The Indianapolis journal. [volume] (Indianapolis [Ind.]) 1867-1904, 1885-12-11
THE VANDERBILT FORTUNE.
How Its Foundation Was Laid, and How
Grew to Hundreds of Millions.

How Its Foundation Was Laid, and How 1t
Grew to Hundreds of Millions.
New York World.
The Vanderbilt fortune began with the Com
modore's solution of the problem of transporta
ton by rail and boat of people to and from New
York Posters Of 1926 are extant which tell of
a daily trip of the steamboat Emerald, Captain
G. Vanderbilt, FROM this city to New Brunswick,
thence to Trenton by stage coach, where another
steamboat was in waiting to convey the passen-
gers on to Philadelphia. The start was at noon,
and the arrival at Philadelphia at 10 o'clock the
next morning Captain Vanderbilt found that
it would pay to establish halfway house on
this long trip. and Madame Vanderbilt became
the mistress of a way side inn. Captain Cor
nelius Vanderbilt working for capitalist
named Gibbons and showed himself a wide
awake lieutenant. After twelve years service,
and at the age of thirty-fve Captain Cornelius
was worth $50, 900. Then he struck out for him
self, refusing liberal offer to remain an under
ling with his old employer He appreciated the
value of steam and built steamboat, and,
though the field was we'll covered and the COM
petition strong, he soon earned the title of the
Steamboat King" and thirty eight steamers in
all were constructed by and under his direction.
His motto was-and his son adopted it-never 20
tell anybody what you were going to- do until it
was done.
In 1850 he boarded his steamer Prometheus
and went-where2 No one knew not even Mrs.
Vanderbilt, to whom he had hidden an affection
ate farewell He did 60 to the isthmus, got his
boat up the San Juan into the lake. and in six
weeks, when he returned, it was to organize the
Nicaragua Accessory Transit Company" to get
a share of the big trade tfen going on across the
isthmus. 1t was in 1857 that the Commodore
saw that the railroad was to supplant the steam
boat, and the steam craft were dropped as quiet
ly as years before he had discarded sailing craft
His first dip was into New Jersey Central, in a
sort of lingering belief in the trade between New
York and Philadelphia. He did not 60 far into
this but turned, in 1868, to Harlem stock, for he
saw that the steam boats up the river were laid
up for good portion of the time while the rail
road could run on continuously. He went into
Harlem. He said he was buying it as an invest
ment, and was laughed at. "It is going to par.
This was all he said and kept on buying. He
got it to 81, and it began to attract attention
He attacked the Common Council, then as now
used as tools in railroad inanipulations, and
when, on April 81, 1863 the board gave a char
ter to run down Broadway to the Battery, Har-
lem jumped to %, and drew about it a flock of
bears. Then came season of the sharpest sort
of play.
In June the aldermen began to sell Harlem
short and then rescinded the ordinance lust as
the Commodore had calculated they would and
while everybody was looking for stock to deliver
for their short sales the bulk of it was in his
hands, for he had been buying steadily during
the decline ''Short of Harlem" became a uni
versal complaint, and bankruptcy came to many
spectators by the time Harlem had gone up, by
rapid strides, to $50. Then it was in the Commo-
dore's hands, and he ran the road as an invest
ment
He watched the stock market, and was a
chronic bull, and when, in the winter of 1863-64
the Assembly had occasion to tinker the Harlem
charter. and played the old Common Council
trick or passing a bill and resembling a charter
amendment, Cornelius gave them the same
severe lesson. The stock had been sold down to
lOl, and tho settlements were made at 2S5, and
only the good nature of the Commodore pre-
vented the settlements being made at a higher
figure. Millions were lost, and the street began
guessing as they have ever since, at the size of
the Vanderbilt pile Old Daniel Drew forced
compromise and secured the Commodore's ever
lasting ill-will.
Westward the star of travel was starting. and
the Commodore, having learned the trick of rail-
road management aud manipulation, set out to