The Bennington banner. [volume] (Bennington, Vt.) 1858-1894, 1893-05-26

| quit, so hes not making any more,
swell, you'll have to make some your
self"
Then you'll have to go and get the
flour. There's place about half mile
away where the man who owns the shop
still has some flour that he is selling by
the barrel, but you'll have to roll the bar
rel home yourself. You can't get any
one to deliver it, We want some coal,
too"
But how am going to get it?'
"Well, l understand the man who
owns the yards nearest here will sell it
to you, and if you buy or rent wagon
and team, load the wagon and drive the
horses yourself, you can get all that we
have room for"
"Seems to me that we are worse off
than we were when we were poor" he
grumbled as he put $4,000 in his pocket
and started out to make the purchases.
On the way he meet an old man with
gray hair and whiskers, trudgipg along
and carrying big carpet-bag.
''Can you tell me where l can find
good hotel?n asked the stranger.
81 don't believe there are any left
open." replied the eX-factory hand.
"Oh, guess they are doing business
on the same plan that others | have come
across are" said the stranger
'How is that?"
''Well, the proprietor is on hand, and
he will rent you a room ii you will make
up your own bed and cook your own
meals I've made two beds and cooked
five meals since l left home, and paid
pretty good sum for the privilege"
'Where did you come from?"
"About thirty miles out in the country,
! I've got nice farm out there, but the
| help all quit, and as l am a rich man
now, thought I'd move into the city
where 1 could enjoy life bit. No trains
running, so l had TO walk. What's 60
| ing on at the theatres?"
"Nothing. Only few actors, and no
stage-han will work"
"Well, there must be something going
on. i wonder where l can get a news
papeerr?' ,,.,,, =.
two or three days. Compositors, press
men, stereotypers, reporters and clerks
l understand, are all planning to start in
business for themselves"
Il don't see that I'm any better off
here than | was on the farm" said the
stranger, thoughtfully.
When the ex-factOry hand got back
home with barrel of flour on top of his
load of coal he was apparently troubled.
MARY he said, as he tried to get
some of the coal dust off his face and
hands, sit seems to me mighty funny
that the people who had money before,
are about the only ones who are willing
to work now. The man who owned the
coal yard was willing to give me hand
| in loading the wagon, the head of the
dry-gouds firm was willing to wait on
me, and the man who owned the grocery
store was willing to help get the flour on
the wagon. They were ready to work in
their line of business"
perhaps" said his wife, a" the reason
they were rich before was because they
were willing to work when they had
| money"
Now it struck the ex-factory hand that
there might be some truth in that, and,
after thinking the matter over, he went
| back and got some more coal and some
more flour. Then he rented barn few
doors away and put his horse in it. he
had to look after the horse himself, as
no millionaire was going to play hostler
for HIM, but he was rather glad to have
something to do.
Now such a state of affairs could not
last very long. Whether millIonaires or
not, people had to have supplies, even if
they had to carry them home in baskets,
and it wasn't great while before every
one in the neighborhood discovered that
the ex-factory hand would not only sell
them supplies but would deliver them
himself, and he had a great rush of trade.
might just as we'll do this as to sit in
the alleyway and smoke a pipe all day."
he said. There's just as much fun in
one thing as another, and besides it
makes that million of mine get bigger
instead of smaller"
And so it happened that there were
other people in other localities doing the
same thing. And-well, given two men,
one spending money and the other earn
ing it, and every one knows what the re-
suit will be. The farmer woke up one
day to the realization of the fact that his
wealth was fast dwindling away. Peo-
pie who still stuck to their stores had
raised prices also.
production has ceased" they said,
land we are not particularly anxious to
sell. There is no telling when we may
want the stuff ourselves"
The farmer scratched his head,
thought the matter over for half day,
and then went out and bought horse
and wagon and started back for his farm.
81 reckon" he said as he drove back,
"that there are some folks that are goin'
| w NdhO anu OOlll anu NOBCLdDlGb
awful bad before long, and that the man
that's got 'em is goin' to be pretty big
gun. There's nothing to amuse man
in the city now, anyhow"
A few other men got the same idea.
Some were farmers, and some were in
other lines of business. OF course, there
wereIno employees, and when man did
go to work, he had to work for himself
and do all the work alone, except in one
or two instances where partnerships
were formed.
Things got started again slowly and in
a very primitive way. One man, who
felt time hanging heavily on his hands,
hired street car and some horses to be-
gin making regular trips on one of the
street car lines. He had to look after
the horses himself, and he made the
! fare fifty cents, very reasonable sum
under the circumstances. lie only made
three round trips day, but he took in
$50 or $50 trip, and carried his money
home in a sack every night. Then other
people followed his example.
1t was long before any IL" or steam
railroad trains were running, because it
required more men to run them, and
things had to reach a point where one
man was willing to enter the employ
ment of another, before anything could
be done. That time came, however, and
, gradually pVprvthinU was ctartad aOain