Wheeling register. [volume] (Wheeling, W. Va.) 1878-1935, 1895-05-04
ONCE OFFICE BOYS.


even an Office boy, for his work was
done in the grocery. establishment OF
his brother in Troy, where. at the age
when other youngsters are putting on
handsome knickerbockers and dream
ing Of their first starched shirt. young
Russell was measuring out molasses
and taking orders in small book from
door 10 door.
ArterWard he carried around the gro
Gerry basket and If in those DAYS there
were dreams of future great wealth tina
TALL quiet thin lad gave no signs OF
his lnnerm0sJ thoughts. But / never
gave up the idea OF being q rich man.
he says
Robert Bonner was the boy. some
7 times called the printers devil. in a
/ small newspaper establishment in New
/ England. He had 10 ink the roller OF
T the small, old-iashioned press. and
such dirty work as cleaning type and
/ securing floors fell 10 him daily.
/ But declares Mr. Bonner with a
/ smile. recalling those times. lit is hard
/ 70 Keep good man down. and as l was
/ che small embryo of man VINO wanted
/ ro succeed, l kept my eyes open. and
/ my hour came.
one day our foreman was sick, and
/ the other apprenrice-did 1 tell YOU
/ was only an apprentice theu2-was put
iu his place above me. / felt terribly
I about IT, for / had been there longer
/ t-an he. BuJ / didn't say anything.
/ That night IL was bitterly cold, and the
4 ink troze.
When the paper appeared in the
? morning l- was so blurred il couldn't
/ be read. That night was put or 20 re-
! Ieve the other boy and as I had
watched the foreman like a lynx when
/ he worked over the press l knew Just
7 what 20 do with frozen ink. l thawed
I d, over the stove Till il ran as in July.
/ and then l warmed and oiled all the
4 machinery The result was a better
/ paper than even the foreman had been
+ able 20 turn out in zero weather.
The outcome OF IL all was that was
given The job Of al extra printing that
+ came in, and in that way [ managed TO
| earn lGeralie-abOUJ s. a week
/ which was big for an apprentice. I
/ saved every cent, and when l came TO
/ New York 20 work put IL in the
/ Llceker-St. bank. where l think il is
f still. At least l never drew out what l
. considered TO be that, my first deposit
Recorder Con iin't always expect TO
+ be the recorder Of the greatest city in
+ America o. no. About thirty years
. ago he was proud and glad 20 run er-
roDls for JruCkLeu and delighted 20 be
. allowed 20 assist AZ the heavy boxes
and bales OF merchandise.
John Wauamaker ran errandS for
. publishing house for years upon s.
week, and was proud to do it.
But the early days Oh John Wana-
maker were not all as easy as this
/ When but q lad OF but five years he
. made bricks or rather assisted in the
. making. for his business was TO turn
/ them -n the sun until they were evenly
baked.
For this labor lie received two cents
O day. and sometimes cleared ten cents
I week. lut IL must be remembered
. that there were many rainy days, wh5a
. the force o. youthful 'workmen' had
10 be laid or
Johns urst real rise to fortune was
+ iu the days when, as an Office boy, he
saved money enough 10 start in bust
ness for himself. he worked as assist
/ ant in the Office until he had climbed
+ ND 10 50 a week. and then seeing that
+ DE could get no more, he bought little
stock of cheap furniture and started in
. TO be merchant
George W. Childs was very frugal in
his early days. He was the errand boy
Ia q book establishment IN Baltimore.
Then he got with a printing firm, and
gradually worked his way through all
the branches Of editorial work OF the
+ newspaper published 10y the firm. Then
/ he grew bold. bought Q newspaper and
/ launched his editorial bark on the jour
. ualiS-ic seas with success from the very
I beginning
George ". Pullman began earning
I money By holding the carpenter tools
/ l1r his father, who was a western car
. penter
Andrew Carnegie began as meSsen-
ser in the telegraph company or Pitts
. burg. And here he ran errands for tho
I company delivered the messages and
. watched the Office while the operators
/ went 10 meals. and summoned them
when q message came in.
Gradually he grew from repeated in
s-ructious 90 know an o. X. message.
. and SO did not have always TO call the
I Cverworked men from their meals.
Then he learned 20 send very simple
tidiuEs Ike the departure Of trains, tho
b arrival Of others, etc. And, finally,
/ when the inevitable chance came Tor
. him. he was placed proudly in an oper-
ator's seat 10 run an instrument
By q few beautifully successful
4 moves he became superintendent OF the
+ comrany-aud SO into the financial
world be driftei as he amassed money
/ and became power.
/ Wizard Edison had q fearfully hard
\ time in his youth. He never kept his
/ uositiOn very long. and he was an er-
/ rand boy for almost every kind Of
\ firm and every varietwy OF business
/ house. he was an honest, faithful lit
| Tie lad
I But. alas, The inventive spirit was
| 50 strong within him that when he saw
an opportunity 70 make something. he
+ temporarily forgot that he was on
+ fvtv" and. like Gallagher. went away
+ ON his seif-imposed task TO return next
day TO md q new face az his post MOI
/ intre1uen,ly young Edison was ulS-
missed for being TOO clever.
When John d. Rockefeller was @ lad
+ he had but one ambition. and that was
/ 20 De the bOOkkeeper in the business
! house where DE was Office boy. Every
| morning he busted the bookkeeper' S
/ seat with extra care. and every day ne
I bestowed q little extra polish upon the
r0IIe~-top desk belonging TO that func-