Evening capital. (Annapolis, Md.) 1884-1910, 1885-07-24
Polite 20 a Grain Merchant.


Tho detective of an uptown hotel
stood in front of the desk picking his
teeth in lcisurcly manner and watch
ing stuify-looking little man who
stood at distance of perhaps twenty
speculator. The speculator's fortune
is rated at ten or twelve millions, and
he is n man of power and namo In the
community. He seemed rather enter
tanned by the chatter of the stout little
man at his side. Presently the great
operator nodded agreeably and strolled
away, followed By tho onyious eyes Of
half the men in the corridor. The
other man, whom ho had left standing
in his place, looked at his watch care
lessly, sauntercd over to one of the
benches and sank down heavily in tho
corner. Hc was most pretentious-
looking little man. His blonde mus-
tache was neatly waxed. his mutton-
chop whiskers carefully trimmed. and
his beaver hat was tho glossicst OF its
kind. lie was in evening dress Of the
latest mode, wore light gloves and
cream-colored oyercoai, and played
absent-mindcdly with silver-topped
stick. His legs were crossed, and
his fat face wore a most important
scowl.
''What do You think Of himP" said
the detective, with more or less discon-
tent in his voico. sHe used to be d
clerk in this very hotel, and now he
has the gall to come in here and cut
the old gang dead; or. if he prctends
to notice them, it is with such a con-
descending air that a man feels
worse after he has been noticed than
he would if he had been ignored. They
say he has cool half million, and it
would not surprise me IL he had, for no
has been flying high. He has suite
of rooms on Fifth avenue. keeps o val
ct, four horses, and / cart. He's
got a seat in the board, and he has hit
the bulls SO heavily that he is known
to every Wall street man in town.
There is q great change in him since
he was clerking behind this desk"
'How did he get out of tho hotel
businessP"
There is a big Chicago grain mer-
chant who comes to New York four or
five times year, and he always stops
at this house He is bluff. casy-g0-
ing old snoozer, and. as the clerk was
always very polite to wealthy mon,
he soon struck mp an acquaintance
with him. One day tho clerk asked
for bit of information on the market,
and the old man gave him pointer on
grain. What do you think the clerk
did? lie pawned his diamonds, sold
his repeating rifle, and an interest ho
had in billiard table down stairs,
borrowed every cent he could lay his
hands on, and plunged. through all
his exertions he only managed 20 Get
ed, said the detective, with q Sigh,
''if he didn't land winner"
HE did not pay back any Of the
money until he had made one more
deal under the direction Of the old.
Chicago grain operator. and he sud-
denly found himself the possessor Of
thousands where he formerly had been
almost poor. From that moment be
got to be too big man for the boys.
and ho laid himself out TO please the
wealthy Wall street men who lounged
into the hotel. They soon got to know
him, and almost before anybody knew
what he was up to he had paid his
debts, retired from the hotel and gone
down into the street Most hotel
clerks are, by the way, sharp. and some
Of them fall into just such good thines.
They cultivate the men who cal1 do
them some good, and. as they arc not
noted for their modesty in asking IA
vors, eau make their acquaintance val
liable in more way han one. A Agreat
many well-to-do men nowadays were
formerly hotel clerks, but il is q singu-
laf fact that none of thom like to re-
fer to It. -" ActO I0rk oftn.