The Portland daily press., 1883-09-26
The Ohio Prohibition Candidate.
Visit to Hon. Ferdinand Schumacher bv
Hon. Neal Dow-Some Account OF his
Character and Enterprises.

To the Editor Of the Press:
Akron, Ohio, is one of the busiest places
in the country, having a great many indus
tries, the chief of which are -four and oat-
meal mills; and German, the Hon. Ferdi-
nand Schumacher, is the presiding genius of
the place. l was met at the Railway station
and taken by him to his charming house, a
palace in fact, just in the outskirts of the
town, upon rising ground, commanding a
fine view of the surrounding country. Ger
man is the language habitually used in the
family, the children learning it there as their
mother tongue, at the same time that Eng
lish comes TO them as freely as if they had
no other. Mr.. Schumacher began life as
very poor boy in his native land, coming to
Ohio in early youth, and by industry, econo-
my, enterprise and temperance, he has ac-
CURED very large fortune, which he en-
ploys in extending the business of the city
where he resides, and spends freely in every
good word and work. He is the Prohibi-
zionist candidate for Governor of the State.
On going to Mr.. Scbumacher's office. I
was surprised 10 find it occupying large
fine building of stone, larger in the interior
than the First National Bank of this city,
with counters and plate glass and glded
quills like first class banking room. Many
busy clerks occupied desks all over the room,
with Mr.. Schumacher's two sons as the eff
fcient masters of the establishment.
After breakfast ore day, my host said:
"Will you go down to my mill? l visit them
every day, to see if all is going on properly,"
and so we drove down to them. Great mills
and many of them; -four mills, oatmeal
mills, pearl barley mills, and some others.
One of them is an enormous structure,
which Mr.. Schumacher calls Jumbo" 1t
is of brick, as they all are, founded upon the
living rock, the timbers which support the
machinery being of great dimensions, so
fastened and secured, that when the ma
chinery is in operation, there is not the least
jar or tremble in any part of it. / had never
before seen mill so large and so perfect in
all its details as "Jumboo is
l found in all these mills, machinery that
| had never heard of, which cleans the
wheat, oats and barley, so perfectly, that
the grains are actually polished, before
they are let in upon the stones. All
the mills are driven by water and steam
united, the water and steam actuating the
same main shafts. The engines are very
large fine machines, perfect in every detail
and beautifully finished. The engines in
jumbo are of 500 horse power, and the
wafer furnishes nearly as much more. 1t
was curious to note that these immense en-
gnes were as noiseless in their action as a
baby carriage on aparlor carpet. The process
of making the -four and oat meal is entirely
different from anything had before seen,
the machinery being of recent invention. /
asked Mr.. Schumacher if he had learned the
trade of a miller in bis own country, ''yes,''
he said, 'by grinding oats by hand at twen-
ty-fve cents for ten bushelsr' And now, he
is one of the rich men of the rich State of
Ohio, his fortune actively engaged in ex
tending its business, employing its people,
Increasing its wealth, establishing and sup
porting educational, philanthropic and be-
nevolent enterprises, and sustaining period
icals in the German language for the benefit
of immigrants from the Faderland.
Mr.. Schumacher differs from some of the
the very rich men of New York in this, that
his fortune is not in any sense made up
from the losses of others, but the whole of
it came from legitimate Industries which
create wealth for +he State and for all his
employees as we'll as for himself, and every
good word and work has share in his sue
cess, or good fortune, as many would call it.
There is no man whom l know, who lives
less for himself and more for his fellow men
than he. May he long live, and many 9TH
ers learn wisdom from his example.
NEAL Dow.