The western Democrat. [volume] (Charlotte, N.C.) 1852-1870, 1867-05-14
A BRaGARD MILLIoNAIRE,

Last week, says the Pittsburgh penn
Chronicle, q brief item chronicling the sale Of
the Steele Farm, on Oil Greek, for taxes due
the Government, started on its voyage On the
sea of nswspaperdom. The paragraph will
doubtless be read by many without second
thought, but those few lines might easily form
the text for discourse as long as the moral
law 1t is hardly an exaggeration to state that
wherever petroleum is known the name of
Johnny Steele" the young prince of Venango
County, has been heard, while the accounts of
bis apparently boundless wealth of reckless ex
penditure were told in hundreds of papers,
Soon after came the sale of the farm, the closing
act. A brief history Of the same may not be
entirely without interest, the Crawford Journal
thus Darrates:
"This farm, more generally known son the
creek as the widow McCliotock farm, is i'm
mediately opposite the fourishins little town Of
Housewife, and was among the first of the oil
producing farms of the valley. Early in 1868,
the Van Syke WE'LL on this farm, was struck,
and flowed for some time at the rate of $500
barrels per day, and several wells yielding from
200 to 300 barrels were struck at subsequent
periods Besides these, there were many smaller
wells, and the territory, though sadly misman-
aged, is still regarded as among the best in tie
oil region. In 1864, widow McClintock died
from the effects of burns received while kindling
fire with crude oil. At this time, the average
daily income from the landed interest of-the
farm was $4,000, and by her will the property,
with all her possessions 10 money, was left,
without reservation, to her adopted son, John
w. Steele, then about twenty years of age. In
the iron safe where the old lady kept her money
was found Sl50,000, two-thirds Of the amount
in greenbacks and the balance in gold. Mrs.
McCliotock was hardly cold in her coffin before
young Steele, who appears to have had nothing
naturally vicious 10 his composition, was sur
rounded by set of vampires, who clung to him
as longs as he had dollar remaining. The
young millionaire's head was evidently turned
by his good fortune, has been that of many
an older man who made bis pile in OIL and he
was of the impression that his money would &C.
cumulate too rapidly unless it was thrown away,
and throw it away he did. Many of the stories
concerning bis career in New York and Phila-
deIphia SAVIOR strongly of fiction, and would not
be credited were they not so we'll authenticated.
Wine, women, horses, faro and general de-
bauchery soon made wreck Of that princely
fortune, and in twenty months Johnny Steele
sauandered two millions Of dollars. Hon. j John
Morrissey, Nj. G., went through him at faro to
the amount of 100000 in two nights; he
bought high priced turoous, and after driving
them an hour or two gave them away; equipped
a large minstrel troupe, and presented each
member with diamond pin and ring, and kept
about him besides two or three men who wero
robbing him day after day. He is now filing
the honorable position of doorkeeper for Skif
and Gaylord's Minstrels, the company be Or
ganized, and is, to use very expressive, but
not strictly classical phrase, played out
The wealth obtained by those who worked so
assiduously to effect Steele's ruin, gave little
permanent benei. to its possessors. The person
most brszen and chiefly instrumental in bring.
ing about the present condition Of affairs was
the notorious Seth Slocum, who hung around
this city several weeks last Summer. He Was
worth at one time over SlU0, 900, which he had
captured from Steele and laid aside for rainy
day, but when the latters money vanished, this
amount took unto itself wings, and he is at pre-
sent known among his old associates as dead
beat At last accounts, SIocum was incarcer-
ated in the Jail Of neighboring county for
various breaches of the peace, and was unable
to obtain bail in the sum Of $500 Exemplif-
cations are these of the old adage, Easy come,
easy co. or the other, Fools and their money
are soon parted"
[Let ,oung men take warning from the above,
and shun evil ha bits