The Birmingham age-herald., 1911-12-24
REAL
 A

K TR. FREDERICK ALEXANDER MI DOWNS was gentell. His linen A was always clean; his clothes, all though always showing signs of wear, were well brushed and neat His shoes al- ways were polished and his voice always was soft and mild He looked bit faded and he was a trifie bent He was gray haired and quite handsome almost distin- guished in appearance. If you met him in the subway or on one of the avenues you would take him for a professor from . one of the universities, or possibly a pas tor emeritus. As matter of fact MT. Frederick Alexander Downs was an office boy. m
 In the publishing house of Jones & Bradford he got SIP a week. He had been there for IS years. Some friend of the firm whom they had to favor had asked 2 Jones to give job to Downs. Jones, in his brusque. alert searching way, had discovered in a few minutes that Mr. : Downs, while scholarly looking, refined and of good address, was devoid of busi- ness ability or gumption. Men of one- third his education, men who were defi-
 
 by no means so well informed, were many times more valuable and successful simply because they had initiative and general ability.
 There are 50,000 men in New York just like Frederick Alexander Downs. He could do little of a lot of things, but not one thing we'll His sensitiveness forced him t. to shrink from what others had no qualms about doing. He was a failure, n a genteel failure, an unnoticed failure. Jones read his character in a few glances. He told him he was sorry, but he had no job except-he was going to say office boy, but hastily compromised by saying "wel- comer.' MT. Downs smiled. It suited his idia exactly. He explained to Mr. Jones that he knew precisely what the office re- quired and that he would give his best attention to fulfilling it's needs.
 That is how Frederick Alexander Downs came to be office boy for Jones & Brad ford. He took his duties seriously. He never knew that the job ordinarily paid four or five dollars a week. He imagined he was an important figure in the estab- lishment.
 Jones had not the heart to give him an : office boys wage, so MT Downs went on the pay rool at SIP a week and had con- tinued year after year. He was worth it. in way. Every person who opened the door of that outer office got a good im- A-pression when they saw the dignifed old man at his desk. He looked and acted the 2 gentleman. He looked substantial and de- pendable. When he took visitors card it always was with a bow. Most callers felt they were being signally honored when MT. Downs arose from his little desk, laid aside the blanks and sheets of figures he was at work upon and came g forward to see them.
 Poor old Downsl He could keep as busy scribbling unmeaning figures on pad of paper as Edison could on one of his great est problems. To sign receipt for let ter or parcel was a long, laborious, inn Sortant operation. Some of the employees Hooked upon him as a fossil but there was one person there who knew Downs better and appreciated him more than any one else in the world-and that was his daugh- ter Grace She had been working for the firm 10 years. She advanced steadily. He stood still She knew the qualities of mind and heart that endeared him to those who met him outside the realm of busi- ness. What business man would look upon as his weakness was the very thing that made others love him. He simply could not think badly of any one. He could have his eyes fooled out of him by designing person. He never had been and never would become sophisticated ordinary, everyday human being. He had little indeed of this worlds goods. yet those who asked could have. He was ab- soutely unsuspicious. He took every he never had grown up.