The Sun.
London, England, 1847-05-24 00:00:00

EARNING A FORTUNE.

The Birmingham Advertiser gives the following in-
teresting sketch of the personal history of an eminent
ironmaster:—

" Mr. T. M—, of well known iron-works in the
parish of Tipton, was formerly a working collier, and, to
use his own simple narrative, went to work, when only
seven years of age, under Mr. Richmond Aston, with
whom he continued some years. When he was sixteen
years of age his father was killed in a coal-pit. He was
the eldest of eleven children, for whom and an aged
mother he continued to toil. He succeeded by care and
industry in bringing up this large family, and he sup-
ports his aged mother to this day. ' When I married,'
says he, 'I gave my mother all the money I had, viz.,
4e. 6d.' He married when very young, and was exceed-
ingly persevering, so much so, that he earned one
shilling an hour; but, unlike many in similar situations,
he never entered a public-house, but cared only for his
family. Early in life he joined the Wesleyans, for
whom he entertains the strongest affection, believing, as
he does, that he attained to his present position through
the aid, instruction, and comfort he derived from them.
As a proof of the sincerity of his affection, the munifi-
cent sum given by him at the centenary fund is already
on record. At the present time he has given upwards of
2001 towards building schools for the Wesleyans; nor is
his liberality confined to them, for he gave 501. towards
the erection of St. Paul's Church at Tipton, with 71. for
incidental expenses; and he states that he has found
that the more money he has given away in the holy
cause of charity, the more his wealth has increased. He
reared in his own house twenty-one fatherless children,
all poor relations. Here was a mind not refined by edu-
cation, yet always sensible of the sufferings of the poor,
and always ready to alleviate distress. ' You see that
man on the bank,' he said to Veritas, pointing from his
drawing-room window, ' he was a poor basket-maker,
living with his family in a cellar. I discovered, on in
quiry, that his conduct was good—l took him into my
service, and found him useful.' Mr. M-- went through
all the gradations—first, the collier boy ; secondly, the
butty; thirdly, the royalty man; and, fourthly, the sole
proprietor of ironworks—and is now universally
acknowledged to be the largest freeholder in the parish of
Tipton. Notwithstanding the pressure of a large family,
he earned enough by the labour of his hands to purchase
a piece of land of Mr. Isaac Aston, of Tipton, on which
he erected six houses. These were his first fruits. He
next bought, on Tipton-green, a piece of freehold land,
which he presented to the Wesleyans, and on which their
school now stands. At this time he began to prosper in
the world. He took royalty under the Rev. W. B. Collis,
then under Mr. Elliott, and then under Sir 11. St. Paul.'
He finally bought, at the request and solicitation of his
late employers, Messrs. Hateley and Jesson, Tipton
Colliery, for which he paid down 7,0001., and the rest
by instalments. This larze purchase, the amount of
which from prudential mftives we refrain to mention,
excited the attention of his neighbours, who said that
he would never be able to pay for it, and that he must
have taken leave of his senses—what could he be think-
ing of?—did he want to injure his children, and lose his
previous hard earnings? Time rolled on, and in a few
years he completed his purchase. Having paid for it,
he gave an entertainment to 2,000, including the wives
and children of his guests ; the next day 400 of his
labouring men ate up the fragments, so that nothing was
lost. There were 400 charity children, too, who partook
of his bounty. lie feeds the hungry and clothes the
naked, even to this day—his weekly contributions are
large indeed to the necessitous. He got money so fast
that he bought the estate adjoining his own, then an
estate of Mr. Fletcher, then Burnt Tree estate, and
Richard Fryer's estate and Dudley Port, then an estate
of Dankes Brothers, at Wednesbury, as also other pro-
perty ; in addition he has seventy houses all his own
fesrooehpoalid, roafnd hanadt
st.hisHtiims
perhe
opeermtypalotytshibsettimweeen 00
is
upwards4and
of 200,0001., besides the increased value given to it by
three lines of railway that will go through his estates.
Some years ago he was met by an old acquaintance,
named George Bailey, who accosted him in these words'
Well, Tom, there is a blessing reserved in heaven for
you, for the good that you have done here upon earth
in relieving all who are in a state of destitution, and
particularly the fatherless children and widows !' lie
never had any money left or given to him ; his whole
life seems as though the sun never ceased to shine upon
him. He took the property of Coseley-moor Colliery,
under Sir Horace St. Paul ; it was the only one that
turned out badly, and was inspected by Sir Horace's
confidential agent, Mr. Bradley, who represented it to
Sir Horace. He afterwards made an appointment to
meet Sir Horace at the hotel, Dudley, for the purpose
of obtaining a decrease of royalty. It so hoppened that
Sir Horace was about to dine with Lord Dudley, but on
hearing of the arrival of Mr. M—, he said, ' Mr.
Bradley, take off 3d. per ton from Mr. M—'s royalty.'
' Are you aware, rejoined Mr. Bradley, ' how large a
difference this will make ?' Sir Horace replied, ' Never
mind, M— is a worthy man—let him have the benefit.'
The advantage he derived from this reduction was up-
wards of 2.000/. The family of this great man look
back with pleasure upon the fact that their father has
been the maker of his owes fortune, not like some others
who are ashamed to own that once they were poor, and
who have climbed so suddenly to the top of the ladder
that they know not how to balance themselves. Al-
though strongly attached to Wesleyanism, he entertains
no bad feelings to the Church, believing that she has
within bers,lf the elements of her own resuscitation ;
and, as a proof, his youngest son, Eli, is being educated
fur a minister of the Church of England."

[ADVERTISEMENT.]-LEGS THAT FOR ELEVEN YEARS
WERE SWOLLEN TO NEARLY TILE SIZE OF TIIE PERSON'S BODY CUBED
By HOLLOWAY'S OINTMENT AND PILLS.--Mrs. lliggiu, of ['ark-street,
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her legs commenced swelling, and so went oa until they became
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i
was generally most excruciating. Every treatment was tried in
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ofo 2
Improved.c This extraordinary case was communicated by It. Sharp,
. Park-street, Wellington. Sold by all druggists, and at
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