The herald., 1894-10-18
HOW HEGOT STARTED
A MERCHANT TELLS OF HIS WIN
MING BY A SHOW OF HONESTY.

ga Sterling, Honest Fellow"
"You wish to know how got my
start in Chicago, Oh? We'll, 1 don't
mind telling ySIl about it now, although
you may not indorso the means adopt.
ed.
Here tho merchant prince laughed
heartily. withdrawing his cigar for tho
purpose. After moment or two he re-
sumed:
g had come here from the country,
a gawky farmer boy, ignorant of tho
ways of tho world and disposed to re-
gard every city chap as sharper. Be-
fore leaving home l had settlement
with my guardian, who turned over tc
mo $500 in cash, all the possessions
had in tho world.
1.-THE distress OF tho panic Of 1857 had
not passed, and things were awfully
dull here. After securing q modest
boarding house applied myself with
diligence to the seeking Of employment,
in the meantime assiduously studying
bookkeeping every evening. Tho 21
years of my life had been spent upon the
farm, and was utterly ignorant of all
business methods. Hence sought hum
BILE work, being willing to begin at the
lowest rung of the ladder But some
how didn catch on. 1 must have been
what is vulgarly called an ornery' chap
-uncouth in speech, vulgar in manner
and easily abashed. Still persevered,
Offering myself as porter, coachman,
day laborer, gardener, helper in grocery
stores-in short, any kind of work that
demanded muscle without too much ex-
perience. Once in awhile got job Cd
saving wood, cutting grass and tending
garden, but spent far more than l
earned, although l lived very econom-
ically. Month after month passed in this
way until nearly one-half of my capital
was exhausted.
"My necessities led me to much cogi
tation, and having made rapid progress
in my study Of bookkeeping as well as
in knowledge of good English l finally
concluded to aspire to something higher.
A prerequisite to this step was the doff-
ing Of my old jeans suit, which had be-
come decidedly seedy. The tailor's bill
made a big inroad upon my diminishing
capital, and the thought of it set my
teeth ON edge. Out 1 went day after day
among tho merchants, offering my serv-
ices as q boolSkeeper, accountant, ship
ping clerk or salesman, but found no
takers. Tho market was suffering from
an oversupply Of the commodity, and
the demand was nil.
FINALLY / decided that something
had to be done. could not and would
not be penniless in q big city. I am nat
urally of sanguine temperament, but
six months of enforced idleness to one
who loves work are enough to becloud
the sunniost temper But I see you are
getting impatient. A change did final
ly come. One day Mr.. Davis, the head
of the big dry goods store on Lake
street, was surprised out of his usual
equanimity by the rushing in of an excit-
ed individual, myself, holding in his
hand o small bundle and saying bro
kenly:
"I have found, sir, package Of
money-a hundred dollars, / think. l
am stranger in the city and wish you
to keep it until you find tho owner,
"When he found breath, MI. Davis,
who recalled me as one who had applied
to him moro than once for employment,
demurred, insisting that l should leave
it in tho hands of tho police.
"'That will not do, sir. know your
reputation and can confidently leave the
sum with you. I am desperately poor
and unemployed, and any imputation
upon my honor would kill me. My only
wish is that this money may reach its
owner. You will be sure to find him.
"Mr. Davis became Interested.
" Is there any way of identifying
him--any name or address i'll the pack
age?'
. think not, sir, Ireplied, but the
bills, as you will see, arc dono up in
peculiar red cloth--debiego think it is
called-and if you would merely adver-
tise the fact that q sum Of money had
been found, and required tho applicant
to name tho amount and tho envelope
covering it, you could not possibly mis-
take.
My importantly finally overoame his
objections, and he took my address, ant.
after pronouncing mo sterling honest
fellow, bade me come around i'll tho
morning.
well, that was my start in life
Mr. Davis greeted me when returned
in the morning most effusively.
"'I'vo been thinking over that matter
and confess that admire your honesty.
There's no reason in the world why you
shouldn't have kept that money. Many
men who are far better of than you
would have done SO.
He ended by Offering me place be-
hind one of tho counters at SO week.
and five years later was his partner.
'Oh, the money! A number of par
ties answered the advertisement, but
they couldn't prove up. you see, for the
best of all reasons The money was NY
own, and Mr.. Davis finally returned 1t
to me. ran not the slightest risk aud
was satisfied that the act would bring
me under the favorable notice of Mr..
Davis.
"Yes, there was deception in it, and