. In one instance, a balloon remained for more than six months in a -cranberry swamp, and when the great bag was discovered, slowly swaying -in the breeze, among the bushes, the frightened Jerseymen thought they -had come upon an elephant, or, maybe, a survivor of the mastodons. This -made more advertising of the very best kind for the clothing store,—the -kind that excites interested, complimentary talk. - - - SEIZING OPPORTUNITIES - -Genius consists in taking advantage of opportunities quite as much as in -making them. Here was a young man doing things in an advertising way -regardless of the custom of the business world, and with a wonderful -knowledge of human nature. He took commonsense advantage of -opportunities that were open to everybody. - -Soon after the balloon experience, tally-ho coaching began to be a -Philadelphia fad of the very exclusives. Immediately afterwards a crack -coach was secured, and six large and spirited horses were used instead -of four, and Oak Hall employees, dressed in the style of the most ultra -coaching set, traversed the country in every direction, scattering -advertising matter to the music of the horn. Sometimes they would be a -week on a trip. No wonder Oak Hall flourished. It was kept in the very -front of the procession all the time. - -A little later, in the yachting season, the whole town was attracted and -amused by processions and scatterings of men, each wearing a wire body -frame that supported a thin staff from which waved a wooden burgee, or -pointed flag reminding them of Oak Hall. Nearly two hundred of these -prototypes of the “Sandwich man” were often out at one time. - -But it was not only in the quick catching of a novel advertising thought -that the new house was making history; in newspaper advertising, it was -even further in advance. The statements of store news were crisp and -unhackneyed, and the first artistic illustrations ever put into -advertisements were used there. So high was the grade of this -picture-work that art schools regularly clipped the illustrations as -models; and the world-famous Shakespearian scholar, Dr. Horace Howard -Furness, treasured the original sketches of “The Seven Ages” as among -the most interesting in his unique collection. - - - PUSH AND PERSISTENCE - -“The chief reason,” said Mr. Wanamaker upon one occasion, “that -everybody is not successful is the fact that they have not enough -persistency. I always advise young men who write me on the subject to do -one thing well, throwing all their energies into it.” - -To his employees he once said:—“We are very foolish people if we shut -our ears and eyes to what other people are doing. I often pick up things -from strangers. As you go along, pick up suggestions here and there, jot -them down and send them along. Even writing them down helps to -concentrate your mind on that part of the work. You need not be afraid -of overstepping the mark. The more we push each other, the better.” - - - “TO WHAT, MR. WANAMAKER, DO YOU ATTRIBUTE YOUR GREAT SUCCESS?” - -In reply to this question when asked, he replied:—“To thinking, toiling, -trying, and trusting in God.” - -A serene confidence in a guiding power has always been one of the -Wanamaker characteristics. He is always calm. Under the greatest stress -he never loses his head. - -In one physical particular, Mr. Wanamaker is very remarkable. He can -work continually for a long time without sleep and without evidence of -strain, and make up for it by a good rest afterwards. - -When upon one occasion he was asked to name the essentials of success, -he replied, curtly:—“I might write a volume trying to tell you how to -succeed. _One way is to not be above taking a hint from a master._ I -don’t care to tell why I succeeded; because I object to talking about -myself,—it isn’t modest.” - -A feature of his make-up that has contributed largely to his success is -his ability to concentrate his thoughts. No matter how trivial the -subject brought before him, he takes it up with the appearance of one -who has nothing else on his mind. - - - HIS VIEWS ON BUSINESS - -When asked whether the small tradesmen has any “show” to-day against the -great department stores, he said:— - -“All of the great stores were small at one time. Small stores will keep -on developing into big ones. You wouldn’t expect a man to put an iron -band about his business in order to prevent expansion, would you? There -are, according to statistics, a greater number of prosperous small -stores in the city than ever before. What better proof do you want? - -“The department store is a natural product, evolved from conditions that -exist as a result of fixed trade laws. Executive capacity, combined with -command of capital, finds opportunity in these conditions, which are -harmonious with the irresistible determination of the producer to meet -the consumer directly, and of merchandise to find distribution along the -lines of least resistance. Reduced prices stimulate consumption, and -increase employment; and it is sound opinion that the increased -employment created by the department stores goes to women without -curtailing that of men. In general it may be stated that large retail -stores have shortened the hours of labor; and by systematic discipline -have made it lighter. The small store is harder upon the sales-person -and clerk. The effects upon the character and capacity of the employees -are good. A well ordered, modern retail store is the means of education -in spelling, writing, English language, system and method. Thus it -becomes to the ambitious and serious employees, in a small way, a -university, in which character is broadened by intelligent instruction -practically applied.” - -When asked if a man with means but no experience would be safe in -embarking in a mercantile business, he replied quickly:— - -“A man can’t drive a horse who has never seen one. No; a man must have -training, must know how to buy and sell; only experience teaches that.” - -I have heard people marvel at the unbroken upward course of Mr. -Wanamaker’s career, and lament that they so often make mistakes. But -hear him:— - -“Who does not make mistakes? Why, if I were to think only of the -mistakes I have made, I should be miserable indeed.” - -I have heard it said a hundred times that Mr. Wanamaker started when -success was easy. Here is what he says himself about it:— - -“I think I could succeed as well now as in the past. It seems to me that -the conditions of to-day are even more favorable to success than when I -was a boy. There are better facilities for doing business, and more -business to be done. Information in the shape of books and newspapers is -now in the reach of all, and the young man has two opportunities where -he formerly had one. - -“We are much more afraid of combinations of capital than we have any -reason for being. Competition regulates everything of that kind. No -organization can make immense profits for any length of time without its -field soon swarming with competitors. It requires brain and muscle to -manage any kind of business, and the same elements which have produced -business success in the past will produce it now, and will always -produce it.” - - - PUBLIC SERVICE - -With the exception of his term of service as postmaster-general of the -United States in President Harrison’s cabinet—a service which was marked -by great executive ability and the institution of many reforms,—Mr. -Wanamaker has devoted his attention almost entirely to his business and -his church work. - -Yet as a citizen he has always taken a most positive course in -opposition to the evils that threaten society. He has been forever -prompted by his religious convictions to pursue vice either in the -“dive,” or in municipal, state or national life. He hates a barroom, but -he hates a treasury looter far more fiercely. His idea of Christian duty -was evidently derived from the scene wherein the Master took a scourge -and drove the corrupt traders and office-holders out of the temple. It -is vigorous, it is militant; but it makes enemies. Consequently, Mr. -Wanamaker is not without persistent maligners; getting himself well -hated by the worst men in the community. - - - INVEST IN YOURSELF - -Mr. Wanamaker’s views of what life is for are well expressed in the -following excerpt from one of his addresses to young men. - -In the course of his address, he related that he was once called upon to -invest in an expedition to recover Spanish mahogany and doubloons from -the Spanish Main, which, for half a century, had lain under the rolling -waves in sunken frigates. “But, young men,” he continued, “I know of -better expeditions than this right at home, deep down under the sea of -neglect and ignorance and discouragement. Near your own feet lie -treasures untold, and you can have them all for your own by earnest -watch and faithful study and proper care. - -“Let us not be content to mine the most coal, make the largest -locomotives and weave the largest quantities of carpets; but, amid the -sounds of the pick, the blows of the hammer, the rattle of the looms, -and the roar of the machinery, take care that the immortal mechanism of -God’s own hand,—the mind,—is still full-trained for the highest and -noblest service. - -“This is the most enduring kind of property to acquire, a property of -soul which no disaster can wreck or ruin. Whatever may be the changes -that shall sweep over our fair land, no power can ever take away from -you your investments in knowledge.” - - - AT HOME - -Like all other magnetic and forceful men, Mr. Wanamaker is striking in -appearance, strong rather than handsome. He has a full, round head, a -broad forehead, a strong nose, heavy-lidded eyes that flash with energy, -heavy jaws that denote strength of will, and tightly closed lips that -just droop at the corners, giving an ever-present touch of sedateness. -His face is as smooth as a boy’s and as mobile as an actor’s; and, when -lighted up in discussion, it beams with expression. He wears a hat that -is only six and seven-eighths in size, but is almost completely circular -in form. He is almost six feet tall and finely built, and all his -motions have in them the springiness of health. Nobody ever saw him -dressed in any other color than black, with a black necktie under a -“turn-down” collar. But he always looks as trim as if he were just out -of the hands of both tailor and barber. - -It is his delight to pass much time at his country seat in Jenkintown. -He is fond of the field and the river, the trees and flowers, and all -the growths with which God has beautified the earth. His house is a -home-like structure, with wide piazzas, standing upon the crest of a -hill in the midst of a noble lawn. A big rosery and orchid house stand -near by. The before-breakfast ramble of the proprietor is finished in -the flower garden, and every guest is laden with floral trophies. - -Mr. Wanamaker was married, while he was the Secretary of the Y. M. C. -A., to one whom he met at a church service, and who has been in full -sympathy with his religious activities. He has been for forty years -superintendent of the Bethany Sunday School in Philadelphia. He began -with two teachers and twenty-seven pupils; and at the recent anniversary -reported a school of 4,500, a church with 3,700 members, 500 having been -added during the past year, several branches, and scores of department -organizations. - -John Wanamaker says to-day that his business success is due to his -religious training. He is first of all a Christian. - -The lesson of such a life should be precious to every young man. It -teaches the value of untiring effort, of economy, of common sense -applied to common business. I know of no career in this country that -offers more encouragement to young people. It shows what persistency can -do; it shows what intelligent, well-directed, tireless effort can do; -and it proves that a man may devote himself to helping others, to the -Sunday School, to the Church, to broad philanthropy, and still be -wonderfully successful in a business way. - - ------------------------------------------------------------------------- - - - - - VIII - -Giving up Five Thousand Dollars a Year to Become a Sculptor - - -“MY life?” queried F. Wellington Ruckstuhl, one of the foremost -sculptors of America, as we sat in his studio looking up at his huge -figure of “Force.” “When did I begin to sculpture? As a child I was -forever whittling, but I did not have dreams then of becoming a -sculptor. It was not till I was thirty-two years of age. And -love,—disappointment in my first love played a prominent part.” - -“But as a boy, Mr. Ruckstuhl?” - -“I was a poet. Every sculptor or artist is necessarily a poet. I was -always reaching out and seeking the beautiful. My father was a foreman -in a St. Louis machine shop. He came to this country in a sailing ship -from Alsace, by way of the Gulf to St. Louis, when I was but six years -old. He was a very pious man and a deacon in a church. One time, Moody -and Sankey came to town, and my father made me attend the meetings; I -think he hoped that I would become a minister. Between the ages of -fourteen and nineteen, I worked in a photographic supply store; wrote -one hundred poems, and read incessantly. I enlarged a view of the statue -of Nelson in Trafalgar Square, London, into a ‘plaster sketch,’ ten -times as large as the picture, but still I did not know my path. I began -the study of philosophy, and kept up my reading for ten years. My -friends thought I would become a literary man. I wrote for the papers, -and belonged to a prominent literary club. I tried to analyze myself. ‘I -am a man,’ I said, ‘but what am I good for? What am I to make of this -life?’ I drifted from one position to another. Every one was sorry to -part with my services, for I always did my duties as well as they could -be done. When I was twenty-five years of age, the girl to whom I was -attached was forced by her mother to marry a wealthy man. She died a -year afterwards; and I ‘pulled up stakes,’ and started on a hap-hazard, -reckless career. I went to Colorado, drifted into Arizona, prospected, -mined, and worked on a ranch. I went to California, and at one time -thought of shipping for China. My experiences would fill a book. Again I -reached St. Louis. For a year, I could not find a thing to do, and -became desperate.” - -“And you had done nothing at art so far?” I asked. - -“At that time, I saw a clay sketch. I said to myself, ‘I can do as well -as that,’ and I copied it. My second sketch admitted me to the St. Louis -Sketch Club. I told my friends that I would be a sculptor. They laughed -and ridiculed me. I had secured a position in a store, and at odd times -worked at what I had always loved, but had only half realized it. -Notices appeared in the papers about me, for I was popular in the -community. I entered the competition for a statue of General Frank R. -Blair. I received the first prize, but when the committee discovered -that I was only a bill clerk in a store, they argued that I was not -competent to carry out the work; although I was given the first prize -model and the one hundred and fifty dollars accompanying it.” - -“But that inspired you?” - -“Yes, but my father and mother put every obstacle in the way possible. I -was driven from room to room. I was not even allowed to work in the -attic.” Here Mr. Ruckstuhl laughed. “You see what genius has to contend -with. I was advanced in position in the store, till I became assistant -manager, at two thousand dollars a year. When I told the proprietor that -I had decided to be a sculptor, he gazed at me in blank astonishment. ‘A -sculptor?’ he queried, incredulously, and made a few very discouraging -remarks, emphasized with dashes. ‘Why, young man, are you going to throw -up the chance of a lifetime? I will give you five thousand dollars a -year, and promote you to be manager if you will remain with me.’ - -“But I had found my life’s work,” said Mr. Ruckstuhl, turning to me. “I -knew it would be a struggle through poverty, till I attained fame. But I -was confident in myself, which is half of the battle.” - -“And you went abroad?” - -“Yes, with but two hundred and fifty dollars,” he replied. “I traveled -through Europe for five months and visited the French Salon. I said to -myself, ‘I can do that, and that;’ and my confidence grew. But there was -some work that completely ‘beat’ me. I returned to America penniless, -but with a greater insight into art. I determined that I would retrace -my steps to Paris, and study there for three years, and thought that -would be sufficient to fully develop me. My family and friends laughed -me to scorn, and I was discouraged by everyone. In four months, in St. -Louis, I secured seven orders for busts, at two hundred dollars each, to -be done after my return from France. That shows that some persons had -confidence in me and in my talent. - -“O, the student life in Paris! How I look back with pleasure upon those -struggling, yet happy days! In two months, I started on my female figure -of ‘Evening,’ in the nude, that is now in the Metropolitan Museum of -Art. I finished it in nine months, and positively sweat blood in my -work. I sent it to the Salon, and went to Italy. When I returned to -Paris, I saw my name in the paper with honorable mention. I suppose you -can realize my feelings; I experienced the first flush of victory. I -brought it to America, and exposed it in St. Louis. Strange to say, I -rose in the estimation of even my family. My father actually -congratulated me. A wealthy man in St. Louis gave me three thousand -dollars to have my ‘Evening’ put into marble. I returned with it to -Paris, and in a month and a quarter it was exhibited in the Salon. At -the World’s Fair, at Chicago, it had the place of honor, and received -one of the eleven grand medals given to American sculptors. In 1892, I -came to New York. This statue of ‘Force’ will be erected, with my statue -of ‘Wisdom,’ on the new Court of Appeals in New York.” - -We gazed at it, seated, and clothed in partial armor, of the old Roman -type, and holding a sword across its knees. The great muscles spoke of -strength and force, and yet, with it all, there was an almost benign -look upon the military visage. - -“There is force and real action there withal, although there is repose.” -I said in admiration. - -“Oh,” said Mr. Ruckstuhl, “that’s it, and that is what it is so hard to -get! That is what every sculptor strives for; and, unless he attains it, -his work, from my point of view, is worthless. There must be life in a -statue; it must almost breathe. In repose there must be dormant action -that speaks for itself.” - -“Is most of your work done under inspiration?” I asked. - -“There is nothing,—and a great deal,—in so-called inspiration. I firmly -believe that we mortals are merely tools, mediums, at work here on -earth. I peg away, and bend all my energies to my task. I simply -accomplish nothing. Suddenly, after considerable preparatory toil, the -mist clears away; I see things clearly; everything is outlined for me. I -believe there is a conscious and a sub-conscious mind. The sub-conscious -mind is the one that does original work; it cannot be affected by the -mind that is conscious to all our petty environments. When the conscious -mind is lulled and silenced, the sub-conscious one begins to work. That -I call inspiration.” - -“Are you ever discouraged?” I asked out of curiosity. - -“Continually,” replied Mr. Ruckstuhl, looking down at his hands, soiled -with the working clay. “Some days I will be satisfied with what I have -done. It will strike me as simply fine. I will be as happy as a bird, -and leave simply joyous. The following morning, when the cloths are -removed, I look at my previous toil, and consider it vile. I ask myself: -‘Are you a sculptor or not? Do you think that you ever will be one? Do -you consider that art?’ So it is, till your task is accomplished. You -are your own critic, and are continually distressed at your inability to -create your ideals.” - -Mr. F. Wellington Ruckstuhl is forty-six years of age; neither short nor -tall; a brilliant man, with wonderful powers of endurance, for his work -is more exacting and tedious than is generally supposed. - -“I have simply worked a month and a quarter on that statue,” he said. -“Certain work dissatisfied me, and I obliterated it. I have raised that -head three times. My eyes get weary, and I become physically tired. On -such occasions I sit down and smoke a little to distract my thoughts, -and to clear my mind. Then my sub-conscious mind comes into play again,” -he concluded with a smile. - -Mr. Ruckstuhl’s best known works are: “Mercury Teasing the Eagle of -Jupiter,” which is of bronze, nine feet high, which he made in Paris; a -seven-foot statue of Solon, erected in the Congressional Library, at -Washington; busts of Franklin, Gœthe and Macaulay, on the front of the -same library; and the eleven-foot statue of bronze of “Victory,” for the -Jamaica soldiers’ and sailors’ monument. In competition, he won the -contract for an equestrian statue of General John F. Hartrauft, -ex-Governor of Pennsylvania, which he also made in Paris. It is -considered the finest piece of work of its kind in America. Besides this -labor, he has made a number of medallions and busts; and with the -completion of his statue of “Force,” he will have made a wonderful -record. - -“Art was in me as a child,” he said: “I was discouraged whenever it -beckoned me, but finally claimed me. I surrendered a good position to -follow it, whether it led through a thorny road or not. A sculptor is an -artist, a musician, a poet, a writer, a dramatist,—to throw action, -breath and life, music and a soul into his creation. I can pick up an -instrument and learn it instantly; I can sing, and act, so I am in touch -with the sympathies of the beings that I endeavor to create. You will -find most sculptors and artists of my composite nature. - -“There,” said Mr. Ruckstuhl, and he stretched out his arm, with his palm -downward, and moved it through the air, as he gazed into distance, “you -strive to create the imagination of your mind, and it comes to you as if -sent from another world.” - -“You strive.” That is the way to success. - - ------------------------------------------------------------------------- - - - - - IX - -Questions and Answers: Business Pointers by Darius Ogden Mills - - -“WHAT is your idea, Mr. Mills,[2] of a successful life?” “If a bootblack -does all the good he possibly can for his fellow-men, his life has been -just as successful as that of the millionaire who helps thousands.” - -Footnote 2: - - Mr. Mills was born in Western New York in 1825. He has been a leading - financier for fifty years, in California, and in New York. He is - connected with the management of eighteen important business and - philanthropic corporations in New York City. - - - WORK - -“What, Mr. Mills, do you consider the key-note of success?” - -“Work,” he replied, quickly and emphatically. “Work develops all the -good there is in a man; idleness all the evil. Work sharpens all his -faculties and makes him thrifty; idleness makes him lazy and a -spendthrift. Work surrounds a man with those whose habits are -industrious and honest; in such society a weak man develops strength, -and a strong man is made stronger. Idleness, on the other hand, is apt -to throw a man into the company of men whose object in life is usually -the pursuit of unwholesome and demoralizing diversions.” - - - SELF-DEPENDENCE - -“To what formative influence do you attribute your material success, Mr. -Mills?” I asked. - -“I was taught very early that I would have to depend entirely upon -myself; that my future lay in my own hands. I had that for a start, and -it was a good one. I didn’t waste any time thinking about succession to -wealth, which so often acts as a drag upon young men. Many persons waste -the best years of their lives waiting for dead men’s shoes; and, when -they get them, find them entirely too big to wear gracefully, simply -because they have not developed themselves to wear them. - -“As a rule, the small inheritance, which, to a boy, would seem large, -has a tendency to lessen his efforts, and is a great damage to him in -the way of acquiring the habits necessary to success.” - - - HABIT OF THRIFT - -“No one can acquire a fortune unless he makes a start; and the habit of -thrift, which he learns in saving his first hundred dollars, is of -inestimable value later on. It is not the money, but the habit which -counts. - -“There is no one so helpless as a man who is ‘broke,’ no matter how -capable he may be, and there is no habit so detrimental to his -reputation among business men as that of borrowing small sums of money. -This cannot be too emphatically impressed upon young men.” - - - EXPENSIVE HABITS—SMOKING - -“Another thing is that none but the wealthy, and very few of them, can -afford the indulgence of expensive habits; how much less then can a man -with only a few dollars in his pocket? More young men are ruined by the -expense of smoking than in any other way. The money thus laid out would -make them independent, in many cases, or at least would give them a good -start. A young man should be warned by the melancholy example of those -who have been ruined by smoke, and avoid it.” - - - FORMING AN INDEPENDENT BUSINESS JUDGMENT - -“What marked traits, Mr. Mills, have the influential men with whom you -have been associated, possessed, which most impressed you?” - -“A habit of thinking and acting for themselves. No end of people are -ruined by taking the advice of others. This may answer temporarily, but -in the long run it is sure to be disastrous. Any man who hasn’t ability -to judge for himself would better get a comfortable clerkship somewhere, -letting some one of more ambition and ability do the thinking necessary -to run the business.” - - - THE MULTIPLICATION OF OPPORTUNITIES TO-DAY IN AMERICA - -“Are the opportunities for making money as numerous to-day as they were -when you started in business?” - -“Yes, the progress of science and invention has increased the -opportunities a thousandfold, and a man can find them wherever he seeks -them in the United States in particular. It has caused the field of -employment of labor of all kinds to expand enormously, thus creating -opportunities which never existed before. It is no longer necessary for -a man to go to foreign countries or distant parts of his own country to -make money. Opportunities come to him in every quarter. There is hardly -a point in the country so obscure that it has not felt the -revolutionizing influence of commercial enterprise. Probably railroads -and electricity are the chief instruments in this respect. Other -industries follow closely in their wake.” - - - WHERE ONE’S BEST CHANCE IS—THE KNOWLEDGE OF MEN - -“In what part of the country do you think the best chances for young men -may be found?” - -“The best place for a young man to make money is the town in which he -was born and educated. There he learns all about everybody, and -everybody learns about him. This is to his advantage if he bears a good -character, and to the advantage of his towns-people if he bears a bad -one. While a young man is growing up, he unconsciously absorbs a vast -deal of knowledge of people and affairs, which would be equal to money -if he only has the judgment to avail himself of it. A knowledge of men -is the prime secret of business success. Upon reflection, how absurd it -is for a man to leave a town where he knows everything and everybody, -and go to some distant point where he doesn’t know anything about -anybody or anything, and expect to begin on an equal footing with the -people there who are thoroughly acquainted.” - - - THE BOTTOM OF THE LADDER - -“What lesson, Mr. Mills, do you consider it most needful for young men -to learn?” - -“The lesson of humility;—not in the sense of being servile or -undignified, but in that of paying due respect to men who are their -superiors in the way of experience, knowledge and position. Such a -lesson is akin to that of discipline. Members of the royal families of -Europe are put in subordinate positions in the navies or armies of their -respective countries, in order that they may receive the training -necessary to qualify them to take command. They must first know how to -obey, if they would control others. - -“In this country, it is customary for the sons of the presidents of -great railroads, or other companies, to begin at the bottom of the -ladder and work their way up step by step, just the same as any other -boy in the employ of the corporation. This course has become -imperatively necessary in the United States, where each great business -has become a profession in itself. Most of the big machine shops number -among their employees, scions of old families who carry dinner pails, -and work with files or lathes, the same as anyone else. Such -shoulder-to-shoulder experience is invaluable to a man who is destined -to command, because he not only masters the trade technically, but -learns all about the men he works with and qualifies himself to grapple -with labor questions which may arise. - -“There is no end of conspicuous examples of the wisdom of this system in -America. There are also many instances of disaster to great industrial -concerns due to the inexperience or the lack of tact of men placed -suddenly in control.” - - - THE BENEFICENT USE OF CAPITAL - -Upon this point, Mr. Mills said:—“A man can, in the accumulation of a -fortune, be just as great a benefactor of mankind as in the distribution -of it. In organizing a great industry, one opens up fields of employment -for a multitude of people who might otherwise be practically helpless, -giving them not only a chance to earn a living for themselves and their -families, but also to lay by a competency for old age. All honest, sober -men, if they have half a chance, can do that; but only a small -percentage can ever become rich. Now the rich man, having acquired his -wealth, knows better how to manage it than those under him would, and -having actual possession, he has the power to hold the community of his -employees and their interests together, and prevent disintegration, -which means disaster so much oftener to the employee than to the -employer.” - - - THE WHOLESOME DISCIPLINE OF EARNING AND SPENDING - -“What is the responsibility of wealth, Mr. Mills?” - -“A man must learn not to think too much of money. It should be -considered as a means and not an end; and the love for it should never -be permitted to so warp a man’s mind as to destroy his interest in -progressive ideas. Making money is an education, and the wide experience -thus acquired teaches a man discrimination in both men and projects, -where money is under consideration. Very few men who make their own -money use it carelessly. Most good projects that fail owe their failure -to bad business management, rather than to lack of intrinsic merit. An -inventor may have a very good thing, and plenty of capital may be -enlisted but if a man not acquainted with the peculiar line, or one who -is not a good salesman or financier be employed as manager, the result -is disastrous. A man should spend his money in a way that tends to -advance the best interests of society in the country he lives in, or in -his own neighborhood at least. There is only one thing that is a greater -harm to the community than a rich spendthrift, and that is a miser.” - - - PERSONAL: A WORD ABOUT CHEAP HOTELS - -“How did you happen to establish the system of hotels which bears your -name, Mr. Mills?” - -“I had been looking around for several years to find something to do -that would be for the good of the community. My mind was largely on -other matters, but it occurred to me that the hotel project was the -best, and I immediately went to work at it. My purpose was to do the -work on so large a scale that it would be appreciated and spread all -over the country; for as the sources of education extend, we find more -and more need of assisting men who have a disposition for decency and -good citizenship. _The mechanic is well paid, and the man who has -learned to labor is much more independent than he who is prepared for a -profession or a scientific career, or other objects in life that call -for higher education._ Clerks commencing at small salaries need good -surroundings and economy to give themselves a start. Such are the men -for whom the hotels were established.” - - ------------------------------------------------------------------------- - - - - - X - -Nordica: What it Costs to Become a Queen of Song - - -OF the internationally famous singers, none is a greater favorite than -Madame Lillian Nordica. She has had honors heaped upon her by every -music-loving country. Milan, St. Petersburg, Paris, London and New York, -in turn accepted her. Jewel cases filled with bracelets, necklaces, -tiaras and diadems, of gold and precious stones, attest the unaffected -sincerity of her admirers in all the great music-centers of the world. -She enjoys, in addition, the distinction of being one of the first two -American women to attain to international fame as a singer in grand -opera. - -Madame Nordica I met on appointment at the Waldorf-Astoria Hotel, where -she kindly detailed for me - - - THE DIFFICULTIES - -she encountered at the outset:—“Distinction in the field of art is -earned: it is not thrust upon anyone. The material for a great voice may -be born in a person—it is, in fact,—but the making of it into a great -voice is a work of the most laborious character. - -“In some countries the atmosphere is not very favorable to beginners. -Almost any of the greater European nations is probably better in this -respect than the United States: not much better, however, because nearly -all depends upon strength of character, determination, and the will to -work. If a girl has these, she will rise as high, in the end, anywhere.” - -Madame Nordica came of New England stock, being born at Farmington, -Maine, and reared in Boston. Her parents, bearing the name Norton, -possessed no musical talent. “Their opinion of music,” said Madame, “was -that it is an airy, inviting art of the devil, used to tempt men’s feet -to stray from the solemn path of right. They believed music, as a -vocation, to be nearly as reprehensible as a stage career, and for the -latter they had no tolerance whatever. I must be just, though, and own -that they did make an exception in the case of church music, else I -should never have received the slightest encouragement in my -aspirations. They considered music in churches to be permissible,—even -laudable, so when I displayed some ability as a singer, I was allowed to -use it in behalf of religion, and I did. I joined the church choir and -sang hymns about the house almost constantly. - -“But I needed a world of training. I had no conception of what work lay -ahead of anyone who contemplates singing perfectly. I had no idea of how -high I might go myself. All I knew was that I could sing, and that I -would win my way with my voice if I could.” - -“How did you accomplish it?” - -“By devoting all my time, all my thought, and all my energy to that one -object. I devoured church music,—all I could get hold of. I practised -new and difficult compositions all the time I could spare. - -“I became a very good church singer; so much so that when there were -church concerts or important religious ceremonies, I was always in -demand. Then there began to be a social demand for my ability, and, -later, a public demand in the way of concerts. - -“At first, I ignored all but church singing. My ambition ran higher than -concert singing, and I knew my parents would not consent. I persuaded -them to let me have my voice trained. This was not very difficult, -because my church singing, as it had improved, became a source of -considerable profit; and they saw even greater results for me in the -large churches, and in the religious field. So I went to a teacher of -vocal culture, Professor John O’Neill, one of the instructors in the New -England Conservatory of Music, Boston. He was a fine old teacher, a man -with the highest ideals concerning music, and of the sternest and most -exacting method. He made me feel, at first, that - - - THE WORLD WAS MINE, IF I WOULD WORK. - -Hard work was his constant cry. There must be no play, no training for -lower forms of public entertainment, no anything but study and practice. -I must work and perfect myself in private, and then suddenly appear -unheralded in the highest class of opera and take the world by storm. - -“It was a fine fancy, but it would not have been possible. O’Neill was a -fine musician. Under him I studied the physiology of the voice, and -practiced singing oratorios. I also took up Italian, familiarizing -myself with the language, with all the songs and endless _arias_. In -fact, I made myself as perfect in Italian as possible. In _three years_ -I had been greatly improved. Mr. O’Neill, however, employed methods of -making me work which discouraged me. He was a man who would magnify and -storm over the slightest error, and make light of or ignore the -sincerest achievements. He put his grade of perfection so high that I -began to consider it unattainable, and lost heart. Finally, I gave it up -and rested awhile, uncertain of everything. - -“After I had thought awhile and regained some confidence, I came to New -York to see Mme. Maretzek. She was not only a teacher, but also a singer -quite famous in her day, and she thoroughly knew the world of music. She -considered my voice to be of the right quality for the highest grade of -operatic success; and gave me hope that, with a little more training, I -could begin my career. She not only did that, but also set me to -studying the great operas, ‘Lucia’ and the others, and introduced me to -the American musical celebrities. Together we heard whatever was worth -hearing in New York. - -“When the renowned Brignola came to New York, she took me to the Everett -House, where he was stopping and introduced me. They were good friends, -and, after gaining his opinion on the character of my voice, she had him -play ‘Faust.’ That was a wonderful thing for me. To hear the great -Brignola! It fired my ambition. As I listened I felt that I could also -be great and that people, some day, might listen to me as enraptured as -I then was by him.” - - - “IT PUT NEW FIRE INTO ME - -and caused me to fairly toil over my studies. I would have given up all -my hours if only I had been allowed or requested. - -“So it went, until _after several years of study_, Madame Maretzek -thought I was getting pretty well along and might venture some important -public singing. We talked about different ways of appearing and what I -would sing, and so on, until finally Gilmore’s band came to Madison -Square Garden. He was in the heyday of his success then, and carried -important soloists with him. Madame Maretzek decided that she would take -me to see him and get his opinion; and so, one day, toward the very last -of his Madison Square engagement, we went to see him. Madame Maretzek -was on good terms with him also. I remember that she took me in, one -morning, when he was rehearsing. I saw a stout, kindly, genial-looking -man who was engaged in tapping for attention, calling certain -individuals to notice certain points, and generally fluttering around -over a dozen odds and ends. Madame Maretzek talked with him a little -while and then called his attention to me. He looked toward me. - -“‘Thinks she can sing, eh? Yes, yes. Well, all right! Let her come right -along.’ - -“Then he called to me,—‘Come right along now. Step right up here on the -stage. Yes, yes. Now, what can you sing?’ - -“I told him I could sing almost anything in oratorio or opera, if he so -wished. He said: ‘Well, well, have a little from both. Now, what shall -it be?’ - -“I shall never forget his kindly way. He was like a good father, gentle -and reassuring, and seemed really pleased to have me there and to hear -me. I went up on the platform and told him that I would begin with ‘Let -the Bright Seraphim,’ and he called the orchestra to order and had them -accompany me.” - -“I was slightly nervous at first, but recovered my equanimity and sang -up to my full limit of power. When I was through, he remarked, ‘Very -good! very good!’ and ‘Now, what else?’ I next sang an _aria_ from -‘Somnambula.’ He did not hesitate to express his approval, which was -always, ‘Very good! very good! Now, what you want to do,’ he said, ‘is -to get some roses in your cheeks, and come along and sing for me.’ After -that, he continued his conference with Madame Maretzek and then we went -away together.” - - - “I WAS TRAVELING ON AIR - -when I left, I can assure you. His company was famous. Its engagement -had been most successful. Madame Poppenheim was singing with it, and -there were other famous names. There were only two more concerts to -conclude his New York engagement, but he had told Madame Maretzek that -if I chose to come and sing on these occasions, he would be glad to have -me. I was more than glad of the opportunity and agreed to go. We -arranged with him by letter, and, when the evening came, I sang. My work -made a distinct impression on the audience, and pleased Mr. Gilmore -wonderfully. After the second night, when all was over, he came to me, -and said: ‘Now, my dear, of course there is no more concert this summer, -but I am going West in the fall. Now, how would you like to go along?’ - -“I told him that I would like to go very much, if it could be arranged; -and, after some negotiation, he agreed to pay the expenses of my mother -and myself, and give me one hundred dollars a week besides. I accepted, -and when the western tour began, we went along. - -“I gained thorough control of my nerves upon that tour, and learned -something of audiences, and of what constitutes distinguished ‘stage -presence.’ _I studied all the time_, and, with the broadening influence -of travel, gained a great deal. At the end of the tour, my voice was -more under my control than ever before, and I was a better singer all -around.” - -“You did not begin with grand opera, after all?” - -“No, I did not. It was not a perfect conclusion of my dreams, but it was -a great deal. My old instructor, Mr. O’Neill, took it worse than I did. -He regarded my ambitions as having all come to naught. I remember that -he wrote me a letter in which he thus called me to account:— - -“‘After all my training, my advice, that you should come to this! A -whole lifetime of ambition and years of the hardest study consumed to -fit you to go on the road with a brass band! Poh!’ - -“I pocketed the sarcasm in the best of humor, because I was sure of my -dear old teacher’s unwavering faith in me, and knew that he wrote only -for my own good. Still, I felt that I was doing wisely in getting before -the public, and so decided to wait quietly and see if time would not -justify me. - -“When the season was over, Mr. Gilmore came to me again. He was the most -kindly man I ever knew. His manner was as gentle and his heart as good -as could be. - -“‘I am going to Europe,’ he said. ‘I am going to London and Paris and -Vienna and Rome, and all the other big cities. There will be a fine -chance for you to see all those places and let Europeans hear you. They -appreciate good singers. Now, little girl, do you want to come? If you -do, you can.’” - -“I talked it over with my mother and Madame Maretzek, and decided to go; -and so, the next season, we were - - - IN EUROPE. - -“We gave seventy-eight concerts in England and France. We opened the -Trocadero at Paris, and mine was the first voice of any kind to sing -there. This European tour of the American band was a great and -successful venture. American musicians still recall the _furore_ which -it created, and the prestige which it gained at home. Mr. Gilmore was -proud of his leading soloists. In Paris, where the great audiences went -wild over my singing, he came to praise me personally in unmeasured -terms. ‘My dear,’ he said, ‘you are going to be a great singer. You are -going to be crowned in your own country yet. Mark my words: they are -going to put diamonds on your brow!’ [Madame Nordica had good occasion -to recall this, in 1898, many years after, when her enthusiastic New -York admirers crowned her with a diamond tiara as a tribute of their -admiration and appreciation.] - -“It was at the time when Gilmore was at the height of his Paris -engagement that his agent ran off with his funds and left the old -bandmaster almost stranded. Despite his sincere trouble, he retained his -imperturbable good nature, and came out of it successfully. He came to -me, one morning, smiling good-naturedly, as usual. After greeting me and -inquiring after my health, he said: ‘My dear child, you have saved some -little money on this tour?’ I told him I had. - -“‘Now, I would like to borrow that little from you.’ - -“I was very much surprised at the request, for he said nothing whatever -of his loss. Still, he had been so uniformly kind and generous, and had -won our confidence and regard so wholly, that I could not hesitate. I -turned over nearly all I had, and he gathered it up and went away, -simply thanking me. Of course, I heard of the defalcation later. It -became generally known. Our salaries went right on, however, and in a -few months the whole thing had been quite forgotten, when he came to me -one morning with money ready in his hand. - -“‘To pay you what I owe you, my dear,’ he said. - -“‘Oh, yes!’ I said; ‘so and so much,’—naming the amount. - -“‘Here it is,’ he said; and, handing me a roll of bills, he went away. -Of course, I did not count it until a little later; but, when I did, I -found just double the amount I had named, and no persuasion would ever -induce him to accept a penny of it back.” - -“When did you part with Gilmore?” - -“At the end of that tour. He determined to return to America, and I had -decided to spend some of my earnings on further study in Italy. -Accordingly, I went to Milan, to the singing teacher San Giovanni. On -arriving there, I visited the old teacher and stated my object. I said -that I wanted to sing in grand opera.” - - - “‘WHY DON’T YOU SING IN GRAND OPERA?’ - -“He answered; ‘let me hear your voice.’ - -“I sang an _aria_ from ‘Lucia’; and, when I was through, he said, dryly: -‘You want to sing in grand opera?’ - -“‘Yes.’ - -“‘Well, why don’t you?’ - -“‘I need training.’ - -“‘Nonsense!’ he answered. ‘We will attend to that. You need a few months -to practice Italian methods,—that is all.’ - -“So I spent three months with him. After much preparation, I made my -_début_ as Violetta in Verdi’s opera, ‘La Traviata,’ at the Teatro -Grande, in Brescia.” - -The details of Madame Nordica’s Italian appearance are very interesting. -Her success was instantaneous. Her fame went up and down the land, and -across the water—to her home. She next sang in Gounod’s “Faust,” at -Geneva, and soon afterwards appeared at Navarro, singing Alice in -Meyerbeer’s “Roberto,” the enthusiastic and delighted subscribers -presenting her with a handsome set of rubies and pearls. After that, she -was engaged to sing at the Russian capital, and accordingly went to St. -Petersburg, where, in October, 1881, she made her _début_ as La Filina -in “Mignon.” - -There, also her success was great. She was the favorite of the society -of the court, and received pleasant attentions from every quarter. -Presents were made her, and inducements for her continued presence until -two winters had passed. Then she decided to revisit France and Paris. - - - THIS WAS HER CROWNING TRIUMPH - -“I wanted to sing in grand opera at Paris,” she said to me. “I wanted to -know that I could appear successfully in that grand place. I counted my -achievements nothing until I could do that.” - -“And did you?” - -“Yes. In July, 1882, I appeared there.” - -This was her greatest triumph. In the part of Marguerite, she took the -house by storm, and won from the composer the highest encomiums. -Subsequently, she appeared with equal success as Ophélie, having been -specially prepared for both these rôles by the respective composers, -Charles Gounod and Ambroise Thomas. - -“You should have been satisfied, after that,” I said. - -“I was,” she answered. “So thoroughly was I satisfied that soon -afterwards I gave up my career, and was married. For two years, I -remained away from the public; but after that time, my husband having -died, I decided to return. - -“I made my first appearance at the Burton Theatre in London, and was -doing well enough when Colonel Mapleson came to me. He was going to -produce grand opera,—in fact he was going to open Covent Garden, which -had been closed for a long time, with a big company. He was another -interesting character. I found him to be generous and kind-hearted and -happy-spirited as anyone could be. When he came to me, it was in the -most friendly manner. ‘I am going to open Covent Garden.’ he said. ‘Now, -here is your chance to sing there. All the great singers have appeared -there. Patti, Gerster, Nilsson, Tietjens; now it’s your turn,—come and -sing.’ - -“‘How about terms?’ I asked. - -“‘Terms!’ he exclaimed; ‘terms! Don’t let such little details stand in -your way. What is money compared to this? Ignore money. Think of the -honor, of the memories of the place, of what people think of it.’ And -then he waved his arms dramatically. - -“Yet, we came to terms, not wholly sacrificial on my part, and the -season began. Covent Garden had not been open for a long time. It was in -the spring of the year, cold and damp. There was a crowded house, -though, because fashion accompanied the Prince of Wales there. He came, -night after night, and heard the opera through with an overcoat on. - -“It was no pleasant task for me, or healthy, either, but the Lord has -blessed me with a sound constitution. I sang my parts, as they should be -sung—some in bare arms and shoulders, with too little clothing for such -a temperature. I nearly froze, but it was Covent Garden and a great -London audience, and so I bore up under it. - -“Things went on this way very successfully until Sir Augustus Harris -took Drury Lane and decided to produce grand opera. He started in -opposition to Colonel Mapleson, and so Covent Garden had to be given up. -Mr. Harris had more money, more prestige with society, and Colonel -Mapleson could not live under the division of patronage. When I saw the -situation, I called on the new manager and talked with him concerning -the next season. He was very proud and very condescending, and made sure -to show his indifference to me. He told me all about the brilliant -season he was planning, gave me a list of the great names he intended to -charm with, and wound up by saying he would call on me, in case of need, -but thought he had all the celebrities he could use, but would let me -know. - -“Of course, I did not like that; but I knew I could rest awhile, and so -was not much disturbed. The time for the opening of the season arrived. -The papers were full of accounts of the occasion, and there were plenty -of remarks concerning my non-appearance. Then ‘Aida’ was produced, and I -read the criticisms of it with interest. - - - SHE WAS INDISPENSABLE IN “AIDA” - -“The same afternoon a message came for me: ‘Would I come?’ and ‘Would I -do so and so?’ I would, and did. I sang ‘Aida’ and then other parts, and -gradually all the parts but one, which I had longed to try, but had not -yet had the opportunity given to me. I was very successful, and Sir -Augustus was very friendly. - -“The summer after that season, I visited Ems, where the De Reszkes were. -One day they said: ‘We are going to Beirut, to hear the music,—don’t you -want to go along?’ I thought it over, and decided that I did. My mother -and I packed up and departed. When I got there and saw those splendid -performances, I was entranced. It was perfectly beautiful. Everything -was arranged after an ideal fashion. I had a great desire to sing there, -and boasted to my mother that I would. When I came away, I was fully -determined to carry it out.” - -“Could you speak German?” - -“Not at all. I began, though, at once, to study it; and, when I could -talk it sufficiently, I went to Beirut and saw Madame Wagner.” - - - THE KINDNESS OF FRAU WAGNER - -“Did you find her the imperious old lady she is said to be?” - -“Not at all. She welcomed me most heartily; and, when I told her that I -had come to see if I could not sing there, she seemed much pleased. She -treated me like a daughter, explained all that she was trying to do, and -gave me a world of encouragement. Finally, I arranged to sing and create -‘Elsa’ after my own idea of it, during the season following the one then -approaching. - -“Meanwhile I came to New York to fulfill my contract for the season of -1894-1895. While doing that, I made a study of Wagner’s, and, indeed, of -all German music; and, when the season was over, went back and sang it.” - -Madame Nordica has found her work very exacting. For it she has needed a -good physique; her manner of study sometimes calling for an -extraordinary mental strain:— - -“I remember once, during my season under Augustus Harris, that he gave a -garden party, one Sunday, to which several of his company were -invited,—myself included. When the afternoon was well along, he came to -me and said: ‘Did you ever sing “Valencia” in “The Huguenots?”’ I told -him I had not. - -“‘Do you think you could learn the music and sing it by next Saturday -night?’ - -“I felt a little appalled at the question, but ventured to say that I -could. I knew that hard work would do it. - -“‘Then do,’ he replied; ‘for I must have you sing it.’ - -“The De Reszkes, Jean and Edouard, were near at the time, and offered to -assist me. ‘Try it,’ they said, and so I agreed. We began rehearsals, -almost without study, the very next day, both the De Reszkes prompting -me, and by Friday they had me letter-perfect and ready to go on. Since -the time seemed so peculiarly short, they feared for me, and, during the -performance, stationed themselves, one in either wing, to reassure me. -Whenever I approached near to either side of the stage, it was always to -hear their repeated ‘Be calm!’ whispered so loud that the audience could -almost hear it. Yet I sang easily, never thinking of failure.” - - - MUSICAL TALENT OF AMERICAN GIRLS - -“Let me ask you one thing,” I said. “Has America good musical material?” - -“As much as any other country, and more, I should think. The higher -average of intelligence here should yield a greater percentage of -musical intelligence.” - -“Then there ought to be a number of American women who can do good work -of a high order?” - -“There ought to be, but it is a question whether there will be. They are -not cut out for the work which it requires to develop a good voice. I -have noticed that young women seem to _underestimate the cost of -distinction_. It means more than most of them are prepared to give; and, -when they face the exactions of art, they falter and drop out. Hence we -have many middle-class singers, but few really powerful ones.” - -“What are these exactions you speak of?” - -“_Time, money, and loss of friends, of pleasure. To be a great singer -means, first, to be a great student. To be a great student means that -you have no time for balls and parties, very little for friends, and -less for carriage rides and_ _pleasant strolls. All that is really left -is a shortened allowance of sleep, of time for meals, and time for -exercise._” - - - THE PRICE OF FAME - -“Permanent recognition, which cannot be taken away from you, is acquired -only by _a lifetime of most earnest labor_. People are never -internationally recognized until they have reached middle life. Many -persons gain notoriety young, but that goes as quickly as it comes. _All -true success is founded on real accomplishment acquired with -difficulty._ - -“Many young people have genius; but they need training for valuable -service. The world gives very little recognition for a great deal of -labor paid in; and, when I earn a thousand dollars for a half hour’s -singing sometimes, it does not nearly average up for all the years and -for the labor much more difficult which I contributed without -recompense.” - - ------------------------------------------------------------------------- - - - - - XI - -How William Dean Howells Worked to Secure a Foothold - - -IN answer to my question, what constitutes success in life, Mr. Howells -replied that everything is open to the beginner who has sufficient -energy, perseverance and brains. - -“A young man stands at the parting of two ways,” he added, “and can take -his path this way or that. It is comparatively easy then, with good -judgment. Youth is certainly the greatest advantage which life -supplies.” - -Upon my inquiring about his early life, he replied: “I was born in a -little southeastern Ohio village—Martin’s Ferry,—which had little of -what people deem advantages in schools, railroads, or population. I am -not sure, however, that compensation was not had in other things.” - -As to any special talent for literary composition, Mr. Howells remarked -that he came of a reading race, which had always loved literature in a -way, and that it was his inclination to read. - -Upon this, I ventured to ask: “Would you say that, with a leaning toward -a special study, and good health, a fair start, and perseverance, anyone -can attain to distinction?” - -“That is a probability, only. You may be sure that distinction will not -come without those qualities. The only way to succeed, is to have them; -although having them will not necessarily guarantee distinction. I can -only say that I began with - - - A LOFTY IDEAL. - -“My own youth was not specially marked by advantages. There were none, -unless you can call a small bookcase full of books, which my home -contained, an advantage. The printing-office was my school from a very -early date. My father thoroughly believed in it, and he had his belief -as to work, which he illustrated as soon as we were old enough to learn -the trade he followed. We could go to school and study, or we could go -into the printing-office and work, with perhaps an equal chance of -learning; but we could not be idle.” - -“And you chose the printing-office?” - -“Not wholly. As I recall it, I went to and fro between the schoolhouse -and the printing-office. When I tired of one, I was promptly given the -other. - -“As the world goes now, we were poor. My father’s income was never above -twelve hundred a year, and his family was large; but nobody was rich -then. We lived in the simple fashion of that time and place. - -“My reading, somehow, went on pretty constantly. No doubt my love for it -won me a chance to devote time to it. The length varied with varying -times. - -“Sometimes I read but little. There were so many years of work—of -over-work, indeed, which falls to the lot of many,—that I should be -ashamed to speak of it except in accounting for the fact of my little -reading. My father had sold his paper in Hamilton, and bought an -interest in another at Dayton, and at that time we were all straining -our utmost to help pay for it. In that period very few hours were given -to literature. My daily tasks began so early, and ended so late, that I -had little time, even if I had the spirit for reading. Sometimes I had -to sit up until midnight, waiting for telegraphic news, and be up again -at dawn to deliver the papers, working afterwards at the case; but that -was only for a few years.” - - - ACQUIRING A LITERARY STYLE - -“When did you find time to seriously apply yourself to literature?” - -“I think I did so before I really had the time. Literary aspirations -were stirred in me by the great authors whom I successively discovered, -and I was perpetually imitating the writings of these,—modeling some -composition of my own after theirs, but never willing to own it.” - -“Do you attribute your style to the composite influence of these various -models?” - -“No doubt they had their effect, as a whole, but individually I was -freed from the last by each succeeding author, until at length I came to -understand that I must be like myself, and no other.” - -“Had you any conveniences for literary research, beyond the bookcase in -your home?” - -“If you mean a place to work, I had a narrow, little space, under the -stairs. There was a desk pushed back against the wall, which the -irregular ceiling sloped down to meet, behind it; and at my left was a -window, which gave a good light on the writing leaf of my desk. This was - - - MY WORKSHOP - -for six or seven years,—and it was not at all a bad one. It seemed, for -a while, so very simple and easy to come home in the middle of the -afternoon, when my task at the printing-office was done, and sit down to -my books in my little study, which I did not finally leave until the -family were all in bed. My father had a decided bent for literature; -and, when I began to show a liking for it, he was eager to direct my -choice. This finally changed to merely recommending books, and -eventually I was left to my own judgment,—a perplexed and sorrowfully -mistaken judgment, at times.” - -“In what manner did you manage to read the works of all your favorite -authors?” - -“My hours in the printing-office began at seven and ended at six, with -an hour at noon for dinner, which I used for putting down such verses as -had come to me in the morning. As soon as supper was over I got out my -manuscripts, and sawed, and filed, and hammered away at my blessed -poems, which were little less than imitations, until nine, when I went -regularly to bed, to rise again at five. Sometimes the foreman gave me -an afternoon off on Saturday, which I devoted to literature.” - -As I questioned further, it was said: “As I recall it, my father had -secured one of those legislative clerkships in 1858, which used to fall -sometimes to deserving country editors; and together we managed and -carried out a scheme for corresponding with some city papers. Going to -Columbus, the State Capital, we furnished a daily letter giving an -account of the legislative proceedings, which I mainly wrote from the -material he helped me to gather. The letters found favor, and my father -withdrew from the work wholly. These letters I furnished during two -years. - -“At the end of the first winter, a Cincinnati paper offered me the city -editorship, but one night’s round with the reporters at the police -station satisfied me that I was not meant for that kind of work. I then -returned home for the summer, and spent my time in reading, _and in -sending off poems, which regularly came back_. I worked in my father’s -printing-office; but, as soon as my task was done, went home to my -books, and worked away at them until supper. Then a German bookbinder, -with whom I was endeavoring to read Heine in the original, met me in my -father’s editorial room, and with a couple of candles on the table -between us, and our Heine and the dictionary before us, we read until we -were both tired out.” - -As to the influence of this constant writing and constant study, Mr. -Howells remarked: “It was not without its immediate use. I learned - - - HOW TO CHOOSE BETWEEN WORDS, - -after a study of their fitness; and, though I often employed them -decoratively, and with no vital sense of their qualities, still, in mere -decoration, they had to be chosen intelligently, and after some thought -about their structure and meaning. I could not imitate great writers -without imitating their method, which was to the last degree -intelligent. They knew what they were doing, and, although I did not -always know what I was doing, they made me wish to know, and ashamed of -not knowing. The result was beneficial.” - -Mr. Howells then spoke of his astonishment, when one day he was at work -as usual in the printing-office at home, upon being invited to take a -place upon a Republican newspaper at Columbus, the Capital; where he was -given charge of the news department. This included the literary notices -and book reviews, to which, at once, he gave his prime attention. - -“When did you begin to contribute to the literature of the day?” - -“If you mean, when did I begin to attempt to contribute, I should need -to fix an early date, for I early had experience with rejected -manuscripts. One of my pieces, upon the familiar theme of Spring, was -the first thing I ever had in print. My father offered it to the editor -of the paper I worked on in Columbus, where we were then living, and I -first knew what he had done, when with mingled shame and pride, I saw it -in the journal. In the tumult of my emotions, I promised myself that if -I ever got through that experience safely, I would never suffer anything -else of mine to be published; but it was not long before I offered the -editor a poem, myself.” - -“When did you publish your first story?” - -“My next venture was a story in the Ik Marvel manner, which it was my -misfortune to carry into print. I did not really write it, but composed -it, rather, in type, at the case. It was not altogether imitated from Ik -Marvel, for I drew upon the easier art of Dickens, at times, and helped -myself out in places with bold parodies of ‘Bleak House.’ It was all -very well at the beginning, but I had not reckoned with the future -sufficiently to start with any clear ending in my mind; and, as I went -on, I began to find myself more and more in doubt about it. My material -gave out; my incidents failed me; the characters wavered, and threatened -to perish in my hands. To crown my misery, there grew up an impatience -with the story among its readers; and this found its way to me one day, -when I overheard an old farmer, who came in for his paper, say that he -‘did not think that story amounted to much.’ I did not think so either, -but it was deadly to have it put into words, and how I escaped the moral -effect of the stroke I do not know. Somehow, I managed to bring the -wretched thing to a close, and to live it slowly down.” - - - THE FATE FOLLOWING COLLABORATION - -“My next contribution to literature was jointly with John J. Piatt, the -poet, who had worked with me as a boy in the printing-office at -Columbus. We met in Columbus, where I was then an editor, and we made -our first literary venture together in a volume entitled, ‘Poems of Two -Friends.’ _The volume became instantly and lastingly unknown to fame_; -the West waited, as it always does, to hear what the East should say. -The East said nothing, and two-thirds of the small edition of five -hundred copies came back upon the publisher’s hands. This did not deter -me, however, from contributing to the periodicals, which from time to -time, accepted my efforts. - -“I remained as an editor, in Columbus, until 1861, when I was appointed - - - CONSUL AT VENICE. - -I really wanted to go to Germany, that I might carry forward my studies -in German literature; and I first applied for the Consulate at Munich. -The powers at Washington thought it quite the same thing to offer me -Rome, but I found that the income of the Roman Consulate would not give -me a living, and I was forced to decline it. Then the President’s -private secretaries, Mr. John Nicolay and Mr. John Hay, who did not know -me, except as a young Westerner who had written poems in the ‘Atlantic -Monthly,’ asked me how I would like Venice, promising that the salary -would be put up to $1,000 a year. It was really put up to $1,500, and I -accepted. I had four years of nearly uninterrupted leisure at Venice.” - -“Was it easier, when you returned from Venice?” - -“Not at all. On my return to America, my literary life took such form -that most of my reading was done for review. I wrote at first a good -many of the lighter criticisms in ‘The Nation;’ and then I went to -Boston, to become assistant editor of ‘The Atlantic Monthly,’ where I -wrote the literary notices for that periodical for four or five years; -then I became editor until 1881. And I have had some sort of close -relation with magazines ever since.” - -“Would you say that all literary success is very difficult to achieve?” -I ventured. - -“All that is enduring.” - -“It seems to me ours is an age when fame comes quickly.” - -“Speaking of quickly made reputations,” said Mr. Howells, meditatively, -“did you ever hear of Alexander Smith? He was a poet who, in the -fifties, was proclaimed immortal by the critics, and ranked with -Shakespeare. I myself read him with an ecstasy which, when I look over -his work to-day, seems ridiculous. His poem, ‘Life-Drama,’ was heralded -as an epic, and set alongside of ‘Paradise Lost.’ I cannot tell how we -all came out of this craze, but the reading world is very susceptible to -such lunacies. He is not the only third-rate poet who has been thus -apotheosized, before and since. You might have envied his great success, -as I certainly did; but it was not success, after all; and I am sure -that real success is always difficult to achieve.” - - - MY LITERARY EXPERIENCE - -“Do you believe that success comes to those who have a special bent or -taste, which they cultivate by hard work?” - -“I can only answer that out of _my literary experience_. For my own -part, I believe I have _never got any good from a book, that I did not -read merely because I wanted to read it_. I think this may be applied to -anything a person does. The book, I know, which you read from a sense of -duty, or because for any reason you must, is apt to yield you little. -This, I think, is also true of everything, and the endeavor that does -one good—and lasting good,—is _the endeavor one makes with pleasure_. -Labor done in another spirit will serve in a way, but pleasurable labor -brings, on the whole, I think, the greatest reward.” - -Referring again to his early years, it was remarked: “A definite -literary ambition grew up in me; and in the long reveries of the -afternoon, when I was distributing my case in the printing-office, I -fashioned a future of over-powering magnificence and undying celebrity. -I should be ashamed to say what literary triumphs I achieved in those -preposterous deliriums. But I realize now that such dreams are nerving, -and sustain one in an otherwise barren struggle.” - -“Were you ever tempted and willing to abandon your object of a literary -life for something else?” - -“I was, once. My first and only essay aside from literature was in _the -realm of law_. It was arranged with a United States Senator that I -should study law in his office. I tried it a month, but almost from the -first day, I yearned to return to my books. _I had not only_ _to go back -to literature, but to the printing-office, and I gladly chose to do -it,—a step I never regretted._” - - - AS TO A HAPPY LIFE, - -it was said by Mr. Howells, at the close of our interview:— - -“I have come to see life, not as the chase of a forever-impossible -personal happiness, but as _a field for endeavor toward the happiness of -the whole human family_. There is no other success. I know, indeed, of -nothing more subtly satisfying and cheering than a knowledge of the real -good will and appreciation of others. Such happiness does not come with -money, nor does it flow from a fine physical state. It cannot be bought. -But it is the keenest joy, after all; and the toiler’s truest and best -reward.” - - ------------------------------------------------------------------------- - - - - - XII - -JOHN D. ROCKEFELLER - - -THE richest man in the United States, John Davidson Rockefeller, has -consented to break his rule never to talk for publication; and he has -told me the story of his early struggles and triumphs, and given -utterance to some strikingly interesting observations anent the same. In -doing so, he was influenced by the argument that there is something of -helpfulness, of inspiration, in the career of every self-made man. - -While many such careers have been prolific of vivid contrasts, this one -is simply marvelous. Whatever may be said by political economists of the -dangers of vast aggregations of wealth in the hands of the few, there -can be no question of the extraordinary interest attaching to the life -story of a man who was a farm laborer at the age of fifteen, who left -school at eighteen, because he felt it to be his duty to care for his -mother and brother, and who, at the zenith of his business career, has -endowed Chicago University with $7,500,000 out of a fortune estimated at -over $300,000,000,—probably the largest single fortune on earth. - -The story opens in a fertile valley in Tioga County, New York, near the -village of Richford, where John D. Rockefeller was born on his father’s -farm in July, 1838. The parents of the boy were church-going, -conscientious, debt-abhorring folk, who preferred the independence of a -few acres to a mortgaged domain. They were Americans to the backbone, -intelligent, industrious people, not very poor and certainly not very -rich, for at fourteen John hired out to neighboring farmers during the -summer months, in order to earn his way and not be dependent upon those -he loved. His father was able to attend to the little farm himself, and -thus it happened that the youth spent several summers away from home, -toiling from sunrise to sunset, and sharing the humble life of the -people he served. - - - HIS EARLY DREAM AND PURPOSE - -Did the tired boy, peering from his attic window, ever dream of his -future? - -He said to a youthful companion of Richford, a farmer’s boy like -himself: “I would like to own all the land in this valley, as far as I -can see. I sometimes dream of wealth and power. Do you think we shall -ever be worth one hundred thousand dollars, you and I? I hope to,—some -day.” - -Who can estimate the influence such a life as this must have had upon -the future multi-millionaire? I asked Mr. Rockefeller about this, and -found him enthusiastic over the advantages which he had received from -his rural surroundings, and full of faith in the ability of the country -boy to surpass his city cousin. - -“To my mind,” he said, “there is something unfortunate in being born in -a city. Most young men raised in New York and other large centers have -not had the struggles which come to us who were reared in the country. -It is a noticeable fact that the country men are crowding out the city -fellows who have wealthy fathers. They are willing to do more work and -go through more for the sake of winning success in the end. Sons of -wealthy parents haven’t a ghost of a show in competition with the -fellows who come from the country with a determination to do something -in the world.” - -The next step in the young man’s life was his going to Cleveland, Ohio, -in his sixteenth year. - -“That was a great change in my life,” said he. “Going to Cleveland was -my first experience in a great city, and I shall never forget those -years. I began work there as an office-boy, and learned a great deal -about business methods while filling that position. But what benefited -me most in going to Cleveland was the new insight I gained as to what a -great place the world really is. I had plenty of ambition then, and saw -that, if I was to accomplish much, I would have to work very, very hard, -indeed.” - - - SCHOOL DAYS - -He found time, during the year 1854, to attend the sessions of the -school which is now known as the Central High School. It was a brick -edifice, surrounded by grounds which contained a number of hickory -trees. It has long since been superseded by a larger and handsomer -building, but Andrew J. Freese, the teacher, is still living. It is one -of the proudest recollections of this delightful old gentleman’s life -that John D. Rockefeller went to school with him. I visited him at his -residence in Cleveland the other day, and he said:— - -“John was one of the best boys I had. He was always polite, but when the -other boys threw hickory clubs at him, or attempted any undue -familiarities with him, he would stop smiling and sail into them. Young -Hanna—Marcus A. Hanna,—who was also a pupil, learned this, to his cost, -more than once, and so did young Jones, the present Nevada senator. I -have had several very distinguished pupils, you see, and one of my girls -is now Mrs. John D. Rockefeller. I had Edward Wolcott, the Colorado -senator, later on. Yes, John was about as intelligent and well-behaved a -chap as I ever had. Here is one of his essays which you may copy, if you -wish.” - -Mr. Rockefeller, I am quite sure, will pardon me for copying his -composition at this late day, for its tone and subject matter reflect -credit upon him:— - -“Freedom is one of the most desirable of all blessings. Even the -smallest bird or insect loves to be free. Take, for instance, a robin -that has always been free to fly from tree to tree, and sing its -cheerful song from day to day,—catch it, and put it into a cage which is -to it nothing less than a prison, and, although it may be there tended -with the choicest care, yet it is not content. How eloquently does it -plead, though in silence, for liberty. From day to day it sits -mournfully upon its perch, meditating, as it were, some way for its -escape, and when at last this is effected, how cheerfully does it wing -its way out from its gloomy prison-house to sing undisturbed in the -branches of the first trees. - -“If even the birds of the air love freedom, is it not natural that man, -the lord of creation, should? I reply that it is, and that it is a -violation of the laws of our country, and the laws of our God, that man -should hold his fellowman in bondage. Yet how many thousands there are -at the present time, even in our own country, who are bound down by -cruel masters to toil beneath the scorching sun of the South. How can -America, under such circumstances, call herself free? Is it extending -freedom by granting to the South one of the largest divisions of land -that she possesses for the purpose of holding slaves? It is a freedom -that, if not speedily checked, will end in the ruin of our country.” - -It was greatly to the regret of the teacher that John came to him one -day to announce his purpose to leave school. Mr. Freese urged him to -remain two years longer, in order that he might complete the course, but -the young man told him he felt obliged to earn more money than he was -getting, because of his desire to provide for his mother and brother. He -had received an offer, he said, of a place on the freight docks as a -bill clerk, and this job would take him away from his studies. - - - A RAFT OF HOOP POLES - -A short time afterwards, when Mr. Freese visited his former pupil at the -freight dock, he found the young man seated on a bale of goods, bill -book and pencil in hand. Pointing to a raft of hoop poles in the water, -John told his caller that he had purchased them from a Canadian who had -brought them across Lake Erie, expecting to sell them. Failing in this, -the owner gladly accepted a cash offer from young Rockefeller, who named -a price below the usual market rates. The young man explained that he -_had saved a little money out of his wages_, and that this was his first -speculation. He afterwards told Mr. Freese that he rafted the purchase -himself to a flour mill, and disposed of his bargain at a profit of -fifty dollars.[3] - -Footnote 3: - - This hoop pole story is matched by another, related by a friend, of - Rockefeller’s later warehouse days in Cleveland. He one day bought a - lot of beans. He bought them cheap, because they were damaged. Instead - of selling them at a slight advance, as most dealers would have done, - he spent all his spare time, for weeks, in the attic of his warehouse, - sorting over those beans. He took out all the blackened and injured - ones, and in the end he got a fancy price for the remainder, because - they were of extra quality. - - - THE ODOR OF OIL - -It was Mr. Freese, too, who first got the young man interested in oil. -They were using sperm oil in those days, at a dollar and a half a -gallon. Somebody had found natural petroleum, thick, slimy, and -foul-smelling, in the Pennsylvania creeks, and a quantity of it had been -received in Cleveland by a next-door neighbor of the schoolmaster. The -neighbor thought it could be utilized in some way, but his experiments -were as crude as the ill-favored stuff itself. These consisted of -boiling, burning, and otherwise testing the oil, and the only result was -the incurring of the disfavor of the near-by residents. The young man -became interested at once. He, too, experimented with the black slime, -draining off the clearer portions and touching matches to it. The flames -were sickly, yellow, and malodorous. - -“_There must be some way of deodorizing this oil_,” said John, “_and I -will find it_. There ought to be a good sale for it for illuminating -purposes, if the good oil can be separated from the sediment, and that -awful smell gotten rid of.” - -How well the young man profited by the accidental meeting is a matter of -history. But I am digressing. - - - HIS FIRST LEDGER, AND THE ITEMS IN IT - -While in Cleveland, slaving away at his tasks, Mr. Rockefeller was -training himself for the more busy days to come. He kept a small ledger -in which he entered all his receipts and expenditures, and I had the -privilege of examining this interesting little book, and having its -contents explained to me. It was nothing more than a small, paper-backed -memorandum book. - -“When I looked this book up the other day, I thought I had but the -cover,” said Mr. Rockefeller, “but, on examination, I perceived that I -had utilized the cover to write on. In those days I was very economical, -just as I am economical now. Economy is a virtue. I hadn’t seen my -little ledger for a long time, when I found it among some old things. It -is more than forty-two years ago since I wrote what it contains. I -called it ‘Ledger A,’ and I wouldn’t exchange it now for all the ledgers -in New York city and their contents. A glance through it shows me how -carefully I kept account of my receipts and disbursements. I only wish -more young men could be induced to keep accounts like this nowadays. It -would go far toward teaching them the value of money. - -“_Every young man should take care of his money. I think it is a man’s -duty to make all the money he can, keep all he can, and give away all he -can._ I have followed this principle religiously all my life, as is -evidenced in this book. It tells me just what I did with my money during -my first few years in business. Between September, 1855, and January, -1856, I received just fifty dollars. Out of this sum I paid for my -washing and my board, and managed to save a little besides. I find, in -looking through the book, that I gave a cent to Sunday school every -Sunday. It wasn’t much, but it was all that I could afford to give to -that particular object. _What I could afford to give to the_ _various -religious and charitable works, I gave regularly. It is a good habit for -a young man to get into._ - -“During my second year in Cleveland, I earned twenty-five dollars a -month. I was beginning to be a capitalist,” said Mr. Rockefeller, “and I -suppose I ought to have considered myself a criminal for having so much -money. I paid all my own bills at this time, and had some money to give -away. I also had the happiness of saving some. I am not sure, but I was -more independent then than now. I couldn’t buy the most fashionable cut -of clothing, but I dressed well enough. I certainly did not buy any -clothes I couldn’t pay for, as some young men do that I know of. I -didn’t make any obligations I could not meet, and _my earnest advice is -for every young man to live within his means. One of the swiftest -‘toboggan slides’ I know of, is for a young fellow just starting out -into the world to go into debt._ - -“During the time between November, 1855, and April, 1856, I paid out -just nine dollars and nine cents for clothing. And there is one item -that was certainly extravagant as I usually wore mittens in the winter. -This item is for fur gloves, two dollars and a half. In this same period -_I gave away five dollars and fifty-eight cents. In one month I gave to -foreign missions, ten cents, to the mite society, fifty cents, and -twelve cents to the Five Points Mission, in New York._ I wasn’t living -here then, of course, but I suppose I thought the Mission needed money. -These little contributions of mine were not large, but they brought me -into direct contact with church work, and that has been a benefit to me -all my life. It is a mistake for a man to think that he must be rich to -help others.” - - - TEN THOUSAND DOLLARS - -_He earned and saved ten thousand dollars before he was twenty-five -years old._ - -Before he attained his majority, Rockefeller formed a partnership with -another young man named Hewett, and began a warehouse and produce -business. This was the natural outgrowth of his freight clerkship on the -docks. _In five years, he had amassed about ten thousand dollars_ -besides earning a reputation for business capacity and probity. - - - HE REMEMBERED THE OIL - -He never forgot those experiments with the crude oil. Discoveries became -more and more frequent in the Pennsylvania oil territory. There was a -rush of speculators to the new land of fortune. Men owning impoverished -farms suddenly found themselves rich. Thousands of excited men bid -wildly against each other for newly-shot wells, paying fabulous sums -occasionally for dry holes. - - - KEEPING HIS HEAD - -John D. Rockefeller looked the entire field over carefully and calmly. -Never for a moment did he lose his head. His Cleveland bankers and -business friends had asked him to purchase some wells, if he saw fit, -offering to back him up with $75,000 for his own investment [he was -worth about $10,000 at the time], and to put in $400,000 more on his -report. - -_The business judgment of this young man at twenty-five was so good, -that his neighbors were willing to invest half a million dollars at his -bidding._ - -He returned to Cleveland without investing a dollar. Instead of joining -the mad crowd of producers, he sagaciously determined to begin at the -other end of the business,—the refining of the product. - - - THERE WAS MORE MONEY IN A REFINERY - -The use of petroleum was dangerous at that time, on account of the -highly inflammable gases it contained. Many persons stuck to candles and -sperm oil through fear of an explosion if they used the new illuminant. -The process of removing these superfluous gases by refining, or -distilling, as it was then called, was in its infancy. There were few -men who knew anything about it. - -Among Rockefeller’s acquaintances in Cleveland was one of these men. His -name was Samuel Andrews. He had worked in a distillery, and was familiar -with the process. He believed that there was a great business to be -built up by removing the gases from the crude oil and making it safe for -household use. Rockefeller listened to him, and became convinced that he -was right. Here was a field as wide as the world, limited only by the -production of crude oil. It was a proposition on which he could figure -and make sure of the result. It was just the thing Rockefeller had been -looking for. He decided to leave the production of oil to others, and to -devote his attention to preparing it for market. - -Andrews was a brother commission merchant. The two started a refinery, -each closing out his former business connection. In two weeks it was -running night and day to fill orders. So great was the demand, and so -great was the judgment of young Rockefeller,—seeing what no one else had -seen. - -A second refinery had to be built at once, and in two years their plants -were turning out two thousand barrels of refined petroleum per day. -Henry M. Flagler, already wealthy, came into the firm, the name of which -then became Rockefeller, Flagler and Andrews. More refineries were -built, not only at Cleveland, but also at other advantageous points. -Competing refineries were bought or rendered ineffective by the cutting -of prices. - -It is related that Mr. Andrews became one day dissatisfied, and he was -asked,—“What will you take for your interest?” Andrews wrote carelessly -on a piece of paper,—“One million dollars.” Within twenty-four hours he -was handed that amount; Mr. Rockefeller saying,—“Cheaper at one million -than ten.” In building up the refinery business Rockefeller was the -head; the others were the hands. He was always the general commanding, -the tactician. He made the plans and his associates carried them out. -Here was the post for which he had fitted himself, and in which his -genius for planning had full sway. In the conduct of the refinery -affairs, as in every enterprise in which he has taken part, he -exemplified another rule to which he had adhered from his boyhood days. -He was the leader in whatever he undertook. In going into any -undertaking, John D. Rockefeller has made it his rule to have the chief -authority in his own hands or to have nothing to do with the matter. - - - STANDARD OIL - -In 1870, when Mr. Rockefeller was thirty-two years old, the business was -merged into the Standard Oil Company, starting with a capital of one -million dollars. Other pens have written the later story of that great -corporation; how it started pipe lines to carry the oil to the seaboard; -how it earned millions in by-products which had formerly run to waste; -how it covered the markets of the world in its keen search for trade, -distancing all competition, and cheapening its own processes so that its -dividends in one year, 1899, amounted to $23,000,000 in excess of the -fixed dividend upon the whole capital stock. This is the outcome of -thirty years’ development. The corporation is now the greatest business -combination of modern times, or of any age of the world. Mr. -Rockefeller’s annual income from his holdings of Standard Oil stock is -estimated at about sixteen millions of dollars. - - - MR. ROCKEFELLER’S PERSONALITY - -The brains of all this, the owner of the largest percentage of the stock -in the parent corporation, and in most of the lesser ones, is now -sixty-two years old. His personality is simple and unaffected, his -tastes domestic, and the trend of his thoughts decidedly religious. His -Cleveland residential estate is superb, covering a large tract of -park-like land,—but even there he has shown his unselfishness by -donating a large portion of his land to the city for park purposes. His -New York home is not a pretentious place,—solid, but by no means elegant -in outward appearance. Between the two homes he divides his time with -his wife and children. He is an earnest and hardworking member of the -Fifth Avenue Baptist Church, in New York, and does much to promote the -good work carried on by that organization. He is particularly interested -in the Sunday-school work. - - - AT THE OFFICE - -He arises early in the morning, at his home, and, after a light -breakfast, attends to some of his personal affairs there. He is always -early on hand at the great Standard Oil building on lower Broadway, New -York, and, during the day, he transacts business connected with the -management of that vast corporation. There is hardly one of our business -men of whom the public at large knows so little. He avoids publicity as -most men would the plague. The result is that he is the only one of our -very wealthy men who maintains the reputation of being different from -the ordinary run of mortals. To most newspaper readers, he is a man of -mystery, a sort of financial wizard who sits in his office and heaps up -wealth after the fashion of Aladdin and other fairy-tale heroes. - -All this is wide of the mark. It would be hard to find a more -commonplace, matter-of-fact man than John D. Rockefeller. His tall form, -with the suggestion of a stoop in it, his pale, thoughtful face and -reserved manner, suggest the scholar or professional man rather than an -industrial Hercules or a Napoleon of finance. He speaks in a slow, -deliberate manner, weighing each word. There is nothing impulsive or -bombastic about him. But his conversation impresses one as consisting of -about one hundred per cent. of cold, compact, boiled-down common sense. - -Here is to be noted one characteristic of the great oil magnate which -has helped to make him what he is. The popular idea of a -multi-millionaire is a man who has taken big risks, and has come out -luckily. He is a living refutation of this conception. He is careful and -cautious by nature, and he has made these traits habitual for a -lifetime; he conducts all his affairs on the strictest business -principles. - - - FORESIGHT - -The qualities which have made him so successful are largely those which -go to the making of any successful business man,—industry, thrift, -perseverance, and foresight. Three of these qualities would have made -him a rich man; the last has distinguished him as the richest man. One -of his business associates said of him, the other day:— - -“I believe the secret of his success, so far as there is any secret, -lies in power of foresight, which often seems to his associates to be -wonderful. It comes simply from his habit of looking at every side of a -question, of weighing the favorable and unfavorable features of a -situation, and of sifting out the inevitable result through his -unfailing good judgment.” - -This is his own personal statement, put into other words, so it may be -accepted as true. The encouraging part of it is that, while such -foresight as Rockefeller displays may be ascribed partly to natural -endowment, both he and his friend say that it is more largely a matter -of habit, made effective by continual practice. - - - HYGIENE - -At noon he takes a very simple lunch at his club, or at some downtown -restaurant. The lunch usually consists of a bowl of bread and milk. He -remains at the office until late in the afternoon, and before dinner he -takes some exercise. _In winter, he skates when possible._ And at other -seasons of the year he nearly always drives in the park or on the -avenues. Mr. Rockefeller has great faith in fresh air as a tonic. - - - AT HOME - -The evenings are nearly always spent at home, for neither Mr. -Rockefeller nor any of the children are fond of “society,” as the word -is understood in New York. The children seem to have inherited many of -their father’s sensible ideas, and John D. Rockefeller, Jr., has -apparently escaped the fate of most rich men’s sons. He has a deep sense -of responsibility as the heir-apparent to so much wealth; and, since his -graduation from college, he has devoted himself to a business career, -starting at the bottom and working upward, step by step. It is now -generally known that he has been very successful in his business -ventures, and he bids fair to become a worthy successor to his father. -He is now actively engaged in important philanthropic enterprises in New -York. Miss Bessie became the wife of a poor clergyman of the Baptist -Church in Cleveland; while Miss Alta is married to a prominent young -business man in Chicago. - - - PHILANTHROPY - -Mr. Rockefeller has during many years turned over to his children a -great many letters from needy people, asking them to exercise their own -judgment in distributing charities. - -While he has himself given away millions for education and charity, he -would have given more were it not for his dread of seeming ostentatious. -But he never gives indiscriminately, nor out of hand. When a charity -appeals to him, he investigates it thoroughly, just as he would a -business scheme. If he decides that its object is worthy, he gives -liberally; otherwise, not a cent can be got out of him. - -It may be imagined that such a man is busy to the full limit of his -working capacity. This is true. He is too busy for any of the pastimes -and pleasures in which most wealthy men seek diversion. He is thoroughly -devoted to his home and family, and spends as much as possible of his -time with them. He is a man who views life seriously, but in his quiet -way he can get as much enjoyment out of a good story or a meeting with -an old friend as can any other man. - - - PERSEVERANCE - -When I asked Mr. Rockefeller what he considers has most helped him in -obtaining success in business, he answered: “It was early training, and -the fact that I was willing to persevere. I do not think there is any -other quality so essential to success of any kind as the quality of -perseverance. It overcomes almost everything, even nature.” - -It is to be said of his business enterprises, looking at them in a large -way, that he has given to the world good honest oil, of standard -quality; that his employees are always well paid; that he has given away -more money in benevolence than any other business man in America. And -everything about the man indicates that he is likely to “persevere” in -the course he has so long pursued, turning his vast wealth into -institutes for public service. - - - A GENIUS FOR MONEY MAKING - -“There are men born with a genius for money-making,” says Mathews. “They -have the instinct of accumulation. The talent and the inclination to -convert dollars into doubloons by bargains or shrewd investments are in -them just as strongly marked and as uncontrollable as were the ability -and the inclination of Shakespeare to produce Hamlet and Othello, of -Raphael to paint his cartoons, of Beethoven to compose his symphonies, -or Morse to invent an electric telegraph. As it would have been a gross -dereliction of duty, a shameful perversion of gifts, had these latter -disregarded the instincts of their genius and engaged in the scramble -for wealth, so would a Rothschild, an Astor, and a Peabody have sinned -had they done violence to their natures, and thrown their energies into -channels where they would have proved dwarfs and not giants.” - -The opportunity which came to young Rockefeller does not occur many -times in many ages: and in a generous interpretation of his opportunity -he has already invested a great deal of his earnings in permanently -useful philanthropies. - - ------------------------------------------------------------------------- - - - - - XIII - -The Author of the Battle Hymn of the Republic—Her Views of Education for - Young Women - - -A POET, author, lecturer, wit and conversationalist, Mrs. Julia Ward -Howe unites with the attributes of a tender, womanly nature—which has -made her the idol of her husband and children—the sterner virtues of a -reformer; the unflinching courage which dares to stand with a small -minority in the cause of right; the indomitable perseverance and force -of character which persist in the demand for justice in face of the -determined opposition of narrow prejudice and old-time conservatism. - -Although more Bostonian than the Bostonians themselves, Mrs. Howe first -saw the light in New York, and has spent much of her later life at -Newport. Born in 1819, in a stately mansion near the Bowling Green, then -the most fashionable quarter of New York, she was the fourth child of -Samuel Ward and Julia Cutler Ward, people of unusual culture, -refinement, and high ideals. Mr. Ward was a man of spotless honor and -business integrity; and, although not wealthy as compared with the -millionaires of to-day, his fortune was ample enough to surround his -wife and children with all the luxuries and refinements that the most -fastidious nature could crave. Mrs. Ward possessed a rare combination of -personal charms and mental gifts, which endeared her to all who had the -privilege of knowing her. All too soon, the death angel came and bore -away the lovely young wife and mother, then in her twenty-eighth year. - -Rousing himself, with a great effort, from the grief into which the -death of his wife had plunged him, Mr. Ward devoted himself to the -training, and education of his children. Far in advance of his age in -the matter of higher education for women he selected as the tutor of his -daughters the learned Doctor Joseph Green Cogswell, with instruction to -teach them the full curriculum of Harvard college. - - - “LITTLE MISS WARD” - -The scholarly and refined atmosphere of her father’s home, which was the -resort of the most distinguished men of letters of the day, was an -admirable school for the development of the literary and philosophic -mind of the “little Miss Ward,” as Mr. Ward’s eldest daughter had been -called from childhood. - -Learned even beyond advanced college graduates of to-day, an -accomplished linguist, a musical amateur of great promise, the young and -beautiful Miss Julia Ward, of Bond street, soon became a leader of the -cultured and fashionable circle in which she moved. In the series, -“Authors at Home,” by M. C. Sherwood, we get a glimpse of her, about -that time, in a whimsical entry from the diary of a Miss Hamilton, -written at the time of the return of Doctor Howe, from Greece, whither -he had gone to fight the Turks:— - -“I walked down Broadway with all the fashion and met the pretty blue -stocking, Miss Julia Ward, with her admirer, Doctor Howe, just home from -Europe. She had on a blue satin cloak and a white muslin dress. I looked -to see if she had on blue stockings, but I think not. I suspect that her -stockings were pink, and she wore low slippers, as grandmamma does. They -say she dreams in Italian and quotes French verses. She sang very -prettily at a party last evening. I noticed how white her hands were. -Still, though attractive, the muse is not handsome.” - - - SHE MARRIED A REFORMER - -Soon after the loss of her father, in 1839, Miss Ward paid the first of -a series of visits to Boston, where she met, among other distinguished -people who became life-long friends, Sarah Margaret Fuller, Horace Mann, -Charles Sumner, and Ralph Waldo Emerson. In 1843 she was married to the -director of the institute for the blind, in South Boston, the physician -and reformer, Doctor Samuel G. Howe, of whom Sydney Smith -spoke—referring to the remarkable results attained in his education of -Laura Bridgman,—as “a modern Pygmalion who has put life into a statue.” -Immediately after their marriage, Doctor and Mrs. Howe sailed for -Europe, making London their first stopping place. There they met many -famous men and women, among them Charles Dickens, Thomas Carlyle, Sydney -Smith, Thomas Moore, the Duchess of Sutherland, John Forster, Samuel -Rogers, Richard Monckton Milnes, and many others. After an extensive -continental tour, including the Netherlands, Switzerland, Germany, -France, and Italy, Doctor and Mrs. Howe returned home and took up their -residence in South Boston. - -One of her friends has said: “Mrs. Howe wrote leading articles from her -cradle;” and it is true that at seventeen, at least, she was an -anonymous but valued contributor to the _New York Magazine_, then a -prominent periodical. In 1854, her first volume of poems was published. -She named it “Passion Flowers,” and the Boston world of letters hailed -her as a new poet. Though published anonymously, the volume at once -revealed its author; and Mrs. Howe was welcomed into the poetic -fraternity by such shining lights as Emerson, Whittier, Longfellow, -Bryant, and Holmes. The poem by which the author will be forever -enshrined in her country’s memory is, _par excellence_, “The Battle Hymn -of the Republic,” which, like Kipling’s “Recessional,” sang itself at -once into the heart of the nation. As any sketch of Mrs. Howe would be -incomplete without the story of the birth of this great song of America, -it is here given in brief. - - - STORY OF THE “BATTLE HYMN OF THE REPUBLIC” - -It was in the first year of our Civil War that Mrs. Howe, in company -with her husband and friends, visited Washington. During their stay in -that city, the party went to see a review of troops, which, however, was -interrupted by a movement of the enemy, and had to be put off for the -day. The carriage in which Mrs. Howe was seated with her friends was -surrounded by armed men; and, as they rode along, she began to sing, to -the great delight of the soldiers, “John Brown.” “Good for you!” shouted -the boys in blue, who, with a will, took up the refrain. Mrs. Howe then -began conversing with her friends on the momentous events of the hour, -and expressed the strong desire she felt to write some words which might -be sung to this stirring tune, adding that she feared she would never be -able to do so. “She went to sleep,” says her daughter, Maude Howe Eliot, -“full of thoughts of battle, and awoke before dawn the next morning to -find the desired verses immediately present to her mind. She sprang from -her bed, and in the dim gray light found a pen, and paper, whereon she -wrote, scarcely seeing them, the lines of the poem. Returning to her -couch, she was soon asleep, but not until she had said to herself, ‘I -like this better than anything I have ever written before.’” - - - “EIGHTY YEARS YOUNG” - -Of Mrs. Howe it may very fittingly be said that she is eighty years -young. Her blue eye retains its brightness, and her dignified carriage -betokens none of the feebleness of age. Above all, her mind seems to -hold, in a marvelous degree, its youthful vigor and elasticity; a fact -that especially impressed me as the author of “The Battle Hymn of the -Republic” expressed her views on the desirability of a college training -for girls. - -“The girls who go to college,” said Mrs. Howe, “are very much in -request, I should say for everything,—certainly for teaching. Then, -naturally, if they wish to follow literature, they have a very great -advantage over those who have not had the benefit of a college course, -having a liberal education to begin with.” - -“Which is the greater advantage to a girl, to have talent or great -perseverance?” - -“In order to accomplish anything really worth doing, I think great -perseverance is of the first importance. On the other hand, one cannot -do a great deal without talent, while special talent without -perseverance never amounts to much. I once heard Mr. Emerson say, -‘Genius without character is mere friskiness;’ and we all know of highly -gifted people, who, because lacking the essential quality of -perseverance, accomplish very little in the world.” - -“Do you think the college girl will exercise a greater influence on -modern progress and the civilization of the future than her untrained -sister?” - -“Oh, very much greater,” was the quick, emphatic reply. “In the first -place, I think that college-bred girls are quite as likely to marry as -others, and when a college girl marries, then the whole family is lifted -to a higher plane, the natural result of the well-trained, cultivated -mind. Mothers of old, you know, were very ignorant. Indeed, it is sad to -think what few advantages they had. Of course, some of them had -opportunities to study alone, but this solitary study could not -accomplish for them what the colleges, with their corps of specialists -and trained professors, are doing for the young women of to-day.” - - - THE IDEAL COLLEGE - -Speaking of the advantages and disadvantages of coeducational -institutions, Mrs. Howe said:— - -“While there are many advantages in coeducation, there are also some -dangers. The great advantage consists in the mingling of both sorts of -mind, the masculine and the feminine. This gives a completeness that -cannot otherwise be obtained. I have observed that when committees are -made up of both men and women, we get a roundness and completeness that -are lacking when the membership is composed of either sex alone; and so -in college recitations, where the boys present their side and the girls -theirs, we get better results. This, of course, is natural. Fortunately, -so far, scandals have been very rare, if found at all, in coeducation at -colleges. Many people, however, would not care to trust their children, -nor would we send every girl, to such colleges; and, for this reason, I -am glad that we have women’s colleges. I think, however, that, if the -students are at all earnest, and have high ideals set before them, the -coeducational is the ideal college; for the course in these colleges is -like a great intellectual race, which arouses and stimulates all the -nobler faculties.” - -“What influence do you think environment has on one’s career,—on success -in life?” - -“What do you mean by environment?” - -“Well, I mean especially the sort of people with whom one is associated; -their order of mind?” - -“I think it has a very important effect. If we are kept perpetually -under lowering influences—lowering both morally and æsthetically,—the -tendency will inevitably be to drag us down. I say æsthetically, because -I think in that sense good taste is a part of good morals. You can, of -course, have good taste without good morals; but with morality there is -a certain feeling or measure of reserve and nicety which does not -accompany good taste without good morals. You know St. Paul says: ‘Evil -communications corrupt good manners.’ That is as true to-day as it ever -was. We can’t always be with our equals or our superiors, however; we -must take people as we find them. But we should try to be with people -who stand for high things, morally and intellectually. Then, when we -have to be among people of a lower grade, we can help them, because I -think human nature, on the whole, desires to be elevated rather than -lowered.” - -“Do you think it is necessary to success in life to have a special aim?” - -“I think it is a great thing to have a special aim or talent, and it is -better to make one thing the leading interest in life than to run after -half-a-dozen.” - - ------------------------------------------------------------------------- - - - - - XIV - -A TALK WITH EDISON - - DRAMATIC INCIDENTS IN HIS EARLY LIFE - - -TO discover the opinion of Thomas A. Edison concerning what makes and -constitutes success in life is an easy matter—if one can first discover -Mr. Edison. I camped three weeks in the vicinity of Orange, N.J., -awaiting the opportunity to come upon the great inventor and voice my -questions. It seemed a rather hopeless and discouraging affair until he -was really before me; but, truth to say, he is one of the most -accessible of men, and only reluctantly allows himself to be hedged in -by pressure of endless affairs. - -“Mr. Edison is always glad to see any visitor,” said a gentleman who is -continually with him, “except when he is hot on the trail of something -he has been working for, and then it is as much as a man’s head is worth -to come in on him.” - -He certainly was not hot on the trail of anything on the morning when, -for the tenth time, I rang at the gate in the fence which surrounds the -laboratory on Valley Road, Orange. A young man appeared, who conducted -me up the walk to the Edison laboratory office. - - - THE LIBRARY - -is a place not to be passed through without thought, for, with a further -store of volumes in his home, it contains one of the most costly and -well-equipped scientific libraries in the world; the collection of -writings on patent laws and patents, for instance, is absolutely -exhaustive. It gives, at a glance, an idea of the breadth of thought and -sympathy of this man who grew up with scarcely a common school -education. - -On the second floor, in one of the offices of the machine shop, I was -asked to wait, while a grimy youth disappeared with my card, which he -said he would “slip under the door of Mr. Edison’s office.” - -“Curious,” I thought; “what a lord this man must be if they dare not -even knock at his door!” - -Thinking of this and gazing out the window, I waited until a working -man, who had entered softly, came up beside me. He looked with a sort of -“Well, what is it?” in his eyes, and quickly it began to come to me that -the man in the sooty, oil-stained clothes was Edison himself. The -working garb seemed rather incongruous, but there was no mistaking the -broad forehead, with its shock of blackish hair streaked with gray. The -gray eyes, too, were revelations in the way of alert comprehensiveness. - -“Oh!” was all I could get out at the time. - -“Want to see me?” he said, smiling in the most youthful and genial way. - -“Why,—yes, certainly, to be sure,” I stammered. - -He looked at me blankly. - -“You’ll have to talk louder,” said an assistant who worked in another -portion of the room; “he don’t hear well.” - -This fact was new to me, but I raised my voice with celerity, and piped -thereafter in an exceedingly shrill key. After the usual humdrum opening -remarks, in which he acknowledged his age as fifty-two years, and that -he was born in Erie county, O., of Dutch parentage, the family having -emigrated to America in 1730, the particulars began to grow more -interesting. - -His great-grandfather, I learned, was a banker of high standing in New -York; and, when Thomas was but a child of seven years, the family -fortune suffered reverses so serious as to make it necessary that he -should become a wage-earner at an unusually early age, and that the -family should move from his birth-place to Michigan. - -“Did you enjoy mathematics as a boy?” I asked. - -“Not much,” he replied. “I tried to read Newton’s ‘Principia,’ at the -age of eleven. That disgusted me with pure mathematics, and I don’t -wonder now. I should not have been allowed to take up such serious -work.” - -“You were anxious to learn?” - -“Yes, indeed, _I attempted to read through the entire Free Library at -Detroit_, but other things interfered before I had done.” - - - A CHEMICAL NEWSBOY - -“Were you a book-worm and dreamer?” I questioned. - -“Not at all,” he answered, using a short, jerky method, as though he -were unconsciously checking himself up. “I became a newsboy, and liked -the work. Made my first coup as a newsboy in 1869.” - -“What was it?” I ventured. - -“I bought up on ‘futures’ a thousand copies of the _Detroit Free Press_ -containing important war news,—gained a little time on my rivals, and -sold the entire batch like hot cakes. The price reached twenty-five -cents a paper before the end of the route,” and he laughed. “I ran the -_Grand Trunk Herald_, too, at that time—a little paper I issued from the -train.” - -“When did you begin to be interested in invention?” I questioned. - -“Well,” he said, “I began to dabble in chemistry at that time. I fitted -up a small laboratory on the train.” - -In reference to this, Mr. Edison subsequently admitted that, during the -progress of some occult experiments in this workshop, certain -complications ensued in which a jolted and broken bottle of sulphuric -acid attracted the attention of the conductor. He, who had been long -suffering in the matter of unearthly odors, promptly ejected the young -devotee and all his works. This incident would have been only amusing -but for its relation to, and explanation of, his deafness. A box on the -ear, administered by the irate conductor, caused the lasting deafness. - - - TELEGRAPHY - -“What was your first work in a practical line?” I went on. - -“A telegraph line between my home and another boy’s, I made with the -help of an old river cable, some stove-pipe wire, and glass-bottle -insulators. I had my laboratory in the cellar and studied telegraphy -outside.” - -“What was the first really important thing you did?” - -“I saved a boy’s life.” - -“How?” - -“The boy was playing on the track near the depot. I saw he was in danger -and caught him, getting out of the way just in time. His father was -station-master, and taught me telegraphy in return.” - -Dramatic situations appear at every turn of this man’s life. He seems to -have been continually arriving on the scene at critical moments, and -always with the good sense to take things in his own hands. The chance -of learning telegraphy only gave him a chance to show how apt a pupil he -was, and the railroad company soon gave him regular employment. At -seventeen, he had become one of the most expert operators on the road. - -“Did you make much use of your inventive talent at this time?” I -questioned. - -“Yes,” he answered. “I invented an automatic attachment for my telegraph -instrument which would send in the signal to show I was awake at my -post, when I was comfortably snoring in a corner. I didn’t do much of -that, though,” he went on; “for some such boyish trick sent me in -disgrace over the line into Canada.” - -“Were you there long?” - -“Only a winter. If it’s incident you want, I can tell you one of that -time. The place where I was and Sarnier, the American town, were cut off -from telegraphic and other means of communication by the storms, until I -got at a locomotive whistle and tooted a telegraphic message. I had to -do it again and again, but eventually they understood over the water and -answered in the same way.” - -According to his own and various recorded accounts, Edison was -successively in charge of important wires in Memphis, Cincinnati, New -Orleans, and Louisville. He lived in the free-and-easy atmosphere of the -tramp operators—a boon companion with them, yet absolutely refusing to -join in the dissipations to which they were addicted. So highly esteemed -was he for his honesty, that it was the custom of his colleagues, when a -spree was on hand, to make him the custodian of those funds which they -felt obliged to save. On a more than usually hilarious occasion, one of -them returned rather the worse for wear, and knocked the treasurer down -on his refusal to deliver the trust money; the other depositors, we may -be glad to note, gave the ungentlemanly tippler a sound thrashing. - - - HIS USE OF MONEY - -“Were you good at saving your own money?” I asked. - -“No,” he said, smiling. “I never was much for saving money, as money. I -devoted every cent, regardless of future needs, to scientific books and -materials for experiments.” - -“You believe that an excellent way to succeed?” - -“Well, it helped me greatly to future success.” - - - INVENTIONS - -“What was your next invention?” I inquired. - -“An automatic telegraph recorder—a machine which enabled me to record -dispatches at leisure, and send them off as fast as needed.” - -“How did you come to hit upon that?” - -“Well, at the time, I was in such straits that I had to walk from -Memphis to Louisville. At the Louisville station they offered me a -place. I had perfected a style of handwriting which would allow me to -take legibly from the wire, long hand, forty-seven and even fifty-four -words a minute, but I was only a moderately rapid sender. I had to do -something to help me on that side, and so I thought out that little -device.” - -Later I discovered an article by one of his biographers, in which a -paragraph referring to this Louisville period, says:— - -“True to his dominant instincts, he was not long in gathering around him -a laboratory, printing-office, and machine shop. He took press reports -during his whole stay, including on one occasion, the Presidential -message, by Andrew Johnson, and this at one sitting, from 3.30 P.M. to -4.30 A.M. - -“He then paragraphed the matter he had received over the wires, so that -printers had exactly three lines each, thus enabling them to set up a -column in two or three minutes’ time. For this, he was allowed all the -exchanges he desired, and the Louisville press gave him a dinner.” - -“How did you manage to attract public attention to your ability?” I -questioned. - -“I didn’t manage,” said the Wizard. “Some things I did created comment. -A device that I invented in 1868, which utilized one sub-marine cable -for two circuits, caused considerable talk, and the Franklin telegraph -office of Boston gave me a position.” - -It is related of this, Mr. Edison’s first trip East, that he came with -no ready money and in a rather dilapidated condition. His colleagues -were tempted by his “hayseed” appearance to “salt” him, as professional -slang terms the process of giving a receiver matter faster than he can -record it. For this purpose, the new man was assigned to a wire -manipulated by a New York operator famous for his speed. But there was -no fun at all. Notwithstanding the fact that the New Yorker was in the -game and was doing his most speedy clip, Edison wrote out the long -message accurately, and, when he realized the situation, was soon firing -taunts over the wire at the sender’s slowness. - -“Had you patented many things up to the time of your coming East?” I -queried. - -“Nothing,” said the inventor, ruminatively. “I received my first patent -in 1869.” - -“For what?” - -“A machine for recording votes, and designed to be used in the State -Legislature.” - -“I didn’t know such machines were in use,” I ventured. - -“They ar’n’t,” he answered, with a merry twinkle. “The better it worked, -the more impossible it was; the sacred right of the minority, you -know,—couldn’t filibuster if they used it,—didn’t use it.” - -“Oh!” - -“Yes, it was an ingenious thing. Votes were clearly pointed and shown on -a roll of paper, by a small machine attached to the desk of each member. -I was made to learn that such an innovation was out of the question, but -it taught me something.” - -“And that was?” - -“To be sure of the practical need of, and demand for, a machine, before -expending time and energy on it.” - -“Is that one of your maxims of success?” - -“It is. It is a good rule to give people something they want, and they -will pay money to get it.” - - - HIS ARRIVAL AT THE METROPOLIS - -In this same year, Edison removed from Boston to New York, friendless -and in debt on account of the expenses of his experiment. For several -weeks he wandered about the town with actual hunger staring him in the -face. It was a time of great financial excitement, and with that strange -quality of Fortunism, which seems to be his chief characteristic, he -entered the establishment of the Law Gold Reporting Company just as -their entire plant had shut down on account of an accident in the -machinery that could not be located. The heads of the firm were anxious -and excited to the last degree, and a crowd of the Wall street -fraternity waited about for the news which came not. The shabby stranger -put his finger on the difficulty at once, and was given lucrative -employment. In the rush of the metropolis, a man finds his true level -without delay especially when his talents are of so practical and -brilliant a nature as were this young telegrapher’s. It would be an -absurdity to imagine an Edison hidden in New York. Within a short time, -he was presented with a check for $40,000, as his share of a single -invention—an improved stock printer. From this time, a national -reputation was assured him. He was, too, now engaged upon the duplex and -quadruplex systems—systems for sending two and four messages at the same -time over a single wire,—which were to inaugurate almost a new era in -telegraphy. - - - MENTAL CONCENTRATION - -Recalling the incident of the Law Gold Reporting Company, I inquired: -“Do you believe want urges a man to greater efforts, and so to greater -success?” - -“It certainly makes him keep a sharp look-out. I think it does push a -man along.” - -“Do you believe that invention is a gift, or an acquired ability?” - -“I think it’s born in a man.” - -“And don’t you believe that familiarity with certain mechanical -conditions and defects naturally suggests improvements to any one?” - -“No. Some people may be perfectly familiar with a machine all their -days, knowing it inefficient, and never see a way to improve it.” - -“What do you think is the first requisite for success in your field, or -any other?” - -“_The ability to apply your physical and mental energies to one problem -incessantly without growing weary._” - - - TWENTY HOURS A DAY - -“Do you have regular hours, Mr. Edison?” I asked. - -“Oh,” he said, “I do not work hard now. I come to the laboratory about -eight o’clock every day and go home to tea at six, and then I study or -work on some problem until eleven, which is my hour for bed.” - -“Fourteen of fifteen hours a day can scarcely be called loafing,” I -suggested. - -“Well,” he replied, “for fifteen years I have worked on an average of -twenty hours a day.” - -When he was forty-seven years old, he estimated his true age at -eighty-two, since working only eight hours a day would have taken till -that time. - -Mr. Edison has sometimes worked sixty consecutive hours upon one -problem. Then after a long sleep, he was perfectly refreshed and ready -for another. - - - A RUN FOR BREAKFAST - -Mr. Dickson, a neighbor and familiar, gives an anecdote told by Edison -which well illustrates his untiring energy and phenomenal endurance. In -describing his Boston experience, Edison said he bought Faraday’s works -on electricity, commenced to read them at three o’clock in the morning -and continued until his room-mate arose, when they started on their long -walk to get breakfast. That object was entirely subordinated in Edison’s -mind to Faraday, and he suddenly remarked to his friend: “‘Adams, I have -got so much to do, and life is so short, that I have got to hustle,’ and -with that I started off on a dead run for my breakfast.” - -“I’ve known Edison since he was a boy of fourteen,” said another friend; -“and of my own knowledge I can say he never spent an idle day in his -life. Often, when he should have been asleep, I have known him to sit up -half the night reading. He did not take to novels or wild Western -adventures, but read works on mechanics, chemistry, and electricity; and -he mastered them too. But in addition to his reading, which he could -only indulge in at odd hours, he carefully cultivated his wonderful -powers of observation, till at length, when he was not actually asleep, -it may be said he was learning all the time.” - - - NOT BY ACCIDENT AND NOT FOR FUN - -“Are your discoveries often brilliant intuitions? Do they come to you -while you are lying awake nights?” I asked him. - -“I never did anything worth doing by accident,” he replied, “nor did any -of my inventions come indirectly through accident, except the -phonograph.[4] No, when I have fully decided that a result is worth -getting, I go about it, and make trial after trial, until it comes.” - -Footnote 4: - - “I was singing to the mouthpiece of a telephone,” said Edison, “when - the vibrations of my voice caused a fine steel point to pierce one of - my fingers held just behind it. That set me to thinking. If I could - record the motions of the point and send it over the same surface - afterward, I saw no reason why the thing would not talk. I determined - to make a machine that would work accurately, and gave my assistants - the necessary instructions, telling them what I had discovered. That’s - the whole story. The phonograph is the result of the pricking of a - finger.” - -“I have always kept,” continued Mr. Edison, “strictly within the lines -of commercially useful inventions. I have never had any time to put on -electrical wonders, valuable only as novelties to catch the popular -fancy.” - - - “I LIKE IT—I HATE IT” - -“What makes you work?” I asked with real curiosity. “What impels you to -this constant, tireless struggle? You have shown that you care -comparatively nothing for the money it makes you, and you have no -particular enthusiasm for the attending fame. What is it?” - -“I like it,” he answered, after a moment of puzzled expression. “I don’t -know any other reason. Anything I have begun is always on my mind, and I -am not easy while away from it, until it is finished; and then I hate -it.” - -“Hate it?” I said. - -“Yes,” he affirmed, “when it is all done and is a success, I can’t bear -the sight of it. I haven’t used a telephone in ten years, and I would go -out of my way any day to miss an incandescent light.”[5] - -Footnote 5: - - “After I have completed an invention,” remarked Edison, upon another - occasion, “I seem to lose interest in it. One might think that the - money value of an invention constitutes its reward to the man who - loves his work. But, speaking for myself, I can honestly say this is - not so. Life was never more full of joy to me, than when, a poor boy, - I began to think out improvements in telegraphy, and to experiment - with the cheapest and crudest appliances. But now that I have all the - appliances I need, and am my own master, I continue to find my - greatest pleasure, and so my reward, in the work that precedes what - the world calls success.” - - - DOING ONE THING EIGHTEEN HOURS IS THE SECRET - -“You lay down rather severe rules for one who wishes to succeed in -life,” I ventured, “working eighteen hours a day.” - -“Not at all,” he said. “You do something all day long, don’t you? Every -one does. If you get up at seven o’clock and go to bed at eleven, you -have put in sixteen good hours, and it is certain with most men, that -they have been doing something all the time. They have been either -walking, or reading, or writing, or thinking. The only trouble is that -they do it about a great many things and I do it about one. If they took -the time in question and applied it in one direction, to one object, -they would succeed. Success is sure to follow such application. The -trouble lies in the fact that people do not have an object—one thing to -which they stick, letting all else go. Success is the product of the -severest kind of mental and physical application.” - - - POSSIBILITIES IN THE ELECTRICAL FIELD - -“You believe, of course,” I suggested, “that much remains to be -discovered in the realm of electricity?” - -“It is the field of fields,” he answered. “We can’t talk of that, but it -holds the secrets which will reorganize the life of the world.” - -“You have discovered much about it,” I said, smiling. - -“Yes,” he said, “and yet very little in comparison with the -possibilities that appear.” - - - ONLY SIX HUNDRED INVENTIONS - -“How many inventions have you patented?” - -“Only six hundred,” he answered, “but I have made application for some -three hundred more.” - -“And do you expect to retire soon, after all this?” - -“I hope not,” he said, almost pathetically. “I hope I will be able to -work right on to the close. I shouldn’t care to loaf.” - - - HIS COURTSHIP AND HIS HOME - -The idea of the great electrician’s marrying was first suggested by an -intimate friend, who told him that his large house and numerous servants -ought to have a mistress. Although a very shy man, he seemed pleased -with the proposition, and timidly inquired whom he should marry. The -friend, annoyed at his apparent want of sentiment, somewhat testily -replied,—“Anyone.” But Edison was not without sentiment when the time -came. One day, as he stood behind the chair of a Miss Stillwell, a -telegraph operator in his employ, he was not a little surprised when she -suddenly turned round and said: - -“Mr. Edison, I can always tell when you are behind me or near me.” - -It was now Miss Stillwell’s turn to be surprised, for, with -characteristic bluntness and ardor, Edison fronted the young lady, and, -looking her full in the face, said: - -“I’ve been thinking considerably about you of late, and, if you are -willing to marry me, I would like to marry you.” - -The young lady said she would consider the matter, and talk it over with -her mother. The result was that they were married a month later, and the -union proved a very happy one. - -It was in fact no more an accident than other experiments in the Edison -laboratory—his bride having been long the subject of the Wizzard’s -observation—her mental capacity, her temper and temperament, her -aptitude for home-making being duly tested and noted. - - ------------------------------------------------------------------------- - -[Illustration: - - _General Lew Wallace in his study._ - (_See page 241._)] - - - - - XV - -A FASCINATING STORY - - - BY GENERAL LEW WALLACE - -IN his study, a curiously-shaped building lighted from the top, and -combining in equal portions the Byzantine, Romanesque and Doric styles -of architecture, the gray-haired author of “Ben-Hur,” surrounded by his -pictures, books, and military trophies, is spending, in serene and -comfortable retirement, the evening of his life. As I sat beside him, -the other day, and listened to the recital of his earlier struggles and -later achievements, I could not help contrasting his dignified bearing, -careful expression, and gentle demeanor, with another occasion in his -life, when, as a vigorous, black-haired young military officer, in the -spring of 1861, he appeared, with flashing eye and uplifted sword, at -the head of his regiment, the gallant and historic Eleventh Indiana -Volunteers. - -General Wallace never repels a visitor, and his greeting is cordial and -ingenuous. - -“If I could say anything to stimulate or encourage the young men of -to-day,” he said, “I would gladly do so, but I fear that the story of my -early days would be of very little interest or value to others. So far -as school education is concerned, it may be truthfully said that I had -but little, if any; and if, in spite of that deficiency, I ever arrived -at proficiency, I reached it, I presume, as Topsy attained her -stature,—‘just growed into it.’” - - - A BOYHOOD OF WASTED OPPORTUNITIES - -“Were you denied early school advantages?” I asked. - -“Not in the least. On the contrary, I had most abundant opportunity in -that respect. - -“My father was a lawyer, enjoying a lucrative practice in Brookville, -Indiana,—a small town which bears the distinction of having given to the -world more prominent men than any other place in the Hoosier State. Not -long after my birth, he was elected lieutenant-governor, and, finally, -governor of the state. He, himself, was an educated man, having been -graduated from the United States Military Academy at West Point, and -having served as instructor in mathematics there. He was not only an -educated man, but a man of advanced ideas generally, as shown by the -fact that _he failed of a re-election to congress in 1840, because, as a -member of the committee on commerce, he gave the casting vote in favor -of an appropriation to develop Morse’s magnetic telegraph_. - -“Of course, he believed in the value, and tried to impress upon me the -necessity of a thorough school training. But, in the face of all the -solicitude and encouragement which an indulgent father could waste on an -unappreciative son, I remained vexatiously indifferent. I presume I was -like some man in history,—it was Lincoln, I believe,—who said that his -father taught him to work, but he never quite succeeded in teaching him -to love it. - -“My father sent me to school, and regularly paid tuition,—for in those -days there were no free schools; but, much to my discredit, he failed to -secure anything like regular attendance at recitations, or even a decent -attempt to master my lessons at any time. In fact, much of the time that -should have been given to school was spent in fishing, hunting, and -roaming through the woods.” - - - HIS BOYHOOD LOVE FOR HISTORY AND LITERATURE - -“But were you thus indifferent to all forms of education?” - -“No, my case was not quite so hopeless as that. I did not desert the -schools entirely, but my attendance was so provokingly irregular and my -indifference so supreme, I wonder now that I was tolerated at all. But I -had one mainstay; I loved to read. I was a most inordinate reader. In -some lines of literature, especially history and some kinds of fiction, -my appetite was insatiate, and many a day, while my companions were -clustered together in the old red brick schoolhouse, struggling with -their problems in fractions or percentage, I was carefully hidden in the -woods near by, lying upon my elbows, munching an apple, and reveling in -the beauties of Plutarch, Byron or Goldsmith.” - -“Did you not attend college, or the higher grade of schools?” - -“Yes, for a brief period. My brother was a student in Wabash -College,—here in Crawfordsville,—and hither I also was sent; but within -six weeks I had tired of the routine, was satiated with discipline, and -made my exit from the institution. - -“I shall never forget what my father did when I returned home. He called -me into his office, and, reaching into one of the pigeon-holes above his -desk, withdrew therefrom a package of papers neatly folded and tied with -the conventional red tape. He was a very systematic man, due, perhaps, -to his West Point training, and these papers proved to be the receipts -for my tuition, which he had carefully preserved. He called off the -items, and asked me to add them together. The total, I confess, -staggered me.” - - - A FATHER’S FRUITFUL WARNING - -“‘That sum, my son,’ he said, with a tone of regret in his voice, -‘represents what I have expended in these many years past to provide you -with a good education. How successful I have been, you know better than -anyone else.’ - -“‘After mature reflection, I have come to the conclusion that I have -done for you in that direction all that can reasonably be expected of -any parent; and I have, therefore, called you in to tell you that you -have now reached an age when you must take up the lines yourself. If you -have failed to profit by the advantages with which I have tried so hard -to surround you, the responsibility must be yours. I shall not upbraid -you for your neglect, but rather pity you for the indifference which you -have shown to the golden opportunities you have, through my indulgence, -been enabled to enjoy.’” - - - A MANHOOD OF SPLENDID EFFORT - -“What effect did his admonition have on you? Did it awaken or arouse -you?” - -“It aroused me, most assuredly. It set me to thinking as nothing before -had done. The next day, I set out with a determination to accomplish -something for myself. My father’s injunction rang in my ears. New -responsibilities rested on my shoulders, as I was, for the first time in -my life, my own master. I felt that I must get work on my own account. - -“After much effort, I finally obtained employment from the man with whom -I had passed so many afternoons strolling up and down the little streams -in the neighborhood, trying to fish. He was the county clerk, and he -hired me to copy what was known as the complete record of one of the -courts. I worked for months in a dingy, half-lighted room, receiving for -my pay something like ten cents per hundred words. The tediousness and - - - THE REGULARITY OF THE WORK WAS A SPLENDID DRILL FOR ME, - -and taught me the virtue of persistence as one of the avenues of -success. It was at this time I began to realize _the deficiency in my -education_, especially as I had an ambition to become a lawyer. Being -deficient in both mathematics and grammar, _I was forced to study -evenings_. Of course, the latter was a very exacting study, after a full -day’s hard work; but I was made to realize that _the time I had spent -with such lavish prodigality could not be recovered_, and that I must -extract every possible good out of the golden moments then flying by all -too fast.” - - - SELF-EDUCATION BY READING AND LITERARY COMPOSITION - -“Had you a distinct literary ambition at that time?” - -“Well, I had always had a sort of literary bent or inclination. I read -all the literature of the day, besides the standard authors, and finally -began to devote my odd moments to a book of my own,—a tale based on the -days of the crusades. When completed, it covered about three hundred and -fifty pages, and bore the rather high-sounding title, ‘The Man-at-Arms.’ -I read a good portion of it before a literary society to which I -belonged; the members applauded it, and I was frequently urged to have -it published. - -“The Mexican War soon followed, however, and I took the manuscript with -me when I enlisted. But before the close of my service it was lost, and -my production, therefore, never reached the public eye.” - -“But did not the approval which the book received from the few persons -who read it encourage you to continue writing?” - -“Fully fifty years have elapsed since then, and it is, therefore, rather -difficult, at this late day, to recall just how such things affected me. -I suppose I was encouraged thereby, for, in due course of time, another -book which turned out to be - - - “THE FAIR GOD” - -my first book to reach the public,—began to shape itself in my mind. The -composition of this work was not, as the theatrical people would say, a -continuous performance, for there were many and singular interruptions; -and it would be safe to say that months, and, in one case, years, -intervened between certain chapters. A few years after the war, I -finished the composition, strung the chapters into a continuous -narrative, leveled up the uneven places, and started East with the -manuscript. A letter from Whitelaw Reid, then editor of the New York -_Tribune_, introduced me to the head of one of the leading publishing -houses in Boston. There I was kindly received, and delivered my -manuscript, which was referred to a professional reader, to determine -its literary, and also, I presume, its commercial value. - -“It would be neither a new nor an interesting story to acquaint the -public with the degree of anxious suspense that pervaded my mind when I -withdrew to await the reader’s judgment. Every other writer has, I -assume, at one time or another, undergone much the same experience. It -was not long until I learned from the publisher that the reader reported -in favor of my production. Publication soon followed, and for the first -time, in a literary sense, I found myself before the public, and my book -before the critics.” - - - THE ORIGIN OF “BEN-HUR” - -“How long after this did ‘Ben-Hur’ appear, and what led you to write -it?” - -“I began ‘Ben-Hur’ about 1876, and it was published in 1880. The -purpose, at first, was a short serial for one of the magazines, -descriptive of the visit of the wise men to Jerusalem as mentioned in -the first two verses of the second chapter of Matthew. It will be -recognized in ‘Book First’ of the work as now published. For certain -reasons, however, the serial idea was abandoned, and the narrative, -instead of ending with the birth of the Saviour, expanded into a more -pretentious novel and only ended with the death scene on Calvary. The -last ten chapters were written in the old adobe palace at Santa Fé, New -Mexico, where I was serving as governor. - -“It is difficult to answer the question, ‘what led me to write the -book;’ or why I chose a piece of fiction which used Christ as its -leading character. In explanation, it is proper to state that I had -reached an age in life when men usually begin to study themselves with -reference to their fellowmen, and reflect on the good they may have done -in the world. _Up to that time, never having read the Bible_, I knew -nothing about sacred history; and, in matters of a religious nature, -although I was not in every respect an infidel, I was persistently and -notoriously indifferent. _I did not know, and therefore, did not care._ -I resolved to begin the study of the good book in earnest. - - - INFLUENCE OF THE STORY OF THE CHRIST UPON THE AUTHOR - -“I was in quest of knowledge, but I had no faith to sustain, no creed to -bolster up. The result was that the whole field of religious and -biblical history opened up before me; and, my vision not being clouded -by previously formed opinions, I was enabled to survey it without the -aid of lenses. I believe I was thorough and persistent. I know I was -conscientious in my search for the truth. I weighed, I analyzed, I -counted and compared. The evolution from conjecture into knowledge, -through opinion and belief, was gradual but irresistible; and at length -I stood firmly and defiantly on the solid rock. - -“Upward of seven hundred thousand copies of ‘Ben-Hur’ have been -published, and it has been translated into all languages from French to -Arabic. But, whether it has ever influenced the mind of a single reader -or not, I am sure its conception and preparation—if it has done nothing -more—have convinced its author of the divinity of the lowly Nazarene who -walked and talked with God.” - - ------------------------------------------------------------------------- - - - - - XVI - -Carnegie as a Metal Worker - - -“THERE is no doubt,” said Mr. Carnegie, in reply to a question from me, -“that it is becoming harder and harder, as business gravitates more and -more to immense concerns, for a young man without capital to get a start -for himself, and in the large cities it is especially so, where large -capital is essential. Still it can be honestly said that there is no -other country in the world, where able and energetic young men and women -can so readily rise as in this. A president of a business college -informed me, recently, that he has never been able to supply the demand -for capable, first-class [Mark the adjective.] bookkeepers, and his -college has over nine hundred students. In America, young men of ability -rise with most astonishing rapidity.” - -“As quickly as when you were a boy?” - -“Much more so. When I was a boy, there were but very few important -positions that a boy could aspire to. Every position had to be made. Now -a boy doesn’t need to make the place,—all he has to do is to fit himself -to take it.” - - - EARLY WORK AND WAGES - -“Where did you begin life?” - -“In Dunfermline, Scotland, during my earliest years. The service of my -life has all been in this country.” - -“In Pittsburg?” - -“Largely so. My father settled in Allegheny City, when I was only ten -years old, and I began to earn my way in Pittsburg.” - -“Do you mind telling me what your first service was?” - -“Not at all. I was a bobbin boy in a cotton factory, then an engine-man -or boy in the same place, and later still I was a messenger boy for a -telegraph company.” - -“At small wages, I suppose?” - -“One dollar and twenty cents a week was what I received as a bobbin boy, -and I considered it pretty good, at that. When I was thirteen, I had -learned to run a steam engine, and for that I received a dollar and -eighty cents a week.” - -“You had no early schooling, then?” - -“None except such as I gave myself.” - - - COLONEL ANDERSON’S BOOKS - -“There were no fine libraries then, but in Allegheny City, where I -lived, there was a certain Colonel Anderson, who was well to do and of a -philanthropic turn. He announced, about the time I first began to work, -that he would be in his library at home, every Saturday, ready to lend -books to working boys and men. He had only about four hundred volumes, -but I doubt if ever so few books were put to better use. Only he who has -longed, as I did for Saturday to come, that the spring of knowledge -might be opened anew to him, can understand what Colonel Anderson did -for me and others of the boys of Allegheny. Quite a number of them have -risen to eminence, and I think their rise can be easily traced to this -splendid opportunity.”[6] - -Footnote 6: - - It was Colonel Anderson’s kindness that led Carnegie to bestow his - wealth so generously for founding libraries, as he is now doing every - year. - - - HIS FIRST GLIMPSE OF PARADISE - -“How long did you remain an engine-boy?” - -“Not very long,” Mr. Carnegie replied; “perhaps a year.” - -“And then?” - -“I entered a telegraph office as a messenger boy.” - -Although Mr. Carnegie did not dwell much on this period, he once -described it at a dinner given in honor of the American Consul at -Dunfermline, Scotland, when he said:— - -“I awake from a dream that has carried me away back to the days of my -boyhood, the day when the little white-haired Scottish laddie, dressed -in a blue jacket, walked with his father into the telegraph office in -Pittsburg to undergo examination as an applicant for a position as -messenger boy. - -“Well I remember when my uncle spoke to my parents about it, and my -father objected, because I was then getting one dollar and eighty cents -per week for running the small engine in a cellar in Allegheny City, but -my uncle said a messenger’s wages would be two dollars and fifty -cents.... If you want an idea as to heaven on earth, imagine what it is -to be taken from a dark cellar, where I fired the boiler from morning -until night, and dropped into an office, where light shone from all -sides, with books, papers, and pencils in profusion around me, and oh, -the tick of those mysterious brass instruments on the desk, annihilating -space and conveying intelligence to the world. This was my first glimpse -of paradise, and I walked on air.” - -“How did you manage to rise from this position?” - -“I learned how to operate a telegraph instrument, and then waited an -opportunity to show that I was fit to be an operator. Eventually my -chance came.” - -The truth is that James D. Reid, the superintendent of the office, and -himself a Scotchman, favored the ambitious lad. In his “History of the -Telegraph,” he says of him:— - -“I liked the boy’s looks, and it was easy to see that, though he was -little, he was full of spirit. He had not been with me a month when he -asked me to teach him to telegraph. He spent all his spare time in -practice, sending and receiving by sound and not by tape, as was the -custom in those days. Pretty soon he could do as well as I could at the -key.” - - - INTRODUCED TO A BROOM - -“As you look back upon it,” I said to Mr. Carnegie, “do you consider -that so lowly a beginning is better than one a little less trying?” - -“For young men starting upon their life work, it is much the best to -begin as I did, at the beginning, and occupy the most subordinate -positions. Many of the present-day leading men of Pittsburg, had serious -responsibility thrust upon them at the very threshold of their careers. -They were introduced to the broom, and spent the first hours of their -business life sweeping out the office. I notice we have janitors and -janitresses now in offices, and our young men, unfortunately, miss that -salutary branch of early education. It does not hurt the newest comer to -sweep out the office.” - -“Did you?” - -“Many’s the time. And who do you suppose were my fellow sweepers? David -McBargo, afterwards superintendent of the Allegheny Valley Railroad; -Robert Pitcairn, afterwards superintendent of the Pennsylvania Railroad; -and Mr. Mooreland, subsequently City Attorney of Pittsburg. We all took -turns, two each morning doing the sweeping; and now I remember Davie was -so proud of his clean shirt bosom that he used to spread over it an old -silk handkerchief which he kept for the purpose, and we other boys -thought he was putting on airs. So he was. None of us had a silk -handkerchief.” - -“After you had learned to telegraph, did you consider that you had -reached high enough?” - -“Just at that time my father died, and the burden of the support of the -family fell upon me. I earned as an operator twenty-five dollars a -month, and a little additional money by copying telegraphic messages for -the newspapers, and managed to keep the family independent.” - - - AN EXPERT TELEGRAPHER - -More light on this period of Mr. Carnegie’s career is given by the -“_Electric Age_,” which says:—“As a telegraph operator he was abreast of -older and experienced men; and, although receiving messages by sound -was, at that time, forbidden by authority as being unsafe, young -Carnegie quickly acquired the art, and he can still stand behind the -ticker and understand its language. As an operator, he delighted in full -employment and the prompt discharge of business, and a big day’s work -was his chief pleasure.” - -“How long did you remain with the telegraph company?” - -“Until I was given a place by the Pennsylvania Railroad Company.” - -“As an operator?” - -“At first,—until I showed how the telegraph could minister to railroad -safety and success; then I was made secretary to Thomas A. Scott, the -superintendent; and not long afterwards, when Colonel Scott became -vice-president, I was made superintendent of the western division.” - -Colonel Scott’s attention was drawn to Carnegie by the operator’s -devising a plan for running trains by telegraph, so making the most of a -single track. Up to this time no one had ever dreamed of running trains -in opposite directions, towards each other, directing them by telegraph, -one train being sidetracked while the other passed. The boy studied out -a train-despatching system which was afterwards used on every -single-track railroad in the country. Nobody had ever thought of this -before, and the officials were so pleased with the ingenious lad, that -they placed him in charge of a division office, and before he was twenty -made him superintendent of the western division of the road. - - - WHAT EMPLOYERS THINK OF YOUNG MEN - -Concerning this period of his life, I asked Mr. Carnegie if his -promotion was not a matter of chance, and whether he did not, at the -time, feel it to be so. His answer was emphatic. - -“Never. Young men give all kinds of reasons why, in their cases, failure -is attributable to exceptional circumstances, which rendered success -impossible. Some never had a chance, according to their own story. This -is simply nonsense. No young man ever lived who had not a chance, and a -splendid chance, too, if he was ever employed at all. He is assayed in -the mind of his immediate superior, from the day he begins work, and, -after a time, if he has merit, he is assayed in the council chambers of -the firm. His ability, honesty, habits, associations, temper, -disposition,—all these are weighed and analyzed. The young man who never -had a chance is the same young man who has been canvassed over and over -again by his superiors, and found destitute of necessary qualifications, -or is deemed unworthy of closer relations with the firm, owing to some -objectionable act, habit or association, of which he thought his -employers ignorant.” - -“It sounds true.” - -“It is.” - - - THE RIGHT MEN IN DEMAND - -“Another class of young men attributes failure to rise to employers -having near relatives or favorites whom they advance unfairly. They also -insist that their employers dislike brighter intelligences than their -own, and are disposed to discourage aspiring genius, and delighted in -keeping young men down. There is nothing in this. On the contrary, there -is no one suffering more for lack of the right man in the right place as -the average employer, nor anyone more anxious to find him.” - -“Was this your theory on the subject when you began working for the -railroad company?” - -“I had no theory then, although I have formulated one since. It lies -mainly in this: Instead of the question, ‘What must I do for my -employer?’ substitute, ‘What can I do?’ Faithful and conscientious -discharge of duties assigned you is all very well, but the verdict in -such cases generally is that you perform your present duties so well, -that you would better continue performing them. Now, this will not do. -It will not do for the coming partners. There must be something beyond -this. We make clerks, bookkeepers, treasurers, bank tellers of this -class, and there they remain to the end of the chapter. _The rising man -must do something exceptional, and beyond the range of his special -department. He must attract attention._” - - - HOW TO ATTRACT ATTENTION - -“How can he do that?” - -“Well, if he is a shipping clerk, he may do so by discovering in an -invoice an error with which he has nothing to do and which has escaped -the attention of the proper party. If a weighing clerk, he may save for -the firm in questioning the adjustment of the scales, and having them -corrected, even if this be the province of the master mechanic. If a -messenger boy, he can lay the seed of promotion by going beyond the -letter of his instructions in order to secure the desired reply. There -is no service so low and simple, neither any so high, in which the young -man of ability and willing disposition cannot readily and almost daily -prove himself capable of greater trust and usefulness, and, what is -equally important, show his invincible determination to rise.” - -“In what manner did you reach out to establish your present great -fortune?” I asked. - -“By saving my money. I put a little money aside, and it served me later -as a matter of credit. Also, I invested in a sleeping-car industry, -which paid me well.” - - - SLEEPING-CAR INVENTION - -Although I tried earnestly to get the great iron-king to talk of this, -he said little, because the matter has been fully dealt with by him in -his “Triumphant Democracy.” From his own story there, it appears that -one day at this time, when Mr. Carnegie still had his fortune to make, -he was on a train examining the line from a rear window of a car, when a -tall, spare man, accosted him and asked him to look at an invention he -had made. He drew from a green bag a small model of a sleeping-berth for -railway cars, and proceeded to point out its advantages. It was Mr. T. -T. Woodruff, the inventor of the sleeping-car. As Mr. Carnegie tells the -story:— - -“He had not spoken a moment before, like a flash, the whole range of the -discovery burst upon me. ‘Yes,’ I said, ‘that is something which this -continent must have,’ - -“Upon my return, I laid it before Mr. Scott, declaring that it was one -of the inventions of the age. He remarked: ‘You are enthusiastic, young -man, but you may ask the inventor to come and let me see it.’ I did so, -and arrangements were made to build two trial cars, and run them on the -Pennsylvania Railroad. I was offered an interest in the venture, which I -gladly accepted. - -“The notice came that my share of the first payment was $217.50. How -well I remember the exact sum. But two hundred and seventeen dollars and -a half were as far beyond my means as if it had been millions. I was -earning fifty dollars per month, however, and had prospects, or at least -I always felt that I had. I decided to call on the local banker and -boldly ask him to advance the sum upon my interest in the affair. He put -his hand on my shoulder and said: ‘Why, of course, Andie; you are all -right. Go ahead. Here is the money.’ - -“It is a proud day for a man when he pays his last note, but not to be -named in comparison with the day in which he makes his first one, and -gets a banker to take it. I have tried both, and I know. The cars -furnished the subsequent payments by their earnings. I paid my first -note from my savings, so much per month, and thus I got my foot upon -fortune’s ladder. It was easy to climb after that.” - - - THE MARK OF A MILLIONAIRE - -“I would like some expression from you,” I said to Mr. Carnegie, “in -reference to the importance of laying aside money from one’s earnings, -as a young man.” - -“You can have it. There is one sure mark of the coming partner, the -future millionaire; his revenues always exceed his expenditures. He -begins to save early, almost as soon as he begins to earn. I should say -to young men, no matter how little it may be possible to save, save that -little. Invest it securely, not necessarily in bonds, but in anything -which you have good reason to believe will be profitable. Some rare -chance will soon present itself for investment. The little you have -saved will prove the basis for an amount of credit utterly surprising to -you. Capitalists trust the saving man. For every hundred dollars you can -produce as the result of hard-won savings, Midas, in search of a -partner, will lend or credit a thousand; for every thousand, fifty -thousand. _It is not capital that your seniors require, it is the man -who has proved that he has the business habits which create capital. So -it is the first hundred dollars that tell._” - - - AN OIL FARM - -“What,” I asked Mr. Carnegie, “was the next enterprise with which you -identified yourself?” - -“In company with several others, I purchased the now famous Storey farm, -on Oil Creek, Pennsylvania, where a well had been bored and natural oil -struck the year before. This proved a very profitable investment.” - -In “Triumphant Democracy,” Mr. Carnegie has expatiated most fully on -this venture, which is so important. “When I first visited this famous -well,” he says, “the oil was running into the creek, where a few -flat-bottomed scows lay filled with it, ready to be floated down the -Alleghany River, on an agreed-upon day each week, when the creek was -flooded by means of a temporary dam. This was the beginning of the -natural-oil business. We purchased the farm for $40,000, and so small -was our faith in the ability of the earth to yield for any considerable -time the hundred barrels per day, which the property was then producing, -that we decided to make a pond capable of holding one hundred thousand -barrels of oil, which, we estimated, would be worth, when the supply -ceased, $1,000,000. - -“Unfortunately for us, the pond leaked fearfully; evaporation also -caused much loss, but we continued to run oil in to make the losses good -day after day, until several hundred thousand barrels had gone in this -fashion. Our experience with the farm is worth reciting: its value rose -to $5,000,000; that is—the shares of the company sold in the market upon -this basis; and one year it paid cash dividends of $1,000,000—upon an -investment of $40,000.” - - - IRON BRIDGES - -“Were you satisfied to rest with these enterprises in your hands?” I -asked. - -“No. Railway bridges were then built almost exclusively of wood, but the -Pennsylvania Railroad had begun to experiment with cast-iron. It struck -me that the bridge of the future must be of iron; and I organized, in -Pittsburg, a company for the construction of iron bridges. That was the -Keystone Bridge Works. We built the first iron bridge across the Ohio.” - -His entrance of the realm of steel was much too long for Mr. Carnegie to -discuss, although he was not unwilling to give information relating to -the subject. It appears that he realized the immensity of the steel -manufacturing business at once. The Union Iron Mills soon followed as -one of the enterprises, and, later, the famous Edgar Thompson Steel Rail -Mill. The last was the outcome of a visit to England, in 1868, when -Carnegie noticed that English railways were discarding iron for steel -rails. The Bessemer process had been then perfected, and was making its -way in all the iron-producing countries. Carnegie, recognizing that it -was destined to revolutionize the iron business, introduced it into his -mills and made steel rails with which he was enabled to compete with -English manufacturers. - - - HOMESTEAD STEEL WORKS - -His next enterprise was the purchase of the Homestead Steel Works,—his -great rival in Pittsburg. In 1888, he had built or acquired seven -distinct iron and steel works, all of which are now included in the -Carnegie Steel Company, Limited. All the plants of this great firm are -within a radius of five miles of Pittsburg. Probably in no other part of -the world can be found such an aggregation of splendidly equipped steel -works as those controlled by this association. It now comprises the -Homestead Steel Works, the Edgar Thompson Steel Works and Furnaces, the -Duquesne Steel Works and Furnaces, all within two miles of one another; -the Lucy Furnaces, the Keystone Bridge Works, the Upper Union Rolling -Mills, and the Lower Union Rolling Mills. - -In all branches, including the great coke works, mines, etc., there are -employed twenty-five thousand men. The monthly pay roll exceeds one -million, one hundred and twenty-five thousand dollars, or nearly fifty -thousand dollars for each working day. Including the Frick Coke Company, -the united capital of the Carnegie Steel Company exceeds sixty million -dollars. - - - A STRENGTHENING POLICY - -“You believe in taking active measures,” I said, “to make men -successful.” - -[Illustration: - - _Partial view of the Homestead Steel Works._] - -“I believe in anything which will help men to help themselves. To induce -them to save, every workman in our company is allowed to deposit part of -his earnings, not exceeding two thousand dollars, with the firm, on -which the high interest rate of six per cent. is allowed. The firm also -lends to any of its workmen to buy a lot, or to build a house, taking -its pay by installments.” - -“Has this contributed to the success of your company?” - -“I think so. The policy of giving a personal interest to the men who -render exceptional service is strengthening. With us there are many -such, and every year several more are added as partners. It is the -policy of the concern to interest every superintendent in the works, -every head of a department, every exceptional young man. Promotion -follows exceptional service, and there is no favoritism.” - - - PHILANTHROPY - -“All you have said so far, merely gives the idea of getting money, -without any suggestion as to the proper use of great wealth. Will you -say something on that score?” - -“My views are rather well known, I think. What a man owns is already -subordinate, in America, to what he knows; but in the final aristocracy, -the question will not be either of these, but what has he done for his -fellows? Where has he shown generosity and self-abnegation? Where has he -been a father to the fatherless? And the cause of the poor, where has he -searched that out?” - -That Mr. Carnegie has lived up in the past, and is still living up to -this radical declaration of independence from the practice of men who -have amassed fortunes around him, will be best shown by a brief -enumeration of some of his almost unexampled philanthropies. His largest -gift has been to the city of Pittsburg, the scene of his early trials -and later triumphs. There he has built, at a cost of more than a million -dollars, a magnificent library, museum, concert hall and picture -gallery, all under one roof, and endowed it with a fund of another -million, the interest of which (fifty thousand dollars per annum) is -being devoted to the purchase of the best works of American art. Other -libraries, to be connected with this largest as a center, are now being -constructed, which will make the city of Pittsburg and its environs a -beneficiary of his generosity to the extent of five million dollars. - -While thus endowing the city where his fortune was made, he has not -forgotten other places endeared to him by association or by interest. To -the Allegheny Free Library he has given $375,000; to the Braddock Free -Library, $250,000; to the Johnstown Free Library, $50,000; and to the -Fairfield (Iowa) Library, $40,000. To the Cooper Institute, New York, he -has given $300,000. To his native land he has been scarcely less -generous. To the Edinburgh Free Library he has given $250,000, and to -his native town of Dunfermline, $90,000. Other Scottish towns to the -number of ten have received helpful donations of amounts not quite so -large. He has given $50,000 to aid poor young men and women to gain a -musical education at the Royal College of Music in London. - - - “THE MISFORTUNE OF BEING RICH MEN’S SONS” - -“I should like to cause you to say some other important things for young -men to learn and benefit by.” - -“Our young partners in the Carnegie company have all won their spurs by -_showing that we did not know half as well what was wanted as they did_. -Some of them have acted upon occasions with me as if they owned the firm -and I was but some airy New Yorker, presuming to _advise upon what I -knew very little about_. Well, they are not now interfered with. _They -were the true bosses,—the very men we were looking for._” - -“Is this all for the poor boy?” - -“Every word. Those who have the misfortune to be rich men’s sons are -heavily weighted in the race. A basketful of bonds is the heaviest -basket a young man ever had to carry. He generally gets to staggering -under it. The vast majority of rich men’s sons are unable to resist the -temptations to which wealth subjects them, and they sink to unworthy -lives. It is not from this class that the poor beginner has rivalry to -fear. The partner’s sons will never trouble you much, but look out that -some boys poorer, much poorer, than yourselves, whose parents cannot -afford to give them any schooling, do not challenge you at the post and -pass you at the grand stand. Look out for the boy who has to plunge into -work direct from the common school, and begins by sweeping out the -office. He is the probable dark horse that will take all the money and -win all the applause.”[7] - -Footnote 7: - - Mr. Carnegie’s recent retirement from business, and the sale of his - vast properties to the Morgan Syndicate, marks a new era in his - remarkable career; and it gives him the more leisure to consider - carefully every dollar he bestows in the series of magnificent - charities that he has inaugurated. - - ------------------------------------------------------------------------- - - - - - XVII - -Herreshoff, the Yacht Builder - - - I - - THE VOYAGE OF LIFE - - Total eclipse; no sun, no moon; - Darkness amid the blaze of noon!—MILTON - -AMID the ranks of the blind, we often find men and women of culture and -general ability, but we do not look for world-renowned specialists. No -one is surprised at a display of enterprise in a “booming” western town, -where everybody is “hustling;” but in a place which has once ranked as -the third seaport in America, but has seen its maritime glory decline, a -man who can establish a marine industry on a higher plane than was ever -before known, and attract to his work such world-wide attention as to -restore the vanished fame of his town, is no ordinary person. Moreover, -if such a man has laid his plans and done his work in the disheartening -eclipse of total blindness, he must possess qualities of the highest -order. - -The office of the Herreshoff Manufacturing Company, at Bristol, Rhode -Island, is in a building that formerly belonged to the Burnside Rifle -Company. It is substantial, but unpretentious, and is entered by a short -stairway on one side. The furniture throughout is also plain, but has -been selected with excellent taste, and is suggestive of the most -effective adaptation of means to ends in every detail. On the mantel and -on the walls are numerous pictures, most of them of vessels, but very -few relating directly to any of the great races for the “America’s” cup. -The first picture to arrest one’s attention, indeed, is an excellent -portrait of the late General Ambrose E. Burnside, who lived in Bristol, -and was an intimate friend of John B. Herreshoff. - -Previous inquiry had elicited the information that the members of the -firm are very busy with various large orders, in addition to the rush of -work on Cup Defenders; so it was a very agreeable surprise when I was -invited into the tasteful private office, where the blind president sat, -having just concluded a short conversation with an attorney. - - - “LET THE WORK SHOW” - -“Well, sir,” said he, rising and grasping my hand cordially, “what do -you wish?” - -“I realize how very busy you must be, Mr. Herreshoff,” I replied, “and -will try to be as brief as possible; but I venture to ask a few minutes -of your time, to obtain suggestions and advice from you to young -people.” - -“But why select me, in particular, as an adviser?” - -This was “a poser,” at first, especially when he added, noting my -hesitation:— - -“We are frequently requested to give interviews in regard to our -manufacturing business; but, since as it is the settled policy of our -house to do our work just as well as we possibly can and then leave it -to speak for itself, we have felt obliged to decline all these requests. -It would be repugnant to our sense of propriety to talk in public about -our special industry. ‘Let the work show!’ seems to us a good motto.” - - - THE VOYAGE OF LIFE - -“True,” said I. “But the readers of my books may not care to read of -cutters or ‘skimming dishes,’ center-boards or fin keels, or copper -coils _versus_ steel tubes for boilers. They leave the choice in such -matters to you, realizing that you have always proved equal to the -situation. What I want now is advice in regard to the race of life,—the -voyage in which each youth must be his own captain, but in which the -words of others who have successfully sailed the sea before will help to -avoid rocks and shoals, and to profit by favoring currents and trade -winds. You have been handicapped in an unusual degree, sailing in total -darkness and beset by many other difficulties, but have, nevertheless, -made a very prosperous voyage. In overcoming such serious obstacles, you -must have learned much of the true philosophy of both success and -failure, and I think you will be willing to help the young with -suggestions drawn from your experience.” - -“I always want to help young people, or old people, either, for that -matter, if anything I can say will do so. But what can I say?” - - - A MOTHER’S MIGHTY INFLUENCE - -“What do you call the prime requisite of success?” - -“I shall have to answer that by a somewhat humorous but very shrewd -suggestion of another,—select a good mother. Especially for boys, I -consider an intelligent, affectionate but considerate mother an almost -indispensable requisite to the highest success. If you would improve the -rising generation to the utmost, appeal first to the mothers.” - -“In what way?” - -“_Above all things else, show them that reasonable self-denial is a -thousandfold better for a boy than to have his every wish gratified. -Teach them to encourage industry, economy, concentration of attention -and purpose, and indomitable persistence._” - -“But most mothers try to do this, don’t they?” - -“Yes, in a measure; but many of them, perhaps most of them, do not -emphasize the matter half enough. A mother may wish to teach all these -lessons to her son, but she thinks too much of him, or believes she -does, to have him suffer any deprivation, and so indulges him in things -which are luxuries for him, under the circumstances, rather than -necessaries. Many a boy, born with ordinary intellect, would follow the -example of an industrious father, were it not that his mother wishes him -to appear as well as any boy in the neighborhood. So, without exactly -meaning it, she gets to making a show of her boy, and brings him up with -a habit of idling away valuable time, to keep up appearances. The -prudent mother, however, sees the folly of this course, and teaches her -son to excel in study and work, rather than in vain display. The -difference in mothers makes all the difference in the world to children, -who like brooks, can be turned very easily in their course of life.” - - - SELF HELP - -“What ranks next in importance?” - -“Boys and girls themselves, especially as they grow older, and have a -chance to understand what life means, should not only help their parents -as a matter of duty, but should learn to help themselves, for their own -good. I would not have them forego recreation, a reasonable amount every -day, but let them learn the reality and earnestness of existence, and -resolve to do the whole work and the very best work of thorough, -reliable young men and women.” - - - WHAT CAREER - -“What would you advise as to choosing a career?” - -“In that I should be governed largely by the bent of each youth. What he -likes to do best of all, that he should do; and he should try to do it -better than anyone else. That is legitimate emulation. Let him devote -his full energy to his work; with the provision, however, that he needs -change or recreation more in proportion as he uses his brain more. The -more muscular the work, if not too heavy, the more hours, is a good -rule: the more brain work, the fewer hours. Children at school should -not be expected to work so long or so hard as if engaged in manual -labor. Temperament, too, should be considered. A highly organized, -nervous person, like a racehorse, may display intense activity for a -short time, but it should be followed by a long period of rest; while -the phlegmatic person, like the ox or the draft horse, can go all day -without injury.” - - - EDUCATION - -“I believe in education most thoroughly, and think no one can have too -much knowledge, if properly digested. But in many of our colleges, I -have often thought, not more than one in five is radically improved by -the course. Most collegiates waste too much time in frivolity, and -somehow there seems to be little restraining power in the college to -prevent this. I agree that students should have self-restraint and -application themselves, but, in the absence of these, the college should -supply more compulsion than is now the rule.” - - - APPRENTICES - -“Do you favor reviving the old apprentice system for would-be -mechanics?” - -“Only in rare cases. As a rule, we have special machines now that do as -perfect work as the market requires; some of them, indeed, better work -than can be done by hand. A boy or man can soon learn to tend one of -these, when he becomes, for ordinary purposes, a specialist. Very few -shops now have apprentices. No rule, however, will apply to all, and it -may still be best for one to serve an apprenticeship in a trade in which -he wishes to advance beyond any predecessor or competitor.” - - - PREPARE TO THE UTMOST: THEN DO YOUR BEST - -“Is success dependent more upon ability or opportunity?” - -“Of course, opportunity is necessary. You couldn’t run a mammoth -department store on the desert of Sahara. But, given the possibility, -the right man can make his opportunity, and should do so, if it is not -at hand, or does not come, after reasonable waiting. Even Napoleon had -to wait for his. On the other hand, if there is no ability, none can -display itself, and the best opportunity must pass by unimproved. The -true way is to first develop your ability to the last ounce, and then -you will be ready for your opportunity, when it comes, or to make one, -if none offers.” - - - PRESENT OPPORTUNITIES - -“Is the chance for a youth as good as it was twenty-five or fifty years -ago?” - -“Yes, and no. In any country, as it becomes more thickly populated, the -chance for purely individual enterprises is almost sure to diminish. One -notices this more as he travels through other and older countries, -where, far more than with us, boys follow in the footsteps of their -fathers, generation after generation. But for those who are willing to -adapt themselves to circumstances, the chance, to-day, at least from a -pecuniary standpoint, is better than ever before, for those starting in -life. There was doubtless more chance for the individual boat-builder, -in the days of King Philip, when each Indian made his own canoe; but -there is certainly more profit now for an employee of our firm of -boat-builders.” - - - NATURAL EXECUTIVE ABILITY - -“Granted, however, that he can find employment, how do his chances of -rising compare with those of your youth?” - -“They still depend largely upon the individual. _Some seem to have -natural executive ability, and others develop it, while most men never -possess it. Those who lack it cannot hope to rise far, and never could._ -Jefferson’s idea that all men are created equal is true enough, perhaps, -so far as their political rights are concerned, but from the point of -view of efficiency in business, it is ridiculous. In any shop of one -hundred men, you will find one who is acknowledged, at least tacitly, as -the leader, and he sooner or later becomes so in fact. A rich boy may -get and hold a place in an office, on account of his wealth or -influence; but in the works, merit alone will enable a man to hold a -place long.” - - - THE DEVELOPMENT OF POWER - -“But what is his chance of becoming a proprietor?” - -“That is smaller, of course, as establishments grow larger and more -valuable. It is all bosh for every man to expect to become a Vanderbilt -or a Rockefeller, or to be President. But, in the long run, a man will -still rise and prosper in almost exact proportion to his real value to -the business world. He will rise or fall according to his ability.” - -“Can he develop ability?” - -“Yes, to a certain extent. As I have said, we are not all alike, and no -amount of cultivation will make some minds equal to those of others who -have had but little training. But, whether great or small, everyone has -some weak point; let him first study to overcome that.” - -“How can he do it?” - -“The only way I know of is to—do it. But this brings me back to what I -told you at first. A good mother will show one how to guard against his -weak points. She should study each child and develop his individual -character, for character is the true foundation, after all. She should -check extravagance and encourage industry and self-respect. My mother is -one of the best, and I feel I owe her a debt I can never repay.” - - - “MY MOTHER” - -“Your mother? Why, I thought you had been a boat-builder for half a -century! How old is she?” - -“She is eighty-eight, and still enjoys good health. If I have one thing -more than another to be thankful for, it is her care in childhood and -her advice and sympathy through life. How often have I thought of her -wisdom when I have seen mothers from Europe (where they were satisfied -to be peasants), seek to outshine all their neighbors after they have -been in America a few years, and so bring financial ruin to their -husbands or even goad them into crime, and curse their children with -contempt for honest labor in positions for which they are fitted, and a -foolish desire to keep up appearances, even by living beyond their means -and by seeking positions they cannot fill properly.” - - - A BOAT-BUILDER IN YOUTH - -“You must have been quite young, when you began to build boats?” - -“About thirteen or fourteen years old. You see, my father was an amateur -boat-builder, in a small way, and did very good work, but usually not -for sale. But I began the work as a business thirty-six years ago, when -I was about twenty-two.” - - - HE WOULD NOT BE DISCOURAGED - -“You must have been terribly handicapped by your blindness.” - -“It was an obstacle, but I simply would not allow it to discourage me, -and did my best, just the same as if I could see. My mother had taught -me to think, and so I made thought and memory take the place of eyes. I -acquired a kind of habit of mental projection which has enabled me to -see models in my mind, as it were, and to consider their good and bad -points intelligently. Besides, I cultivated my powers of observation to -the utmost, in other respects. Even now, I take an occasional trip of -observation, for I like to see what others are doing, and so keep -abreast of the progress of the age. But I must stop or I shall get to -‘talking shop,’ the thing I declined to do at first. - - - THE SUM OF IT ALL - -“The main thing for a boy is to have a good mother, to heed her advice, -to do his best, and not get a ‘swelled head’ as he rises,—in other -words, not to expect to put a gallon into a pint cup, or a bushel into a -peck measure. Concentration, decision, industry and economy should be -his watchwords, and invincible determination and persistence his rule of -action.” - -With another cordial handshake, he bade me good-by. - - - II - - WHAT THE HERRESHOFF BROTHERS HAVE BEEN DOING - -Their recent Cup Defenders have made their names familiar to all, but -shipping circles have long known them. The business of the firm was long -confined almost wholly to the creation of boats with single masts, each -craft from twenty to thirty-six feet long. In their first ten years of -associated work, they built nearly two thousand of these. But they were -wonderful little boats, and of unrivaled swiftness. Then they made as -wonderful a success in building steam fishing yachts. Then came torpedo -boats. - -[Illustration: - - _The race between the “Vigilant” and the “Valkyrie.”_ - (_The “Vigilant,” Herreshoff boat, the winner._)] - -And in 1881 their proposal to the British government to build two -vedette boats was accepted on condition they should outmatch the work of -White, the naval launch builder at Cowes. No firm had ever been able to -compete with White. But in the following July the two Herreshoff boats -were in the Portsmouth dockyard, England, ready for trial. They were -each forty-eight feet long, nine feet in beam, and five feet deep, -exactly the same size as White’s. They made fifteen and one-half knots -an hour, while White’s only recorded twelve and two-fifths knots. “With -all their machinery coal and water in place, the Herreshoff boats were -filled with water, and then twenty men were put aboard each, that human -load being just so much in excess the admiralty test, and even then each -had a floating capacity of three tons. The examiners pronounced -enthusiastically in favor of the Herreshoff safety coil boilers as -unexplodable, less liable to injury from shock, capable of raising steam -more quickly, far lighter, and in all respects superior to those that -had been formerly used for the purpose.” The boats were accepted, and -orders given at once for two pinnaces, each thirty-three feet long. -Again John Samuel White competed, but his new boats could only make -seven and one-eighth knots, while the Herreshoff’s easily scored nine -and one-quarter. - - - RACING JAY GOULD - -In July, 1883, Jay Gould was highly elated over the speed of his -beautiful steam yacht “Atalanta,” which had several times met and -distanced Edward S. Jaffray’s wonderful “Stranger;” but, on the -twentieth of that month, his happiness, as the story is told, was very -suddenly dashed. - -After a hard day’s work, the jaded Jay boarded the “Atalanta” and began -to shake out his pin-feathers a little, figuratively speaking. But -before his boat had gone far on her run to Irvington, the bold -manipulator of Wall Street made out a craft on his weather-quarter that -seemed to be gliding after the “Atalanta” with intent to overhaul her. -He had a good start, however, and sang out to the captain to keep a -sharp eye on the persistent little stranger, so unlike the “Stranger” he -had vanquished. - -“I wonder what it is!” he exclaimed to a friend beside him. - -The friend looked long and carefully at the oncoming boat, then turned a -quizzical eye on Jay, remarking:— - -“In a little while we can tell.” - -“Will she get that close?” - -“I think she will.” - -It was not long before the strange boat was abreast of the “Atalanta,” -and Jay was then able to make out the mystical number “100” on her. He -rubbed his eyes. Those were the very figures he had long hoped to see on -the stock ticker, after the words “Western Union,” but that day they had -lost their charm. Before long he was not only able to see the broadside -of the “100,” but also had a good view of the stern of the vessel, -whereon the same figures soon appeared and nearly as soon disappeared, -as the “100” bade good-by to the “Atalanta,” which was burning every -pound of coal that could possibly be carried without putting Mr. Gould -or some efficient substitute on the safety valve. - -“He seems to be out of humor to-night,” said his coachman, after leaving -his employer at the door of his Irvington mansion. - -The mystic “100” which, by the way, was just one hundred feet over all, -was merely the hundredth steamer built by the Herreshoffs, but on her -first trip up the Hudson she attracted as much attention as the “Half -Moon” of Henry Hudson or the “Clermont” of Robert Fulton. She was the -fastest yacht in the world, and was beaten on the river by only one -vessel, the “Mary Powell”—four and one-half minutes in twenty miles. - -Although Mr. Gould was considerably irritated at his defeat, he knew a -good thing when he saw it, and the next year he ordered a small steam -launch of the Herreshoffs. - -The “100” made a great stir in Boston Harbor. Later on she steamed -through the Erie canal and the Great Lakes, and made her home with the -millionaire Mark Hopkins. - - - THE “STILETTO” - -The versatility of the Herreshoffs has appeared in their famous boiler -improvement, and in the great variety of vessels they have built. The -“Stiletto” only ninety-four feet long, over all, astonished the yachting -world in 1885. On June 10, she beat the “Mary Powell” two miles in a -race of twenty-eight miles on the Hudson. At one time, the “Stiletto” -circled completely around the big steamer and then moved rapidly away -from her. - -Secretary Whitney bought the “Stiletto” for the United States navy, in -which she has done valuable service. She was followed, in 1890, by the -still faster “Cushing,” whose record in the recent Spanish-American war -is so well known. - -Admiral Porter wrote to Secretary of the Navy Chandler, that the little -Herreshoff steam launches were faster than any other owned by the -government, their great superiority showing especially against a strong -head wind and sea, when they would remain dry while their rivals -required constant bailing. They were better trimmed, lighter, more -buoyant, and in every way superior in nautical qualities, and twice as -fast as others in a gale. - -Nineteen vessels have been built by this firm for the United States -government. - -“There is a certain speed that attaches to every vessel, which may be -called its natural rate,” says Lewis Herreshoff; “it is mainly governed -by its length and the length of the carrier wave which always -accompanies a vessel parallel to her line of motion. When she reaches a -speed great enough to form a wave of the same length as the moving body, -then that vessel has reached her natural rate of speed, and all that can -be obtained above that is done by sheer brute force. The natural limit -of speed of a boat forty feet long is about ten miles an hour; of a -vessel sixty feet in length, twelve and one-quarter miles; of one a -hundred feet long, fifteen and three-fourths miles; of one two hundred -feet long, twenty-two miles.” - -As the speed is increased, this double or carrier wave, one-half on -either side of the yacht, lengthens in such a way that the vessel seems -to settle more the faster she goes, and so has to climb the very wave -she makes. Hence the motive power must be increased much faster than the -speed increases. Further, in order to avoid this settling and consequent -climbing as much as possible, lightness of construction, next to correct -proportions, is made the great desideratum in the Herreshoffs’ ideal -boat. They use wood wherever possible, as it is not only lighter than -metal, but is reasonably strong and generally much more durable. -Wherever heavy strains come, a bracing form of construction is adopted, -and metal is used also. - -The engine of the “Stiletto” weighs ten pounds for each indicated -horse-power; that of the “Cushing,” fifteen. The entire motive plant of -the “Cushing” weighs sixty-five pounds for each horse-power; that of the -“City of Paris,” two hundred. Comparing displacement, the former has -eight times the power of the latter. - -For four years our government kept a staff of officers stationed at the -Herreshoff works to experiment with high-speed machinery, in which the -firm then led the country. One of their steamers, ascending the St. -Lawrence River to the Thousand Islands, ran up all the rapids except the -Lachine, where a detour by canal was made. The Canadians were deeply -impressed by this triumph. - - - THE BLIND BROTHERS - -One of the Herreshoff sisters is blind and a remarkable musician; and -one brother blind who studied music in Berlin, and who conducts a school -of music in Providence. Lewis Herreshoff, one of the boat-builders, is -also blind. He, too, is a fine musician and an excellent bass singer, -having received careful vocal training in Europe. He has fine literary -taste, a very clear style, and writes for magazines, especially on -boat-building and engineering. He has a large foreign correspondence, -all of which he answers personally on the typewriter. It would be -difficult to find a greater favorite with young people, to whom he -devotes much of his time, teaching them games or lessons, also how to -sail or row a boat, how to swim or float, and how to save each other -from drowning. When walking along the street with a group of chatting -children, he will ask, “What time is it by the clock on St. Michael’s -Church?” pointing right at the steeple. He will wind a clock and set it -exactly, and regulate it, if it does not go right. - - - THE PERSONALITY OF JOHN B. HERRESHOFF - -From his boyhood, John B. Herreshoff evinced a great fondness for boats -and machinery, finding most pleasure, in his leisure hours, when boys of -his age usually think only of play, in haunting boat-builders’ yards and -machine shops, studying how and why things were done, and reading what -had been done elsewhere in those branches of industry, beyond his field -of observation. - -At the age of eleven, he was studying the best lines for vessels’ hulls -and making models and three years later he began building boats. - -His terrible affliction has never seemed to weaken his self-reliance or -turn him aside from following the chosen pursuit of his life, but has -rather strengthened his devotion to it and his capacity for it by -concentrating all his faculties upon it. - -His many years of blindness have given him not only the serious, -patient, introspective look common to those who suffer like him, and -their gentle, clearly modulated voice, but have also developed all his -other faculties to such an extent as to largely replace the missing -sense. - -He can tell as much about an ordinary-sized steam launch, her lines, -methods of construction, etc., by feeling, as others can by seeing, and -he goes on inventing and building just as if his eyes were not closed -forever. He is a tall, big-brained man, who couldn’t help inventing and -working if he tried. Such a man would have to suffer the loss of more -than one of his senses before his mental efficiency would be impaired. -When he wanted to build some steam launches for the government, he went -to the navy yard at Washington and felt of the government launches, to -discover their shape and how they were made. Then he went to Bristol and -made better launches suitable for the government’s use. - - - HAS HE A SIXTH SENSE? - -He reads and understands the most delicate intonations and modulations -of voices addressing him, as others read and understand facial -expression. His sensitive fingers detect differences in metals, and -follow, as if with a gift of perception, the lines of models submitted -to him, and his mind sees even more clearly than by mere physical sight -the intricacies of the most complicated machinery intelligently -described to him, or over which his fingers are allowed to move. “That -is a good stick,” he will say, examining a pile of lumber with his -fingers. “Here’s a shaky piece, throw it out; it won’t do for this -work,” may come next, or, “Saw off this end; it’s poor stock. The rest -is all right.” On hearing him criticize, direct, and explain things -within his province, a stranger finds it hard to believe he cannot see -at least a little,—out of one eye. - - - SEEING WITH THE FINGERS - -By the constant practice, he has, as he expresses it, learned to see -with his hands, not quite so quickly, but he believes as perfectly, as -he could with his eyes, and this means more than it does in the case of -an ordinary blind man; for, by a touch, he can tell whether the graceful -double curves of a boat’s bottom are in correct proportion, one with -another, and then, by a few rapid sweeps of his hands, over all, he can -instantly judge of the symmetry and perfection of the whole. Even more -than this, he will give minute directions to the carpenters and -mechanics, running his hand along the piece of work one had produced, -will immediately detect the slightest deviation from the instruction he -has given. If at all impatient, he will seize the plane or other tool, -and do the work himself. And yet the world calls this man “blind!” - -While skill plays a material part, one of John B. Herreshoff’s boats is -a product of the mind, in a very great degree. Psychologists tell us -that we do not see with our eyes, but with the brain proper. This blind -man sees, and constructs, not that which is objective and real to -others, but that which is evolved from a transcendental intelligence -applied to the most practical purposes. - - - BROTHER NAT - -One of the brothers, who has good eyes, is a prominent chemist in New -York; and one who can see is Nat the designer for the boat-building. - -Nathaniel G., the great yacht designer, was born in 1848. When he was -not more than two years old, he was often found asleep on the sand along -shore, with the rising tide washing his bare feet. Whenever he was -missing, he was sought for first on the shore, where he would generally -be found watching the ships or playing with toy boats. - -At nine years of age, he was an excellent helmsman, and at twelve he -sailed the “Sprite” to her first victory and won a prize. When older -grown, he was known as a vigilant watcher of every chance as well as a -skillful sailor. Once, when steering the “Ianthe” in a failing wind, he -veered widely from a crowd of contestants, so as to run into a good -breeze he noted far to starboard, and won the race. - -He took a four years’ course at the Massachusetts Institute of -Technology, and then served an apprenticeship with the famous Corliss -Engine Company. He worked on the great engine at the Centennial -Exposition, and took a course of engineering abroad, visiting many noted -shipyards. He joined the firm in 1877, fourteen years after the works -were opened. - -Nathaniel Greene Herreshoff, named for General Greene of Revolutionary -fame, is seven years younger, and only less famous than his blind -brother as a boat-builder,—only second to John B. in about the same way -that Greene was second to Washington. “General Greene is second to no -one,” said Washington. John B. would have done splendid work without Nat -as he did for years before the latter joined the firm, but it would have -been in a smaller way. - -For years John B., his father, and his brothers, James B. or Lewis, and -Nathaniel G., were accustomed to get together frequently in the -dining-room of the old homestead, and talk and plan together in regard -to boat-building. Nat would usually make the first model on lines -previously agreed upon, and then John B. would feel it over and suggest -changes, which would be made, and the consultation continued until all -was satisfactory. - -Nathaniel is described as “a tall, thin man, with a full beard and a -stoop,” the latter said to have been acquired in “watching his rivals in -his races, craning his head in order to see them from under the boom.” - -“We have been always together from boyhood,” said John B., speaking of -“Nat;” “we have had the same pleasures, the same purposes, the same -aspirations; in fact, we have almost been one, and we have achieved -nothing for which a full share of credit is not his just due. Nothing -has ever been done by one without the other. Whenever one found an -obstacle or difficulty, the other helped him to remove it; and he, being -without the disadvantage I have, never makes a mistake.” - - ------------------------------------------------------------------------- - - - - - XVIII - -A Successful Novelist: Fame After Fifty[8] - - - Practical Hints to Young Authors, - - BY MRS. AMELIA E. BARR - -TO be successful! That is the legitimate ideal every true worker seeks -to realize. But success is not the open secret which it appears to be; -its elements are often uncomprehended; and its roots generally go deep -down, into the very beginnings of life. I can compel my soul to look -back into that twilight which shrouds my earliest years, and perceive, -even in them, monitions and tendencies working for that future, which in -my destiny was fashioned and shaped when as yet there was neither hint -nor dream of it. Fortunately, I had parents who understood the - - - VALUE OF BIBLICAL AND IMAGINATIVE LITERATURE - -in the formation of the intellect. The men and women whom I knew first -and best were those of the Hebrew world. Sitting before the nursery -fire, while the snow fell softly and ceaselessly, and all the mountains -round were white, and the streets of the little English town choked with -drifts, I could see the camels and the caravans of the Ishmaelitish -merchants, passing through the hot, sandy desert. I could see Hagar -weeping under the palm, and the waters of the Red Sea standing up like a -wall. Miriam clashing the timbrels, and Deborah singing under the oak, -and Ruth gleaning in the wheatfields of Bethlehem, were as real to me as -were the women of my own home. Before I was six years old, I had been -with Christian to the Celestial City, and had watched, with Crusoe, the -mysterious footprint on the sand, and the advent of the savages. Then -came the wonders of afrites and genii, and all the marvels and miracles -of the Arabian tales. These were the mind-builders, and though schools -and teachers and text-books did much afterwards, I can never nor will -forget the glorious company of men and women from the sacred world, and -that marvelous company of caliphs and kings and princesses from Wonder -Land and Fairy Land, that expanded my whole nature, and fitted me for -the future miracles of Nature and Science, and all the marvelous people -of the Poet’s realm. - -Footnote 8: - - This is a most remarkable story, communicated to me by Mrs. Barr, and - related for the first time in this article. The distinguished - novelist, being a perfect housekeeper and the mother of a large - family, yet earns $20,000 a year by her books, which have been - translated into the language of almost every civilized country.—O. S. - M. - -For eighteen years I was amassing facts and fancies, developing a crude -intelligence, waiting for the vitalization of the heart. Then Love, the -Supreme Teacher, came; and his first lesson was, - - - RENUNCIATION. - -I was to give up father, and mother, home and kindred, friends and -country, and follow where he would lead me, into a land strange and far -off. Child-bearing and child-losing; the limitations and delights of -frontier life; the intimate society of such great and individual men as -Sam Houston, and the men who fought with him; the intense feelings -induced by war, its uncertainties and possibilities, and the awful -abiding in the Valley of the Shadow of Death, with the pestilence that -walked in darkness and the sickness that destroyed at noonday;—all these -events with their inevitable “asides” were instrumental in the education -and preparation of the seventeen years of my married life. - -The calamitous lesson of widowhood, under peculiarly tragic -circumstances, was the last initiation of a heart already broken and -humbled before Him who doeth all things well, no matter how hard the -stroke may be. I thought all was over then; yet all was just beginning. -It was the open door to a new life—a life full of comforts, and serene, -still, - - - DELIGHTFUL STUDIES. - -Though I had written stories to please my children, and many things to -please myself, it had never occurred to me that money could be made by -writing. The late William Libbey, a man of singular wisdom and kindness, -first made me understand that my brain and my ten fingers were security -for a good living. From my first effort I began to gather in the harvest -of all my years of study and reading and private writing. For there is -this peculiarity about writing—that if in any direction it has merit, it -will certainly find a market. - -For fifteen years I wrote short stories, poems, editorials, and articles -on every conceivable subject, from Herbert Spencer’s theories, to -gentlemen’s walking sticks; but bringing to every piece of work, if it -was only ten lines, the best of my knowledge and ability; and so -earning, with a great deal of pleasure, a very good living. During the -earlier years of this time I worked and read on an average - - - FIFTEEN HOURS A DAY; - -for I knew that, to make good work, I must have constant fresh material; -must keep up to date in style and method; and must therefore _read_ far -more than I wrote. But I have been an omnivorous reader all my life -long, and no changes, no cares of home and children, have ever -interfered with this mental necessity. In the most unlikely places and -circumstances, I looked for books, and found them. These fifteen years -on the weekly and monthly periodicals gave me the widest opportunities -for information. I had an alcove in the Astor Library, and I practically -lived in it. I slept and ate at home, but I lived in that City of Books. -I was in the prime of life, but neither society, amusements, nor -pleasures of any kind, could draw me away from the source of all my -happiness and profit. - -Suddenly, after this long novition, I received the “call” for a -different work. I had - - - AN ACCIDENT - -which confined me to my room, and which, I knew, would keep me from -active work for some months. I fretted for my work, as dry wood frets an -inch from the flame, and said, “I shall lose all I have gained; I shall -fall behind in the race; all these things are against me.” They were all -for me. A little story of what seemed exceptional merit, had been laid -away, in the hope that I might some day find time to extend it into a -novel. A prisoner in my chair, I finished the book in six weeks, and -sent it to Dodd, Mead & Co. On Thanksgiving morning, a letter came, -accepting the book, and any of my readers can imagine what a happy -Thanksgiving Day that was! This book was “Jan Vedder’s Wife,” and its -great and immediate success indicated to me the work I was at length -ready for. I was then in my fifty-second year, and every year had been a -preparation for the work I have since pursued. I went out from that sick -room sure of my - - - VOCATION; - -and, with a confidence founded on the certainty of my equipment, and a -determination to trust humanity, and take my readers only into green -pastures and ways of purity and heroism, I ventured on my new path as a -novelist. - -I cannot close this paper without a few words to those who wish to -profit by it. I want them to be sure of a few points which, in my -narrative, I may not have emphasized sufficiently. - - - WORDS OF COUNSEL - -1. Men and women succeed _because they take pains to succeed_. Industry -and patience are almost genius; and successful people are often more -distinguished for resolution and perseverance than for unusual gifts. -They make determination and unity of purpose supply the place of -ability. - -2. Success is the reward of those who “spurn delights and live laborious -days.” We learn to do things by _doing them. One of the great secrets of -success is “pegging away.”_ No disappointment must discourage, and a run -back must often be allowed, in order to take a longer leap forward. - -3. _No opposition must be taken to heart._ Our enemies often help us -more than our friends. Besides, a head-wind is better than no wind. Who -ever got anywhere in a dead calm? - -4. _A fatal mistake is to imagine that success is some stroke of luck._ -This world is run with far too tight a rein for luck to interfere. -Fortune _sells_ her wares; she never gives them. In some form or other, -we pay for her favors; or we go empty away. - -5. We have been told, for centuries, to watch for opportunities, and to -strike while the iron is hot. Very good; but I think better of Oliver -Cromwell’s amendment.—“_make the iron hot by striking it._” - -6. Everything good needs time. Don’t do work in a hurry. Go into -details; it pays in every way. _Time means power for your work._ -Mediocrity is always in a rush; but whatever is worth doing at all is -worth doing with consideration. For genius is nothing more nor less than -doing well what anyone can do badly. - -7. _Be orderly._ Slatternly work is never good work. It is either -affectation, or there is some radical defect in the intellect. I would -distrust even the spiritual life of one whose methods and work were -dirty, untidy, and without clearness and order. - -8. Never be above your profession. I have had many letters from people -who wanted all the emoluments and honors of literature, and who yet -said, “Literature is the accident of my life; I am a lawyer, or a -doctor, or a lady, or a gentleman.” _Literature is no accident. She is a -mistress who demands the whole heart, the whole intellect, and the whole -time of a devotee._ - -9. Don’t fail through defects of temper and over-sensitiveness at -moments of trial. _One of the great helps to success is to be cheerful_; -to go to work with a full sense of life; to be determined to put -hindrances out of the way; to prevail over them and to get the mastery. -_Above all things else, be cheerful_; there is no beatitude for the -despairing. - -Apparent success may be reached by sheer impudence, in defiance of -offensive demerit. But men who get what they are manifestly unfit for, -are made to feel what people think of them. Charlatanry may flourish; -but when its bay tree is greenest, it is held far lower than genuine -effort. The world is just; it may, it does, patronize quacks; but _it -never puts them on a level with true men_. - -It is better to have the opportunity of victory, than to be spared the -struggle; for success comes but as the result of arduous experience. The -foundations of my success were laid before I can well remember; _it was -after at least forty-five years of conscious labor that I reached the -object of my hope_. Many a time my head failed me, my hands failed me, -my feet failed me, but, thank God, my _heart_ never failed me. Because -_I knew that no extremity would find God’s arm shortened_. - - ------------------------------------------------------------------------- - - - - - XIX - -How Theodore Thomas Brought the People Nearer to Music - - -MR. THOMAS is an early riser, and as I found him one morning, in his -chambers in Chicago, he was preparing to leave for rehearsal. The hale -old gentleman actively paced the floor, while I conversed with him. - -“Mr. Thomas,” I said, “those familiar with the events of your life -consider them a lesson of encouragement for earnest and high-minded -artists.” - -“That is kind,” he answered. - -“I should like, if you will, to have you speak of your work in building -up your great orchestra in this country.” - -“That is too long a story. I would have to begin with my birth.” - -“Where were you born?” I asked. - -“In the kingdom of Hanover, in 1835. My father was a violinist, and from -him I inherited my taste, I suppose. He taught me music. When I was only -six years old, I played the violin at public concerts.” - - - “I WAS NOT AN INFANT PRODIGY” - -“I was not an infant prodigy, however. My father had too much wisdom to -injure my chances in that way. He made me keep to my studies in a manner -that did me good. I came to America in 1845.” - -“Was the American music field crowded then?” - -“On the contrary, there wasn’t any field to speak of. It had to be made. -Music was the pastime of a few. The well-educated and fashionable -classes possessed or claimed a knowledge of it. There was scarcely any -music for the common people.” - -“How did you get your start in the New York world of music?” I asked. - -“With four associates, William Mason, Joseph Mosenthal, George Matzka -and Frederick Berguer, I began a series of concerts of Chamber Music, -and for many years we conducted this modest artistic enterprise. There -was much musical enthusiasm on our part, but very little reward, except -the pleasure we drew from our own playing. - -“These Mason and Thomas _soirées_ are still remembered by old-time music -lovers of New York, not only for their excellence, but for the peculiar -character of the audiences. They were quiet little monthly reunions, to -which most of the guests came with complimentary tickets. The critics -hardly ventured to intrude upon the exercises, and the newspapers gave -them little notice.” - - - BEGINNING OF THE ORCHESTRA - -“How did you come to found your great orchestra?” - -“It was more of a growth than a full-fledged thought to begin with. It -was in 1861 that I severed my connection with the opera and began to -establish a genuine orchestra. I began with occasional performances, -popular matinée concerts, and so on, and, in a few years, was able to -give a series of Symphony _Soirées_ at the old Irving Hall in New York.” - -To the average person this work of Mr. Thomas may seem to be neither -difficult nor great. Yet while anyone could have collected a band in a -week, to make such an orchestra as Mr. Thomas meant to have, required -time and patience. It was when the Philharmonic Society, after living -through a great many hardships, was on the full tide of popular favor. -Its concerts and rehearsals filled the Academy of Music with the flower -of New York society. Powerful social influences had been won to its -support, and Carl Bergmann had raised its noble orchestra of one hundred -performers to a point of proficiency then quite unexampled in this -country, and in some particulars still unsurpassed. Ladies and gentlemen -who moved in the best circles hardly noticed the parallel entertainment -offered in such a modest way, by Mr. Thomas, on the opposite side of the -street. The patrons of his Chamber Concerts, of course, went in to see -what the new orchestra was like; professional musicians hurried to the -hall with their free passes; and there were a few curious listeners -besides who found in the programmes a class of compositions somewhat -different from those which Mr. Bergmann chiefly favored, and, in -particular, a freshness and novelty in the selections, with an -inclination, not yet very strongly marked, toward the modern German -school. Among such of the _dilettanti_ as condescended to think of Mr. -Thomas at all, there was a vague impression that his concerts were -started in opposition to the Philharmonic Society, but that they were -not so good and much less genteel. - -It is true that Mr. Thomas was surpassed, at that time, by Mr. -Bergmann’s larger and older orchestra, and that he had much less than an -equal share of public favor, but there was no intentional rivalry. The -two men had entirely different ideas and worked them out in perfectly -original ways. It was only the artist’s dismal period of struggle and -neglect, which every beginner must pass through. He had to meet cold and -meager audiences, and the false judgment of both the critics and the -people. Yet he was a singular compound of good American energy and -German obstinacy, and he never lost courage. - -“Was it a long struggle?” I asked. - -“Not very long. Matters soon began to mend. The orchestra improved, the -dreadful gaps in the audience soon filled up, and at the end of the year -the Symphony _Soirées_, if they made no excitement in musical circles, -had at least achieved a high reputation.” - -“What was your aim, at that time?” - -“When I began, I was convinced that there is no music too high for the -popular appreciation,—that no scientific education is required for the -enjoyment of Beethoven. I believed that it is only necessary that a -public whose taste has been vitiated by over-indulgence in trifles, -should have time and opportunity to accustom itself to better things. -The American people at large then (1864) knew little or nothing of the -great composers for the orchestra. Three or four more or less complete -organizations had visited the principal cities of the United States in -former years, but they made little permanent impression. Juillien had -brought over, for his monster concerts, only five or six solo players, -and the band was filled up with such material as he found here. The -celebrated Germania Band of New York, which had first brought Mr. -Bergmann (famous then as the head of the New York Philharmonic Society) -into notice, did some admirable work just previous to my start in New -York, but it disbanded after six years of vicissitude, and, besides, it -was not a complete orchestra.” - -“You mean,” I said, as Mr. Thomas paused meditatively, “that you came at -a time when there was a decided opportunity?” - - - MUSIC HAD NO HOLD ON THE MASSES - -“Yes. There had been, and were then, good organizations, such as the New -York Philharmonic Society and the Harvard Musical Association in Boston, -and a few similar organizations in various parts of the country. I mean -no disparagement to their honorable labors, but, in simple truth, none -of them had great influence on the masses. They were pioneers of -culture. They prepared the way for the modern permanent orchestra.” - -“They were not important?” - -“No, no; that cannot be said. It would be the grossest ingratitude to -forget what they did and have done and are still doing, or detract in -the smallest degree from their well-earned fame. But from the very -nature of their organization, it was inevitable that they should stand a -little apart from the common crowd. To the general public, their -performances were more like mysterious rites, celebrated behind closed -doors, in the presence of a select and unchanging company of believers. -Year after year, the same twenty-five hundred people filled the New York -Academy of Music at the Philharmonic concerts, applauding the same class -of master works, and growing more and more familiar with the same -standards of the strictly classical school. This was no cause for -complaint; on the contrary, it was most fortunate that the reverence for -the older forms of art and canons of taste were thus kept alive; and we -know that, little by little, the culture which the Philharmonic Society -diffuses, through the circle of its regular subscribers, spreads beyond -that small company, and raises the æsthetic tone of metropolitan life. -But I believed then, as I believe now, that it would require generations -for this little leaven to leaven the whole mass, and so I undertook to -do my part in improving matters by forming an orchestra.” - -“You wanted to get nearer the people with good music?” - -“No, I wanted the people to get nearer to music. I was satisfied that -the right course is to begin at the bottom instead of the top, and make -the cultivation of symphonic music a popular movement.” - -“Was the idea of a popular permanent orchestra new at that time?” - -“Yes.” - -“Why was it necessary to effect a permanent orchestra?” - -“Why? Because the first step in making music popular was to raise the -standard of orchestral performances and increase their frequency. Our -country had never possessed a genuine orchestra, for a band of players -gathered together at rare intervals for a special purpose does not -deserve the name. The musician who marches at the head of a target -company all the morning and plays for a dancing party at night, is out -of tune with the great masters. To express the deep emotions of -Beethoven, the romanticism of Schumann, or the poetry of Liszt, he ought -to live in an atmosphere of art, and keep not only his hand in practice, -but his mind properly attempered. An orchestra, therefore, ought to be a -permanent body, whose members play together every day, under the same -conductor, and devote themselves exclusively to genuine music. Nobody -had yet attempted to found an orchestra of this kind in America when I -began; but I believed it could be done.” - - - WORKING OUT HIS IDEA - -“Did you have an idea of a permanent building for your orchestra?” - -“Yes. I wanted something more than an ordinary concert-room. The idea -needed it. It was to be a place suitable for use at all seasons of the -year. There was to be communication in summer with an open garden, and -in winter it was to be a perfect auditorium.” - -Mr. Thomas’s idea went even further. It must be bright, comfortable, -roomy, well ventilated—for a close and drowsy atmosphere is fatal to -symphonic music,—it must offer to the multitude every attraction not -inconsistent with musical enjoyment. The stage must be adapted for a -variety of performances, for popular summer entertainment as well as the -most serious of classical concerts. There, with an uninterrupted course -of entertainments, night after night, the whole year round, the noblest -work of all the great masters might be worthily presented. - -The scheme was never wholly worked out in New York, great as Mr. -Thomas’s fame became, but it was partially realized in the old -Exposition building in Chicago, where he afterwards gave his summer -concerts, and it is still nearer reality in the present permanent -Chicago orchestra, which has the great Auditorium for its home and a -$50,000 annual guarantee. - -“What were your first steps in this direction?” I asked. - -“I began with a series of _al fresco_ entertainments in the old Terrace -Garden, in June, 1866. They were well patronized; and repeated in 1867. -Then, in 1868, we removed to better quarters in Central Park Garden, and -things prospered, so that, in 1869, I began those annual tours, which -are now so common.” - -The first itinerary of this kind was not very profitable, but the young -conductor fought through it. Each new season improved somewhat, but -there were troubles and losses. More than once, the travelers trod close -upon the heels of calamity. The cost of moving from place to place was -so great that the most careful management was necessary to cover -expenses. They could not afford to be idle, even for a night, and the -towns capable of furnishing good audiences generally wanted fun. Hence -they must travel all day, and Thomas took care that the road should be -smoothed with all obtainable comforts. Special cars on the railways, -special attendants to look after the luggage, and lodgings at the best -hotels contributed to make the tour tolerably pleasant and easy, so that -the men came to their evening work fresh and smiling. They were tied up -by freshets and delayed by wrecks; but their fame grew, and the -audiences became greater. Thomas’s fame as a conductor who could -guarantee constant employment permitted him to take his choice of the -best players in the country, and he brought over a number of European -celebrities as the public taste improved. - -Theodore Thomas did another wise thing. He treated New York like a -provincial city, giving it a week of music once in a while as he passed -through it on his travels. This excited the popular interest, and when -he came to stay, the next season, a brilliantly successful series of -concerts was the result. At the close, a number of his admirers united -in presenting him a rich silver casket, holding a purse of thirty-five -hundred dollars, as a testimonial of gratitude for his services. The -Brooklyn Philharmonic Society placed itself under his direction. Chicago -gave him a fine invitation to attend benefit entertainments to himself; -and, when he came, decked the hall with abundant natural flowers, as if -for the reception of a hero. He was successful financially and every -other way, and from that time on he merely added to his laurels. - - - THE CHIEF ELEMENT OF HIS SUCCESS - -“What,” I asked of him, “do you consider the chief element of your -success?” - -“That is difficult to say. Perseverance, hard work, stern -discipline,—each had its part.” - -“You have never attempted to become rich?” - -“Poh!” - -“Do you still believe in the best music for the mass of the people?” - -“I do. My success has been with them. It was so in New York; it is so -here in Chicago.” - -“Do you still work as hard as ever?” I inquired. - -“Nearly so. The training of a large orchestra never ends. The work must -be gone over and over. There is always something new.” - -“And your life’s pleasure lies in this?” - -“Wholly so. To render perfect music perfectly—that is enough.” - - ------------------------------------------------------------------------- - - - - - XX - -John Burroughs at Home: The Hut on the Hill Top - - -WHEN I visited the hill-top retreat of John Burroughs, the distinguished -writer upon nature, at West Park, New York, it was with the feeling that -all success is not material; that mere dollars are nothing, and that the -influential man is the successful man, whether he be rich or poor. John -Burroughs is unquestionably both influential and poor. Relatively poor: -being an owner of some real estate, and having a modest income from -copyrights. He is content: knowing when he has enough. On the wooden -porch of his little bark-covered cabin I waited, one June afternoon, -until he should come back from the woods and fields, where he had gone -for a ramble. It was so still that the sound of my rocker moving to and -fro on the rough boards of the little porch seemed to shock the perfect -quiet. From afar off came the plaintive cry of a wood-dove, and then all -was still again. Presently the interpreter of out-door life appeared in -the distance, and, seeing a stranger at his door, hurried homeward. He -was without coat or vest and looked cool in his white outing shirt and -large straw hat. After some formalities of introduction we reached the -subject which I had called to discuss, and he said:— - -“It is not customary to interview men of my vocation concerning -success.” - -“Any one who has made a lasting impression on the minds of his -contemporaries,” I began, “and influenced men and women—” - -“Do you refer to me?” he interrupted, naïvely. - -I nodded and he laughed. “I have not endowed a university nor made a -fortune, nor conquered an enemy in battle,” he said. - -“And those who have done such things have not written ‘Locusts and Wild -Honey’ and ‘Wake-Robin.’” - -“I recognize,” he said quietly, “that success is not always where people -think it is. There are many ways of being successful; and I do not -approve of the mistake which causes many to consider that a great -fortune acquired means a great success achieved. On the contrary, our -greatest men need very little money to accomplish the greatest work.” - -“I thought that anyone leading a life so wholly at variance with the -ordinary ideas and customs would see success in life from a different -point of view,” I observed. “Money is really no object with you?” - -“The subject of wealth never disturbs me.” - -“You lead a very simple life here.” - -“Such as you see.” - -The sight would impress anyone. So far is this disciple of nature away -from the ordinary mode of the world, that his little cabin, set in the -cup-shaped top of a hill, is practically bare of luxuries and the -so-called comforts of life. His surroundings are of the rudest, the very -rocks and bushes encroaching upon his back door. All about, the crest of -the hill encircles him, and shuts out the world. Only the birds of the -air venture to invade his retreat from the various sides of the -mountain; and there is only one approach by a straggling, narrow path. -In his house are no decorations but such as can be hung upon the exposed -wood. The fireplace is of brick, and quite wide; the floor, rough boards -scrubbed white; the ceiling, a rough array of exposed rafters; and his -bed rudely constructed. Very few and very simple chairs, a plain table -and some shelves for books make the wealth of the retreat and serve for -his ordinary use.[9] - -Footnote 9: - - This hut on the hill-top is situated in an old lake bed, some three - hundred yards wide, half filled with peat and decomposed matter, - swampy and overgrown. This area was devoted by Mr. Burroughs to the - raising of celery for the market, when he set out to earn a living - upon the land. - -“Many people,” I said, “think that your method of living is an ideal -example of the way people ought to live.” - -“There is nothing remarkable in that. A great many people are very weary -of the way they think themselves compelled to live. They are mistaken in -believing that the disagreeable things they find themselves doing, are -the things they ought to do. A great many take their ideas of a proper -aim in life from what other people say and do. Consequently, they are -unhappy, and an independent existence such as mine strikes them as -ideal. As a matter of fact, it is very natural.” - -“Would you say that to work so as to be able to live like this should be -the aim of a young man?” - -“By no means. On the contrary, his aim should be to live in such a way -as will give his mind the greatest freedom and peace. This can be very -often obtained by wanting less of material things and more of -intellectual ones. A man who achieved such an aim would be as well off -as the most distinguished man in any field. Money-getting is half a -mania, and some other ‘getting’ propensities are manias also. The man -who gets content comes nearest to being reasonable.” - -“I should like,” I said, “to illustrate your point of view from the -details of your own life.” - -“Students of nature do not, as a rule, have eventful lives. I was born -at Roxbury, New York, in 1837. That was a time when conditions were -rather primitive. My father was a farmer, and I was raised among the -woods and fields. I came from an uncultivated, unreading class of -society, and grew up among surroundings the least calculated to awaken -the literary faculty. I have no doubt that daily contact with the woods -and fields awakened my interest in the wonders of nature, and gave me a -bent toward investigation in that direction.”[10] - -Footnote 10: - - “Blessed is he whose youth was passed upon a farm,” writes Mr. - Burroughs; “and if it was a dairy farm his memories will be all the - more fragrant. The driving of the cows to and from the pasture every - day and every season for years,—how much of summer and of nature he - got into him on these journeys! What rambles and excursions did this - errand furnish the excuse for! The birds and birds’ nests, the - berries, the squirrels, the woodchucks, the beech woods into which the - cows loved so to wander and browse, the fragrant wintergreens, and a - hundred nameless adventures, all strung upon that brief journey of - half a mile to and from the remote pasture.” - -“Did you begin early to make notes and write upon nature?” I questioned. - -“Not before I was sixteen or seventeen. Earlier than that, the art of -composition had anything but charms for me. I remember that while at -school, at the age of fourteen, I was required, like other students, to -write ‘compositions’ at stated times, but I usually evaded the duty one -way or another. On one occasion, I copied something from a comic -almanac, and unblushingly handed it in as my own. But the teacher -detected the fraud, and ordered me to produce a twelve-line composition -before I left school. I remember I racked my brain in vain, and the -short winter day was almost closing when Jay Gould, who sat in the seat -behind me, wrote twelve lines of doggerel on his slate and passed it -slyly over to me. I had so little taste for writing that I coolly copied -that, and handed it in as my own.” - -“You were friendly with Gould then?” - -“Oh, yes, ‘chummy,’ they call it now. His father’s farm was only a -little way from ours, and we were fast friends, going home together -every night.” - -“His view of life must have been considerably different from yours.” - -“It was. I always looked upon success as being a matter of mind, not -money; but Jay wanted the material appearances. I remember that once we -had a wrestling match, and as we were about even in strength, we agreed -to abide by certain rules,—taking what we called ‘holts’ in the -beginning and not breaking them until one or the other was thrown. I -kept to this in the struggle, but when Jay realized that he was in -danger of losing the contest, he broke the ‘holt’ and threw me. When I -remarked that he had broken his agreement, he only laughed and said, ‘I -threw you, didn’t I?’ And to every objection I made, he made the same -answer. The fact of having won was pleasing to him. It satisfied him, -although it wouldn’t have contented me.” - -“Did you ever talk over success in life with him?” - -“Yes, quite often. He was bent on making money, and did considerable -trading among us schoolboys,—sold me some of his books. I felt then that -my view of life was more satisfactory to me than his would have been. I -wanted to obtain a competence, and then devote myself to high thinking -instead of to money-making.”[11] - -Footnote 11: - - An old schoolmate in the little red schoolhouse has said, that “John - and Jay were not like the other boys. They learned their lessons - easier; and at recess they looked on the games, but did not join in - them. John always knew where to find the largest trout; he could show - you birds’ nests, and name all the flowers. He was fond of reading, - and would walk five miles to borrow a book. Roxbury is proud of John - Burroughs. We celebrated ‘Burroughs Day’ instead of Arbor Day here - last spring, in the high school, in honor of him.” - -“How did you plan to attain this end?” - -“By study. I began in my sixteenth or seventeenth year to try to express -myself on paper, and when, after I had left the country school, I -attended the seminary at Ashland and at Cooperstown, I often received -the highest marks in composition, though only standing about the average -in general scholarship. My taste ran to essays, and I picked up the -great works in that field at a bookstore, from time to time, and filled -my mind with the essay idea. I bought the whole of Dr. Johnson’s works -at a second-hand bookstore in New York, because, on looking into them I -found his essays appeared to be solid literature, which I thought was -just the thing. Almost my first literary attempts were moral -reflections, somewhat in the Johnsonian style.” - -“You were supporting yourself during these years?” - -“I taught six months and ‘boarded round’ before I went to the seminary. -That put fifty dollars into my pocket, and the fifty paid my way at the -seminary.[12] Working on the farm, studying and teaching filled up the -years until 1863, when I went to Washington and found employment in the -Treasury Department.” - -Footnote 12: - - It was when he was attending the academy, that young Burroughs first - saw that wonderful being—a living author:— - - “I distinctly remember with what emotion I gazed upon him,” he said, - “and followed him about in the twilight, keeping on the other side of - the street. He was of little account,—a man who had failed as a - lawyer, and then had written a history of Poland, which I have never - heard of since that time; but to me he was the embodiment of the - august spirit of authorship, and I looked upon him with more reverence - and enthusiasm than I had ever before looked upon any man with. I - cannot divine why I should have stood in such worshipful fear and awe - of this obscure individual, but I suppose it was the instinctive - tribute of a timid and imaginative youth to a power he was just - beginning to see,—or to feel,—the power of letters.” - -“You were connected with the Treasury then?”[13] - -Footnote 13: - - “My first book, ‘Wake-Robin,’ was written while I was a government - clerk in Washington,” says Mr. Burroughs. “It enabled me to live over - again the days I had passed with the birds, and in the scenes of my - youth. I wrote the book while sitting at a desk in front of an iron - wall. I was the keeper of a vault in which many million of bank-notes - were stored. During my long periods of leisure, I took refuge in my - pen. How my mind reacted from the iron wall in front of me, and sought - solace in memories of the birds and of summer fields and woods.” - -“Oh, yes; for nearly nine years. I left the department in 1872, to -become receiver of a bank, and subsequently for several years I -performed the work of a bank examiner. I considered it only as an -opportunity to earn and save up a little money on which I could retire. -I managed to do that, and came back to this region, where I bought a -fruit farm. I worked that into paying condition, and then gave all my -time to the pursuit of the studies I like.” - -“Had you abandoned your interest in nature during your Washington life?” - -“No. I gave as much time to the study of nature and literature as I had -to spare. When I was twenty-three I wrote an essay on ‘Expression,’ and -sent it to the ‘_Atlantic_.’ It was so Emersonian in style, owing to my -enthusiasm for Emerson at that time, that the editor thought some one -was trying to palm off on him an early essay of Emerson’s which he had -not seen. He found that Emerson had not published any such paper, -however, and printed it, though it had not much merit. I wrote off and -on for the magazines.” - -The editor in question was James Russell Lowell, who, instead of -considering it without merit, often expressed afterwards the delight -with which he read this contribution from an unknown hand, and the swift -impression of the author’s future distinction which came to him with -that reading. - -“Your successful work, then, has been in what direction?” I said. - -“In studying nature. It has all come by living close to the plants and -animals of the woods and fields, and coming to understand them. There I -have been successful. Men who, like myself, are deficient in -self-assertion, or whose personalities are flexible and yielding, make a -poor show in business, but in certain other fields these defects become -advantages. Certainly it is so in my case. I can succeed with bird or -beast, for I have cultivated my ability in that direction. I can look in -the eye of an ugly dog or cow and win, but with an ugly man I have less -success. - -“I consider the desire which most individuals have for the luxuries -which money can buy, an error of mind” he added. “Those things do not -mean anything except a lack of higher tastes. Such wants are not -necessary wants, nor honorable wants. If you cannot get wealth with a -noble purpose, it is better to abandon it and get something else. Peace -of mind is one of the best things to seek, and finer tastes and -feelings. The man who gets these, and maintains himself comfortably, is -much more admirable and successful than the man who gets money and -neglects these. The realm of power has no fascination for me. I would -rather have my seclusion and peace of mind. This log hut, with its bare -floors, is sufficient. I am set down among the beauties of nature, and -in no danger of losing the riches that are scattered all about. No one -will take my walks or my brook away from me. The flowers, birds and -animals are plentifully provided. I have enough to eat and wear, and -time to see how beautiful the world is, and to enjoy it. The entire -world is after your money, or the things you have bought with your -money. It is trying to keep them that makes them seem so precious. I -live to broaden and enjoy my own life, believing that in so doing I do -what is best for everyone. If I ran after birds only to write about -them, I should never have written anything that anyone else would have -cared to read. I must write from sympathy and love,—that is, from -enjoyment,—or not at all. I come gradually to have a feeling that I want -to write upon a given theme. Whenever the subject recurs to me, it -awakens a warm, personal response. My confidence that I ought to write -comes from the feeling or attraction which some subjects exercise over -me. The work is pleasure, and the result gives pleasure.” - -“And your work as a naturalist is what?” - -“Climbing trees to study birds, lying by the waterside to watch the -fishes, sitting still in the grass for hours to study the insects, and -tramping here and there, always to observe and study whatever is common -to the woods and fields.” - -“Men think you have done a great work,” I said. - -“I have done a pleasant work,” he said, modestly. - -“And the achievements of your schoolmate Gould do not appeal to you as -having anything in them worth aiming for?” I questioned. - -“Not for me. I think my life is better for having escaped such vast and -difficult interests.” - -The gentle, light-hearted naturalist and recluse came down the long -hillside with me, “to put me right” on the main road. I watched him as -he retraced his steps up the steep, dark path, lantern in hand. His -sixty years sat lightly upon him, and as he ascended I heard him -singing. Long after the light melody had died away, I saw the serene -little light bobbing up and down in his hand, disappearing and -reappearing, as the lone philosopher repaired to his hut and his couch -of content. - - ------------------------------------------------------------------------- - - - - - XXI - -Vreeland’s Romantic Story: How He Came to Transport a Million Passengers - a Day - - -A SHORT time ago, New York learned with interest and some astonishment, -that the head of its greatest transportation system, Herbert H. -Vreeland, had received from several of his associates as individuals, a -“valentine” present of $100,000, in recognition of his superb management -of their properties. Many New Yorkers then learned, for the first time, -what railroad experts throughout the country had long known, that the -transportation of a million people a day in New York’s busy streets, -without serious friction or public annoyance, is not a matter of chance, -but is the result of perhaps the most perfect traffic organization ever -created, at the head of which is a man, quiet, forceful, able, with the -ability of a great general—a master and at the same time, a friend of -men,—himself one for whom in the judgment of his associates almost any -higher railroad career is possible. - -Thirty years ago Mr. Vreeland, then a lad thirteen years old, was, to -use his own humorous, reminiscent phrase, “h’isting ice” on the Hudson -River, one of a gang of eighteen or twenty men and boys filling the ice -carts for retail city delivery. A picture just brought to light, shows -him among the force lined up to be photographed, as a tall, loosely -built, hatchet-faced lad in working garb, with a fragment of a smile on -his face, as if he could appreciate the contrast of the boy of that day -with the man of the future. - -How do these things happen? What was the divine spark in this boy’s -brain and heart that should lift him out of the crowd of the commonplace -to the position of responsibility and influence in the world which he -now occupies? If my readers could have been present at the interview -kindly granted by Mr. Vreeland to the writer, and could have heard him -recalling his early life and its many struggles and disappointments with -a smile that was often near a tear, they would have gone away feeling -that nothing is impossible to him who dares, and, above all else, who -_works_, and they would have derived inspiration far greater than can -possibly be given in these written words. - -“I first entered the railroad business in 1875,” said Mr. Vreeland, -“shoveling gravel on one of the Long Island Railroad Company’s night -construction trains. Though this position was humble enough, it was a -great thing to me then to feel myself a railroad man, with all that that -term implied; and when, after a few months’ trial, I was given the job -of inspecting ties and roadbed at a dollar a day, I felt that I was well -on the road to the presidency. - -“One day the superintendent asked my boss if he could give him a -reliable man to replace a switchman who had just made a blunder leading -to a collision, and had been discharged. The reply was, ‘Well, I’ve got -a man named Vreeland here, who will do exactly what you tell him to.’ -They called me up, and, after a few short, sharp questions from the -train-master, I went down to the dreary and desolate marsh near -Bushwick, Long Island, and took charge of a switch. For a few days I had -to camp out near that switch, in any way that might happen, but finally -the officers made up their minds that they could afford me the luxury of -a two-by-four flag-house with a stove in it, and I settled down for more -railroading. - -“The Bushwick station was not far away, and one of the company’s -division headquarters was there. I soon made the acquaintance of all the -officials around that station, and got into their good graces by -offering to help them out in their clerical work at any and all times -when I was off duty. It was a godsend to them, and exactly what I -wanted, for I had determined to get into the inside of the railroad -business from bottom to top. Many’s the time I have worked till eleven -or twelve o’clock at night in that little station, figuring out train -receipts and expenses, engine cost and duty, and freight and passenger -statistics of all kinds; and, as a result of this work, I quickly -acquired a grasp of railroad details in all stages, which few managers -possess, for, in one way and another, I got into and through every -branch of the business. - -“My Bushwick switch was a temporary one, put in for construction -purposes only, and, after some months’ use, was discontinued, and I was -discharged. This did not suit me at all, and I went to one of the -officials of the road and told him that I wanted to remain with the Long -Island Railroad Company in any capacity whatsoever, and would be obliged -to him if he would give me a job. He said, at first, that he hadn’t a -thing for me to do, but finally added, as if he was ashamed to suggest -it, that, if I had a mind to go down on another division and sweep out -and dust cars, I might do it. I instantly accepted, and thereby learned -the details of another important railroad department. - -“Pretty soon they made me brakeman on an early morning train to -Hempstead, and then I found that I was worth to the world, after two -years of railroad training, just forty dollars a month, _plus_ a -perquisite or two obtained from running a card-table department in the -smoking-cars. I remembered that I paid eighteen dollars of my munificent -salary for board and lodging, sent twenty dollars home for the support -of my mother and sister, and had two dollars a month and the aforesaid -perquisites left for ‘luxuries.’ - -“It was about this time, thus early in my career, that I first came to -be known as ‘President Vreeland.’ An old codger upon the railroad, in -talking to me one day, said, in a bantering way: ‘Well, I suppose you -think your fortune is made, now you have become a brakeman, but let me -tell you what will happen. You will be a brakeman about four or five -years, and then they will make you a conductor, at about one hundred -dollars a month, and there you’ll stick all your life, if you don’t get -discharged.’ I responded, rather angrily, ‘Do you suppose I am going to -be satisfied with remaining a conductor? I mean to be president of a -railroad.’ ‘Ho, ho, ho!’ laughed the man. He told the story around, and -many a time thereafter the boys slyly placed the word ‘President’ before -my name on official instructions and packages sent to me. - -“A conductor on one of the regular trains quarreled one morning with the -superintendent and was discharged. I was sent for and told to take out -that train. This was jumping me over the heads of many of the older -brakemen, and, as a consequence, all the brakemen on that train quit. -Others were secured, however, and I ran the train regularly for a good -many months. - -“Then came an accident one day, for which the engineer and I were -jointly responsible. We admitted our responsibility, and were -discharged. I went again to the superintendent, however, and, upon a -strong plea to be retained in the service, he sent me back to the ranks -among the brakemen. I had no complaint to make, but accepted the -consequence of my mistake. - -“Soon after this, the control of the road passed into other hands. Many -were discharged, and I was daily expecting my own ‘blue envelope.’ One -day, I was detailed to act as brakeman on a special which was to convey -the president and directors of the road, with invited guests, on a trip -over the lines. By that time I had learned the Long Island Railroad in -all its branches pretty well; and, in the course of the trip, was called -upon to answer a great many questions. The next day I received word that -the superintendent wanted to see me. My heart sank within me, for -summonses of this kind were ominous in those days, but I duly presented -myself at the office and was asked, ‘Are you the good-looking brakeman -who was on the special yesterday who shows his teeth when he smiles?’ I -modestly replied that I was certainly on the special yesterday, and I -may possibly have partly confirmed the rest of the identification by a -smile, for the superintendent, without further questioning, said: ‘The -president wants to see you, up stairs.’ - -“I went up, and in due time was shown into the presence of the great -man, who eyed me closely for a minute or two, and then asked me abruptly -what I was doing. I told him I was braking Number Seventeen. He said: -‘Take this letter to your superintendent. It contains a request that he -relieve you from duty, and put somebody else in your place. After he has -done so, come back here.’ - -“All this I did, and, on my return to the president, he said, ‘Take this -letter at once to Admiral Peyron, of the French fleet (then lying in the -harbor on a visit of courtesy to this country), and this to General -Hancock, on Governor’s Island. They contain invitations to each to dine -with me to-morrow night at my home in Garden City with their staffs. Get -their answers, and, if they say yes, return at once to New York, charter -a steamer, call for them to-morrow afternoon, land them at Long Island -City, arrange for a special train from Long Island City to Garden City, -take them there, and return them after the banquet. I leave everything -in your hands. Good day.’ - -“I suppose this might be considered a rather large job for a common -brakeman, but I managed to get through with it without disgracing -myself, and apparently to the satisfaction of all concerned. For some -time thereafter, I was the president’s special emissary on similar -matters connected with the general conduct of the business, and while I -did not, perhaps, learn so very much about railroading proper, I was put -in positions where I learned to take responsibility and came to have -confidence in myself. - -“The control of the Long Island Railroad again changed hands, and I was -again ‘let out,’ this time for good, so far as that particular road was -concerned,—except that, within the last two or three years, I have -renewed my acquaintance with it through being commissioned by a banking -syndicate in New York City to make an expert examination of its plant -and equipment as a preliminary to reorganization. - -“This was in 1881, or about that time, and I soon secured a position as -conductor on the New York and Northern Railroad, a little line running -from One Hundred and Fifty-fifth Street, New York City, to Yonkers. Not -to go into tedious detail regarding my experience there, I may say in -brief that in course of time I practically ‘ran the road.’ After some -years, it changed hands (a thing which railways, particularly small -ones, often do, and always to the great discomposure of the employees), -and the new owners, including William C. Whitney, Daniel S. Lamont, -Captain R. Somers Hayes and others, went over the road one day on a -special train to visit the property. As I have said, I was then -practically running the road, owing to the fact that the man who held -the position of general manager was not a railroad man and relied upon -me to handle all details, but my actual position was only that of -train-master. I accompanied the party, and knowing the road thoroughly, -not only physically but also statistically, was able to answer all the -questions which they raised. This was the first time I had met Mr. -Whitney, and I judge that I made a somewhat favorable impression upon -him, for not long after I was created general manager of the road. - -“A few months later, I received this telegram:— - - ‘H. H. VREELAND. - - ‘Meet me at Broadway and Seventh Avenue office at two o’clock - to-day. - - WILLIAM C. WHITNEY.’ - -“I had to take a special engine to do this, but arrived at two o’clock -at the office of the Houston Street, West Street and Pavonia Ferry -Railroad Company, which I then knew, in an indistinct sort of way, owned -a small horse railway in the heart of New York. After finding that Mr. -Whitney was out at lunch, I kicked my heels for a few minutes outside -the gate, and then inquired of a man who was seated inside in an -exceedingly comfortable chair, when Mr. Whitney and his party were -expected, saying, also, that my name was Vreeland, and I had an -appointment at two. He replied: ‘Oh, are you Mr. Vreeland? Well, here is -a letter for you. Mr. Whitney expected to be here at two o’clock, but is -a little late.’ I took my letter and sat down again outside, thinking -that it might possibly contain an appointment for another hour. It was, -however, an appointment of quite a different character. It read as -follows:— - - ‘MR. H. H. VREELAND. - - ‘DEAR SIR:—At a meeting of the stockholders of the Houston - Street, West Street and Pavonia Ferry Railroad Company, held - this day, you were unanimously elected a director of the - company. - - ‘At a subsequent meeting of the directors, you were unanimously - elected president and general manager, your duties to commence - immediately. - - ‘Yours truly, - - C. E. WARREN, Secretary.’ - -“By the time I had recovered from my surprise at learning that I was no -longer a steam-railroad, but a street-railroad man, Mr. Whitney and -other directors came in, and, after spending about five minutes in -introductions, they took up their hats and left, saying, simply, ‘Well, -Vreeland, you are president; now run the road.’ I then set out to learn -what kind of a toy railway it was that had come into my charge.” - -Here Mr. Vreeland’s narrative stops, for the rest of the history is well -known to the people of New York, and to experts in street railroading -throughout the country. The “Whitney syndicate,” so called, was then in -possession of a few only out of some twenty or more street railway -properties in New York City, the Broadway line, however, being one of -these, and by far the most valuable. With the immense financial -resources of Messrs. Whitney, Widener, Elkins, and their associates, -nearly all the other properties were added to the original ones owned by -the syndicate, and with the magnificent organizing and executive ability -of Mr. Vreeland, there has been built up in New York a street railway -system which, while including less than two hundred and fifty miles of -track, is actually carrying more than one-half as many passengers each -year as are being carried by all the steam railroads of the United -States together. - -Mr. Vreeland’s first work on coming to New York was, naturally, to -familiarize himself with the transportation conditions in New York City, -and to learn how to handle the peculiarly complex problems involved in -street railroading. He first had to gain, also, the confidence of his -men, but this is never hard for anyone who is sincerely solicitous for -their welfare, and in such sympathy with their work and hardships as a -man like himself must have been, with his own past history in mind. - -With his hand firmly on the tiller, and with his scheme of organization -perfected, he was soon able to take up the larger questions of -administration. To Mr. Vreeland is due the credit of initiating and -rapidly extending a general free transfer system in New York, by which -the public is able to ride from almost any part of the largest city in -the country to any other part, for a single five-cent fare, whereas, -before the consolidation, two, three, and sometimes four fares would -have to be paid for the same ride. - -It was upon Mr. Vreeland’s recommendation, also, backed by that of F. S. -Pearson, the well-known consulting engineer of the Whitney syndicate, -that the latter determined to adopt the underground conduit electric -system in the reconstruction of the lines. At that time this decision -involved the greatest financial and technical courage, since there was -but one other road of this kind in existence, and that a small tramway -in an Austrian city, while previous American experience with this system -had been uniformly unsuccessful. - -Not only in street railroading proper, but also in steam railroading, -automobile work and the electric lighting field, Mr. Vreeland possesses -the absolute confidence of his associates, who rely implicitly upon his -judgment, intelligence and business acumen. The recent gift, already -referred to, is one only of several which he has received from men who -feel that they have made millions through his ability. Although he is -not to-day a wealthy man, as men are counted wealthy in New York City, -he is certainly well along on the road to millionaire-dom. - -Best of all, however, and what has probably satisfied him most in his -life, has been the host of genuine friendships which he has made, and -the strong hold which he has upon the workingman. A strike of the -employees of the Metropolitan Street Railway Company is absolutely -impossible so long as he remains at the head of the company’s affairs, -for the men know well that there will be in that position a man who is -always fair, and even generous with them, bearing in mind ever his duty -to his stockholders; and they know, too, that no injustice will be -committed by any of the department heads. Any one of his four or five -thousand employees can meet him personally on a question of grievance, -and is sure of being treated as a reasonable fellow man. Time and again -have labor leaders sought to form an organization of the Metropolitan -employees, and as often the men have said in reply, “Not while Vreeland -is here,—we know he will treat us fairly.” - -In a recent address Mr. Vreeland said:— - -“No artificial condition can ever, in my judgment, keep down a man who -has health, capacity and honesty. You can temporarily interfere with him -or make the road to the object of his ambition more difficult, but you -cannot stop him. That tyranny is forever dead, and since its death there -has come a great enlightenment to the possessors of power and wealth. -Instead of preventing a man from rising, there is not a concern the wide -world over that is not to-day eagerly seeking for capable people. The -great hunger of the time is for good men, strong men, men capable of -assuming responsibility; and there is sharp competition for those who -are available.” - - ------------------------------------------------------------------------- - - - - - XXII - -How James Whitcomb Riley Came to be Master of the Hoosier Dialect - - -IT is doubtful if there is in the literary world, to-day, a personage -whose boyhood and young manhood can approach in romance and unusual -circumstances that of the author of “The Old Swimmin’ Hole.” - -All tradition was against his accomplishing anything in the world. How, -indeed, said the good folks of the little town of Greenfield, Indiana, -could anything be expected of a boy who cared nothing for school, and -deserted it at the first opportunity, to take up a wandering life. - - - THROWN ON HIS OWN RESOURCES - -The boy’s father wanted the boy to follow in his footsteps, in the legal -profession, and he held out alluring hopes of the possibility of scaling -even greater heights than any to which he had yet attained. Better -still,—from the standpoint of the restless James,—he took the youngster -with him as he made his circuit from court to court. - -These excursions, for they were indeed such to the boy, sowed deep in -his heart the seed of a determination to become a nomad; and it was not -long until he started out as a strolling sign-painter, determined upon -the realization of his ideals. - -Oftentimes business was worse than dull, and, on one occasion, hunger -drove him for recourse to his wits, and lo, he blossomed forth as a -“blind sign-painter,” led from place to place by a little boy, and -showered with sympathy and trade in such abundance that he could hardly -bear the thought of the relinquishment of a pretense so ingenious and -successful, entered on at first as a joke. - -Then came another epoch. The young man fell in with a patent-medicine -man, with whom he joined fortunes, and here the young Indianian, who had -been scribbling more or less poetry, found a new use for his talent; for -his duties in the partnership were to beguile the people with joke and -song, while his co-worker plied the sales of his cure-all. There were -many times when, but for his fancy, the young poet might have seen his -audience dwindle rapidly away. It was while thus engaged, that he had -the opportunities which enabled him to master thoroughly the Hoosier -dialect. - -When the glamor of the patent-medicine career had faded somewhat, the -nomadic Riley joined a band of strolling Thespians, and, in this brief -portion of his life, after the wont of players of his class, played many -parts. - -At length, he began to give a little more attention to his literary -work; and, later, obtained a place on an Indianapolis paper, where he -published his first poems, and they won their author almost instant -success. - - - WHY HE LONGED TO BE A BAKER - -When I drew Mr. Riley out to talk still further of those interesting -days, and the strange experiences which came to him therein, the -conversation finally turned on the subject of his youthful ambition. - -“I think my earliest remembered one,” he said, “was an insatiate longing -to become a baker. I don’t know what prompted it, unless it were the -visions of the mountains of alluring ‘goodies,’ which, as they are -ranged in the windows of the pastry shops, appear doubly tempting to the -youth whose mother not only counsels moderation, but enforces it. - -“Next, I imagined that I would like to become a showman of some sort. - -“Then, my shifting fancy conjured up visions of how grand it would be to -work as a painter, and decorate houses and fences in glowing colors. - -“Finally, as I grew a little older, there returned my old longing to -become an actor. When, however, my dreams were realized, and I became a -member of a traveling theatrical company, I found that the life was full -of hardships, with very little chance of rising in the world. - -“I never had any literary ambition whatever, so far as I can remember. I -wrote, primarily, simply because I desired to have something to read, -and could not find selections that exactly suited me. Gradually I found -a demand for my little efforts springing up; and so my brother, who -could write legibly transcribed them.” - - - PERSISTENCE - -At this point I asked Mr. Riley his idea of the prime requisites for -success in the field of letters. - -“The most essential factor,” he replied “is persistence,—the -determination never to allow your energy or enthusiasm to be dampened by -the discouragement that must inevitably come. I believe that he is -richer for the battle with the world, in any vocation, who has great -determination and little talent, rather than his seemingly more -fortunate brother with great talent, perhaps, but little determination. -As for the field of literature, I cannot but express my conviction that -meteoric flights, such as have been taken, of recent years, by some -young writers with whose names almost everybody is familiar, cannot fail -to be detrimental, unless the man to whom success comes thus early and -suddenly is an exceptionally evenly-balanced and sensible person. - -“Many persons have spoken to me about Kipling’s work, and remarked how -wonderful a thing is the fact that such achievements could have been -possible for a man comparatively so young. I say, not at all. What do we -find when we investigate? Simply that Kipling began working on a -newspaper when he was only thirteen years of age, and he has been -toiling ever since. So you see, even that case confirms my theory that -every man must be ‘tried in the fire,’ as it were. - -“He may begin early or late—and in some cases the fight is longer than -in others—but of one thing I feel sure, that there is no short-cut to -permanent, self-satisfying success in literature, or anything else.” - - - TWENTY YEARS OF REJECTED MANUSCRIPTS - -“Mr. Riley,” I asked, “would you mind saying something about the -obstacles over which you climbed to success?” - -“I am afraid it would not be a very pleasant story,” he replied. “A -friend came to me once, completely heartbroken, saying that his -manuscripts were constantly returned, and that he was the most miserable -wretch alive. I asked him how long he had been trying? ‘Three years,’ he -said. ‘My dear man,’ I answered, laughing, ‘go on, keep on trying till -you have spent as many years at it as I did.’ ‘As many as you did!’ he -exclaimed. ‘Yes, as long as I did.’ ‘What, you struggled for years!’ -‘Yes, sir; through years, through sleepless nights, through almost -hopeless days. For twenty years I tried to get into one magazine; back -came my manuscripts eternally. I kept on. In the twentieth year, that -magazine accepted one of my articles.’ - -“I was not a believer in the theory that one man does a thing much -easier than any other man. Continuous, unflagging effort, persistence -and determination will win. Let not the man be discouraged who has -these.” - -“What would you advise one to do with his constantly rejected -manuscript?” I asked. - -“Put it away awhile; then remodel it. Young writers make the mistake I -made.” - -“What mistake?” I asked. - -“Hurrying a manuscript off before it was dry from my pen, as if the -world were just waiting for that article and must have it. Now it can -hardly be drawn from me with a pair of tweezers. Yes, lay it aside -awhile. Reread. There is a rotten spot somewhere. Perhaps it is full of -hackneyed phrases, or lacks in sparkle and originality. Search, examine, -rewrite, simplify. Make it lucid. _I am glad, now, that my manuscripts -did come back._ Presently I would discover this defect, then that. -Perhaps three or four sleepless nights would show my failure to be in an -unsymmetrical arrangement of the verses. - -“See these books?” he said, rapping upon the book case with the back of -his hand. “Classics! but of what do they tell? Of the things of their -own day. Let us write the things of our day. Literary fields exhausted! -Nonsense. If we write well enough, ours will be the classics of -to-morrow. Our young Americans have, right at hand, the richest material -any country ever offered. Let them be brave and work in earnest.” - - - A COLLEGE EDUCATION - -Answering other questions, the poet said:—“A college education for the -aspirant for literary success is, of course, an advantage, provided he -does not let education foster a false culture that will lead him away -from the ideals he ought to cling to. - -“There is another thing that the young man in any artistic pursuit must -have a care for; and that is, to be practical. This is a practical -world, and it is always ready to take advantage of this sort of people: -so that one must try to cultivate a practical business sense as well as -an artistic sense. We have only a few men like Rudyard Kipling and F. -Hopkinson Smith, who seem to combine these diverse elements of character -in just the right proportions; but I believe that it is unfortunate for -the happiness and peace of mind of our authors, and artists, and -musicians, that we have not more of them.” - - - RILEY’S POPULARITY - -Riley’s poetry is popular because it goes right to the feelings of the -people. He could not have written as he does, but for the schooling of -that wandering life, which gave him an insight into the struggle for -existence among the great unnumbered multitude of his fellow-men. He -learned in his travels and journeys, in his hard experience as a -strolling sign-painter and patent-medicine peddler the freemasonry of -poverty. His poems are natural; they are those of a man who feels as he -writes. As Thoreau painted nature in the woods, and streams, and lakes, -so Riley depicts the incidents of everyday life, and brightens each -familiar lineament with that touch that makes all the world akin. - - ------------------------------------------------------------------------- - - - SUCCESS BOOKS - - By DR. ORISON SWETT MARDEN - - -------------------------------------------------- - - STEPPING STONES - - 12mo. Red Cloth. Decorative Cover. Illustrated. Price, $1.25 - -Dr. Marden’s new volume of essays, “Stepping Stones,” has the attractive -qualities made familiar to a large audience of readers by his earlier -books. At the same time it is entirely new in contents and most helpful -and entertaining in character. It contains talks to young people of both -sexes full of practical value, happy sketches of great characters, -salient suggestions on deportment and conduct, and shrewd advice of all -kinds touching everyday living. The author’s wide knowledge of history -and literature is used to give the essays atmosphere and quality, and no -success book of the series is more engaging and wholesome than “Stepping -Stones.” - - - HOW THEY SUCCEEDED - - Life Stories of Successful Men told by Themselves - - 12mo. Red Cloth. Decorative Cover. Illustrated. Price, $1.50 - -The author in this book has set down the story of successful men and -women told by themselves, either in a series of interviews or by -semi-autobiographical sketches. They make a most entertaining and -inspiring series of life stories, full of incentive to ambitious youth. - -The Boston Transcript says: “To the young man who is determined to -succeed in life, no matter in what direction his aim may lie, this -volume will be a direct source of inspiration. It shows that the people -‘who have got there’ have invariably done so through pluck, -perseverance, and principle, and not through ‘pull’ or social position. -It emphasizes the fact that success depends wholly and entirely upon the -person himself.” - - - WINNING OUT - - A Book about Success - - 12mo. Red Cloth. Decorative Cover. Gilt Top. Illustrated. Price, $1.00 - -Dr. Marden has made for himself a wide reputation by his earlier -volumes, “Architects of Fate” and “Pushing to the Front.” But “Winning -Out,” while constructed along somewhat the same lines, is his first book -designed especially for young readers. Its theme is “Character Building -by Habit Forming.” - -The Louisville Courier-Journal says: “Pleasant teaching Dr. Marden’s -anecdotes make. They are of men and things that have actually been and -happened. The moral is often an epigram, always apropos. Through the -pages of the small volume pass a procession of figures that have -aspired, struggled, and achieved. Such work is good for the world, good -for the youth in it, and for more experienced and serious middle age.” - - - Defending The Bank - - By EDWARD S. VAN ZILE - -Author of “With Sword and Crucifix,” etc. Four illustrations by I. B. - Hazelton. 12mo. Pictorial cover in color. Price, $1.25. - -“Defending the Bank,” by Edward S. Van Zile, is a most amusing and -interesting detective story for boys and girls, in which a couple of -bright boys and girls appoint themselves amateur detectives and are able -to run down a couple of bank robbers who are planning to rob the bank of -which the father of one of the boys is president. This is at once an -exciting and wholesome tale, of which the scene is laid in Troy, N.Y., -the former home of the author. It will be widely welcomed. - - - The Mutineers - - By EUSTACE L. WILLIAMS - -Author of “The Substitute Quarterback.” 12mo. Four illustrations by I. - B. Hazelton. Pictorial cover in color. Price, $1.25. - -“The Mutineers” is a rattling boys’ story by Mr. Eustace L. Williams of -the Louisville Courier-Journal. It gives a picture of life in a large -boarding-school, where a certain set of boys control the athletics, and -shows how their unjust power was broken by the hero of the tale, who -forms a rival baseball nine and manages to defeat his opponents, thus -bringing a better state of things in the school socially and as to -sports. The story is full of lively action, and deals with baseball and -general athletic interests in a large school in a manner which shows -that the author is thoroughly acquainted with and sympathetic to his -subject. - - - -------------------------------------------------- - - LOTHROP PUBLISHING COMPANY, BOSTON - - - - ------------------------------------------------------------------------- - - - - -● Transcriber’s note: - - ○ Missing or obscured punctuation was silently corrected. - - ○ Typographical errors were silently corrected. - - ○ Inconsistent spelling and hyphenation were made consistent only - when a predominant form was found in this book. - - - -***END OF THE PROJECT GUTENBERG EBOOK HOW THEY SUCCEEDED*** - - -******* This file should be named 64059-0.txt or 64059-0.zip ******* - - -This and all associated files of various formats will be found in: -http://www.gutenberg.org/dirs/6/4/0/5/64059 - - -Updated editions will replace the previous one--the old editions will -be renamed. - -Creating the works from print editions not protected by U.S. copyright -law means that no one owns a United States copyright in these works, -so the Foundation (and you!) can copy and distribute it in the United -States without permission and without paying copyright -royalties. 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