New-York tribune., 1903-01-18

him besides the sobrfquet of Little Abe" such pet
names Abe the Kid, Fatty Abe" and Sawed
Of CRUDE
As long ago as he can remember. Mr. Gruber
ma de up his mind to be a lawyer. From the gram
school he entered the College of the
City OF New-York- but his course there was cut
short by lack of funds. Accordingly the boy OBJ
tained work in law office. at No. go Broadway,
where he swept out and built fires for S2 %
week and later in a drygoods house, where he did
various chores. but studied law in the mean time.
He also spent his spare pennies for paper covered
books and at the age of sixteen he had the COM
plete works OF Shakespeare. Dickens and other
English and American authors. Some Of these
dime editions are be found in the library
of Mr.. Gruber's nome. at No l52 West Ninety
ffta-st.. but bound that they will be in keeping
with their more elegant surroundings
Although he never attended law school, the
drygoods clerk passed his bar examinations ninety
days after his twenty-frst birthday. In order
to show his former employers that he had gone
into business himself. he first hung out his shinge
at No 261 Broadway. two doors from where he was
once an office boy. The firm was known as Gruber
& Bard. the other member of the firm being Fred
eriek Bard The establishment later Of the pres
ent firm OF Black Ocott, Gruber Bonynge, be-
cause Of its practice and the skill Of its baseball
team, is well known to need further mention
Mr. Gruber married when he was twenty-five, a
wear after he was admitted the bar. In speak
ing recently OF this occasion he showed his philo-
sephical turn of mind by saying:
Il would advise very young to marry. !
am not speaking from theoretical. but prac-
ticaI standpoint. Marriage is like breaking colt.
Married men stand the harness better than bache-
lors They don't kick over the traces so often.
They know for one reason that IL doesn't do any
good. Although I married widow, with two
children, myself. I would not advise waiting
I'LL he could wed a widow with family. There
would be too great competition"
When Mr.. Gruber became Republican leader Of
the XXIst District, eight years ago he succeeded
Christian n. Bovee, jr, but he had not obtained
control long before he found that his rule not
to be a halcyon one. Mr.. Gruber first found
insurgent in his camp in the person of James S.
Barcus. recently elected TO the State Senate CT
Indiana The Barcus uprising. however was put
down, only to be followed in 1900 by a still more
serious outbreak.
Mr. Gruber had cut loose from the State and
county organizations, which sought TO overthrow
him by the elevation Of George c. Austin to the
leadership Mr.. Austin and the Quigg forces, how
ever. were badly overwhelmed. and half-hearted
renewal Of hostities the next year was also
sTnothered. The end of the Gruber-Austin conflict
did not come until December Il. when Mr. Austin
became q member of the executive committee Of
the Riverside Republican Club, the Gruber organi-
zation.
The acts Of Mr.. Gruber as philanthropist are
only occasionally known TO the public. These, Of
course. DO not include the annual outings of his
district organization. when seven thousand men.
women and children accompany him to some Long
Island picnic grove for days recreation One ex-
ample Of Mr. Gruber a philanthropst, however,
wholly outside Of politics. shown about two
years ago. when ii was announced that TO him had
been left sl00.G00 by Mrs Frank A. Page admir-
ing client It then developed that this
the widow OF one of Mr.. Gruber's earliest friends.
When dying. the husband asked Abe as he called
him then to look out for his wife. Under Mr..
Gruber's direction the widow deposited few
thousand dollars in several savings banks, the in