The Birmingham age-herald., 1912-09-22

was happily characteristic criticism of Carlyle's on one of Miss Martineau's American books that the story of the way Daniel Webster used to stand be- iore the fire with his hands in his pockets was worth all the politics and philosophy In other portions of the lady's writings. This slight sketch will not admit of an extensive analysis of lDe creator of the giant skyscraper. We san merely turn the limelight on him for moment in passing. Woolworth might possibly De summed up in a happy phrase VI Cnaries Lamb, for he indubitably pos sesses the sanity of true genius" It oouDtiess thrills him with pride to view tue great building that bears his name, put ne does not lose any sleep on account of 1t.
 He is rugged man past middle life WHO does not seek the limelight and would, II he could, evade the lightning shafts of publicity But DO L.an in this age can erect the highest building in the world in the greatest metropolis thereof, and hope to hide the light of his per sonality under bushel. There are mil | ilonaires aplenty unknown to the gen. eral public, but let one of them accom- plish a salient feat and the public will seek him out and learn what 1t can about him. Had MT. Woolworth lived al the time of Horace in Rome. he might have evaded fame, for he could not then have invested in a skyscraping palace owing to stringent laws regarding the height of buildings, the Roman legal limit being extremely modest Apart from steadfast belief in the commercial virtue of Five and Ten Cent Stores, the secret of MT. Woolworth's success in business may be summed up in four words: honesty. simplicity, industry, and comradery. It should be added that hay ing married early in his career, his do- nestle life Is, snd has always been, ideal, and this, after all, constitutes the great est of his assets. Like many another who has achieved success, he had a hard row to hoe in the early years of his com mercial life-and he hood it with patience and good humor. While he would be the last man to so asseverate, his career borders closely on the romantic, not withstanding the fact that hard work has
 
 much romance hidden in hard work. As a merchant he gave no indication of pre- cocity in the early days of his career. nor was he possessed of the egotism which caused him to think that every step he took was the right one. He often withdrew his steps. He encountered many set-backs, but when he finally con cluded that he was on the right path, he stuck to it. He has goodly stock of common sense.
 A "human document" that throws a white light upon the character of Frank w. Woolworth is one that portrays the essence of the man. It is circular let ter to officers. buyers, managers and in- spectors of the Woolworth Company, and, being confidential in its nature, can only be suggested here. It is modest, shrewd, quaint, original and homely-in the good old sense of the word. It is a heart-to- heart talk by employer to employe and is full of the spirit of commercial com radery. For the reason that 1t is without guile it is of nature to encourage l friendliness and esprit de corps among the soldiers in Woolworth's commercial l army. Needless to say that so vast an 1 enterprise could not be conducted suc cassfully without loyalty and mutual rs- oord Many a project on a huge acala bas gone to pieces like a Chinese puzz,e hocause 1t lacked the essentially human element. The spirit that pervades the document referred to is free from patron iz,ng cant. Woolworth has worked his wav m. He encourages those who have |. In them to do likewise. But ba ,n- a,,ges In no heroics
 II,. raiyete is delightful. Years
 ,,han he opened his first Five ana aaSo' Ca,. store, his capital consisted Inf ,aea ea eooo of which was raised on a nota "
 aorssa by his father. T found" be sa.-. .tbot I had to know what to do witb th. oasb therefore I kept cash acconn' l had to put the cash in bank. conss- ouently had to keep bank account In to that time I had never drawn a check land knew nothing about them" One day shortly after he had opened his Lancaster store the sales reached $500 and $40 was taken in after the bank had closed. which MT Woolworth took home with him not without trepidation, keeping that night a sharp lookout for burglars. The episode suggests two historical parallels. When Young Thomas A. Edison received large sum for an invention his experience with this his first real money, was both ludl- crous and pathetic. Chauncey Jerome, the famous brass clockmaker. was made almost dizzy early in his career by an 1 order from South Carolina for twelve cIocks When be finished his clocks and ,yas carving them to the appointed placs ;n farmer's wagon he was bewiIdered .. .,. idea of having so immense A sum os st44 all at once and all his own. He tho,oht something would be sure to han na, to prevent his receiving the money. p,,t m. his customer was ready and co,,+ed out the sum In silver and the o,oornaker took it with trembling hands ana carried it home. dreading lest rob- ha-. might have heard of his vast wealth ons were in ambush to rob and murder him.
 In pen picture of woolworth ons ,,,rh, naraphrase a tribute to the ,o,o
 Iohn Arbuckle. Commanding and orlpi :. nal in his business. Self-made, he has tba energetic and salient vitality of the self-made. without any inclination to pat ronape or superiority. He is helpful in many ways to those who are not afraid or worr In his enterprise he has A visor ana yv,ae vision that recalls the old. d.t,,,,. merchants and shipowners that ..though, 1 in continents" and oceans. Not a mere moneymaker, but in his way an inventor. A hu,lder and a man who loves unfamiliar fields. He recalls to the writer multi millionaire whose biography he wrote .,rs aqo ssT wieh r,tS AL