St. Johnsbury Caledonian. [volume] (St. Johnsbury, Vt.) 1867-1919, 1886-02-25
BEGINNING STORE IN A WATER
PAIL.

!,
"And what have you here, Fred 2"
Fred held up his mothers yellow
water pail, filled with brown packages
"GoOds for my store, granny J"
$50 YOU begin store in WATERFALL p
'"rhat is what it amounts to-"
Fred had stopped at old Mrs. Aker
mans gate for a little chat. Every
body called her granny" but 10.
Akerman, who was lolling over the
gate, was really her grandson. He
was smart young man, that felt equal
to the ruling of nation, but his am
bition far exceeded his industry, and
his place in the nation was very likely
to be mean one.
Erred !" said Joe, patronizingly,
''swing out. Get trusted for IA big
stock of goods and go it,"
Fred's only answer was Il flourish OF
the faded WATERFALL, and then he pass
ed on.
'Tf it is small" he thought, "my
stock is paid for"
He had earned 50 killing the parsons
potatoes, and then smashing his Colo
RADIO bugs.
Fred was IL. His EMOTIONS" were
all appropriate to the Fourth of July,
and it occurred to him that he might
pick up Il few pennies by trading. So
he borrowed his mothers small kitch
ell table, paraded his goods on it, and
drove qnite a thrifty trade with the
small but ready buyers of fire. crackers
and mOlasses gingerbread. He found
that his SO had brought him 81 in re-
turn.
"MOther, lend me another water
pail ?" he asked, the next day.
"What for, Fred 2"
ooh, something ~ swapping his
bright eyes till they twinkled like fire.
flies on a July night.
He went to Squire Emery's store and
filed his pals with more substantial
goods, adding a few articles for the
toilet from the squire's show case. He
did not forget that some OF his buyers
had Il perverse appetite for sweet
things, and he made IL modest inrOad
upon the squire's stock of red pepper
minis and white sugar hearts.
''MOther, lend me that shelf in the
old pantry which you don't use 2"
GA shelf! What next, Fred? Yes,
give me my pals and take the shelf"
Fred nailed it up outside the kitchen
window, arranged his goods there, and
when farm work was over would trade
with his Yankee neighbOrs in the
evening. So he went on. One shelf
increased to three shelves, and the
"stOre" was transferred to the inside
and kept open all day, his mother
managing while he was at work in the
cOrnfeld. Fred's money grew as a
snow ball rolled over and over in the
drifts after n .IanuarV thaW
Squire Emery leaned ever his cOun-
ter one day, set back his old felt hat
on his head, and gave Fred IA friendly
look through his specs.
erred, | have heard about your
store, and how it started in water
pail. Let me encourage you. | will
let you have $1,000 worth of goods and
set you up. You can pay me by and
by"
"Thank you, squire, but guess not.
Too risky !"
CAN ri ht-all right, Fred. Glad to
see your spirit. What will you have,
ma'am 2"
And the squire stood up to deal out
to an old woman, just arrived, two
ounces of snuff.
"LOOk here, squire ~ said Fred the
next day, "you made kind offer yes
terday, and | will tell you what l
would like. | will go round and get
orders, buy my goods of you as [ need
them, and you can favor me all you
can"
"Agreed !" said the squire.
Each day, then, Fred made two trips
to various houses. The first time he
went with an order book. The second
time he went with wheelbarrOw of
goods. So the snow ball kept turning
over and over, growing every day. At
last there was a new store in town,
small and unpretending, but its goods
were all paid for. Over the door was
the sign of q WATERFALL.
"That Fred Barker" said Mrs. Aker-
man, sis bound to make money"
eyes," said Squire Emery, "fOr he
goes sure, and he is willing to be small
that he may become big"
Another store was opened about that
time. You would have thought that
Barnum's circus had come to town.
Yellow circulars went flying into every
house as if Il swarm of butterflies were
out on Il raid. All day a fancy wagon
went flashing about town. 1t was us
gay with gold and red as the last new
China tea-stOre.
whats that rattin' so smart and
lively ?" said Squire Emery, putting his
head out of his dusky old bazar on the
corner, where he had traded for half a
century.
"'New York Grocery =" he read on
the side of the wagon. "POOh that
ninny, Joe Alderman, is settin' up in
business. I'll give him three months
to set down again. He borrowed a
thousand, hear, and has started. Far
better if he had borrowed Fred Bar
ker's WATERFALL" 1t would have been
much better. In three months there
was failure. The wagon was sold to
fish peddler. He put ont the red
and gold lights and painted it sea-
green. The goods in the store were
auetiOneered off to satisfy creditors. Ev
rUfhinn wnS sold aNcentinn a N-Snpck-