El Paso daily herald. (El Paso, Tex.) 1881-1901, 1899-08-16
SUCCESSFUL MEN
MllliondireS Who Rose From Office
Bows.

Boys.
| Well known, successful New York
ers began life as Office boye. John D.
Rockefeller, Cornelius Vanderbilt and
Andrew Carnegie, whose com pined
fortunes probably would exceed those
of any other three men living, began
life practically as Office boys. The story
of Rockefeller's first job in a Cleveland
oil store is we'll known. He was more
than Office boy, for, besides looking af.
ter the odd jobs in the little counting
room, he had to sweep out the entire
store every morning and make himself
| generally useful in and out of the Office
all day long. Andrew Carnegie's be-
ginning as q boy in q Pittsburg tele-
graph Office, where he picked up the
| art of writing over the wire almost
| surreptiOusly, is also we'll known. Cor
nelius Vanderbilt's Office boy life is
probably less familiar to the public.
When it began his father. William
81. Vanderbilt, was not in high favor
| with his father, the Com modore Cor
nelius l., grandfather of the present
Cornelius and founder of the family.
Not to put too fine point upon it. the
William n. Vsnderbilts, then living
on Staten Island, were in rather poor
health, and the eldest SOD, having
finished an academic course, decided to
get JOB and earn his own living. The
boy g first and last application for work
Bank, and though he soon rose to a
clerkship in the institution. his earliest
services undoubtedly were such as fall
to the Office boys around banks gen
orally. He had been employed there q
year Tor two before the old COM
modore knew about it, and the
younRster got his first railroad place
because of the good record he had won
in the bank.
a little Ann-street printing shop that
ex-Mayor William r. Grace started out
in America. Grace was born in good
sized town in Ireland. His home was
good and his father was exceedingly
DESTROYS of doing we'll for his boys. For
this reason he selected a calling for
each. just what he selected for Will
liam r. doesn't appear, but it WASH It to
the lads liking; and, SO, as soon after
reaching the mature age of IA as he
could scrape a little money together,
he ran away from home. That was in
the boom days of migration from the
Emerald Isle to the United States, and
young Grace turned his face toward
America as q matter of course. He
had no friends in the country and he
had formed no plans for action after
slightest doubt in his mind that every
thing would be easy for him on this
side of the sea. His financial hoard
lad been small at the best, and he
reached New York with the equivalent
Of less than IS in his pocket. With
this Insignificant amount between him |
md want he started to walk up
own immediately after land
ng. When he reached Ann
he |
from Broadway. Only q
ew doors from the corner he noticed q
ign reading boy Wanted Will
lam r. hurried across the street with
III possible haste, and presently was
rying to show good reasons why he,
md no other, was the boy wanted.
either because of his business-like talk
r his strong, healthy appearance. be
7as told to begin work at once, the
lie kept the place a full year, manag-
ng, sumehow, to save little every
EEK and to learn lot of things about
he chances that were waiting the
'orld over for youngsters of pluck and
to work. It was while en-
loyed as an Office boy in Ann street
lat he heard about the possibilities in
ne South American trade, on which
g has since realized so satisfactorily.
7pe-setter when he came to New York,
ut before that he had been an office
oy in printing shop somewhere in
ew England, and his wages were so /
nall that he could save nothing at all,
I'D that didn't suit him little bit. It +
as clear to him before he had worked !
that he must increase his in
,me somehow If he were ever to get
head.
''1f you want to earn MORE" said the
inter to whom the boy conided his 2
scOvery, you must learn mOre'
Next day, when the same printer
ked young Bonner to do a bit OF extra
ork the boy bargained for instruction
the locking of form" in return
r his service, and from that time he
ok as much pains in learning some
ing new every day as in doing what
er he was bid. In little while his
ages had been increased, so that he
as able to begin saving, and when he
me to New York he was not only
aster of the printing trade, and so
lie to earn good wages, but he had
tween $50 and $40 in 'specie" and ri
ate bank notes in his pocket. Bonner N
Is q millionaire long before he turned
g New York Ledger over to his sons. q
Thomas l.. James, whose situations
life have included cabinet position, Is
d who today Is at the head of one of fiI
e larger banks, is another successful T
eW Yorker who began as an Office &c
y In composing room. He got his W
st Job In Utica on the Liberty Press, di
1R since discontinued. The knowl- TO
ge OF the printing business learned r.