The Wichita daily eagle. [volume] (Wichita, Kan.) 1890-1906, 1891-07-11
ECCENTRIC FARMER BOOTH.
An Old Yale Graduate Who Can Get
Along Without Frivolities.


Back in the hills of Roxbury, in Litch-
field county, two miles from any postotice
and four miles from railroad station,
lives one of the brightest members of the
class of 1913 at Yale, Mr. Harvey minor
Booth, the plainest sort of a New England
farmer, and there, in an old weather
beaten house ON a lane or back road, he
has lived for fifty years in good financial
condition. yet satisfied perfectly with the
exhausting toll of cultivating New Eng
land farm His only recreation is solving
the most abstruse algebraic problems
known to science. His only light is a tai
low candle, and mis- fare is of the most fru-
gal kind, his constant companion at the
table being his algebra.
In all these years his only human COM
panion was a spinster sister, who died
few years since. He and his sister inner
tied good farm, and by careful invest
ment had amassed considerable wealth at
the time of her death. He was in the habit
of walking from this farm to New Haven,
distance Of thirty miles, during his col
lege days, and until very recently he has
been in the habit of walking to Water
bury, a distance of eighteen miles, rather
than hitch up one of the horses which he
has in his barn.
For a time after graduation he tried
teaching, but gave it up in disgust as he
could not understand girls. Nor did he
ever fathom the peculiarities of the fair
sex, to all appearances. He did marry, but
the very next morning he gave the bride
handsome sum with which TO get divorce
from him, and she complied.
Summer and winter he wears brown jean
trousers with a coarse jumper, and heavy
army brogans on his feet in winter and
none in summer He is a familiar object
TO the villagers as he goes to the postotfice
for the large checks that come periodically
from his different investments One day
he carried home on his hand sled, two
miles and uphill, 100 pounds of pork,
raj her than take out one of his horses.
Some years since Mr.. Booth lost quite a
sum in an investment on the recommends
ton of a Waterbury Sunday school super
intendent Since that time he has had
bitter aversion to all church people, and if
he learns that a man with whom he is
about to do business is a church member
it is said that he Immediately drops the
transaction.
The methods of his sister were not so
strict as his, as the following story viii
show: After her death he told friend to
inquire at a Waterbury savings bank for
deposit his sister had said she had there.
The friend found no deposit, but fortu-
nately happened to recollect that she had
been interested in the settlement of the
estate of Waterbury man, through whom
the Booths lost conS able money. His
| theory proved correct. books had been
given to Miss Booth, b had never been
transferred in the bank As the president
of the bank was an old college mate of Mr..
Booths, the matter was set right. The
sum with interest, which had been accu-
mulating was more than 5000.
Mr.. Booth gave to his town $4,000 to es-
| tablish and maintain a select school where
| boys and girls could fit for college or for
| business life. As the only expense is in the
salary for teacher, the sum has proved
ample and the schoo! is prospering.-CoE
| New York Sun