El Paso herald. (El Paso, Tex.) 1901-1931, 1914-02-21
Sage and His Millions
From a Farmer Boy He Became One
Of the Worlds Greatest b1nan-
ciers and Most Unique
Characters.
-By MADISON c. PETERS

!" HE life story OF 1euSaen sage
reads like page out Of a book
4 of romance. His birth was unique,
ss bafitted the career which was to fol-
low.
When the war Of 1912 was brought
+o a close and tranquility established,
there was an exodus from the east to
the west. At that time company Of
Connecticut farmers might have been
seen making their way on huge, lum-
berlng OK teams through the Mohawk
valley Of New York state, bound for the
then distant Michigan among these
rough unlettered farmers was Elisha
Sage and his wife, Prudence RisIey.
The caravan OF aCvcuJurers halted at
the little haUIet OF Shenandoah, in the
township OF Verona, Oneida county, and
when they started on again after a rest,
l1lihsa Sage found he could not acc.m-
pauy them, Tor his VIE was taken in
childbirth there, and on August 4, 1916,
was delivered OF q male child. This
was the offspring Of poor parents who
was destined to rise TO such a mighty
height in the financial armament. Dur
ing the time of his wife illness, Elisha
Sage looked around the township and
found there was goOdly land In the
neighbOrhOOd, so he resolved to 80 no
further. He had a little money and he
leased a small farm and began to cult
Vate it, but in short time he found
he could do better by moving farther
up the state, so he took a farm at Dur
Evansville and remained there until his
Grew Up On the Farm.
Russell Sage grew up on the farm, 3.
rugged, healthy, bright and happy boy.
He went to school in the winter time.
His education was not advanced, hut
natural talent more than made Up for
limited book knowledge. From the be-
ginning the boy showed a remarkable
aptitude for bargaining. He snapped
and bartered domestic articles and ami
mails with the ueighbOrs, and it was
always noticed that Russell got the
best of the bargains. His elder
brother. Henry Risley Sage, had gone
to Troy, where he learned the grocery
business and opened a store for him
self. Russell was but u when Henry
brought him to Troy TO help out IN the
store. He was made general errand
boy and had to work hard and long
for the brother treated him the same
as a stranger. He slept in a little room
back of the store and every penny he
earned ne boarded What clothes he
wore were given him, so he was out
nothing.
BY the time he was q Russell had a
couple of hundred dollars or so and
with this he went into partnership
with another brother, Elisha MOntage
Sage, in the grocery business. He soon
became the dominant spirit and the
brother wasn't sorry to sell his share
TO him. For time Russell conducted
the business alone, but he was on the
lookout for some one with money to 1
join him in the enterprise.
In 1853, with John w. Bates, he |
opened a much larger grocery estab- [
1ishment than he had been running on
River street Troy. and branched out as /
q commission merchant He was worth 1
by this time several thousand dollars ]
He bought a number OF boats on the !
z .
the Albany and Troy trade for Cana
dian and Vermont houses At the end !
of five years has partner got out, and 1
Russell assumed sole control There
was one drawback, however. There !
were not enough railways to connect
the cities OF the Mohawk valley so
Sage set about interesting himself IN /
politics with a view to bringing about I
man in Troy in 1847, treasurer Of Rens-
selcer county, and a WINS member OF /
congress during 1653-1S54. his inter- 1
est in railway legislation gave him 4
taste which was in the after years to /
net him millions.
Goes to New York.
In 1853 he came to New Y Ork, where
ne established himself as a SPECTATOR IN
IN office on Williams street From the
very beginning he had remarkable
success. He first turned his attention to I
q St Paul securities, but
alter Went in for other railway enter {
Jrises, and finally the whole range Of
stocks on the exchange claimed his at
-enuOn. He was shreWd, Keen calcu-
ating and farseelng. He purchased
seat in the stock exchange in 1874. (
From this time the career Of Russell
Sage became prominently Identified !
with the history OF Wall street he
became famous all over the country as
The most successful manipulation OF the
street For over 80 years he bought,
sold, speCulated and cOrnered, until his
very name became synonymous with
huge enterprises. HIS millions grew
until he was one of the richest men IN
he country. And the richer he became, /
the poorer his mode Of living. There /
vas no OstentauOn about Russell sage.
he preferred to remain in the back
ground with his hand on the financial I
ever turning it in whatever way it
operated the machinery to pour gold |
INTO his Golfers. He shuffled along the
downtown Streets poorly clad, thin,
all lank. weary looking man, with
eemingly no interest in life. But the
OOks beled the man Behind that (
.scetic face was operating the keenest
lrain in America He never ran great
isEs or wildly speculated- There was
method in everything he did, and he
balanced results with the unerriug /
kill with which a scientist weighs the
grains in a great experiment He was
always cool never Illustrated, never {
excited. Every day added an increase
% his capital. The only great loss he /
.ver sustained was at the time Of the
Grant & Ward failure in 1884. In one
lay he dropped S6,0O0,OOO but ne
quickly recOuped the loss and went on
With renewed vigOr, piling up his mil
ions. An attempt was made to assas-
mate Mr.. Sage in 1891. A fanatic
famed NOrcross went into his office
nd demanded 100000
Mr.. Sage was twice married. His
widow, one Of the richest women in the
world is engaged in philanthrOpic work
nd disbUrses large sums. After oil,
O.
rood use.