The Wheeling daily register. [volume] (Wheeling, W. Va.) 1864-1878, 1876-04-13

occupying it he was compelled by tn
growth of his business to add twenty fee
to the depth Of the store, and to add an
other story. A year or two later /,
fourth story was added, and in 1887 /,
fifth story. His trade was now with tn,
wealthy and fashionable class OF the city
and he had surmounted all his early diff
culties and laid the foun dation of mag
nifcent fortune.
The great crisis found Mr.. Stewart q
prosperous and rising man, and in tina,
terrible financial storm, while other men
were becoming bankrupt he was coming
money. He always watched the market
closely so that he might profit by any
sudden change in it. He marked down
all goods as low as possible and began to
"sell at cost" Everybody complained Of
hard times, and all were glad to avail
themselves of "Stewart's bargains" In
this way he carried on retail cash trade
of four thourand dollars day in that cri.
sis. Other merchants were compelled to
send their goods to auction to be sold for
what they might bring, and Mr.. Stewart
attended all their auctions regularly, pur-
chasing the goods thus offered. These
he rapidly sold, realizing an average
profit of forty per cent. 1t is said that he
purchased s50,0D0 worth of silks in that
way, and sold the whole lot within few
days, making $4,000 on the transaction.
He made fortune in that crisis.
When Mr.. Stewart opened his little
store, John Jacob Astor was worth mil.
lions, and Cornelius Vanderbilt, as cap
tain for Thomas Gibbons, had been six
years in the steamboat business. In 1848
he built the large marble store at Broad
way and Chambers street, on the site of
thei Washington Hotel, place which was
fashionable resort about forty years ago.
Stewards New York palace, as it was
called, was the marvel of the time. From
lS4S his business grew rapidly, and it
grew until it became enormous. In some
branches he had almest a monopoly.
Buying in large quantities, and always
for cash, he had great advantages in his
foreign purchases, and for long time
the English, French, and German manu-
facturers made concessions to him that no
other man could obtain. He foresaw and
prepared for the uptown movement by
leasing the land bounded by Ninth and
Tenth streets AMI Broadway and Fourth
avenue. 1t is part OF the old Randall
farm, and is held under Sailors Snug
Harbour leases. On these lots, covering
an area of two and one-quarter acres he
erected his strong iron retail store at a
costs of S2,750,00O. To this establishment,
in 1862. Mr.. Stewart removed his retail
business, and from that time the down.
town store was given up to wholesale
trade.
Mr.. Stewards uptown store is the
largest of the kind in the world. There
is nothing that at all approaches it in
either London or Paris. 1t has eight
stories, two below and six above ground,
each covering an AIRED of two and one
quarter acres, thus making total OF
eighteen acres devoted to retail dry goods
purposes. 1t requires 520-horse power to
heat the vast store, run the elevators, and
work the sewing machines. There are
about two thousand employees under pay,
and the disbursements for running ex-
penses are over 100000 year. The
wholesale and retail establishments COM
bined have sold goods valued at $4,000.
000 in one year.
The firm of a. T. Stewart Il Co. has
branch houses in Boston, Phiadelphia,
Paris, Lyons, France; Manchester, Eng
land; Brainford, Nottingham, Belfast,
Glasgow, Berlin, and Chemnitz.
REFORMING THE RETAIL TRADE.
Mr.. Stewart was strictly just, but not
generous man in his dealings. He al
ways kept his own word scrupulously,
and required others to do the same. If
he promised to pay dollar, he paid
dollar, and if man promised him dol
lar, nothing less than dollar would sat-
isty him. Hence he got the reputation
of being hard and exacting, and conse.
quently IVES rather unpopular. He was
also strictly truthful man. He never
told lies, nor asked anyone in his employ
to tell them. The foundation of his bus
mess success was the reputation, which
his establishment gained at an early day,
for describing goods exactly as they were,
offering them at the lowest price intend
ed to be taken. and then making no devil
atoms When he first opened his store
1t was the custom of sellers and buyers to
chatter over their transactions. The dealer
asked more than he intended to take,
and the buyer offered less than he really
intended to give, and long debate fol-
lowed. The result was that timid peo-
pie and young persons, were glad to find
place where they could look at goods,
ask prices, and then have nothing more
to do then to make up their minds to
take them or leave them. Mr.. Stewart
also had the reputation of paying the
lowest market rate ofsalaries to his clerks.
This was partly owing to his natural
shrewdness, and partly to the fact that
he was constantly overwhelmed with ap.
plications for situations. Having only
to pick from great number who offered
themselves, aud who were anxious
for employment ON any terms,
he found it easy to secure clerks
at salaries far below those that
many other employers were compelled
to paw. But Whatever he promised to
paw was paid punctually and fully. And
in The course of his long career 1t has
never been alleged against him that ne
ever defrauded man, woman or child OF
a cent. At the same time be required of
all the fullest performance of the duties
that they undertook and very slight
failure was in his eyes sufficient cause Tor
dismissal. AS an illustration OF his busi-
ness tact, il is mentioned that on opening
his rrea, retail store he instructed his
clerks 20 pay particular attention to the
moor women who entered at the Fourth
avenue doors, his object being TO break
up the Bowery trade. And he did it Ell
feetually.
Mr.. Stewards great popularity as
business man was his familiarity with