The Roanoke times. [volume] (Roanoke, Va.) 1890-1895, 1893-01-24
WORTH MILLIONS.
A Valuable Idea end Who Got
tho Cash.
Howard Fielding Tells - story whirl,
Is Pointed mt People Who Would Like
to Go to- Work for Themselves
"A Needed Lesson.
tcopYnIGuT. 1897


This story is addressed to that man
Gf any such there bc) who would like
to quit working for somebody else and
begin to make Il little money for him
self, by way of variety. do not mean
to insinuatc that he cares more for his
interests than for those of his en-
ploycr, for that were treason, but ONLY
that his poor weak human heart will
sometimes long for Il change, especially
ON those days when he is locked for
getting to the shop five minutes late by
clock that is ten minutes fast and
then asked to work four hours over
time without extra pay.
1t is not'my story; oh, dear, no. 1t is
the story of an unsuccessful man who
cannot pay his rent promptly by check
On the first of the month; who has to
get along with the aid of all the mod
ern convcnicnces; who buys furniture
and pie and Chinese laundry tickets on
the installmcnt plan. He opened his
heart to me with these words:
u was born poor and honest, but
have succeeded in eliminating one Of
these microbes from my system, and 1
understand that people do not have it
twice. Poverty, however, is like mala-
ria. You may have it as many times as
you want to. am slow to make up
my mind, but one day decided that 1
would like to be rich. did not ask to
be too COMPOUNDED rich, you know, but
TO have just SO much that my friends
would attribute it to treason and pira-
cy, and enemies to bull luck and stu
pidity.
just about that time an idea came
to me. l was at dinner in place
where the bill of fare cries beans, beans,
and the customer is never satisfied.
had ordered coffee, and was about to
partalse of something which looked like
piece of the Missouri river on the
breaking up of Il hard winter Then
the inspiration hit me. / do not know
whether it came out of the coffee, but
the stuff looked as if it might contain
almost anything. | paused with the
cup half way between Il cracked saucer
and q broken spirit, and gazcd at that
idea for about fifteen minutes
1T was the mental picture OF an arti-
Gle the like Of which could be sold to
forty thousand people in New York city
alone, in single year, for three times
the cost of manufacture. set down
the cup, and drew from my pocket a
number of envelopes containing bills.
On the venerable back of the oldest of
these figured my income as it would
be year from that day, when the idea
should be fairly in operation. l went
over the process several times, because
did not wish to lose u dollar by care
less arithmetic. The sight of the great
and glorious total filled my heart
SO full of JOY and peace that when, an
hour later, the bounccr threw me out
of the place, in the avowcd belief that
was blind drunk, gave him n quar-
ter for his courtesy, and readily prom
lscd not to come back any more"
"What was it, Johnny" said +; "a
patent lightning rod?"
No" he replied, nor it wasn't some
thing which will be indispensable to
every travelling man when we all learn
to fly. 1t was good stuff, and forty
thousand were sold right here. But
wait till tell you about il. needed
capital to begin with. My own savings
wouldn't start the business, and nv
credit wouldn't start water down hill
The sum required was not large In adj
dition to what | had, about one thou
sand nine hundred and ninety-nine
dollars and fifty cents, making two
thousand in all, would do at pinch.
1t looked easy to raise that amount.
Although you would never suspect it,
have Il considerable acquaintance among
really wealthy men. There's old Israel
Hopkins. once did him considerable
service in political way. 1t was when
he lived in Rutland, VT, and he told me
could have anything 1 wanted when
the democrats carried the state. l went
to see him at his Office in this city. He