The morning call., 1893-08-20
SUMNER SCHOOLS.
How the Chautauqua Sys-
tenn Has Spread.
THE AKRON OATMEAL KING.
How a Man Made a Fortune-The
Poor Boy Who Got an
Education.
THE AKRON OATMEAL KING.
Correspondence of The MORNING CALL.

times com pine 10 keep the people away,
and none of the hotels are doing more
than half business. Some of the biggest
hotels along this lake are closed, and the
assembly grounds have not had their usual
crowds. Up TO this time the big Chautau-
qua has had 4 steady increase every year.
and had the conditions been the same as
usual there would have been one-thlrd
more here this summer than ever before.
AS it is they will not more than hold their
own. and manv of the smaller Chautau-
quas over the United States will be run at
loss. This assembly, however. is on a
sound basis, and it can depend on good
crowd whatever the conditions. 1t has
big revenue, and it is doing great Work.
I chatted last night about it with DR.. T. l..
Flood. the editor of the Chautauquau.
Said he:
''There is no college in the United States
that is planted on finer foundation than
this Institution. 1t has a revenue OF
100000 a wear, and there are in the United
States to-day about 10000 people VINO are
studying our courses. All told over 20o,-
600 people have been connected WIN the
ChsutauQua Literary and Sclentlnc clrcles,
and we have given diplomas to 10000 NO
college of the United States has had so
manv graduates as that, and the NUMBER
of students steadily increases. we now
have our own text books written Tor us,
and we supply the work for big publish
ing house in keeping us in books. Ii costs
onlv ST year to engage in our WORK, ana
student can carry on his work at home,
and graduate at the end of four years Tor
an outlay of S28. Two could combine ana
graduate for S15 piece, or three conld
get in this way a college education Tor SlO
EACH"
"How many Chautauquas are there in
the United States ?'' asked
There are sixty different assemblies or
summer universities like this. These are
scattered from Maine to Florida, and from
Washington. d. c.. to California. The
reading circles are fonnd in every town,
and the students are of all ages. met at
Baltimore not long ago man so years old
who had just completed the course, and
who told me that he was so pleased with
his studies that he had taken u the study
of the Greek classics, and he sent me
translation of his letter into the Greek to
show me how he was progrP ssing."
The conversation here turned to the
magazine development of to-day, and |
asked DR.. Flood what he thought of the
cheap magazines which have just been
started.
He replied: "McClure's Magazine is
newspaper magazine, and 1t may make a
place for itself at the price of fifteen cents
a copy. The reduction Of the price of the
Cosmopolitan to 81 30 year will, it seems
to me, cut down its income without ma
terially Increasing its circulation. The
like the Cosmopolitan is not large enough
to make such a price pay. por is it that
class which will let small difference OF
price stand in the way OF their prefer
ences. The subscribers of the higher
priced magaZines-Century, Harper's and
Scribner'S-will not change on the ground
of price alone. and the great increase IF
circulation will have to built up from out
side quarters. The greatest competition
that the magazines have to-day is the
Sunday newspaper. 1t is full of good
magazine matter. and the larger papers
have the ablest of the worlds contributors
for their Sunday issues
@'How is the Chautauquan doing?"
VERY we'll, indeed, was he reply. ''We
have something over $4,000 circulation,
and we have steadily grown. nntwithstand-
Ing the fact that Scribner's Mag zine and
the Cosmopolitan have sprung into exist
ence IN the meantime"
The Hon. Lewis Miller of Akron. the
head OF the big mower and reaper works
there, is stopping at ChautanQua. He was
one OF the origIDatOrs of this great insti-
tuition. and he is now its president. met
him here last night and asked him as To
the financial outlook. He replied. 81 fiud
times hard everywhere and the banks are
all pressed for money. You cannot
borrow money on Government bonds
In most of the banks to-day and
this fact is paralyZing business. Most of
our business men are working on credit
They give sixty or ninety day notes. and
upon paying these they borrow again to
carry OH business. The banks have such
demands upon them that they refuse to
make new loans. and the result is every
one is suffering. The smaller localities
are also hurt bv the drain of the Worlds
Fair. Akron. Ohio. is not a large place.
but it is estimated that 100000 has been
taken from 1t and the country near by to
Chicago. This, of course, affects US mate
riallv."
will Congress help us?"
THAT is a question" replied Mr.. Mil.
Ter. II don't believe we will get much
relief until the tariff question is settled.
No one can do business without knowing
just on what grounds he has to do It. The
silver question and the tariff must be fixed
before we can have financial rest"
Mr. Miller Is the fathar-in-law of Edison.
the inventor, and Mrs. Edison is here with
her father. l spoke of Edison's shutting
up his shops, and asked Mr.. Miller what
he thought Of it, He replied. "Mr Edi-
son understands himself / think. He is
quick TO grasp a situation, and he acts
quickly. AS soon as Mr.. Cleveland was
elected he shut mp his iron works, and be-
gan to invent cheaper metho DDS of mining
and reduction. He has spent $780, 600 on
this, and he says he proposes to make iron
so cheaply tnat all the Tree trade of the
world cannot cnmnete with him. He has
vast iron mines in New Jersey upon which
he has already spent fortune"
al here asked Mr. Miller about Mr..
Schumacher. the oatmeal millionaire of
Akron. He replied: Yes, MIR. Schu-
macker is living and he is doing a bigger
business than ever. He is a German and
he has built up an immense fortune bv
supplying our break fast-tables with ground
oats. He came to Akron poor and started
into business with a barrel Of whisky. He
was peddliDg this out when the Wnmen's
Temperance Crusade was in progress. A
crowd OF women went about breaking up
the saloons and throwing the liquor into
the streets. When they came to Schu
macker he said: you paw me So for nv
barrel OF whisky and l will stop nv bust
ness" They did this and the whisky was
rolled out into the street and emptied.
Schumacher then opened little grocery
store. The sympathy Of the people was
with the reformed whisky-seller and he
got trade. Then he began TO grind IS
and went on until he made fortune. He
Is now strong tenn mperance advocate"
''How did you happen to engage in the
Chautauqua work. Mr.. Miller 2? said |.
''It caTe through my Sunday-school
work." was the reply. II have been in