The Saint Paul globe. (St. Paul, Minn.) 1896-1905, 1896-11-08

mentioned were at HduHHe anu HUNS
vile. In each of these he put one Of
his brothers or brothers-in-law in
charge. This was the beginning Of
their fortunes as we'll as his own.
Each of them became rich. His brother
James is still living at Scranton, Pa;
his brother William at Knoxville,
Tenn, and Mrs. Fair, a sister, lives in
Michigan.
The building up of the business of
these five. stores involved extensive
dealings in country products. Mr..
Blair became a general factor His
wagons were always on the road, go
ing to or from the market. Their
route was dotted with taverns, and one
of Mr.. Blair's instructions to his driv-
ers was, no matter how near to home
or market they might be, never to
neglect to stop at meal time for food
for themselves or their horses.
Buckwheat -four was worth only $3.50
a hundred weight then, but that was
a good deal more than the grain would
bring. Down between the hills was
the brook with power enough to drive
a mill. Young Blair bought the hills
and the meadow between and built the
old mill which stands just below his
house and is grinding away today.
Money was scarce in the early days,
with the result that accounts accunu-
lated. These developed into mortgages
on the farms in the vicinity, and final
ly the farms themselves fell into the
young mans hands. The farmers
wives wove their own cloths and cot
ton yarn was a staple. Other water
powers which fell into Mr. ,Blair's
hands were used for cotton mills, and
the profits from these were added to
the gains of the stores and Touring
mills.
The old man, now, is fond Of telling
about the first money he made
quick" 1t was when the Morris and
Essex canal was under way, and many
men were employed in digging. The
great market for their supplies was at
Paterson. Blair was trading cotton
yarn for butter and selling the butter
at shilling a pound at Paterson. His
drivers soon discovered that the work.
men preferred strong butter to sweet.
He bought all the rancid butter he
could get, mixed it with the sweet and
sold it all readily. Mr.. Blair would
rub his hands with satisfaction as he
told the story. 81 made $4,000 clear
that year" he would exclaim. Another
of the big events Of those early days
was the lucky purchase of cargo Of
cotton. It came in a sailing vessel
from New Orleans and had been wet.
Blair bought it all at the price Of the
damaged sample bales and found the
greater part Of it sound. He made
$4,000 by the deal.
His first lawsuit was probably over
the site of his store and his homestead.
SQUIRE Hankinson died, and his widow
set up a claim for her dover right in
the part of the land sold to Blair The
suit lasted seven years and the widow
won. Mr. Blair was to pay her an
annuity for life of $3.50. ut seems to
me-" he said one day years afterward
to an old neighbor, that If you put a
widow on her dover right she will
never die
The old store had soon grown too
small for the business. A new enc was
built on the site of the Did tavern
The whipping post, where John 1.
Blair had seen more than one negro
get thirty-nine lashes on the bare back,
disappeared.
HIS MARRIAGE.
Mr. Blair married and built his
house next door to the store. The
house covers the site of the store now
too, but the first house he built, the
one he took his bride to, is still part
of the homestead, and Mr.. Blair has
never lived anywhere else since he and
Nancy Lock became man and wife
| hov She -1y0e
| the daughter Of Capt. John Lock, G
soldier of the revolutionary war, who
was killed in the war of 1872 in a Skin
mish with the British at Springfield
| Morris county Mrs Blair lived unit
1888, when she died at the age OF
eighty-fo In all these years Mr.
Blair has lived the life Of a country
storekeeper, and, although he has see1
his possessions pile up until, in hi
own words some fifteen years ago, h
thought that if he were to get togethe
all his old boots and hats he Nigh
scrape up s15000,00O. and his reputeC
wealth is from $40, 900 to $4,000, 600
he has not changed hair from tn
manner Of life that marked the first o
! his prosperous years. He sold rum
but he never drank a drop Of 1t, ant
| he never uses tobacco. His regula
routine until he practically quit bust
ness two years ago, was to rise early
eat little and that of the plainest fare
and to work early and late. Abou
sixty years ago he organized the Bel
videre bank and succeeded John Kin
ney, it's first president, and has hell
the place ever since. Once a week TO
years he made a trip by wagon to Bel
videre and carried down with him al
the money Of the neighbors for de
post. as we'll as his own. He. is still
president of the bank, but his privat
secretary, Mr.. Vail, makes these week
ly trips now and carries the loca
merchants money to bank.
It was through Oxford furnace tina
his business life broadened until h
became coal and iron magnate an
one of the great railroad builders c
the West. The Scranton brother!
George W. and Joseph, had tried
make money out of iron and induce
him to invest with them. Their sue
cess was only moderate, for new field
had been opened in Pennsylvania, an
the Jersey FORCES could not compel
with these, where beds of rich iron or
and coal lay near together. The Scrar
ton brothers went to these new field
and in 1889 settled at Slocum. In 49,
a rolling mill was built, and in 10;
they induced Mr.. Blair, then ric
man, to unite with them in developin
the property. Moses Taylor. Willial
E. Dodge, Gardner Colby, Israel 1
Condit, Christopher Robert, Marsha
O. Roberts and Robert G. Winthro
were his associates. Mr.. Blair is til
last survivor of them all. Slocum bt
came Scranton. and the hum Of Il