The sun., 1893-03-30
THIS GOVERNMENT CLERK REsIesEn
Having Accumulated 1e50,OO0 He Could
Aford IN Do IL


Having Accumulated seJo,000 He Could
AEord 20 DO IL.
wAsHISaToy. March 2o-The old adage that
offlceholders never resign and that few die.
and the equally accepted dogma that Gov
ernmont clerk Is unable to do moro than
keep body and soul together on the salary he
receives have been modified II not entirely re-
iuted by the following letter. on file in the
office OF the Secretary OF the Treasury. and the
interesting story behind tho lctter:
TREASURY DEPARTMENT.
OFFICE OF THE SECOND AUDITOR I
WASHINGTON. d. G.. Feb. "a. 1893.
" Ron. Charles Foster. &o.'a'y ofh, 7reumrv;
"sIR: have tho honor to tender herewith my
resignation as a clerk In the Office OF the Sec-
ond Auditor OF the Treasury. to take effect
March 81. 1893. with the privilege OF such
leave Of s absence ,. to that date as tho depart
msnt Will kindly grant me.
These nre probably the only words .neces..
this character. hut as one who has enjoyed
large opportunities and has taken reasonable
n % them the S% pyns nnsss to PSs as
Seb en whose
thanks and gratitude.
city from Kentucky to, enter the college de-
Isartm9e1t Of HoTard n nUpivsrsity; n and through
p Wss given nsSsSS positions ts" in n' his
office. ! was subsequently transferred to the
syen an to az to ns aead @ sss nn and
f maned until con @ d" my eolsrs Studies So
m.ted nsrore hs Trensary
Board. and. having passed a satisfactory eI:
assigned to this oiIice. where have continued
ns o. ds sHyns ns a n
Suently S y In e the ONCE ' Of tho % late Ger Cen. r. &
Mussey was examined by committee OF the
E2s IT,.
erosity q friends. but m ore. probably. through
the confidence OF business mon than through
been able to build UP n business In this city in
spite OF tho fact. that nearly overy avenue to
that can now lay, down tho office that l havs
held 80 long and make way for some other
ops na favor sms a fnS has s1
1t is scarcely necessary to add that enter
tain none other than the ior the
or to assure them that shall aim to SO deport
them to regret any favor they have been good
enough to show me or to feel ashamed Of one
struction under their tuition.
In leaving this department therefore,
others others have been both congena 9 and and pleasant,
R or bGRdnS
JAMES II. MEB1wETHER."
Standing by itself this letter. written by a
member of race but twenty eight years re-
Tons otwnicR It Was held to be 's good law and
white man is bound to respect" would pos
sess certain public and general interest
the letter is con sidered the philosophy Of Alex
ander Pope is enforced that
Honor nnd:shame from no condition rise:
Act well your part there all the honor lies.
Mr. Meriwether was born in Kentucky forty
Ave years W r sage ag9. q and d was an only child He Mt;
1877. he married, Miss Mary L. Robinson.
graduate Of oberlin College. At the time of
she was teacher in the High School here
Mr.. Meriwether has been employed in the de-
For fifteen years he has been member of tho
Washington Bible Society. an organization
ess
n sbs H is spa
the General Assem embly,, which met st Saratoga.
honored except when the Rev. F. ]. tirimke
vas sent on q similar mission to SSpringieid.
Of tie Ssers eunr sn
tion here. hers and has M susceeded &c In purchasing
Corner % Of Eleventh and H street s. n"Gthwest @ at at
cost OF $1,000 with additional improve
was made principal of the City School OF Louis
VILE. Two years later he there made his first
purchase OF real estate which Is now in the
most improving section Of the city. He m nde
his first real estate purchase in Washington
in 1884. and has been dealing regularly in real
estate ever since To-day. in various parts Of
Washington. his real estate holdings and
He built six houses on Sixteenth street. north
west at m expense Of oyer OO.0 900. On the cor
nine houses. costing $50 600. On the northwest
and southeast corners OF Twelfth and w
streets he has sixteen brick houses IN part OF
which are completed and occupiedl. which
cost $4,000. Two four-story brick houses.
not quite completed on street between
Fourteenth and Fifteenth streets. are among
the most imposing dwellings in that section
Of the city. The number OF men employed by
Mr. Meriwether daily averages fifty or sixty
coored men. besides largo number Of white
mon. in various capacites.
Ours is n glorious country. whore men OF all
races have the snme opportunities to succeed.
and where mon who take proper advantage OF
their opportunities do succeed.
II. THOMAS FORTUNE.