The Manitowoc pilot. [volume] (Manitowoc, Wis.) 1859-1932, 1885-09-24
GEORGE w. CUgIDS.

said President Amos Cummings, in the
| Press club the other day, George w.
| Childs is certainly the most generous
and whole-souled editor and owner OF
a Newspaper in the world. No worthy
| journalist or journeyman printer when
| in need ever applied to him and WIS
refused. A year or two ago Mr.. Childs
saw that one OF his old editors was
worn out, and that his work lacked the
| polish that had always characterized it.
| He called him into his sanctum one
morning and said:
.''You have worked for me forty
| years. You have always done your
work honestly and acceptabiy. l ana
| now going to retire You on full salary.
Take your wife and children, 60 into
the country and enjoy yourself. Come
or send to the office every Saturday
| and draw your salary. Hereafter your
time. Us well as your salary. Is youi
| own
''fhe old editor overwhelmed Mir.
Childs with thanks and departed. On
the succeeding Saturday he went TO the
counting-room and the cashier refused
| to pay him his salary.
| Wait he said, and I'll 60 and
see Mr.. Childs about it.
HE went to Childs, and Childs told
him to pay the man for aweek's SER
| vices.
g But he is no longer on the paper,
| the cashier suggested.
That makes no difference Mr..
Childs remarked, pay him salary as
long as he lives.
But, Mr.. Chiiis, broke in the
cashier, do you know this man is
worth over three hundred thousand
| dollars?'
81 hope he is, Mr.. Chlds respond
ed. 1t speaks well for ilim. The fact
| that he is worth that money is no rea-
son why / should not pay him his sal.
| airy after his forty years of faithful
service. If he had squandered MS
money in rum or dissipation you would
have said that it would be all right to
| retire him on salary because he had NO
money. His prudence and thrift de-
serve at least an equal reward. Pay
him salary as long as he lives, and say
no more about it.
The old editor died three months
afterward, leaving four hundred thou
sand dollars to his wife and children,
but his salary was paid up to the day
! of his death.
Another instance of Mr.. Childs'
kindness to his employees is shown in
the case of q man who was employed
on the Ledger when Mr.. Childs first
bought 1t. He was IA good workman
but q noted drunhard. When Mr.
| Childs assumed control he went to him
and said: Mr.. Childs, are you going
to keep me on the paper at my present
salary?'
".What are you getting?' Mr.. Childs
| asked.
. Fifteen dollars a week. the man
replied.
/" 4 will double it on one condition,
his employer said; that is, that you
shall never drink a drop OF rum as long
as you arc III my employment
The man accepted the proposition.
| He afterward became we'll known
temperance lecturer in Philadelphia,
| although he complained bitterly when
advertised as reformed drunkard.
| Childs kept an eye on him, and he also
| has just been retired on salary.
| Whenever he desires to do any speciaI
hOth iOi iiiC LtttyC'r Ic - II lsSlitti
! liberty TO do so. Meantime he draws
his salary regularly and his bills OF ex.
! peDses are never questioned. He, also,
! is said TO be worth three or four hua-
| dred thousand dollars.
Another instance of Mr.. Childs' be-
| neyoience was shown in the case OF
Colonel John w. Forncy. AS the twi-
| light of life approached Forney became
very poor. His good heart had been
| strained to the utmost tension bv pre-
! tended friends, aud he was barely able
to make i living. One day he met
| ChildS.
~ am getting old the colone
said, and | owe 4 good deal Of money
to persons not able to lose it. If you
could aid me in paying my debts, il
would make the latter part of life COM
paratively happy
Go home and find out how much
you owe,' Childs replied, and let me
know in the morning.
1.-The next day Forney reported that
| he owed about twenty-five hundred
dollars. Childs sat down to write a
check foT the money, when Forney
| said
'Childs, you might as well make ii
five thousand while You are about it.
'Ihe goOd-natured editor filled out
the check for 500 and passed it to
| Forney. Within week the colonel
wrote him a letter. saying that he had
no idea how happy the receipt of the
money had made him.
4 do not now he wrote, 'owe q
70 m |
| twenty-five hundred dollars ahead
The colonel, with prehensile friend.
| ship, had accepted the generous
mans check as gift, and not as 8
| loan.
Not long aftcrward the colonel died.
He left his family in comparative pow
| erty. On learning of this Mr.. ChildS
remembered that while Mr.. Forney
was clerk of the house of representa-.
| tives at Washington, he had paid $50.
600 into the public treasury on account
| of the defalcation of one of his subor.
| dinates. Mr.. Childs went to Samuel
| j. Randall, told him of the situation OF
| Colonel Forney's family, and asked
him to see whether the money that had
| been paid to the government by Col.
| onel torney on account Of the defalca-
ton could not be returned. Mr. Ran.
dali investigated the case. II appear.
ed that Colonel Forney, while technic-
ally responsible for the defalcation,
was not actually to blame. Through
Randall's influence congress passed g
bill returning the money to Forney's
family, with interest. On looking over
her husbands papers Mrs. Forney dis.
covered that Forney had borrowed the
! five thousand dollars from Mr.. Childs.
On the next day she appeared at the
Ledger office and returned the sum.
Mr. Childs said:
"'rll take the money, Mrs. Forney,
and place it to your credit. 1t is fol
your use alone. As long as you live
| you shall have the use of it, but | want
it placed so that it shall not be swaE
lowed up in case of any misfortune to
| you.
lit is not generally known that the
action of congress in making Genera
Grant a retired general of the army Oh
fu.i pay was due TO the efforts o.
George w. Childs; but such is the