davidaulloa/AmericanStories huggingface dataset:
Dakota farmers' leader. (Canton, S.D.) 1890-19??, 1911-02-03
BROUGHT THEM LUCK
HUMOROUS INCIDENT THAT
PREsAGED PROSPERITY.
Prosperous Merchant Dates Day OF
Good Luck From Happening That
Then Caused Laughter.

A now prosperous Washington mer-
chant recalls an incident in his early
start in business which, slight as 1t
was, remains, he says, wildly in his
memory. He lac been on the lookout
for customers in his little store during
the greater part of an exceedingly
dark and dismal day. Telling his
juvenile assistant to fetch him If nee
essary, he stepped across the street
to see an acquaintance. also a young
man who had just started upon a mer-
camille career in a modest way.
The latter he found to be in the
same ~predicament as himself. He had
not had a customer all day, and his af-
fairs generally, had of late been du-
bious. After discussing this common
melancholy situation, the two friends
in adversely relapsed into a moody
silence, and stared out at the rain,
which still continued to pour down
like heavens wrath"
Suddenly the first mentioned mer-
chant gave a start, as though he had
received a shock from an electric bat
terry. A tall individual, dripping with
moisture, had stepped into his estab-
lishment. He was preparing to cross
over. and see If this could be the long
looked for customer, when the tall
man came out and proceeded in his
direction. Entering the store, he dis
closed a funeral visage quite in keep
ing with his somber garb.
II beg your pardon. gentlemen" he
said in sepulchral tones, but l rep
resent an establishment which makes
a specially Of furnishing mortuary
memorials at a very low rate. If or
dered at present. Now, you are young
men. 1t is true, but ever in the event
Of your not choosing to purchase a
tasteful tombstone for a relative, you
yourselves might are to take advan-
tage Of my cry unusual Offer
The merchant says that both his
friend and he date their prosperity
from the good laugh they had at this
juncture Of the melancholy strangers
announcement.
Dakota farmers' leader. (Canton, S.D.) 1890-19??, 1911-02-03
Homesickness Caused Him to Sail
Suddenly Without Word to
Friends Who Were Planning
Big Dinner for Him.

When William Makepeace Thack-
cray visited the United States for the
second and last time, in 1866. to de-
liver his lecture entitled The Four
Georges" the two Americans who
were closest to him during his stay
We're Parke Goodwin, publicist and SON
1n-law OF William Cullen Bryant. and
George William Curtis.
THE intimacy which we enjoyed
with Thackeray was due to the fact
that he made his headquarters while
in this country at the old Putnam's
Magazine Office, with which both Mr..
Curtis and myself were connected"
explained Mr.. Goodwin a few years be-
fore his death. Sometimes Curtis
and myself were enthusiastically
agreed that T~hackcray was the most
delightful, lovable and companionable
man we had ever met. But, probably,
just when we had arrived at this de-
cision, Thackeray would be brusque
and apparently cold toward US, and
there would be decided traces of
cynicism or contempt in his nature.
Frankly, though we tried hard. and
had rare opportunities to do so, we
never fully understood him. l think,
myself, that he was = man of moods,
OF else he sometimes suffered from
i%ll-health, which he bore uncomplain-
ingly, although his relations with his
fellow men were affected by his phys
ical suffering.
'Thackeray, to the personal knowl-
edge of Curtis and myself, did a
strange things while he was in the
country, but the most astonishing Of
all his acts was the in which
he left America and his best friends
here. 1t WIS particularly embarrass-
ing to me; and it was an act that had
every outward aspect of cold and pur-
posed discourtesy.
After making a successful lecture
trip through the south. If ]. remember
correctly, Thackeray returned to New
York flushed with his success, and, in
that happy spirit. sent us word that
he would be with US for two or three
days before departing to fulfil some
lecture engagements in another &C.
ton Of the country. We were SO re-
joiced over his success and his pres
ence in the city that we arranged for
a dinner in his honor, and Thackeray,
when he learned of our plan. was par
ticularly delighted Nothing pleased
Dakota farmers' leader. (Canton, S.D.) 1890-19??, 1911-02-03
success.

SUCCS8e.
Never talk or think Of failure or ad-
Pc determine to succeed,
and permit no thought or word to sug-
gest anything else. No matter If
things today go wrong. This shall
also pass away. The world is your
friend, though 1t may seem at times
to be against you. The world seems
to be against you because you have
not met the world in the right way.
Change yourself. Be a friend to every
body-the whole world. Expect every
body to be good TO you, and desire
constantly to be Of real service to
man. And ere long fate will change.
Believe that everybody is against you,
and you rub them all the wrong way.
Know that the true side of mankind
is a true friend to every aspiring soul.
and then place yourself in touch with
the ideal in man; meet only his bet
ter side, and your life. as we'll as the
life of the world, is made richer there
by. Never think nor speak Of failure
nor adversely. Think success, speak
success. breathe success, attract sue
cess, live success, and be saturated
through and through with absolute
faith In your own success! Believe
that the world 10 for you, that moth
In. Is against you; and SO your faith
Is. SO shall It be unto you.-Eternal
Progress.
Dakota farmers' leader. (Canton, S.D.) 1890-19??, 1911-02-03
Nfm NrutH
M Yratrr111q !; !! 4Eg.,,.

had a sailing that day. YES MI
Thackeray had arranged for accom-
modations just an hour or 80 before
sailing time. and had barely caught
the steamer. No. he had not left any
message. Nor had he left at the hotel
or anywhere else any message Tor me
or any one else interested in IGNORING
him at the dinner. He had departed
for Europe unceremoniously, and, ap-
~parently, in a most discourteous man
ner.
"Of course the dinner, minus the
guest of honor, was a fiat failure. AT
II. and for some time after. Curtis and
7 were asked to explain Thackeray's
curious conduct. We didn't even try
TO offer an explanation-to us his con-
duct a inexplicable. But weeks later
T made some inquiries and was told
that Thackeray, the morning OF tho
festive day, was overwhelmed all OF a
ode with a feeling of homesick-
ness. and learning that a steamship
was to sail that day. decided on the
instant to take passage by 1t to n
land. Perhaps that a the true
u of his departure. But II 1t was
It showed him to be a man OF wh1ms
and moods, and that may explain
much that so many persons regarded
as mysterious or eccentric about
him"
(Copyright, 1910, by E. J.. Edwards. All
Rights Reserved.)
Dakota farmers' leader. (Canton, S.D.) 1890-19??, 1911-02-03
rhi. Example Of coIdsmith's Art 10
One Of the Greatest In
the World.


one OF the greatest CinQuescento
Jewels in the world is the Clanricarde
plaque. owned by Lord Clanricarde,
who is known as the Hermit Peer,
and who claims direct descent from
the kings Of Connaught. He GUARDS
with Jealous care this precious ex-
ample of the g~oldsmith's art. keeping
it safe from possible thieves and the
common gaze in a bank vault, to
which he goes occasionally with great
secrecy to feast his eyes upon its
maxnifcence. Some years ago. by
royal request, he lent it to an art
exhibition In London, where 1t was
admired and coveted by some OF the
greatest connoisseurs Of Europe.
The huge disk IL as delicateiy
wrought % . spiders web. and rep
resents the figure OF Hsrcules-wield-
lnx Z diamond sword. The sword
Made II ccmpossd Of = mass Of Per.
Dakota farmers' leader. (Canton, S.D.) 1890-19??, 1911-02-03
Douglas and the Clambake

rival, and as they gazed on the little
dumpy man with the great head, the
great shock of hair and the large, cav
ernous eyes laundering forth at them
from the speakers stand. many were
the comparisons they drew between
him and the tall, gaunt, loose-jointed
r~ail-splitter most of them had seen and
heard speak in the same town a few
months earlier.
Yet for all the diminutiveness of
stature, Douglas held the close atten-
ton Of the great gathering throughout
his entire speech. My boyhood recol-
lection Of that speech Is that 1t was q
superb political and oratorical effort,
but the impression that it made on me
was slight compared with the effect
caused by the impromptu postscript to
the speech itself. His peroration de-
livered with all that power of oratory
which he possessed to a superlative
degree, Douglas paused for a moment
and smiled expectantly into the sea of
upturned faces before him.
"And now that l have had the priv
ilege of addressing my fellow-citizens
of this historic town." he continued, Il
shall take advantage of the invitation
given to me to participate for the first
time in my life in a genuine New Eng
land clambake. Its aroma first reached
me while I was in the midst of my
speech. 1t has fingered in my nostrils
aver since. It has t~antalized me great
ly. 1t is very inviting. And, with your
permission, 1 will now step down from
this platform and proceed to revel to
my hearts content in o famous
feast" =.
A mighty shout greeted this unex-
pected tribute to a much-loved native
institution. Then they took the Little
Giant to a place which had been pre-
pared for him and Toasted him. And
when he had had a surfeit he sighed
contentedly, beamed upon the gentle
men gathered about him in the tent
(my father was of the number) and
said: Nov, gentlemen. I shall go on
my way rejoicing"
Copyright, 1910. by E. ]. Edwards. All
Rights Reserved)
Dakota farmers' leader. (Canton, S.D.) 1890-19??, 1911-02-03
Little Giant Nightly Pleased the Peo-
Pile Of Norwich, Conn.,, by His
Tribute to the Native
institution.

Stephen A. Douglas, known from one
end Of the land to the other in the
days Of his popularity as he" Little
Giant" was the first candidate for the
presidency to take the stump in his
own behalf. His determination to make
a personal campaign for the presi-
dency was not entirely to the liking
of the conservative politicians of 1860,
but l have been told hat he excused
his action by saying that Lincoln made
his campaign for the same office, es-
pecially in the east, before he was
nominated, and that 1t was vital that
some one in authority should reply to
Lincoln in that section of the country,
this to be done until after the presi-
Dental nominations had been made.
However that may be. | know per-
sonally that the Little Giant gladly
accepted an invitation to speak to his
countrymen at Norwich, Conn, the
home town of William A. Buckfng-
ham, who a little later became n OF
the great war governors OF the north
"a town where Lincoln. In February
III Nv od1AO yOdA, III XII
which many persons said later saved
Connecticut to the Republican party
in the ensuing state election by the
narrow majority Of 541.
Great preparations were made for
the Little Giants appearance In the
old town. In Difference to his wishes
for a meeting In the open-the usual
type of political gathering in the west
IA large common wac selected for the
scene of the rally, booths were set up
to purvey lunch, consisting principally
Oh oyster soup, and it was arranged
that there should be a characteristic
New England clambake at he end OF
the speechmaking.
1t turned out to be a gala occasion.
The farmers flocked In from miles
around to see and hear Lincoln's great
Dakota farmers' leader. (Canton, S.D.) 1890-19??, 1911-02-03
How Boy Who Acted as Cupid's Mes
senqer for Thurfow Weed Secame
Treasurer Of the United
States.

Thurlow Weed must have peen
about eighty years of g when salo
t him one day:
"An old friend of yours, Mr.. Weed'
told me yesterday to ask you aoou'
the delightful surprise you gave Mrs.
Weed when you took her with you 10
Washington during Lincoln's first ad-
m~inistration."
"Ah," he said, "it was a surprise
and a delight for Mrs. Weed, n IL IS
one of the sweetest memories OF my
married life. I will tell you 81 II.
when I was a journeyman printer
for, you know, that was my ade-
came to be employed by a man In a
little village near Herkimer, N. Y. Of
course I was only a hired man-in
reality not much more than a printers
devil, because all the odd jobs OF the
shop fell to me, the only ~employe-and
SO l was not of much consequence So
Dakota farmers' leader. (Canton, S.D.) 1890-19??, 1911-02-03
Men Actually Becoming Tired OF
Clipping Coupons.
Absepoe Of Responsibility In Second
Generation Probably to Blame for
Condition That May Wall 30
Called OeplorabIe.

ssThe most tiresome job 1 have to
do" said Q certain wealthy gentle
ma on his way downtown yesterday
to clip his monthly coupons. He
actually resented q few hours toll
with the scissors!-or don't they CLIP
coupons with a scissors?-and yet his
father laid the foundation OF this
mans fortune by welding for ten
hours . day an instrument very much
more wearying than a coupon-clipping
scissors.
In Justice to our complaining friend
It should be said that his distaste for
. task that to most OF us would seem
quite delectable was not due to physi-
cal Iaxiness, for he Is really very ac-
tive and energetic, especially In chas-
ing the perverse golf ball or the elu-
aive fox or In following for many
weary hours the scent Of game, n
he has also indeed added materially
TO the treasures Of his safety vault by
business enterprise of his own; u
what made cutting coupons q ttresome
and dreaded task to him was the
acknowledgements OF It all. He and his
treasure had become things apart.
there Wal no human relation between
them. He probably could not even re-
call the names Of his bonds-they
wcre merely 70 much engraved paper
to him.
Coupon-clipping enrH ss more COM
mon than many realize. Men who do
not want to be annoyed with watching
their Investments, who are unwilling
70 have any personal utilization with
their own wealth In active operation
- working capital, who don't care to
own factories or houses, or farms. or
help build up enterprises, or to lend
thar money and their personal expo
flonce 70 others who could use both,
are pretty sure to live OF coupons. In
time this inertia Of wealth without re-
sponsibility even becomes 80 strong
that they hate the annoyance OF own
Ing and running : house and prefer
The colorless inanity Of Z hotel. or at
boot m apartment.
This shirking Of responsibility and
reG1fding wealth y : mere coupon
abstraction has ! bad effect both on.
~ individual and On the community.
Only : few generations ago the
Dakota farmers' leader. (Canton, S.D.) 1890-19??, 1911-02-03
~ <ise olrl vino Works.
Il 6fnfsha allowed herself S6 q

eoe eho Girl Who Works.
Arst she allowed herself IS =
Nook 1or food. The l1rst two or three
l6xpe1s1ve weeks Of experimenting. Of
11y1n6 ~peIishabje things In too large
0nantittes. Of stocking up. and Of In
a0e1fanao waste. made hsr bills for food
1900 ~ amount che hAdsset aside.
Tnea shs hsgan q decrsase. At
- ond o. the sixth week she came
ne ~ face with the astounding fact
that this new 10Y was saving her
money.
Aotually nho was averaging under
60lo Week for her food. and was being
bott9 I'D than shs had ' . been
Ealnco ~ came to the city. Her
Nroakla1t consisted of fruit. toast or
yeheated rolls, butter and coffee. with
snoW ana then : egg.
NJ improvised ! refrigerator for
~ hot days BY setting . pan con-
fainfne her butter. milk and half =
cream cheese within another pan half
Ailed with water. and then covering
~ VIII cloth whose edges seeped In
~ water and cooled all day long BY
ovapofstion.-Ths New Idea Woman's
Magazine
Dakota farmers' leader. (Canton, S.D.) 1890-19??, 1911-02-03
INER77A or WEALTH

wealthy man was the serviceable
man; his property was held n ad-
ministered by him or his personal
stewards or by his family; today a
large part of the actual ownership of
wealth Is in people who feel no sense
of responsibility as to the actual labor
THAT earns the coupon and who feel
and recognize no duties Connected with
their wealth as part OF the capital Of
society. This effect OF u tremen-
dous corporate development. with its
wide diffusion Of ownership and the
character Of that ownership as reflect
ed in coupons and dividends, is a
phase OF the corporation problem that
seems to have escaped most students,
and yet in its larger aspects 1t mays
the problem.
The idle rich is one class, but the
coupon-cutting class is very much
larger, for almost every one who has
accumulated a few dollars belongs to
it, even our savings banks being for
the most part little more than instru-
mentalitties for the conversion of the
savings of their depositors into cou-
pom bonds. Prior to the last century
the only private property of conse-
quence consisted of lands n I'M
provements thereon, including equip
ment, serfs, live stock, etc. All such
property was held and administered
by personal contact, direct or indirect,
of the owner. . The laws Of inherit
ance. primogeniture, ETC., grew out of
this early character of property, and
the property relation socially consid-
cred quite as much as out of any
sense Of family affection.
Only a few years ago the young
man who inherited a fortune found it
invested in mills or lands or enter
prises which his father had built up
and which 1t was necessary to hold in
tact. The o stepped at once into
the responsibilities and human rela-
lions Of the wealth he inherited. To-
day he inherits a safe-deposit box
Baltimore Sun.
Dakota farmers' leader. (Canton, S.D.) 1890-19??, 1911-02-03
Lord Ganricarde's Plaque

fectly matched steel-white stones. and
q superb blue diamond scintillates
from the hilt. The present owner in
hertted it from his mother. who was
a Miss Canning before her marriage
to the Irish lord, and the plaque is
practically priceless. Aside from its
value to collectors, and its worth as
a specimen of are and exquisite art
1t Is incrusted with a fortune in jew
els,
Dakota farmers' leader. (Canton, S.D.) 1890-19??, 1911-02-03
business clrrs Motto.

Neatness, accuracy and willingness
are the three graces Of the Off Ice
world for which I will strive during
this new year.
I will be prompt and patient and
put my whole heart into my work.
I will moi gossip about my fellow
clerks, but will try to like them and
work with them.
l will remember that the things
which I must do to earn my bread and
butter must come before pleasure. and
I will strive toward bigger and bet
ter things than have done during the
last year.
For my work Is my one monument
In this busy world.
Dakota farmers' leader. (Canton, S.D.) 1890-19??, 1911-02-03
Clever Method Of sribins.

One of the ~cleverest bits of cleo
pioneering dodgery vas devised by
an agent who had been forbidden
to corrupt the electors. He called
. meeting and attended with his
pockets full Of gold. II have to in,
form you. gentlemen" he began,
that there ID to be no bribery ON
U side during this election.
CLEAR, hearty For my part, l do
piece tUneasy oilence.l But !
Dakota farmers' leader. (Canton, S.D.) 1890-19??, 1911-02-03

the victims conviction that he cannot
get well and that he must die para
lyzes and destroys the disease-resist-
ing power Of the body, 30 that there
Is nothing to check the malady, which
may be fatal only because Of the loss
OF faith and the patients conviction
that he cannot recover.
Dakota farmers' leader. (Canton, S.D.) 1890-19??, 1911-02-03
Lest He Go Hungry.

Sometimes men do things out OF sel.
fishness rather than out Of Kindness
Recently a club woman told tbi.
story:
IAN old couple came in from tha
country with a big basket of lunch to
see the circus.
"The lunch was heavy. The old
wife was carrying it. AS they crossed
a crowded street the husband hala
out his hand and said:
"'Gimme that basket, Hannah,
The poor old woman surrendered
the basket with a grateful look.
That's real kind o. We. Joshua
she ~quavered.
".Kind!' grunted the old man.
Gosh I wuz afeared ye'd git lost"
Dakota farmers' leader. (Canton, S.D.) 1890-19??, 1911-02-03
OVERWHELMINGLY.

Everywhere thoroughness Is rated
high. All lines ct work require 1t. 1t
il q quality that employers need most
urgently. It 10 absolutely essential
to successful business. A business
man can't afford to leopard his bust
ness by placing It in the hands Of the
girl who half does her work. He
shows that the injurious results Of
neglect, forgetfulness or indifference
may be far reaching.
Dakota farmers' leader. (Canton, S.D.) 1890-19??, 1911-02-03
FACTS TOLD

the time Of organizing most of the
branches Of existing insurance. The
objection that the beginning of the
benefits of insurance depends upon the
will Of the insured person himself has
been answered by pointing out that
this applies likewise to liability insur-
ance, where bad faith in the person
insured Is possible.
Dakota farmers' leader. (Canton, S.D.) 1890-19??, 1911-02-03
Human Postoffice Rewarded

cially in the village. Nevertheless 1
had not been there long before I was
greatly attracted by a young woman
upon whom 1 cast sleeps ayes at
every opportunity. 1 500 had reason
to suspect that she was not displeased
by my attentions, but after a while.
when WI had become SO well acquaint-
ed that it a plain I purposed keep
ing company with her, there were par
entail objections, and 1 was practical
ly forbidden the house.
But, the saying is, you know, Love
will inc a way In that village there
lived a barefooted, freckle-faced, tow-
headed boy Of Dutch descent. But ne
was as bright as a new dollar. One
day I met him in the street
FRANK l said to him, do you sup
pose you could carry a note for me to
a certain young lady SO secretly that
nobody but she would know it?'
81 guess I could he replied.
"Well,' do you suppose o could
bring a note from her just as secretly?'
"eYou try me and see,' the boy said.
so I wrote a little note, discreetly
worded, and delivered 1t to this Cupid's
postmaster. A day later he came to
me with a note which had been en-
trusted to him by the young lady.
Later in the day-maybe 1t was the
next day answered the note and
gave my reply to the boy for delivery.
In due time he brought me another
note from the young lady; and thus
we kept up a secret correspondence
that lasted until l proposed, when all
objection was removed to my paying
attention to he young lady. Not long
after that we were married.
well, one time when 1t became i'm
perative for me to go to Washington
during Lincoln's administration l took
Mrs. Weed with me. My DEAR I said,
after we had reached there, Z should
like to take you to the treasury de-
partment. I want you to meet a gen.
tleman I know there And a little
later we walked into the office Of the
treasurer of the United States.
II TOOK Mrs. Weed over to a desk at
which a gentleman was sitting.
"tMy dear, do you know who this
is? I asked.
NO. she had to confess.
What. you don't know our Cupid's
postman?' I exclaimed in feigned sur
prise.
yes, there he was-no longer the
~barefooted, freckle-faced, t~ow-headed
little village boy, but a full grown.
handsome man-Francis d. Spinner.
And you can imagine the surprise and
delight of Mrs. Weed when she discov-
cred in the treasurer of the United
States the boy who had been the dumb
and faithful! little messenger of our
counting days"
Mr.. Weed might truthfully have
added that, in return for the services
Frank Spinner gave him in his court
ing days, he took every possible OBJ
portunity to befriend the lad as he
grew up. And it was upon Mr.. Weeds
Recommendation that President Lin
coin named Mr.. Spinner treasurer Of
the United States in 1861, a position
that he filed with great credit until
1875, when failing health caused him
to retire voluntarily. It was during his
incumbency that women were first
employed as clerks in the treasury de-
partment to take the place Of the men
who enlisted in the Union army.
Copyright. 1910. by E. ]. Edwards. All
Rights Reserved.)
Dakota farmers' leader. (Canton, S.D.) 1890-19??, 1911-02-03
RURAL SUSPENSION BRIDGE
Unique Affair for Pedestrians at Fen
tonviIle, N. Y, Built by Popu-
lar Subscription.

Fentonville, N. Y.IThe suspension
foot bridge pictured here runs east
and west across the Conenango river
at Fentonville. 1T was built about two
years ago by popular subscription
among the cottagers and residents Of
Fentonville. Sinces the Warren and