Waterbury evening Democrat., 1889-04-29
WHEN FORTUNES COME.
A Statement That Wealth in America Is
 Acquired by Men of Forty.


 Acquired by Men of Forty.
 One of the brightest young men in public life said to New York Sun man the other day that he was going to make his ever lasting fortune some day when he grew tired of politics. sBut there is plenty of time for that" said he. "Do you know that it IS almost rule in this country that men do not m ake their fortunes until they are forty years old or olders The grand excep- tion to the rule is Jay Gould, but the con temporary fortunes were nearly all made middle age. Commodore Vanderbilt, John Jacob Astor, A. T. Stewart, and all the others prove what say"
 The reporter to whom this was said turned over the pages of the biographies and other works of reference at his hand, and found enough in them to warrant the assertion that at least a great many rich Americans have been beyond forty years of age when they have accrued riches. Ger tainly the richest body of men in the land, the United States Senate, is composed of elderly men ; but in the lower house of Con- gross we see millonaires who look scarce ly old enough for the rule.
 Alexander T. Ste wart came here in 1923 from Ireland, where he was born in 1SO3 He opened a little linen store on Broadway, and gathered wealth very slowly at first, as most other men had done. He was prudent, shre wd and original, and gradually became a heavy importer;' but he was forty-hve years old when he became able to put up the first of the two great stores in which he afterward transacted his business.
 Henry Clews is an example. He spent his early manhood as clerk, and when the war broke out and found him broker in small way he began to make money. He and his partner, MT. Livermore, who retired at the close of the war. with half a million, jobbed in certificates of indebtedness, and laid the basis of the wealth which Clews afterward accrued. He failed, but further demonstrated the rule by making his way over again, as Henry Willard has done.
 Henry Willard is about fifty five years old He came here from Germany at twenty years of age, and sold subscription books at first, then became an irregular writer for the press. He studied law later, but gave that up and adopted journalism as his pro fession. He was forty-one years old when, in 1874, he began the great Oregon railway operation that made him wealthy. Nine years later, when the famous golden spike was driven through a Northern Pacific rail road sleeper he was worth S5,OOO, OOO. He impoverished himself in trying to maintain the value of his property, and went under Next, at more than fifty years of age, he rose again as fnancier.
 Warner Miller is fifty years old. Be- ginning in the humblest way, he managed to organize mill company, and worked six teen hours day for ten years to make his fortune. He was past forty when his bank accounts showed him that he could afford to take the world more easily. He is a millionaire now. Levi P. Morton is about sixty-three years old. Twenty-Five years ago, when he was thirty-eight or thirty nine, he founded his banking house. He was fifty-one when his wealth enabled him to devote part of his time to public life. His great stroke was made when he established his London house in 1868, and soon afterward went into the syndicate for funding the United States debt. He was past forty three then. Charles Crocker was past forty when he began to be millionaire. Edward F. Jones, the rich scale maker and Lieutenant-Governor of this State, was born in 1928. He began his business career at the close of the war, and was long past forty when he became rich. Henry B. Courtney, the marble millionaire, now dead, started with fifty dollars in 1858, when thirty-three years old. He was beyond | middle life when he got his pile.
 John B. Slawson, the car-fare box in- ventor, was twenty five years old when he went to New Orleans in 1S40 from this i State. There he slowly made his way up | ward. But for the war he would have | pushed hls invention at forty six years Of age, but he had to wait, and he was past fifty when his big money began to pour in. His l friend Stephenson, the horse car builder, | also a millionaire, had to wait for middle | age to get great riches. So did the elder l Bennett, of the Herald, so did Hon. Oswald | Ottendorfer, and so did the late Marshall O. l Roberts.
 | Jay Gould's early life was a failure, but | this phase of it was very short. He was | born in 1881, and went into speculating in
 railroad stock in 1859, when he was only
 twenty-eight years old. He was very sue cessful, and made use of the war, when Il broke out, to give large returns on small or | shrewd speculations. His fortieth year
 found him, in his present opinion, only
 starting in life, but the world already l knew him as a master money maker for he
 had been more than three years president | of the Erie railroad, and his associate, Fisk l had startled America with his share of the
 partnership.
 l Samuel J. Tilden made his first consider l able money as lawyer, but he was more than forty years old before he put other
 aspirations aside for the time and began
 that devotion to his professlon which was l quickly distinguished by his connection l with the greatest law causes of the day | he was 1OrUy-OHS WueHs III lOoo, uO "eis | defeated as a candidate for Attorney-Gen l eral of the State. After that came his l greatest legal triumphs, and after them his | still greater financial operations. ..
 The Standard Oil fortunes nearly al
 prove the rule. Mr. Rogers made his share l of that pile while younger than forty years
 old, but Messrs. Rockefeller, Starbuck anG
 Flagler were beyond that age when they l grew rich. In Philadelphia, George W
 Childs is probably an exception. He is only
 sixty years old, and has been rich more
 than twenty years; but John Wanamakel
 only began the making of his fortune 1T
 1876, when he was thirty-eight. He was { nearer fifty than forty when he became real
 ly rich.
 Augustin Daly is fifty two years old. He
 was thirty-four when he began his brave
 struggle with the dramatic company that
 is now world famous. Wealth did not react
 him till he was beyond forty. The ministry
 contains numerous examples that are tc
 the point. Rev. Dr. John Hall was thirty
 eight years old when he came to America
 on the mission that introduced him here
 He was thirty-nine when on his return tt
 Europe he received and accepted the flat