Freeland tribune. (Freeland, Pa.) 1888-1921, 1899-08-21
GOOD ST0RIESOF BONNER
HOW A POOR PRINTED ROSE TO BE A
MILLIONAIRE PUBLISHER.

settlers in the World-Skill as n Horse.
shoer-Spent Millions For Trottcrs.
There are more forms of High Art
than appear on canvas, in marble OF
on craven page. The late Robert
Bonner, for instance, was master OF
many. To be sure, he could not paint
apicture nor could he carve marble
faun. But he could shoe a horse,
and as an advertiser he had no equal.
Besides this, he could set type with
machine-like rapidity and precision
and decision, and could tell paying
story at a glance. Also, he never
owed cent longer than it took to pay
it. All of which is more or less Art.
In 1874 Mr.. Bonner came to New
York. He brought with him $40 to a
cent. He put it in a bank, and ope
day the cashier wrote down in red ink
in his bank book "$3."
II was my interest,"" said Mr.. Bon
ner. 81 had to ask him what it
meant. He told me, and | was over
whelmed with astonishment. l told
him hadn't made the money. No,
but your money did, he answered.
"That settled it. 1 learned that
day that money makes money, and
that to be rich you must save. So 1
have saved"
Mr.. Bonner's greatest pride was
that he never borrowed or owed. The
only thing he ever borrowed was a
maxim from Emerson-"O discon-
tented mani Whatever you want,
pay the price and take It'll" He did.
Whenever he wanted anything he paid
for it. The price sometimes came
high. But Mr.. Bonner got it all the
same. One day he suggested to n
friend that Edward Everett ought to
write for the Ledger. The friend
smiled.
you couldn't get Everett to write
at any price," said the friend.
'You wait and see," said Mr.. Bon
ner.
Mr.. Everett was lecturing at that
time on Washington, using the proceeds
toward fund for the purchase of
Mount Vernon. Mr.. Bonner wrote to
Mr.. Everett that he would subscribe
$4,000 to the fund if Mr.. Everett
would write once week for the Led
ger. The famous Bostonian accepted.
''There," said Mr.. Bonner. "What
did tell you? 1t came high, but L
got it."
The only time in his life that Bon
ner ever made bet was when he was
typesetter on the old Hartford
Courant. A "jour" of the name of
John Hand came down the line with
the advance reputation of being the
swiftest compositor on earth.
Maybe" said the Courant men;
"but you haven't tried Bonner yet"
"Huhl' said the 'jour;" I'm try
him for $40 side"
81 never bet," said Mr.. Bonner.
'You better not" laughed the chal-
lenger.
Mr.. Bonner changed his mind. He
put up SO, got down to work, and be-
sides consuming two pieces of custard
pie set 27, 500 ems of solid minion type
in twenty hours and twenty eight min
utes. The feat has never been equaled.
Although Mr.. Bonner spent in his
lifetime about $500, 600 for trotting
horses he never raced one or allowed
one to be raced for money. His first
horse was bought in July, 1856. At
that time there had been just nineteen
horses in the world, dead and alive,
that had trotted mile in go. To-
day there are $4,000 on the list. To
Mr.. Bonner is due much of this.
This was effectually displayed some
time ago at a sale of Palo Alto trot-
ters. Mr.. Bonner looked them over
and picked out Ansel Chief as the
best of the lot. But every other high
horseman in America had discarded
the animal as unsound. The day the
colt came to New York he was lame
but that made no difference to Mr..
Bonner. He sent his brother to buy
Ansel Chief, and set limit of $500.
In virtue of his lameness, Ansel Chief
was knocked down at $500.
Mr.. Bonner grinned with delight.
He took the colt to Tarrytown and
pared down It's toes. In a few days
it was as sound as dollar, moving
squarely and fast, and at the age OF
four went the mile in 2153.
''You see," explained Mr.. Bonner,
"the toe of its hoof was so long that
it stretched the suspensory ligament.
just had it pared down and relieved
the strain. 1t cost about two cents
labor and saved me thousand dol
lars.
One rule that was always inviolate
in the Ledger officer was that nothing
even remotely suggestive should ap-
pear.
''You shall not print in this paper, +"
said Mr.. Bonner, "even single word
that my mother could not read aloud
without shame to her infants"
"There is nothing on earth," said
Mr.. Bonner again and still once more,
"like advertising. If you have any
thing to sell advertise it."
One of Mr.. Bonner's early ideas
was to buy up the entire advertising
space in New York newspaper. His
display consisted in repeating over
and over with bewildering iteration
the fact that the Ledger was about to
publish story by So-and-So. On
h.