St. Paul daily globe. [volume] (Saint Paul, Minn.) 1884-1896, 1884-07-08
GRAPHIC STORY,
Of the Life and Character of Grover
Cleveland.

y
two-story and half white house with wooden
shutters, and there in the year 1887 was
born Stephen Grover Cleveland, now govern
or of the great state of New York. He has
only the most shadowy recollections of it, for
when he was three years of age, his father,
who was Presbyterian minister, with a large
family and small salary, moved by way of
the Hudson river and the Erie canal to Fay
ettevlle, in search of an increased income
and larger field of work Fayetteville was
then the most struggling of country villages
about five miles from Pompey Hill where
Gov. Seymour was born. Here the boy
Grover Cleveland first went to school in the
good old-fashioned way and presumably dis
| tinguished himself after the manner of all
village boys in doing all the things that he
ought not do. One thing appears to be in
disputable. He at the age of fourteen had
outgrown the capacity of the village school
and expressed most emphatic desire to be
sent to an academy. To this his father as
emphatically objected. Academies in those
| days cost money. Besides, the elder Cleve-
land wanted the lad to become self-support-
| ing by the quickest possible road. The quick
est possible road in Fayetteville was the
country store, where the pastor with large
family had considerable personal influence.
Fifty dollars was to be paid the boy the first
year, and if he proved trustworthy he was to
receive 800 the second year.
IN COUNTRY STORE.
One can easily enough picture the employ
ment if one knows what thriving country
store is, its duties ranging with scarcely time
for intermediate soup and water, from dealing
out mackerel and moasses to cutting off cot
ton print enough for the village BELLS new
dress. There, is a tradition comes from Fay
ettevile, not at all ill-defned, that young
| Cleveland in two years proved himself so
| trustworthy that his employers used all their
eloquence to get him to stay on indefinitely.
The exact significance at this time of the Fay
| ettevile record may be judged when the writ
or after taking some trouble to unearth it
finds it to be record Of simple, answering
integrity and untiring loyalty r. the interests
of the boys employers. The most painstak-
ing search among two generations fails to
discover any flashes Of genius in that country
store or any memorials of eccentric talent in
that country village. But there is unimpeach-
able testimony that whatever the boys hand
that he left behind him the reputation for
bravery, fidelity and candor that has outl'ved
all these years. It's curious how some sim
pie traits defy time In truth the seem to
thrive and grow with it.
The removal of the elder Cleveland to
Clinton gave Grover the long-wished-for OPP
portunity to attend high school, and he
| pursued his studies industriously until the
family moved up on the Black River to what
was then known as the Holland Patent
village of five or six hundred people-ffteen
miles north of Utica. The elder Cleveland
| preached but three SUNDAYS in this place,
when he suddenly died Grover first heard
of his fathers death while walking
with his sister in the streets of Utica.
This event produced the usual breakup of
the family, and we next hear of Grover
Cleveland setting out for New York City to
accept at small salary the position of under
teacher in an asylum for the blind, where at
the time the since wel-known Gus. Schell
was executive officer
BREAKS AWAY FROM TCToRSHIP.
He stayed here two years, and it has been
found possible to discover the same'indelible
record of hard work. faithfully performed and
well remembered by those who were cogni-
zant of it, and who are still alive. From
tending country store to teaching the blind
is a long way on the road of self-discpline.
But to teach he did not believe was his mis-
sion, and consequently at the expiration of
two years he abandoned it and literally start
ed out to seek his fortune--only reversing
the usual order, and instead of coming
to the great city, he left it. His first idea was
to 90 to Cleveland. AS he has since said, the
name seemed a good omen. But his uncle,
Lewis f. Allan, Il noted stock breeder, lived
at Buffalo, and he went straight to him for
advice and guidance.
WANTS TO BE \ LAWYER.
The uncle did not speak enthusiastically.
''What is it you want to do, my boy." he
asked
swell, sir, | want to studY law.
''Good gracious remarked the old gen
tlemau. 500 you indeed. What ever put
that into your head. How much money
have you got:"
To tell the truth he hadn't got any.
''Sce here" said the uncle, after long
consultation 81 want somebody to get up
my herd book this year. You come and
stay with me aud help me and I'll give you
$50 for the years work and you can look
round"
Here it is that we find the American hoy
now annotating short horns out at Black
Rock, quite two miles from Buffalo But he
kept his eye out for a chance to enter law
Office while he was editing the stock book,
and one day he walked boldly into the rooms
of Messrs. Rogers Bowen & Rogers, and
told them what he wanted There were q
number of young men in the place already.
But young Cleveland persiSteuey won and
he was finally permitted To come as an Office
boy and have the use of the law library. For
a week, out of which he had to pay his board
and washing. The walk to and from his I'm
cc's was long and that time a rugged one.
The first winter was a memorabIy severe
one, and his shoes were broken, and he had
no ovcrcoat But he never intermitted
day. It began to be noticed that he was the
most punctual and regular of the lads in the
office Often at night he was compelled to
stand by the warm chimney in the loft where
he slept and dry his feet after tramping the
two miles through the snow. His senior
employer had taken copy of Blackstone on
the first day of the boys office experience
and. planting it before him with bang that
made the dust fy said: That's where they
all begin" There was litter ran
round the little circle of clerks for
it was Yforboding thing TO begin with to
the average lad. 1t appears, however, that
he stuck to the Blackstone So well that he
mastered ii, and so absorbed was he in it one
night that they locked him in and all went
off. He spent that night with the book and
never forgot it.
THE DISCIPLINE OF HARDSHIP.
This eveutful period of Grover Cleveland's
life, so devoid of adventure and barren of
romance. was the period at which all the forces
of his latter life were gestating. The priva-
tons aud miseries of pcnniless novitiate
gave away slowly before his determined ASST
duty and pluck. He tells in his own way
with a beaming reminiscent humor of the