The Jackson standard. [volume] (Jackson C.H., Ohio) 1847-1888, 1885-01-22

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knew them. good, substantial farmers,
honest, sober, industrious men. re-
spected by all who knew them. Well,
the Kinneys were born in Louisa
County, Virginia, and were bondmen.
There were sixty Of them altogether,
and among the number was bright,
intelligent enterprising young fellow,
who was so shrewd at a bargain and
otherwise that his master would send
him to market with the products Of
the farm, and authorize him to make
such purchases for the house, and
transact such other business as men
usually intrust to confidential agent.
Well, one time an old, wrinkled
grandmother, who had taken a fancy
to this lively young Kinney, whispered
something in his ear which made HIM
open his eyes very wide Her words
suggested grand possibilities to the
young mans Imagination, for she
said: "Ef de Kinneys ony knowed de
truff dey was free folks But after
saying this much she was frightened
at what she had done, and seemed
fearful that it might get her into some
terrible difficulty, and so she was dumb
to young Kinney's entreaties for fur
ther information. But the boy did
not fail to act upon the old woman's
hint, and by little and little he finally
ascertained that, many years previous
ly, the Indians had come over the Blue
Ridge to make raid on the settlers,
and some days after they were driven
of, squaw, who had become separat-
ed from the savages, and left behind,
was forced by hunger to come into
the settlement for food. This 'squaw
was the great-grandmother of the
Kinneys, and under the laws Of Vir-
ginia the child followed the condition
of the mother-that is to say, if the
mother was free the child was free.
So that the active and shrewd young
Kinney, having quietly obtained all
the information on the subject he
could, and ascertained where witnesses
might be had, collected what little
money his kinsmen had to spare, and
putting it with his own, commenced a
suit for the liberation of the sixty
Kinneys. The case went against him
in the lower Court; but he was not a
fellow to yield before the battle was
wholly fought, and so he appealed to
a Superior Court, and there won his
case, and the sixty Kinneys, counting
men, women and children, were
thenceforth free to go and come as
they pleased.
Now, if Fountain and David Kin
ney, brought up in bondage, and with
out education, could by industry and
economy make their way so success
fully in life, will any young man here
surrounded as he is with all the ad-
vantages Of schools and books, and op-
portunities for usefulness-admit that
he can't do as well, or even better
But let me tell him, if he does one
half as well he must work and save
There is no money to be made, OIL
farms to be gained, by idleness, by
lettering about the streets, by drink,
ing whisky and beer, by smoking ci-
gars and eating expensive suppers, by
| going to every show that comes te
town, by spending more for al
hours ride than can be made in /;
days work. The young men who dc
these things, will twenty years hence
be found shining around kitcher
doors for cold potatoes and old clothes
unless by some good luck they get ;
wife who is willing to support then
by working at the wash-tub SIX day.
out Of seven. My advice to the goot
wife who gets such a husband would
be to pin on the lapel Of his coat ;
handsome, lovely, embroidered littl'
badge bearing the motto Root Hos
Or Die" and then kick him into th'
street.
Robert Kerr lives in Marion Coun
ty. He is worth five hundred thousant
dollars. Some time ago | met him il
Columbus, and we began to talk o.
the old times in Ohio-the time wher
he was starting life without a dollar
He told me about his going one day
to neighbor's farm to cradle wheat
The wages then to an able-bodiec
man, who worked from sun to sur
in the harvest field, were fifty cents {
day. Kerr was then eighteen years
old, and the youngest of the laborers
present. So the hands who were tc
work with him-either for the fun OF
the thing, or thinking, perhaps, il
they followed the boy they would
have an easy time Of it-chose him
for their leader Young Kerr protest.
ed against this, but they only laughed
lat him. and bade him go ahead, as a
leader should, and SO he struck in and
kept striking, and at ten o'clock two
Of his followers were ''bushed" d"-that
is to say stretched out in fence cor
ner. At sunset, the farmer for whom
they worked was so well pleased with
Kerr that he gave him shilling ex-
tra-that is to say for twelve or fif-
teen hours hard labor in the harvest
field, under a midsummer sun, Kerr
companions got fifty cents each-and
Kerr himself got sixty-two and one
half cents, and the getting Of this ex-
ira shilling pleased him so much that
he has recollected it all his life! What
would you young men think Of max
ing such start as that for a fortune =?
Could you bring yourselves to do it?
Wouldn't you get angry if a man
were twice the sum paid Kerr for do
ing the same amount and kind Of
work? am afraid you would, and
yet | hope you would not But from
this start in life Robert Kerr has
made and saved not less than half a
million. You may be quite sure he
didn't do it by being idle, by coon
hunting, by playing craps, by running
into debt for his board bill, and cheat
ing some confding tailor out Of his
clothes, by going to the theater or the
minstrel show, OF the CIRCUS, or by
eating soft shelled crabs, blue point
oysters and broiled venison. No!
Men who make success like Kerr's
must work and save. They can't take
from a dollar and half earned two
dollars day spent and have anything
left for rainy day, or to build for
time on