Essex County herald. [volume] (Guildhall, Vt.) 1873-1964, 1885-06-05
'sIAH PARTRIDGE.
Tow RE Made His Reputation and
FOrtune-NOt Such a BueAVhCat
As Tie Looked.

EOEIHh6-NOt Sutn n EaucAWAGAt
As He Looked.
They tell good story in the furniture
trade of how Josiah Partridge rose to for
tune and won the thousands ofdollars that
give him so conspicuous place in bust
ness in New York Mr.. Partridge was,
TO all appearances, an unsophisticatcd,
easy-going Yankee with no special anlbi-
ton or purpose in life till he was some
where between 30 and 40 years of age At
that time the Heywards, Of Gardner,
Mass, were the practical controllers of
the chair business in New-England as they
had been the trades pioneers. Among
their hands at Gardner was Josiah Par
fridge, or 'Siah, as they all called him.
He was Il hard worker, temperate, steady,
and married. His wages amounted pos
sibly to as much as a round dollar day.
The change in his life came about i'll
sudden, not to say very funny, sort of a
way He had been barking lot of logs
in the factory yard at Gardner all through
an intensely hot July morning. Along
about noon he threw down his adze and
leisurely perched himself in the shade'of a
friendly elm close beside the scene of his
labor There, bathcd in smile of salts
faction, he was discovered by one of his
employers, whO-it may have been the
heat that made him unnaturally impetu-
Gus of speech-nercely began to preach
upon the contemplate mean ness of eye
service. What do you sappose we are
doing, paying you for loafing, Josiah
| Partridge?' was the petulant demand.
Man and boys" retorted Partridge,
"Tve worked for you folks faithfully,
| Mr.. Hayward, and if You get into such q
| passion for resting bit on such q blazing
not around" Day after day passed and
still Josiah Partridge put in no ap-
| pearance at the Gardner shop
| He had set himself down and reasoned
| out the secret of Il new stride in successful
chairmaking. When he fixed upon his
! plan he went quietly to the bank and
| drew out his saving, Just $500. After that
| he was seen no more in Gardner. One
year later some of the firms that had been
| struggling in competition with the
| wealthy Heywards began to receive let
| tiers from away up in the Vermont woods.
These missives stated in effect that the
| expense of floating RATS of logs down to
| the Massachusetts factories, as was then
the universal custom, with the stripping
off of the bark, drying and saving and
| planning, ETC., might be done away with,
and that one Josiah Partridge could send
down frames all ready for finishing
guaranteeing that in one car he could pile
up more Of these frames than river
fun of big logs could ever be turned into'
after their tedious and costly voyage tc
the Bay State. Trials were made. osiah'G
offers accepted, and before the Haywood;
had their eyes fairly opened rival firms
about them were turning out goods al
prices that were amazing. Then they toe
tnrned toward the forests to set mp saw
| mills, but Josiah Partridge had his gliI
well fixed by this time, and that paltrJ
$500 which II couple of years before had
represented about all his wealth in the
world had developed into big proportions
He had no lack Of capital now rich men
captured by his originality and his pluck
wanted to join him. He combined his
company went into manufacturing chair,
out and ont, and the fortune grew. He
came to New York, and tolOOk at the ricl
old fellow now You would never imagine
that he was getting half as much fun Out
of his thousands as he probably got ont o
his quiet snooZe that was so Suddenly in
terrnpted that July day so long ago,-N
Y. Times.