The Jersey City news. (Jersey City [N.J.]) 1889-1906, 1895-07-18
EARLY STUDENT LIFE
How a Jersey Boy Prepared
for College Nearly
Century Ago.
MADE SHOES WHILE HE STUDIED
Extracts From the Diary of Daniel
milford a Resident Of
Morristown.
[ADE SHOES WHILE HE STUDIED

Ills sfJOuIIldl, says II PoNS
Call,"swas remarkable. All through the
hot summer days of the year 1901 he
toiled steadily on at his books. He went
through algebra in about a month, and
made big strides in the study of geo.
graphy as it was then pursued. A short
account of each days work at the acad-
envy in Morristown is set down in the
journal, and it is plainly manifest that
the student took the keenest satisfaction
in every detail of his progress. Having
completed algebra. he started Latin
All the time he was engaged
at his trade of shoemaker, by which
means he was able to fit himself for col
lege.
He saw the funny side of things very
readily. Geography lesson on China"
he writes early in August, where the
men, like our women. are handsomest
when latest Three or four days later
he has done with China in his geogra-
phical studies, and is deep in the mys-
teries of India, beyond the Ganges. In
November he was reading Virgil, taking
fifty lines at a lesson. The influence of
the study of Latin on the young mans
mind very soon makes itself felt. He
takes TO trailscribing his thoughts in his
journal in that language, and sometimes
a very funny work of it.
About this time he confides to the
paper hat during the summer he had
cherished the hope thai he might be able
to go to college, but now thinks he will
have to abandon the idea. His thirst
for knowledge grows keener every day,
and his style of writing becomes more
dignifed. He looks forward with pleas
ure to every day at Morris Academy, be-
cause he feels sure that before nightfall
he will have gained some new idea. He
has a hard fight of It to keep at the
head of his class, and tells each day
whether he is still at the head or not.
John Beach seems to be his most formi-
dable rival, and when he passes above
cules. for circulus, his satisfaction is
plainly apparent. During the winter
vacation, which was not of long dura-
ton, Mulford worked hard at his trade,
and seems to have made a pair of shoes
nearly efery day for some person or
other in the neighborhood.
Tuesday, the ninth day of February,
1902. seems to have been an all important
one to the young student He devoteS an
entire page to It and part of what he
wrote is as follows:-"Went to school
IL the forenoon. From Schpol went to
then went to hear Mr.. Leland, who, on
his return from Washington. where he
had been to deliver to Mr.. Jefferson (the
preached according to appointment in
the Baptist Meeting house, in this town.
The words Of q text Were b dnese not
with Cod, for with God ali things are
possible He preached entirely without
notes and in introdueing his, his subject tb5 J p,b ne
to be only equal with other histories, for
| he said, with that allowed and no more,
| he could preach all that he wanted to.
Having said this much; he mentioned
| there were many things contained in
that that history fbTes ynr wnisn d tRings De which hashei he s3 was
| about to name that we would not call
in question as to their truth, and that
| his head and that Bonaparte was first
| Consul: and putting the Bible paramount
reason wsas to doubt that Jesus Christ came
into the world, that ne was cruclneo'
etc"
Sufficient to convince all at this day,
any more than it probably was at the
| time of Mr.. Leland and Daniel Mulford;
breach upon something besides pure doc
trine at the beginning of the century as
well as at its end. The paragraph, quoted
| above is perhaps most interesting because
| it brings home the fact that while young
| Milford was struggling for an education,
Napoleon was just rising to the height
Of his power, for the preacher ra. chose oys
e eo now ci IN order to keep the interest Of
his bbf fsrcsEs nS to tie nTI1 higfsst p4FsS'
ON Friday, March 5, 1892. Princeton
The news did not reach Morristown until
was still the principal means of com
munication at that time, and Mulford's
Journal shows that pseo5ie travelled
back. Every man had his saddle horse,
just as they do in the South at present.
A young man., if he accumulated any
money, invested in a horse; while today
he would buy a building lot or put the
money in a bank. Besideg keeping a rec
ord Of his studies, OF his work as a
he sets down in bis book the reported
Dlness of his friends; = hear that Nan
pieurisy," he writes on April l, 1902.
This young lady may have been an an
cestor of Governor Werts,, as the latter
passed 1 part Of his childhood in Nor
ristown. a few days later he chron-
icles the fact that he spent spsd a shilling ne
IS the first money that I have spent in
that way since the 4th of July last"
The folewing' i ct i down so o in the Jour r
be interesting. and 1t gives some insight
into the way young men were expected
1 70 cOnQucI themselves before Their ell
ders a hundred years ago. Although
milford was a man grown, the old
adages about being seen and not heard,
speaking when you are spoken to, etc,
We're still in force:-Read 'Tristram
Shandy' through. Went to Mr.. I. Cam
| fields to come HON with Mr.. Wood.
where a conference took place which
gaye me no little satisfaction. Attic /
had known Mr.. Garfield by sight, and
he me, ever since / first came to Nor
ristown to live, and altho' / had been at
his house often and had seen him else
where: vet. by his being a man of
years and property, I had esteemed it
uumannerly in me to speak to him be-
fore he had to me. and therefore we
never had passed a word with each other
AN ODD CUSTOM.
"By what I had heard of his character
1t was an usual custom with him to say
nothing, or but very little. to any person
unless he had business with them, but
Notwithstanding, I had imputed his re-
servedness to pride. For. whenever / came
into his pres~nce ] would always cast a
look at him with a wish of familiarity.
which would be followed by a stern look
from him. filled las / thought) with the
marks of contempt upon my poor person
4 age; which had caused a resolution on
nv part never to speak to him until he
| did to me- 1t Is the Did story of the
proud magnate OF the village who delights
II keeping his interiors at a distance.
Very likely Mr.. Canfeld had d~iscerned
1.-THE tremendous effect of his presence up
Fan voune Milford and took eecrat Safig-