Burlington weekly free press. [volume] (Burlington, Vt.) 1866-1928, 1881-06-10
Anecdotes Of the Late Johns Hopkins.

lie left $4,000, 900, molety Of which
was divided between eighteen relatives.
and the bulk retained for university and
several hospitals The nephew who was
often Mt variance, with him received almost
twice rs much rs his brothers who never
contradicted him. Mr. Hopkins never
married. The daughters of Epamlnondas
were that hcro's famous victories. The
children of Johns Hopkins are the splen-
did institutions he has left to learning, to
mercy. and to science. There never was
stronger man. He started life with
Si0O, and built up, by his own exertions,
2 colossal fortune. From the beginning
ne declared that he had n mission from
God to increase his store, and that the
golden flood that poured into his Golfers
did not belong to HIM or to the hundred
who sought to borrow or beg it from him.
lie declared that supernatural power
prevented him from taking money from
his pocket to bestow foolish aims, and
that some day the world would know that
he was not the grasping, avariclous, and
narrow minded man he was accounted.
He nevertheless. helped secretly many
worthy persons, and after his death it was
discovered that not Il few merchants had
been saved by him from financial embar-
rassment and sorrow. But in the COM,
mon acceptation Of the term he was not
liberal. His mission prevented that.
Toward the close of very long life he
became stingv and suspicious, but the
end he had proposed never changed, and
that was the mistress of his soul, toward
whom he maintained an intlexible fidelity.
Clifton Was his pride, and npon it he
In nm
versity was to have been founded but
his design will be baffled. The city au-
thorities have taken some fifty acres just
in front of the imperial mansion, and the
noble chestnut grove he had nurtured,
not one tree of which would he cut down
even when wilhcre,i, has fallen before
the remorseIcss axe of progress. The
foundations OF vast lake for the water
supply of Baltimore are already in course
Of excavation, and the engineers and their
rude implements occupy several of the
beautiful chambers of Clifton"
An uncanny old tramp used TO station
himself under giant oak that stood SEN
try by The lodge OF Clifton This made
Mr.. Hopkins nervous and became NOR
tai offence. He told one Of his nephews
Of If, and said he did not know how to
abate the nuisance. why not pay him,
uncle. and send him away 2" queried the
voung man. PAY him money!" Mr..
Hopkins shrieked, while his long arms
ilcw about like windmills. ''Pay him
money, God forbid When 1 do that
there viii be a hundred vagabonds here
instead Of one - well, then," added
his isnephew. If | were You, Uncle John,
| would lick him ont" Il cannot do
Al / =. 19l afr
What - the nephew retorted, ''are you
afraid of such cur as that?' "No no =
Mr. Hopkins whispered hoarselv, 81 am
not afraid of him, but afraid of God.
Did Won never read in the Bible how
Dives treated Lazarus? Would You have
me repeat the story and burn in hell for
ever = This ended it.
On one of the last days of his earthly
existence Mr. Hopkins called his devoted
gardener to him and said Il am be
ginning to hate this place because 1t does
not bring in money. | hate everything
that does not bring in money. Did you
ever feed the hogs? Have You not OBJ
served that the strong animals bear away
the ears of corn and that the weaker ones
pursue them squealngly, in hopes that
all or some of the treasure will be lost or
dropped?' The gardener replied that
the sketch was a true one. well, then,
said Mr.. Hopkins, Il am that strong hog.
/ have that hiG ear of corn, and every
piggish rascal in Baltimore is bent upon
stealing it or wrestling it from me !!
"Sir," he said turning brusquely to the
gardener, "do YOU think n very rich man
is happy?' The gardener answered
The extreme Of poverty is a sad thing
The extreme Of wealth, no doubt, bears
with it many trihnlations.' Mr.. Hopkin:
rcioinod: You are right, my friend
next TO tie hell of being utterly bercft o
money is the purgatory Of possessing ,
vast amount of it. / have a mission, ant
under its shadow / have accumulated
wealth, but not happiness.