The Montgomery advertiser., 1903-09-01
THE COITON LEADER
A MIssIssIrPI BOY WHO HAS
 MADE HIS MARK.
Born in Lowndcs and First at Work at Columbus, He Moved to Now Orleans and Eas Achieved Success as Daring Head
 of the Market.

of the Market.
 The following are extracts from a re- cent article by Lucille Webb Banks, in
 The St. Louis Globe-Democrat. upon Will
 liam Perry Brown, the cotton king: The most talked about. and in some quarters the most misrepresented man in
 America. is William Perry Brown, head of the well-known house of W. P. Brown
 & Co.,, cotton merchants, New Orleans. The daring of his operations the past few months, and their stupendous scale,
 together with the dazzling height to which prices have scared. have won for him an international reputation. the ap-
 pellation, Cotton King of the World By cool judgment and keen insight he practically cornered the market. In every
 American market. tide water or interior. from the manufacturing centres of the East down the Atlantic, along the gulf | to the farthest confines of the cotton belt in Western Texas. his actions have been closely watched and his advice eagerly sought. Photographic reports and special correspondence have added to his noto- riety and in the Southern States made his name a household word.
 | As the public listened and looked on | the query was, Who's Brown?" The + press has accurately announced his hourly doings on change, and in some instances attempts have been made to publish character sketches of him. His public and private character have been the sub | ject of extravagant praise and malignant criticism. But in spite of all these re- ports little really true is known in the outside world of the real character of W. P. Brown.
 William Perry Brown was born forty one years ago in the ''Caledonian neigh
 borhood,'' a prosperous old settlement in Lowndes County, Mississippi. The Brown | homestead was fifteen miles northeast of Columbus, one of the oldest and most | aristocratic towns in the State. The late | J. c. Brown, his father, was a Confed- crate soldier who worthily wore the gray, | and his private life was without fear and above reproach. He as prosperous and highly respected by his neighbors. He owned his home and hundreds of acres ad- jacent thereto.
 about the age of fifteen years, W. P. Brown was sent to Columbus to school. He was a student in the franklin Acad- | emy. the public school, an institution for | sixty years patronized by the best people of the town. Young Brown boarded in a private family, that of Mir. James w. Gardner, treasurer for some years of Lowndes County. 1t is untrue that he was ever thrown upon the charities of any |
 his early youth, and circumstances were
 such he did not complete his education. The orphaned lad turned from his old | home to Columbus. At once he deter | mined to be self-sustaining. The first position he filled was as clerk in the wholesale supply store of T. O. Burris,
 a leading merchant of Columbus. Quick
 and apt, he soon developed into an ex-
 celient salesman. His pleasant manners
 rapidly won for him friends. Recogniz- ing his popularity had added materially
 to the trade of the store, Mir. Burris ap- preciated the merit of the boy clerk and
 eventually placed him in charge of the
 cotton department a responsible position, | difficult to fill.
 | Having saved and invested his earnings, | he decided to enter business on his own
 account. He established himself in the
 grocery business (dealing also in cotton) | at Columbus. on Main Street, under the firm name of w. P. Brown & Co. A few
 years later he formed a partnership with Dr. T. T. Sharp. son of Brigadier-Gen-
 eral Jacob H. Sharp of Confederate fame.
 Under the name of Brown & Sharpe, they | continued to deal in groceries. Several
 years later the partnership was dissolved.
 and Mir Brown left for New Orleans.
 where he became a factor under the old
 firm name w. P. Brown & Co.
 Captain Brown Is about feet 10 or Il
 inches in height, broad-shouldered, full
 chest, dark hair, ruddy complexion, with
 steelish blue or gray eyes. heavy brown | mustache, and erect carriage, and Is a
 and his nose and chin particularly denote | courage and character. He is easy in | manners and deliberate in conversation. | At a glance he impresses the observer
 as a man of strength and purpose, and
 he is-for when his judgment indicates
 that certain conditions should produce certain results, he is not unwilling to back his judgment to reasonable limits. | When he once believes a thing is so, and takes a stand accordingly, he is an l i'll man to oust from his position. In other words, he Is abundantly blessed l with what. in the vocabulary of the street
 is denominated nerve" In meeting diff 1 ficulties and overcoming obstacles in bus mess, which would paralyze an operator
 of less heroic mold, he is cool, collected. resourceful. Neither by change of coun- | tenance, speech nor manner does he ever | betray any fear he may feel as to the outcome of the situation in which he is 1 placed.
 l On the 27th of December. 1894, Mir. l Brown married Miss Margherita Braughn, | daughter of the late Judge and Mrs. C.. | H. Braughn, of New Orleans. Mrs. | Brown is also a granddaughter of Judge Edward Simon of St. Martinsville. La. | Judge Simon came to America from Bel | gium. Soon after locating in the South [ he made a place for himself among em- ! inent jurists, serving as Judge of the | Supreme Court of Louisiana.
 Rita Braughn, as she was known to her l intimates, coupled a handsome home on | St. Charles Avenue. Her eldest sister was a very beautiful woman. greatly | admired. One year she was chosen by | Rex to be queen of the carnival. Like | her elder Mrs. Brown is accomplished. | She is a gifted musician and has written several pieces which have attracted
 much attention in musical circles. Judge | Braughn being a man of wealth and in- | fluence, Mrs. Braughn and her daugh- | ters were lavish entertainers and their l lat homes brought together a delight | full set from social ranks.
 MT. Brown Is the ideal Southern hus- | band and father
 Mir. Brown has been a bull since 1898, | when the market was 3-4 cents, which | is evidence that he has taken no man s