Evening journal., 1911-10-11
NEW NEWS OF YESTERDAY
An Incident Of ArCOnaut
Days
By Holland.

After Stephen j. Field, brother Of
Cyrus Field OF Atlantic cable fame and
of David Dudley Field, the great law
yer, became an Associate Justice of
the United States Supreme Court,
there gained wide circulation a story
to the effect that after Stephen j.
Field had gone to California in 1S49,
following the discovery Of gold there,
he had become very hard up and
turned peddler for a living. The story
had it that the future member of the
Supreme Court, realizing that the min
ers needed pocketbooks, or pouches
for holding their gold dust and mug
gets, went among them as a peddler
OF pocketbooks, and found a ready
market for his wares, so that in a few
days he accumulated enough money to
pay for a months board and lodging
and a months rent in advance for a
law Office
The story used to amuse Justice
Field greatly. He often said that he
was some day going to write an ex.
planauon of the manner in which il
had originated. / believe that he dic
do this and passed the remembrance
around among a few of his friends
And many times, by word Of mouth
he would tell Of the origin Of the story
TO interested listeners,
when / determined to set out foi
/ California" said Justice Field, my
brother Cyrus went about New Yorl
with me to aid me in buying sucl
things as / would probably need II
the way OF clothing, camp outfit, an,
equipment for the law office that
meant to open as soon as / had located
in the new territory.
One day we called on a stationel
whose shop was in William street, il
New York city, and purchased a largi
/ quantity of stationery of the kin,
I that was then used in a law office. w
told the stationer that l was preparing
to start for California, whereupoi
he said that / ought to take along som,
coverings of chamois skin for the sta
| tionery. The skins would be a gooi
protection for the paper during tn
sea voyage, he said, and at its end
could probably sell the skins for NOR
than l paid for them. Cyrus and
thought the suggestion was a gooI
one, and / therefore bought a dozeI
ohamois skin coverings at cost o
about ten dollars all told.
Il placed my stationery in the skim
and never thought of them again unit
months later / came to open my boz
in the presence of some prospectori
and miners at what is now the town
of Marysville. They became excite,
when they saw the skins; they wer'
just the things that we're needed 70,
carrying gold dust or nuggets, thl
men agreed. AS I had no further us'
for the skins I said that / would sci
them. There was a lively scramble Il
buy them, and when # was over dis
covered that had received nearly tw
hundred dollars in gold dust for wha
/ had paid about ten dollars.
1T was a providential sale; befor
Il began had less than FIVE dollars I
my name. And so / came into my frs
capital in California. But as a resu
the report was spread abroad that
young lawyer named Stephen ]. Fiel
was selling chamois skin purses to th
miners. The story became expanded a
Il circulated, and at last it took II
present form, that / began my caree
as a lawyer in California by peddlin
purses among the miners"
Copyright, 1911, by E. ]. Edward
All rights reserved.)
Tomorrow Mr.. Edwards will tell
@The Last Flowers That ThOrea
Saw"