Evening star. [volume] (Washington, D.C.) 1854-1972, 1881-11-19
"REMINISCENCES OF RICH MEN.


AND VANDERBILT AND pREw-cURIoUs REM
NIsCENCEs OF THE OPENING DAT OF STEW
ARTS DOWNTOWN sToRE-PERsoNAL ENCoUN-
TER BETWEEN THE AIILIoNAIRE MERCHANT
AND ONE OF HIS CLERKS - THE NAN WHO
WANTED TO SEE CLAFLIN.
Harry Hill in New York Mercury.
Passin' Stewards Chamber street store the
other day, and lookin' at it comparatively de-
serted, couldn't help thinkin' Of the great
time there was in New York the day when this
wonderful store was opened.
Public opinion, so far as you could get at 1t,
was opposed to Stewards venture; just as public
opinion was opposed at first to old Eno's ven
himself was not very well liked, and wasn't
understood then as well as he was afterward,
and every body who was any body in the dry
goods and real estate line prophesied his down.
fall. The two great objections to the store
were. first, that it was too expensive, bein' of
white marble, and next, that it was on the
wrong side of Broadway.
The day before the openin' day Of his big
store Stewart got into stage goin' up to his
residence, which was then on Blocker street.
The stage was full Of men, and nobody in it
knew Stewart. But they were all talkin' of his
quoted the old adage "about fool and his
money" Speakin' Of this circumstance to
friend afterward, Stewart said: ut was then
for the first and last time in my life asked my
self, Am l fool!' and really couldn't answer
that question myself just then, so put it Off till
tomorrow"
Stewart had made every arrangement for
big openin'. Every clerk was in his best bib
and tucker. He had men stationed on the west
side of Broadway to call the attention of the
crowd to his store on the other side. Every
thing was conducted on scale worthy of the
store
But when, on the early mornin' of the day of
the openin', Stewart got up and looked from the
windows of his house, on Blocker street, at
the sky, he saw it full of black clouds Pretty
goin' to rain all day. And then what do you
think A. T. Stewart did-the owner of the finest
store in New York! Why, he did what any
girl would have done. and. sttin' down in
a corner, hidin' his face in his hands, he
had good cry. Yes, good cry, as if he
wasa young school miss or an old woman. He
told friend Of his this fact himself and his
friend told me. Stewart was human, after all,
and sometimes he got nervous, just like other
people. He wasn't half as cast-iron as he was
chances Of his openin' about to be spoiled by
the weather, and knew how much depended on
good openin' why it is no wonder that he had
touch Ofhis mother in him for moment. But
OHly iof d MoIuent. lHeQ ne W1peO MS eyes,
and braced himself up for any thin'-for break
fast, the first thin. After breakfast he thought
he would take one more peep out of the window
at the weather before he ventured out. To his
surprise he found that it had stopped rainin'
already and promised to be clear. It kept it's
promise, too and before Stewart got down to
his store the sun was shinin' beautifully. Stew
arts luck didn't desert him.
TWAS the biggest Openin' ever had by any
mercantile establishment in New York up to
Ia40
that night, he was better known than he was
the night before, and the very people who were
laughin' and sneerin' at him then were praisn'
and envyin' him now. Twenty-fOur nours and
hne weather instead Of foul, make wonderful
difference.
Stewart was "death" on churches His very
stable was church-Dr. Williams Presbyterian
church, on Amity street. He would buy all the
real estate round church, then gobble up the
church. That was his way with the Old Dutch
similar game before he bought DR.. Osgoods
church, on Broadway, afterwards the Globe
Theater, now Harrigan and Harris new place.
He bought Governor MOrgan's residence on La
fayette Place. People wondered what on earth
he bought it for. ITO oblge Morgan" said
somebody 'To oblige Stewart" was the an
swer, and the answer was right. The Lafayette
Place lot was right back of the church; and,
havin' got the lot first, Stewart afterward bought
the church, and so had property stretchin
Once, and once only, did Stewart get into
regular knock-down fight with anybody. and
then with one Of his clerks, about what
ninety-nine out of one hundred would have
called trf1e, but which Stewart thought
invOlveda big principle.
1T was a rule in his store. and good rule it
was, too, because in the long run an absolutely
necessary one, that none of the employees should
sit down durin' business hours. One morniu
early Stewart entered his store and found one
- cola
readin' a paper. Stewart walked right up to
the clerk and showed the paper he was readin'
to one sde so he could get good look at him.
He recognized him at once as one of his very
Oldest and best statesmen.
But that made no difference. "Get up and
60" said Stewart. And the clerk got up and
went. "FOlow me to the cashiers desk, said
Stewart and the clerk followed him. ''Pay this
man what is due to him till this mornin'," said
Stewart to the cashier, land let him consider
himself discharged from my employ" The
clerk like man in dream, took the money
and went away. But thinkin' the matter over,
he made up his mind that Stewart had only been
'huffed," and didn't mean really to discharge
him for so simple thing as sittin' on chair
and readin' paper So he came down to the
store as usual also the next mornin'. Stewart
came down as usual, also, and the two met
Stewart got Almost white when he saw his
discharged clerk back again. He raised his
hand Quit this store at once and forever;
yOu nave uO DuSlncSS mere; nave OiSCnargeQ
yOu sir" he cried, in his shrill voice. The poor
clerk, who had had good salary and had
thought he had a sure thing for life, looked in
Stewards face and saw there was no hope. He
was married man, with a large family de-
pendent upon him. He realized his position,
and in a fit of rage and frenzy, he rushed at
Stewart, shook him like terrier shakin
rat, and then knocked him down. Stewart
fought gamely, but was overpowered, and lost
some of his teeth in the encounter.
Now, perhaps most people who don't think
would blame Stewart; but people who know
how important thing discipline is in hotel,
theater. store. steamboat, railroad and an
army-everythin', in tact, that employs people
win say he did just right in dischargn' the man
and enfOrcin' the discharge. Though think, if
had been Mr.. Stewart, would have taken
him back after while And, perhaps, Stewart
would have taken him back il he hadn't knocked
his front teeth out. Maxim q man swallow his
teeth amt always the best way Of making a
man swallow his words
The fight between Stewart and his clerk didn't
last over two minutes, but the fight Cor trade
rivalry that almost amountedtO afght) between
Stewart and Ciatiin lasted some fifteen years.
Stewart never liked to hear Cafns name men
toned, and you couldn't make him madden than
to praise Claflin. though he never committed
L It,