Daily globe. [volume] (St. Paul, Minn.) 1878-1884, 1879-03-02
The Upright Clerk.

Fifty years ago there was flourishine
store in Groton, Massachusetts, kept by
James Brazer. Mr.. Blazer did large
business with all the country round, for
his stock was composed Of almost every
thing one could want, cotton and wooden
goods, hardware, wooden ware, threads,
silks, crockery, kegs of tobacco. and
great quantities of rum and brandy; Civ
ing plenty of employment to five clerks
In Mr.. BraZer's store, in those DAYS
there was custom, which is generally
done away with now, the custom OF
drinking at II o'clock. Every forenoon
drink was mixed up, made Of rum, raj
sins, sugar and nutmeg, with biscuit, and
handed round to the master, clerks, and
their customers; all partook of it, and
relished it, and dare say smacked their
lips and wanted more. At last one OF his
clerks refused his glass. HE had made
resolution not to take any for week." he
said. 1t looked very odd. His com
panions wanted to know why. 'The
habit IS growing on me-" answered Amos,
tor that was his name, land am afraid
Of it; that's all" The other clerks
called him foolish, and a coward. They
thought that was no good reason st all,
for everybody drank. They laughed at
him, but they did not laugh it out of him.
He made his first resolution for week,
then for month, then for year, and
fin ally for the five years Of his appren
ticeship; and thus alone, and for himself
he took the ground of total abstinence
when spirit drinking was the universal
fashion; and curing the whole time he
never drank spoonful, though he mixed
gallons and gallons for his master Amos
made the same resolution in regard to
tobacco; he never smoked cirgar, or
chewed but one quid, and that was before
he was fifteen. A great many years
afterwards, he wrote to young student
at college:
In the first place, take this for your
motto at the beginning of your journey,
that the difference Of going just right and
a little wrong will be the difference of
finding yourself in good quarters, or in
miserable bog or SLOUGH at the end of it.
Of the whole number educated in the
Groton stores, for years before and after
myself, no one else, to my knowledge, es-
capped the bog or SLOUGH; and my escape l
traced to the single fact Of my having put
restraint upon my appetite. After leav-
ing school and going into store, not a
month passed before I WIS impressed
with the opinion that restraint, upon ap-
petite was necessary to prevent the slav-
cry l saw destroying numbers about me.
Many and many of the farmers, mechan-
les, and apprentices OF that day have
filled drunkards' graves, and left dest1-
tute friends
Let every clerk and apprentice who
reads this, land I hope there will be ma.
n.y. stop and note this point-the differ
ence of gong just right and little wrong.
in your setting out in life, is the difference
between integrity and dishonesty, success
or disappointment, happiness or ruin.
At twenty-one, in 1907, Amos went to
Boston With twenty dollars in bis pocket.
He soon received an offer Of clerkship in
respectable firm. Here he staid but a
few months. His employers failed, and
he hired small store on Cornhill. and
furnished it with goods upon the strength
of the confidence with which he had in
spired the merchants who had become
acquainted with him. Integrity, industry,
and system, were the foundations upon
WHICH MS business Was quit. tie praC.
ticed rigid economy, never allowing him
self to spend fourpence upon an un-
necessary object until he earned it. Dur
ing his first seven years in the city, he
never let bill stand against him over
the Sabbath. IF the purchase had been
made at auction on Saturday, he always
examined and settled the bill by note, or
by crediting it, so that in case he was not
on duty on Monday, there would be no
trouble for the clerks; thus keeping bust
ness before him, instead Of allowing it to