The Owosso times. (Owosso, Mich.) 1897-1926, 1900-10-26
(Saginaw Courier-Herald.)

Congressman William Alden Smith
MADE no mistake when he said at the
Teutonia hall meeting that 1t was not
necessary to show "Joe" Fordney
around more than once. He was refer
ring to Hon. Joseph w. Fordney, mem
Der Of congress for the eight congress
sional district of Michigan, and can
ddate for reelection on the Republi-
can ticket. To his familiars he is and
always will be Joe Fordney, and
the title is not SO much one Of famil-
iarity as Of affection, for in the circles
where he is best known, there he is
best liked. His colleague appraise-
him properly, for whether as a boy
on the farm, the worker in the lumber
camp, the land locker, the successful
business man, or the representative Of
the people, Congressman Fordney has
always shown himself keenly alive TO
what was going on in the world about
him, and to his power Of adaptability
to circumstances much of his success
Is owing.
For he has been successful, and that
in no small degrea. Like the majority
Of successful Americans, he has made
his own success, by putting to good use
such measure Of ability as nature
endowed him with, and by steady and
consistent attention to whatever af-
fairs he has taken in hand. His record
is good, and he is an American Of the
best type, who has never lost sight Of
the value of personal integrity, and
who Is not one whit sp oiled or changed
by his rise in the world. He is the
same genial and approachable Joe"
Fordney that he has always been, q
man Of quiet manners and unassuming
demeanor, and man whom it is
always q pleasure to meet. He is
good antidote for an attack Of the
blues at any time, broad mind
ed, wholesome and CHEEKY, and
always the same uncompromising and
sturdy foe Of pessimism.
Joseph w. Fordney Is O man in the
full vigor of life. He was born Nov.
8, 1853, on bis fathers farm in Black
ford county, Indiana. His early years
were spent on the farm, and his exper-
fence there gained gave him thorough
knowledge of agriculture, and inspired
him with that warm sympathy for
the farmer which has always been one
of his distinguishing traits. A son
of the soil himself, there Is nothing
that concerns the farmer in which he
does not take deep and practical
interest. While on the farm he at
tended the common schools, obtaining
In this way the only educational ad-
vantages he has every received, outside
of that broad education which comes
to the man of affairs, whose active
pursuits bring him into contact with
all kinds and conditions of men. OF
the knowledge that Is in the ext books,
Mr.. Fordney received all he was des-
tined to obtain, in those early years
on the farm.
In June, 1869, the family removed
TO Saginaw, and young Fordney
entered the list Of bread-w inners,
and then and there began the active
duties of life. His first employment
was as q deliverer Of groceries for M.
G.. Martin, who at that time CONDUCTED
o. small business on the west side.
Nearly three years passed before Mr..
Fordney found the opportunity he had
been seeking. In the meantime, like
many other young men in those days,
he went into the lumber camps, and
In the spring of 1872 he began his
career as O land locker, estimating
pine timber, etc. For IA OF 10 years
his summers were spent in this way
and in that time he visited nearly
every state In the union of any import
ancc to the numbering industry. In the
mysteries of woodcraft, few are more
expert than Mr.. Fordney, and he has
many a good tale to tell of, the 6ary
days, when he packed" through th,
virgin forest which made the Saginaw
numbering industry famous throughout