Seattle daily post-intelligencer. [volume] (Seattle, W.T. [Wash.]) 1881-1888, 1882-08-02

New Yosx, June 2, lsaa.-aAladdir's
Lamp is an Arabian tale, whose mar
veis appeal, in the East. 70 the irn.p,ra-
tiosi alone. Bat in the West, notably IN
"aii street, there ; re- naIr Aiaddir1's
lamps, and tie Stock Exchange is ths
place who're they IRE rubbed. The mar
Fs'a Ok the lamp are translated mo fact
every few days In the new world
acni7yement outdo-s the dream. OK the
orient; the Visions Of MIRA are realized
IN the harnts of commerce. Whoever
heard OF a working non-propfi stary
journalist that had made L,illions before
middle age, o1fasde Of Gotham: Tue
example can hardly be paralleled; i.
seems impossible, even here. Neverthe
iess, the man who oncs toiled for twenty
dollars week on q morning newspaper,
IS actually alive, healthy, vigorous, and
today, at only forty-six years Of age, is
asserted to be worth &5.G00,0M or S.
vo,VO. He may be seen et nny tune
during bu mess hours ri No. %, Nassau
street: his face and figure are familiar to
many: his nsDe is Henry Willard. Is
the.s auaht Ia the "Arabisn Nights" to
exceed This! In all conceivable clrcum-
stances, professional journalist ard a
vast fortune are more widely separated
than the poles, and almost as little like
~ TO come together.
What is most remarkable in Willard s
wealth Is that, while il has been made
suddenly, it has not been made at any
body expense. Neither tho result of u
dev'ce or speculation, it has the finan-
cal but not the moral, consequences of
both. He has really earned his millions
by perception, discretion and power Of
combination. Seeing the possible re-
sources, and anticipating the needs of
the Northwest, he has s:aked his means
on his faith in its future and the future
VI the Republic, and he has muniticent-
" and deservedly won. Although a Wall
street man IN one sense. he is not in
another and vulgar sense. He il great
capitalist, and has close and confidential
relations with great capitalists; he is
likewise a railway maXnats and mana.
ger.
4 MONETARY POwEE
OF the city and the country. But he
does not rspresen. Wall street az a spec
ulatOr, a. reckless adveuturer, aS an as
sailant OF substantial property, as an
abuser of public confidence and private
credit. He makes no general raids on
securities, spreading ISLANDERS and re-
failing lies for purely Inercenary ends.
He gets up no corners; he does not buy
what he cannot pay for, nor does no sell
what is not his. HIS il not financial
trickster, or mOntebank on large scale,
believes bis acts reputable, even illustri-
oas. His operations are le2itimate; he is
strictiy business man; he attends close
~ to his own affairs.
To make money il naturally his oh
i@ct; bat it is not his sole object, and he
understands that money may be made
at too high cost. His loftiest ambition
Ii 10 keep hrs reputation unstained, 70
avoid the appearance of Suspicion of
trading ON good name. of using his
friends for a pecunary purpose of playing
fast and loose with those VITO trust him.
He would rather stand fair in the eyes
Of honorable men than add unlimiteGly
to his capital. He is convinced, in q
word, that there are some things better
than money! rank and savagely scout
ed heresy amolg the bulls aud the
bears. -.
An example Of this Wan furnished in
his formation, less than three years ago,
of the Oregon Railway and Navigation
Company. He decided to raise largo
sum to buy up the stock OF the Oregon
Steam NAVIGATION Company, on
whose consolidation the new corporation
Was - be based. Feeling assured that
the investment would prove extremely
profitable, he unfolded the scheme 10 n
few Of his friends, giving them, with
each $1,000 = per cent. first mortgage
bond at 81, 800 stock of the new compa-
ny gratis. Almost as soon as the stock
was ready for delivery, it advanced to
124. aud the members of tho syndicate
were naturally delighted with their ex-
traortlinary game. Some while after,
Jay Gould, in talking to Willard of the
brilliant SUCCESS of his western plan,
asked:
why didn't you divide your Oregon
Navigation stock into preferred and
common, making two-sevenths of it
preferred and five-sevenths common?
The preferred you might have given to
your friends, and kept the common for
yourself. They would have been more
than satisfied to got $24O to $50 clear,
besides firstrate $1OO0b0nd, command
ing premium for $500, and you would
have
MADE SEVERAL MILLIONS