Cooper's Clarksburg register. [volume] (Clarksburg, Va. [W. Va.]) 1851-1861, 1852-07-21
THE GOLDEN GUINEA;
Or, Two Kinds of Honesty.

THE GOLDEN GUINEA;
Or, Two Kinds of Honesty.
Some few years ago, there resided in
Long Acre, and eccentric old Jew, named
Jacob Benjamin he kept seed shop, in
which he likewise carried on-not a COM
mon thing, we believe, in London-thc
sale of meal, and had raised from the low
est dregs of poverty, by industry and self
denial, till he grew to be an affiuent
tradesmNn. He was, indeed, rich man !;
for as he had neither wife nor chill to
spend his money, nor kith nor kin to bor-
row it of him, he had a great deal more
than he knew what to do with Lavish
it on himself he could not, for his early
habits stuck to him, and his wants were
few. He was always clean and decent in
his dress, but he had no taste for elegance
or splcndor in any form, nor had even
the pleasures of the table any charms for
him; so that, though he was no miscr,
his money kept on accumulating, while it
occurred TO him now and then to wonder
what he should do with it hercafter.-
One would think he need not have won
dcred long, when there were so many
suffering from the want of what he aboun.
ded in; but Mr.. Benjamin, honest man,
had his crotchets like other folks. In the
first place, he had less sympathy with po-
verify than might have been expected,
considering how poor he had once been
himself; but had a theory, just in the
main, though by no means without it's
eXceptions-that the INDECENT have gene
rally themselves TO thank for their priva-
tions. Judging from his own experience,
he believed that there was bread for eve
ry body that would take the trouble of
earning it and he had had little difficult
ty in resisting temptation himself and was
not philosopher enough to allow for the
varieties OF human character, he had
small compassion for those who injured
their prospects by yielding to it. Then,
.he had found, on more than one occasion,
that even to the apparently well-doing,
assistance was not always serviceable.-
Endcovor was relaxed, and gratuities,
once received, were looked for again.
Doubtless, part of this evil result was to
be sought in Mr., Benjamin's own defec-
tive mode of proceeding but repeat,
he was no philosopher, and in matters of
this sort ne did not see much farther than
his nose, which was, however, very
long one.
10 public charities he sometimes sub
scribed literally but his hand was fro
quently withheld by doubt regarding
the judiclous expenditure of the funds,
and this doubt was especially fortified af-
ter CHANGING to see one day, as he was
passing the Grown of Anchor Tavern, a
concourse of gentlemen turn out, with
very flushed faces, who had been dining
together for the benefit of some savages
in the Southern Pacific Ocean, accused
of devouring human hesh-a practice so
abhOrrent to Mr. Benjamin, that he had
subscribed for their conversion. But fai-
| ling to perceive the connection betwixt
the dinner and that desirable consumma-
frequently in the printed lists, and he felt
more uncertain than before as to what
branch of unknown posterity he should
bequeathe his fortune,
In the mean time, he kept on the even
tenor of his way, standing behind his
counter, and serving his customers, as
sisted by young woman called Leah
Leet, who acted as his shop woman, and
in whom, on the whole, he felt more inte-
rest than in any body else in the world,
insomuch that it even sometimes glanced
across his mind, whether he should not
make her the heiress of all his wealth.
He never, however, gave her the least
reason to expect such thing, being inca
! pable of conceiving that, if he entertain
ed the notion, he ought to prepare her by
education for the good fortune that await
ed her. But he neither perceived this
necessity, nor, if he had, would he have
liked to lose the services of person he
mad been so long accustomed to.
AT length, one day a new idea struck
him' lie had been reading the story of
his namesake' Benjamin, in the Old Test
ament, and the question occurred to him,
how many among his purchasers of the
lror class-all who came to his shop per-
sonaly were of that class-would bring
back apiece of money they might find
among thtig meal, and he thought he
should like te>try few Of them that were
his regular cusSemers. The experiment
would amuse his MUD, and the money he
might lose by it he did not care for. So