American citizen. [volume] (Canton, Miss.) 1864-1890, 1881-08-27
Aucients WHO Were Well Fixed.

Thousands OF fnen have envied Astoft
| Stewart, Vanderbilt, MachSy, Kecne,
Gould and the other fellows WHO cart
| buy Strawberries at one dollar per box,
but the richest of them are mere va
grants when compared 10 some of the
ancients There was Minus. for in
stance. He was the SON of Nimrod,
the old hunter. who rIade lions scratch
for holes end tigers take to bitches.
Old MIN left his boz about f13O,00O, COO
in cash, besides 10000 cattle, Il piece
of land about as big as Arkansas. and
1900 likely slaves. There were no
lawyers in those days who made spe-
eialty of breaking wills and gobbling
estates, and young Minus quietly took
possession and cast about for some
plan to keep himself out of the poor
house. He was considered poor
ging his girl to an ics-cream saloon or
riding out in livery rig his friends
would have said he would bring up in a
garnet. BY a lucky capture of territory
from the Assyrians, together with co.
600 slaves, 125, 600 cattle. ten wagon
loads of silver and jewels and few
other tribes. Minus walked up the So
cial ladder until big-bugs asked after
his wife and babies, and he could lose
three games1 of billiards without Won
dering if the owner of the saloon would
take a "stand off, He was worth
$3.50, 600, 900 when he died. and yet for
the last five years of his life he went
without mutton because the price had
raised to three cents per pound.
The heress with $4,000 bank &C.
cotint considers herself some pumpkins.
but what three-cent-piece she would
have been alongside of Queen Semi
raniis. She not only had the lucre left
by Minus, but iii ten years she had in
creased it four-fold. just multiply
ESQ, 900 by two and you have the
amount of her bank balance, to say
furniture and palaces and slaves and
cattles. Had she sold out and cleaned
up she could have drawn her little
check for about EGO. 100000. She
didn't worry about where her spring
bonnet was to come from, and when =
new style of dress goods came out she
didn't sit up nights for fear some neigh
Dor would secure q pattern first. While
she made it lively for her enemies she
was soft on her friends. She gave her
waiting maid half million dollars i'll a
lump for dressing her hair in a new
style, and she tossed the same amount
to her dressmaker as Il reward for the
excellent fit of one particular dress.
One day when she saw poor old man
travelling the highway on foot she pre-
sented him with 500 asses to ride on,
and insisted ON his accepting ESQ, 200
to pay his toll and tavern bills.
Cyrus, King of Persia from the year
53S to $50, had some little change to
begin with. and in ten years he could
Il Ho
didn't haggle over the price of a slave
when a man came to buy, but present
ed him with 1000. He at one time
owned 10000 horses, 10000 cattle,
200. 600 sheep, $1,000 asses and $4,000
slaves, and when he got tired of a
palace costing $I,0O0,0O0 he gave it
away 10 some poor washwoman with
seven children to support. He one day
sat down to a dinner which had cost
f30. 900, and in the afternoon he went
on Il ESQ, 900 drunk. The police didn't
run him in, or he would doubtless have
insisted on paying n fine of EGO, 900 and
presenting his Honor with corner
house and lot in the toniest part of
Babylon.
King Menes was another wellhecled
man. 1t was too much trouble to count
his cash, and so he weighed it. One
day when an Olu Iflenu aSkeu MIN ZOE
the loan of a few dollars until Saturday
night, he sent him q procession of sixty
asses, each animal loaded with $50
pounds of gold coin. He paid El00, 900
for bird which could whistle, the same
for a trick dog. and he had such a fond
ness for white oxen that he SHIELDED out |
f25, 600 apiece for them, and at one
time had u drove of 1000. When he |
got out with the boys he made things |
lively. During one spree in his city of
Memphis, he gave away 100000, aud |
didn't get dead drunk at that. AT one |
time he had 600,00O gold chains, 1.0t0.
600 finger rings. 100, 600 costly swords.
800, 900 daggers, and land only knows
how many fish-lines. jack-knives. cork |
screws and tobacco boxes. His wife |
had Il, 100000 n year rs pin money, |
and when his eldest son went up to |
Thebcs to see the elephant, he was fol- |
lowed by 500 friends. l 1000 slaves. 1000 |
horses and f50O,00o for fare, checks |
and beer money.-IhetroH Free Press.