The Northwestern standard. [volume] (Minneapolis, Minn.) 1885-1886, 1885-11-14
HIS EARLY STRUGGLES.
COMMODORE VANDERB,LT'S BEGIN
MING IN BUSINESS.
His Career as 81 Steamboat Captain--The
Little sReliona THE Nsst-Ksgg OF
81 Colossal Fortune Hid Ira
81 Stocking
TtC4ath'' in Cincinnati Enquirer. !

TtsCfath'' in Cincinnati Enquirer
Abont two years before Cornelius VAN
;ierbilt, or Commodore Vanderbilt, died The
publisher of the richest newspaper here at
that time asked me to, prepare his life TO,
what We're called, by IN exaggeration Of
conceit, ''the archives of the Office" 1t Yves
8 labor that pleased me. So started first
TO New Brunswick, in New Jersey, where
the Vanderbilt family began it's career in
steamboabing. I went into the town and
consulted with somebody, and he told ING
that an old gentleman who kept a book
store in the place had stood up with Cor
Telius Vanderbilt when he was married I
went to the store and found a grave and
pleasant gentleman, who told me so much
more and SO much better about old Wander
bilt than anything have printed that | al
ways feel as if anew Vanderbilt better
than anybody III the country.
He said that when he was young man,
or perhaps boy, Vanderbilt boarded in q
house with him where they paid q small SUM
of money, perhaps not more than 50 cents a
day, for. board, Vanderbilt" said the old
gentleman, 'nas very neat man, proud
about his person, clearly, one who washed
himself every DAY once or twice, who took
rains to have his spine straight, who rode a
horse with character in the riding, and
walked with q certain self-consciousness
When he was to be- married." said my
friend, Che asked me to go with him to the
church, Then he described the simple
wedding, and from that William Vanderbilt
is the only important result. After tslking
TO this man | went down into the old yellow
house in New Brunswick, called the Bellona
house. At the time of Vanderbilt Il was
probably called the Bellona tavern There
Mrs. Vanderbilt cooked the meals OF the
steamboat and stage passengers
Vanderbilt belonged TO a family ilnmeno-
rally obscure, which had settled in the new
world probably before the English conquest
of the Dutch here which happened about
1854 These Vanderbilts lived or Long
island The Vanderbilts were SO obscure
that when they left Long island and settled
around in Staten island and New Jersey
they hardly kept track OF each other, but
they retained the sturdy Dutch qualities,
among which were the passion for wealth,
devotion to open-air life fondDess for q boat
and for sailing somewhere. Old Vanderbilt
had ., little boat hardly worth 500, and he
used to sail all around with his bed IL it, and
sometimes carry water1nelons to sell. 1t is
said that when the British came into the
lower bay during che revolution he went OFF
to the feet with watermolons, SO SIS To dis
pose of them to the officers who wanted
some kind Of a1lti-scorbutic food. The fur
therest he ever got in his youth from New
York was tc the North Carolina coast He
was considered in New York TO be q very
good specimen Of the native boatinan. A
man came to new York from the south by
the meme Of Gibbons. He was q lawyer,
and a smart fellow, and q belllgerent one.
He made up his mind in the honest spirit OF
q Federalist, that the state monopoly over
the steamboat was huulbug. He madeup
his mind to build & steamboat and have
lawsuit by invading the waterh Of New YORK
and New Jersey.
To show that he meant war he called his
little steamboat the Bellona "Now,n said
he, II want TO find capt,in somewhere
who will have the nerve to take this boat
where I want her to go" Gibbons had made
his home at Elizabeth, N. r., mile or two
ffy7s i2is lsatfin,g iii
deiIyiit ilsd married his wife, who was
plain woman named johnson, ct Elizabeth.
TIE people, therefore, Of that region said to
$4ii5bons; You take Cornell Wonderfully
Vanderbilt was, therefore, put ON the steam
boat, and Gibbons had great lawsuit at
Trenton, y. j., and as the end OF that law
suit state rights In steamboats, we're broken
all to pieces, and federal rights were main
tanned. The greatest lawyers Of that period
figured in the steamboat cases. among them
che brother Of the Irish revolutionist. Glib
bCns argued his own case. So when the
newspaper before mentioned asked me TO
write up for the archives the Vanderbilt his
tory, i u, 'e my way to Bellona hall, where
Miss johnson, that was, kept al eating
table for the steamboat and stage passengers.
When She steamboat got to New Brunswick
the passengers went Off and got into stages,
and We're driven across New Jersey, and
there another steamboat took them down
the Delaware river OF course they wanted
tsYnething to eat,
Vanaerbilts wife saved all his money, end
one day, according to the legend, her hus-
band said. Il see chance to be a rich
man ii could only buy q steamboat" His
wife asked how much it would cost lie told
her the price of an engine and the price OF
hull, ete. She took her old stocking from
sclra place where she had it concealed, and
brought out a part of the money. Vanderbilt |
chen, in imitation OF his own patron began
10 back against everybody that had steam
boat, Wherever there was an established
line he ran in opposition. He ran steamers
up the Hudson river, up the sound, every |
where. He was a kind of pirate IN the bust |
ness, bus Il strong one. Then he got to I
building steamships to 81, on the ocean, and
ssved his money and watched his bust
5@ he became the greatest merchant
/ Try has probably ever had for his
Opportunities, Whom he found the sea was
played out for Americans he came ashore
ailef began TO operate in railroads. Now his
sotS who is something like &C years old, is to
spend $500, 0oo in building great stone tenn
Pile to put the family bones in. Vanderbilt
always regarded Staten island as his father
land, On Staten island there is an old Mo
raviaa German town called New Dorp. |
There is q very ancient church there In an
Interesting situation overlooking the lower
bay. In the chnrch-yard Commodore Van
serhilt is buried under a granite tomb,
which has considerable taste. Over II is a
yelled figure representing grief or mystery
Or death. William Vanderbilt is about to
out up II house there, and has bought some
scree CT ground in q portion OF she GEM
Wary.
Drew the Line at BOOSTERS.
Ayr [Neb.) Recorder.
We don't mind taking country producs oc~
in payment for subscriptions but
We do object tn having our subscribers send
II or 10 yea, old roosters, with note at
aehsi TO credit them with a pair of chick
ms, We got sample of this kind the
'thsr day, and after the wife had boiled ono