Arizona republican., 1901-02-28
VICTORIA IN TRADE.
Her First Venture With Young Scotch
 man.

It was the conduct of her vast estate that kept the aged queen interested and fully occupied through many hours of her later years She develop ed her enthusiasm for financial matters only after her husbands death when she looked about for some effective and worthy diversion.
 It was a good many years ago and during a summer when the royal household was at Balmoral. that the queen commanded one of the most prominent tradesmen of Edinburg to send to the castle quantity of his wares. from which she wished to make selections and purchases.
 The head of the house and his trust ted first man of business, both of whom had tactfully negotiated sales at Bal moral many times before, were both Ill. 80 that the business of presenting the goods to the hands If the queen vas given into the hands of trusted young clerk.
 The smart young Scotchman knew a lot concerning trade. but very little about the etiquette that hedge ges a sov- ereign when she goes shopping in her own home, So when the goods were ar ranged for the queens inspection he hung about the room instead of absent ing himself while the lady examined the articles and made her selections.
 Nobody noticed him until 1t was too late to hustle him out. and though he kept we'll in the background at first, when the queen happened to ask a question of her attendant as to dhe pos- sibilty of having a certain cloth woven. the young tradesman, blind to winks and frOwns from the attendants, pre- sented himself with a respectful bow, and replied SO clearly and sensibly to her inquiries that she asked an expla- nation of the whole method of wool weaving.
 There was no gainsaying the young mans accurate knowledge intelligence and respectful bearing and. when the queen kindly inquired something of his private affairs, he frankly confessed that It was his ambition to establish mills of his rwn and to introduce inn proved machinery in which he firmly believed. The queen asked him what capital he would need, graciously thanked him for his information and dismissed him.
 few weeks after he received an of fer from a banker to lend him the mon- ey to put up the mills and establish his machinery.
 The offer was so unexpected that the young man insisted on knowing how 1t came about, and then he learned that the queen had ordered the investment on the strength of what he had told her on the occasion of the visit to Bal moral.
 She had also ordered an investigation of his character and condition. and re- ceiving a satisfactory report determ- ined to venture a goodly number of pounds In the enterprise.
 The result proved highly flattering to the ladys judgment and the young mans ability, for the mills were put up and proved enormously successful. Al ter drawing handsome revenue from her flyer In wopl, the silent partner in the firm sold out at huge profit: but her first venture gave her courage to go into many others.
 Her holdings in real estate. in steamship lines and banking firms had been taken solely on her own Judgment. With a positive genius for figures she mastered easily all the higher mathe- nratics the scienceof book keeping and kept a large portion of her personal ac- couhts wttl her own hands.