The Andrew County Republican. [volume] (Savannah, Mo.) 1871-1876, 1876-04-21
ALEXANDER II. STEWART.
Death OF Americas Greatest Merchant
Sketch OF Ills Life-1lis Small Begin-
ming and Wonherful Successes.
Iron the Ncw York Herald. Anril LII

merchant and millionaire, died at his
marble mansion, corner Fifth Avenue
Thirty-fonrth Street, at $50 o'clock
yesterday afternoon. Mr.. Stewards
complaint was inflammation of the bow
els, and he had been seriously i'll for
nearly three weeks. For more than q
week his sickness had been considered
critical by his physicians, Drs. White
and Marcy. To avoid attracting trouble
some inquiry, however, the knowledge
of his condition was kept from the pub
lie during the progress of his fatal NAL
ady. Not until Sunday was his COM
plain; considered really dangerous. A
change for the better was looked for in
the afternoon, and it did not come. SO
closely was the secret of his approach
ing dissolution guarded that the an
nouncement of his death was a general
surprise. 1t need scarcely be added
that it was, rs well, a shock to the COM
mercial world, through which his inn
business interests had such ex-
tenslve ~ramlf1catlODS.
SKETCH OF HIS LIFE.
Alexander Il. Stewart was born in the
county of Antrim, Ireland, at II home
stead distant q few miles from Belfast,
December II, 1893. His ancestry was
of Protestant, Saxon stock, which had
long before settled in the North of Ire
land, where his father was an extensive
land owner. Young Stewart was an in
FAINT only three days old when his father
died, and it is to his early training and
the excellent example of his mother that
he owed many of those prominent traits
of character which distinguished him
throughout his long career. Having
finished his preparatory studies at an
academical institution in Belfast, he en-
tered Trinity College, Dublin, with the
intention of fitting himself for the min
istry; but at the expiration of his second
term his grandfather died. This had
the effect Of disarranging all his plans,
his withdrawal from college being the
immediate result of his grandfather's
death. He vas not entirely without
means, however; but, as he afterward
expressed it, he felt "cribbed, cabined
and confined" in the old land, and so
he determined to emigrate from the Old
World to the New. At the time he was
about sixteen years of age, well edu-
Gated, active and healthy.
HIS PATRIMoNY AND HOW HE INVEST
ED 1T.
When Mr.. Stewart reached his ma
jority he determined to return to Ire
land to receive his patrimony, upon the
interest of which he had been living in
New York. Before starting on his re-
turn he spoke of the object of his con-
templated visit to Ireland to Mr.. Cham
bers, then well known as II buyer at
auctions for several business houses in
this city.
elbow much is your patrimony?r
asked Mr.. Chambers.
"About $4,000, l suppose" answer
ed Mr.. Stewart.
"a snug little sum What do you in
tend doing with itp"
"Invest it here and live on the in
come"
"You car do better"
"Howp"
SEQ into trade"
"Nonsense. l know nothing about
trade. | can't ever buy a hat or a pair
of gloves without getting some n else
to pick them out for me-"
"Stulf," calculated Mr.. Chambers.
"Do as l tell you. Go to Belfast and
buy insertions and scallop trimmings.
Spend all your fortune in them and you
will double your money"
Arriving in Ireland, Mr.. Stewart
found his patrimony had been dimin-
ished to $4,000 by bad speculations OF
his guardian. This circumstance led
him to adopt the advice of Mr.. Cham
bers, and when he returned to New
York his entire patrimony was invested
in insertions and. scallop trimmings.
The two friends determined to go into
business together, Stewart acting us
salesman while Chambers made the
outside purchases. The first difficulty
was in finding Il store-room suited tc
their purpose. They looked through
Pearl and Hudson Streets, the centers
Of the retail trade at that time, but
found the rents too high for them
Finally, No. 2s3 Broadway was adver.
tised "to let," the rent demanded be-
ing 1915. This was considered toe
high also, but it was determined to take