The gold leaf. [volume] (Henderson, N.C.) 1881-1911, 1893-06-08
how TO. GET RICH.
ERASTUS wIMAN TALKS ON
THE SUBJECT.
Patient Industry and Strict Econ.
omy the Main Secrets Of Sue.
cess---A Valuable Lesson for
Young Men.
fAtlanta Constitution

Young Men.
fAtlanta Constitutional
In New York the other day, Mr..
Erastus Wiman delivered a lecture on
"How to get Rich" Mr.. Wiman
himself Is rich man, and the subject
which he was engaged to discuss and
explain is of absorbing interest to all
who take an interest in the grosser
affairs of life.
1t might be supposed, therefore, that
the lecturer was able to impart the
secret of wealth-getting to the vast
multitude who are anxious to grow
rich. But, in point Of fact, Mr..
Wiman had nothing new to say on
the subject. His lecture emphasized
the advice the Constitution has been
giving to its younger readers from time
to time. Stripped of its trimmings
and flourishes, the secret Of growing
rich as set forth by Mr.. Wiman is as
old as the hills "Take care of the
pennies, and the pounds will take care
of themselves
In the nature of things, this must be
so, and the young men Of the country
those who are struggling along on
large hopes and small incomes-ought
to be abundantly grateful that it is SO.
What Mr.. Wiman tells them has been
told them by their fathers, and by the
fathers of the young men Of every
generation since the human race was
organized. 1t was an open secret at
first, and will be an open secret to the
last. Every young man ought to be
glad that it is such simple problem;
that no competitor in the pursuit Of
riches has any the advantage of him;
that plodding industry and patient in
dustry places even the dull man on
a level with the brightest intellects, SO
far as the accumulation of riches is
concerned.
If there had been any more to learn
on the subject, it would have been
learned long ago, but when man, as
accomplished and as brilliant as Mr..
Wiman, comes before the public to
say that the secret of wealth-getting
is industry and economy, it may be
taken for granted that there is no other
secret. This was also the conclusion
of BENZ ,min Franklin, perhaps the
creates, thinker the republic has pro-
duced.
We say, therefore, that the young
men of this generation, who are strug-
Cling for place and position, ought to
find the information that Mr.. Wiman
imparts infinitely consoling. There
is no shorter cut to wealth and sue
cess now than there was a thousand
years ago. Wherever there is failure,
it may be traced to some inherent
weakness in the moral or intellectual
structure of the individual.
The lecture of Mr.. Wiman is timely.
There has been some confusion Of late
years in regard to the methods OF
gathering wealth. The whirling era
of speculation through which the
country has been staggering since the
war has had tendency to demoralize
the minds and confuse the common
sense of the younger generation. But
the old maxim revived by Mr.. Wiman
is as true of those who are troubled
with the fever of speculation as it is
of those who stay quietly in the shady
places. Amy young man who reads
the newspapers must know that for
tune made in one stroke or in series
of speculative strokes has no stability
about it. The wings that brought
it are always fluttering ready to bear
it away.
How many speculative fortunes can
be pointed to at this time as an evil
dence that they have stability We
know Of but one such fortune-that
of Jay Gould-and that fortune was
built up and accumulated with the
same prudence, sagacity and foresight
that are necessary in gathering any
large body of wealth. Jay Gould
brought to speculation the same genius
that Napoleon carried to war, and the
result is the largest fortune ever accu-
mulated in this country or in the
world, perhaps, by one man in com
paratively brief lifetime. But in build
ing up his fortune with such rapidity,
and by speculative methods, he failed
to build up his own character. He
failed to commend himself to the
public conscience. 1t may be that he
is harshly judged, but the judgme n,
is of his own making, and it will
stand.
We need not trouble ourselves to
any great extent about the evils oI
speculation These work their own
cure The elaborate machinery that
is seen at its best-which is its worst
in our money centers destroys all
alike The hands that guide it be,
come its votaries and then its victims
Let not any young man be dazzled OIL
misled by the quick strokes of specula
ton. For every apparently successful
man in speculation there are ten thou
sand woeful wrecks, and, sooner 0,
later, even the successful ones fall vic
Tins to their own chicanery.
The events of every day and hou1
emphasize the fact that the condition:
Of success in accumulating wealth, o.
in any other direction, are the same
now that they have always been
Honesty, industry, economy and
patience are at the bottom of it all
the foundation and basis. In building
up fortune by slow degrees, a maj
builds up his character and makes al
impression on his age and time, ane