The Indianapolis journal. [volume] (Indianapolis [Ind.]) 1867-1904, 1897-06-15
LIVING DOWN HIS PAST
FERDINAND WARDS PROsY LIFE AT
HIS OLD HOME IN GENEsEO.
The Man Who Handled Millions and
Dragged Grants Name to Disgrace
Is Surrogate's Clerk.
Geneseo IN. W Dispatch in New York

|
is now at forty-six. a minor clerk in the
surrogate's Office of Livingston. of which
this village is the county seat. Intentions
ally commonplace in all that he does, unob-
trusive to the last degree, he is yet a fig
ure to be pointed out to strangers as one
of the characters of the place.
Promptly on time. every secular morn
| ing, he may be seen, a short spare man
| with graying hair, a long. rather solemn.
| c}ean-shaven face and the manner of one
| whose thoughts are ever serious entering
the courthouse to perform his daily duties.
| His friends declare his highest present am
bition to be to do his simple clerical work
we'll and to hold the regained respect Of
the village community In which the days
of his boyhood were passed. Everything
in his conduct bears this out His work is
done neatly and with great care and his
personal life is entirely correct. When
even he can do little extra clerical work.
like writing up the books of a tradesman
or assisting at night in the indexing of the
county records, he is glad to do so, and
both his neighbors and the county board of
| supervisors throw all they can in his way.
These things keep him almost constantly
busy, and he is known as one of the hard
est workers in the entire village.
| Ward was never much of talker, even
in his sIyrocket days Now. IN the days of
his retirement, he IS reticence itself, though
by no means unsocial OF one thing he will
not talk, and that is his connection with
General Grant. The only present indiea-
tons that he ever anything but a
clerk in county department on few hun
dreds year, are furnished by his clothes,
which are generally light in color, up to
date in cut, always freshly pressed and
neatly kept.
He lives with his second wife, a Staten
island girl, TO whom he was married few
years ago, in the old homestead on Ward
and Second streets which was bequeathed
to him by his father, the Rev. ferdinand
/ De witt Ward, in his day a great light
among Presbyterians in western New York.
| me mousse Is a typical village dWelIng set
! IN the midst of an invariably welEkept,
! tree-shaded lawn. Since his occupancy OF
| the place Ward has modernized it 10 some
| extent, and added a small house on the
! Ward-street front of the lot, which he let's
out. His small clerical and extra earnings
| the rent of this little house and the slight
| independent means of his wife, constitute
the entire income of the family, so far
! as the villagers know. Ward keeps no
horses, though horses may be cheaply kept
! IN GeneSeo, and the entire establishment
cannot well eat up $1,000 year. Wards
| desire TO 1--we down his past has been met
more than half way by the villagers. Every
one has extended the helping hand. Pro-
| fessors and teachers in the State Normal
| School, ministers and other professional
| men and business men GENERALLY have
| shown perfect willingness TO forget At
| most of the simple social functions of the
| village Mr.. and Mrs. Ward are welcome
| guests, and Mrs Ward. who seems to be
| universally HKed has become prominent in
| the entertainments and 'sociabes' of the
Episcopal Church, of which she is regular
| attendant.
Though never an active participator,
| Ward always has been interested greatly IN
| athletic and other sports, and his attitude
| in this direction has not changed. In this
| however. pVerVhO0V 81
| in Geneseo. This is due to the interest
| shown in such matters by the Wadsworths,
| Austin and the congressman james w.
whose estates are near by and who show
| all the devotion of the great English land
holders to hunting and athletics Like near
| ly all his neighborS, W ard follows The hunts
| that are got up by Austin Wadsworth and
| takes a keen interest in the college base
| ball team, maintained every summer in
! Geneseo, chiefly by the efforts Of j. w.
| WadsWorth, whose son, }. w Jr., college
| student, is a member OF the team. This
| team, by the way, made up of players II rom
| a number of the colleges and universities
| of the land, is great feature of warm
| weather life in Geneseo, ard its games with
other teams are regarded as among the
| most important sporting affairs CT the year.
Two years ago nearly the entire team took
lodgings tor the season at the Ward house,
and the boys all became fast friends of
! their host.
Another thing in which Ward takes great
interest-and in this he is like most of his
| neighbors-is local history. Possibly there
is no other county in the State whose in
records and relics. TO them the meetings
| of the Livingston County Historical Society
| are all important events, and the papers
| read thereat are exciting subjects to be dis
| cussed for months afterward on the street,
| in the groceries and other public places
| and at private gatherings. Local curios are
| at premium always and the local mu-
| scum, started by citizen and to be turned
over to the village at the coming dedication
| of log cabin lately erected to commemor-
| ate the Wadsworth purchase of lands from
the Indians hundred years ago, is CEN
| ter of resort.
/ To this museum Ward gives special atten-
ton, and Geneseo folk are just now telling
one another and the strangers within their
| gates about his recent gift or his father
| hat. This hat was worn for many years by
| DR.. Ward and is instantly recognized by
| every one who ever knew the old Preshy'-
terrain minister 1t is a broad brimmed tall
hat, of peculiar shape, and 1t bears test-
mony to the doctors well remembered
| habit of courteously saluting every one he
| met since the nap, which is mostly intact,
| is worn completely away on that part or
| the brim which was grasped in removing
| the hat from his head.
WAS A NAUGHTY YOUNGSTER.
Ferdinand Ward, as he now is is never
ending source of surprise to those who
boys knew him in his youth.
Then" said Rochester lawyer day or
| two ago, who wes boy in Geneseo, Fer
| dinand was mighty naughty, standoffish
| fellow He would have little to do with
boys who were poorer than himself and he
was as much of a high roller as he could
be here on the money that he could COM
| mand. / used to be Highly indignant, as
| well remember, when l was working in
| grocery. to have to deliver small parcels of
Ferdinand's buying. Once Ferdinand bought
| half dozen oranges and carried them to
| his fathers house, following just behind
| him. When we arrived / walked up the
| front steps close after him. and, when he
| stopped to open the door, l handed him the
! little package But he wouldn't take it,
| a. Go to the back door with groceries, al
| ways, boy he commanded, and | had to
give the oranges to the servant and not to
the scion of the house.
I'm not specially indicative but the
| next day when he was on the street just
| which he then affected were somehow bad
| ly mud-splashed. to his utter chagrin.
| wards first business enterprise. as has
| often been told In print, was the running Of
| a little job press. 1t didn't work and after
he had stopped printing cards and small
circulars he went to a certain livery stable
| keeper and asked to be allowed TO collect
his bills.
Certainly, said the liveryman. I'll give
you a chance. Here is a bill I've tried every
| which way to collect, but unsuccessfully.
! You collect that one, and you may have all
my collecting TO do
But Ward handed it back, for it was
pretty big bill against himself. Later:
| however, he got the job and did well. Ward
did not forget his friends in the hour OF
his brief prosperity. He found places for
several young men of Geneseo in New York.
A. Fl. Doty who afterward got to be health
officer, and J. b. Howe. who became SUI
perintendent of the Produce Exchange, be-
Inc Of he Ofh