The Daily Ardmoreite. [volume] (Ardmore, Okla.) 1893-current, 1898-02-23
vARpERRlLT,s START.
Daniel Drews stnry OF the Help Given
by Mrs. Vanderbilt.

by MRS. Vanderbilt.
lone story about Commodore Cor
nelius Vanderbilt was told to me
many years ago by Daniel Drew,
and have no doubt but that il is
authentic, said a man who has
known Intimately the men who have
made New York history during the
last ha.f century. Various stories
have been printed about the begin
nin@e of VanGerbilt's fortune, and
they all go to show that luck played
q very insignificant part in them.
Vanderbilt made money because of
his energy and his shrewdness, but
I-don't believe that it is generally
known that Mrs. Vanderbilt aided
him very materially at a time when
he thought good investment was
slipping through his hands because
he had not enough money to take
advantage of his opportunity.
Daniel Drew knew Vanderbilt
well, and before his death he fire.
quently entertained his friends with
stories about the commodore IS early
life. 1t was when Vanderbilt was
simply an energetic young cap
tain connected with the Union line
for Philadelphia and Baltimore,
through TO Philadelphia in one
day, that tine incident of which Mr..
Drew delighted to tell occurred. In
those days the steamer Emerald,
Captain c. Vanderbilt, left her wharf
on the north side of the Battery ut
noon every day, Sundays excepted,
with passengers for New Brunswick
and back by boat for the pleasure of
the trip. New Brunswick S hotel, or
halfway house. was dirty and i'll
kept. Mrs. Vanderbilt saw her op-
portunity. She suggested to her hus-
band that they should take the ho-
tel. refit it and run it in a style that
would attract guests. Vanderbilt
thought well of it, and after leasing
the hotel he took his family from
his fathers little house at Stapleton
TO live in New Brunswick. As Mrs.
Vanderbilt had suggested the
scheme, her husband told her that
she might run the hotel herself and
have the profits.
Mrs. Vanderbilt was a strong,
Industrious, frugal woman, and she
turned the hotel upside down, clean
ed it and made it fit for guests. She
named it Bellona Hall, after the
steamship BelIona, which her hus-
band then commanded, and in very
ehort time the fame of it had spread
to New York, and parties were
made up to visit it because of the ex-
cellent fare to be found there. 1t
also increased the profits of the line
for which Captain Vanderbilt work
ed, and his salary was increased to
%, 600 year. For ~ years Mrs.
Vanderbilt managed Bellona Hall
with profit to herself and pleasure to
her guests.
During these years Captain Van
derbilt had been studying steam
ships and investigating the chances
for profit in traffic on the Hudson
and along the sound He wanted to
be one of the transportation mag
mates of this city, and, although his
fortune was small, he had valuable
ideas, gained from years of practi-
cal experience as a steamboat cap
tain, and he felt sure that if he could
get the right opening he need not
fear the greater wealth of his rivals.
He had never questioned Mrs. Van
derbilt's management of the hotel,
but he knew that she had saved
some money. In 1929 his opportu-
nifty came. He had a chance to get
a controlling interest in steamship
for S1S, 900. He had &5, 600 in cash
which he had saved, but he didn't
know where to raise the balance. He
told his wife about this steamship
which he wanted and explained to
her his plans for making money if
he could get the ship.
81 need S13, 600 more, said the
captain, and don't know where /
can get it,
" i will give it to you, said Mrs
Vanderbilt. And to her husband's Is
surprise she pulled the money out
from under the bed. She had saved
1t from the profits of the hotel. Cap
tain Vanderbilt bought his boat, and
then he bought many others, but his
first ship he owed to his wife. -
New York Sun.