The home journal. (Winchester, Tenn.) 1858-188?, 1869-12-02
HOW I GOT RICH AGAINST
MY WILL.
ny MAC ARoNE.

After battling tor many years with
misfortune, misery, rcverscs and disap-
pointmeDts, have squatted in St.
Louis.
am now a rich mana nabob. The
assessor has assessed me at $4,000.
I have "Nac Arone Castle" nearly
completed, and crowd Of upholster-
ers and supply merchants solicit my
patronage. Piles Of swcot-scented
notes daily beg the favor Of my socie-
ty to dinners, suppers and evening
parties.
And yet it was not always so. |
can rccolect. when | was as poor as
poyerty-when I vainly solicited en-
ploymcnt whereby / might live honest
~ and dcccntly. Nobody would listen
to ne: nobody cared for me. Bank
ers looked su3piciously at my appear
ancc. Clcrgymen gave me mess Of
'cold shoulder" They could make
nothing out OF me. Grocers and So
loon-kecpcrs eyed me with mistrnst
when l asked for five or ten cents
worth Of their wares My tailor would
have the money in advance for q suit
Of clothes l badly needed.
Unable to do anything in st. Louis
|, with two neutrality-suspicious. in
misery-rcsolved that we would try
our luck in Kansas City. There names
we're John Smith, a vcnder of patent
rights, compiler Of directories. and
protector Of advertising lodges; and
Albert Robinson, a Bohemian, who
was for some time local reporter on
one of the st. Louis dailies, but at the
time | speak of, out of situation, money
friends and hopes. Robinson had a
manuscript of five hundred and forty
pages of fcolscGp, entitled "Millerism
Exposed; or the Perpetuity of the
Earth" 1t was q wellwritten, logical
treatise, and would have made him a
reputation to be proud of, But no
publisher would undertake to print il
for the poor fellow.
We three packed up our little valiscs
and took a cheap passage on orc OF
the boats for Kansas City. There VIC
were more fortunate. Smith obtained
4 clcrkship in dry goods house, Rob
inson secured position on one oftae
morning papers, became salesman
and book keeper in a grocery house.
We had about seventy-iive dollars &
month. 1t was not much but it ena-
bled us to have little reunion once in
n while, talk of the past and devise
projects for the future over a quiet
glass of beer, in retired room just of
from Main street.
After a long chat one evening or
our hopes and fears, Smith said:
GAN nonsense, my dear fellows VIC
have neither of us the means of making
a fortune. But an idea strikes me-
could we not get the credit Of being
rich"
"And to what purpose p 1 sugges-
ted. -. 81
sit gives one a position IN the
world. A large inheritance augments
the consideration in which we are held
Then everything becomes easy"
II recoIlcct," said I, "of an uncle
of mine, who went out to California al
the time of the gold fever, and he has
never returned nor been heard from
since"
That's just it. Wen bring your
uncle to life--or rather, we'll kill him
mgots, gold dust, shares i'll mines and
crushing mills, shares in railroads and
banks, and government securities, will
have grand effect. No doubt there
are many returned gold seekers of that
time, fortunate and otherwise, from
st. Louis toTSt. Joseph along the river
towns, that remember your uncle, OF
have met him in the gold fields"
"Let US kill him'!s continued the two
scamps, "and leave the bulk of his for.
tune.-thrce millions and half Of dol
lars--to Mac Arone."
We laughed heartily at the joke, and
had another round OF beer. Thought
no, more of circumstance, and you
may guess Of my establishment when
took up the paper on which Robinson
was local and read among the city
items: ". -r
. 0' .Ds.p.S az $50
Is "a Lucky FslloW.c-W learned yes
lsn,dau -fsaIta marty of gentlemen Jus,