Evening star. [volume] (Washington, D.C.) 1854-1972, 1883-12-26
Eszs. King OK TEE PORK ,IAFsKEr.
How Energy and Labor Turned Every
tlsInE into Gold.
FRI. tN- Chicago Tins.

askeJ a venerable Philadelphia street venier.
Some days aro Of a Chicago man The latter
had tafa2a great lot of soap to the City OF
Brotaeriy Love. AMI had advertised for ped
oilers. The old man vas one Of the applicants,
bu, was nevertheless -anteel-,ooking-
Il kaov OF Wr. Armour. was the reply.
flEv,., body in IT,, rr,st has heard OF him.
IL NJ very rcl.- asked the Oil man with an
Interested air.
sad to be aml.lionaire, answered the other.
promptly.
The ce7.ael-ookiGE old man sighed and after
moments silence said: 'Ph.lp ". Armour
Ua- iu 1,1ture1 To ne when n boy He asked
ne to rr.'F~e him so that he could go to Cali
forna during the gold feVer and did"
Tire street vender at once became an object OF
curiosity 20 the ChicagOan- As a pedder he
dii not succeed He was Industrious but the
business went i'll with him. Some months later.
after the Chicago man had returned home, he
met the br0ad-shOuldered. good-Oaturel look
Ing packer in the street. ''Mr Armour" said
ne. do yon know Mr. -" giving the old
Philadcirhian's name
IL was bound out to that man." said the
packer. Ike fash. II asked him for fnHCe-
lease and ne gave it To me when | started for
California. Where IS he:'
Then the circumstances of the meeting in
Philadelphia were given. Armour took the old
mans address. Some months later the Chica-
gOan was in the east again. The sOap-peddler
turned up ''Do You know" he said, that
Philip u. Armour sent me $500 not long ago.
Before the two parted he added: Il am real
poor; hut don't like to accept charity. Don't
Sou suppose Mr. Armour somewhere in his great
establishment could give me place where
might earn my living Ask him for me-
THAT old man VIII never want so long as
know his address,. said Armour when this mes
sage was delivered - him. But wouldn't
have him in myotFice il he would work for moth
inc. / don't want I'aypd-Out men around me-"
Am. D rFn- how &,
northern New York not far from WATERFOWL
Ever j..s.ly IN the locality knew the ArmOurs
not beSs'.-e they were rich influential but
5ecau~e He boys he'd eli of them such strapping
tTuaG shoulders and looked all Of them as much
alike - peas in a pod. Phil Armour was going to
the cpuatry academy. gentleman now at
Eya' - ~ was the principal. The boy PLAYED
hook one aitonuon. and with the prettiest
girl IN lc academy. took ride>with borrowed
horse and buggy IL was an innocent esca-
pade. bat to the mind Of tine pedagogue terri
bic breach Of disciUiine Both the Youngsters
were expelled. II" hoy pleaded for his COM
pani0ii. The petiaE'@Ue was memorable. That
night Philip told his mother that if ne could get
Released from his .aj'Hture he would
START For CALIFORNIA.
ATw0Gr's experience in California was not
dtIcT.>it from that OF thousands OF others who
cau=i.l the gold fever at about the same time
HE i.sTtishiHs decreasing the plains were great
He fell siek AMI narrowly escaped dying. But
he got 70 the ggl1--ields, and dug with better
success than the majority; besides he had been
taught ~ his mother to save. After digging
9nd saving. aud trailing and LAYING awav he
staftyt back east. and never STONED until he
got 7" Milwaukee. There for some. wears he did
a gran receiving and warehouse business From
ffe Cav lie Reached California to q day some
Nhefe S'nG in the sixties. when he entered into
Partnership with Mr. PiInkintOn, in Milwaukee,
ne ia. i-a'ie money WIKI amazing rapidity He
rad rotten to-etaar about 500 900. 1t was
WIFI nm a tO>S-uD for awhile whether TO rO
into .dIbering or psTk-packiug. Finally he
bought out the Interest of Mr. LAYTON in the
firm of Layton FIank,nton.
During tine war all tie pUrk-naekers over the
cougtfE made ECner. Half oft.ipIn were kent
Eoln- ming army contracts Chicago was not
Then TIE only great packing city in the world
tIHe. nal. 81 Louis Cleveland and New York
WEE t' meade I2rters for the great pork kings
HE INN OF IaukiLJon, Armour il Co. were
kno" = wealthy and well-canducted con-
Germ but II partners were scarcely spoken ofin
The same breath with some of the millionaire
pacEsr> ~ -. Louis and Cincinnati. Pork was
gOin- l-t before the close of the war at $40 q
barrel Armour SAYS he dreamed one night that
there vas % be a great break in it, 1t set him
thinNin@- On the way 20 his office he stopped
al VIZ. Tiankintnns house. Forks too high -
said The Junior partner.
Il think -. too. answered the senior; "take
what You can
Il can't get through, = replied Armour.
Never mind, said PankintOn. get as far as
you can"
Armour got to New York. went 'sshortn of
pork at so and never took 1t in until if was
selling at SIS This was his first great strike
1t made him easily millionaire: but that New
York experience, he has said was the most fer
rible he ever had in his life-worse than the
trip across the plains ten times over There
Was no Armour house at Gotham in those DAYS
The business was done through Messrs Wallace
Rl-g l.; -
Co does now. All the big packers in the conn
try, with q very few exceptions, were 'sbulls"
on provisions Sid Kent reached New York
about the time Phil Armour did and was a
pear too But the Cleveland packers the
IndlaGGI0 Cincinnati. st. Louis and New
York manufacturers were BUYERS. Messrs
wallace 4 Wicks did business for all were he
sides bUiiish themselves. and loaded I'D with
Product U.on which advances had been made
There We're conferences each niTLt at tho Fifth
Avenue hotel and traps were set. invitations is
sued. dinners given. hesyen and earth moved IN
get young Armour and Kent into the great pro-
NiS!". pooh Armour would not 20 near the
rtetiI-S. and would have nOtbir,c IN do u-i.h
the pool. He insisted uDOn selling lint ronnd
Z no eaEv thing To do. He ordered his AGENTS
10 sell large LIT c.: pork. They asked him if he
hej II = sell. 1t vas none of their business. he
said j. they wanted margins let them name
the sU.I- Selling short was, they declared
We. business. They'd never done il and
G!int approve OF IT. They tried TO persuale
Armour that he was wrong, but would give no
decisive refusal. Stepping across the street
INTO we.l-kaOWn brokers' office he cave an
order 10
SILL Ten THOUSAND BARRELS
Simply announcing his name. Before knew
that tue order had been givea." said Mr.
Armour, not long ago. in describing this ex-
perieate. the sales We're reported asked the
broker what margins he wanted He said that
he would arrange IL In the mornia.-" This was
the first of his short selling lie continued if
IL the terror Of the whole provision market for
Three Mc3ths' From morning until night day
In and day out. for ninety DAYS he haunted the
Ollie - his agents. Customers whom they
would refuse TO SCI! 10, he would intercept AMI
accommodate. The old Presbyterians who
formed the concern. and who were so yitaIly in
terested on the bull" side of pork. PRAYED for
his removal The Cleveland INDIANAPOLIS. Gin
Cinnati and New York pool celebrated his de-
partUre. Pork had tumbled about IS a barrel
finct Ms selling began When the Milwaukeean
was about to leave for home, Kingon. great
operator Of that day, said he wanted to make
just ole trade more. III sell you eco barrels
q polk I'll take it," replied Hingon; you'll
want u back when pork is at 500 Il Il deliver
you that pork. said Armour when the price
i Els He did The packers with few ex-
ceptons. from one end Of the country TO the