Belington progressive. [volume] (Belington, W. Va.) 1912-1927, 1916-07-07
OBITUARY OF HETTY GREEN

books and art, was the first to give in
to her new policy and, separating
from his wife, took up his residence
at the Union league club where he
lived until his death.
Meantime Mrs. Green began sell
ing the horses, the more expensive
furniture and dispensing with the ser
wants and everything that in any way
entaiIed a cent of cost 1t was at this
time she is declared even to have
sent Edward, the son, into the street
each day to sell the evening paper,
after the family had finished reading
it, in order to turn another honest
penny.
Green lost most of his own millions
| in Wall Street Mrs. Green however,
consented to beggarly allowance and
on this he lived until he died, not
seeing her during the last seven years
of his life until she came to his death
bed in 1902.
Once fully launched on her career
of finance, Mrs. Green's parslmony
and iron handed methods made her
world wide figure. She lived Tor
wears in tenement where dollar a
day was sufficient forhertable. She
wore the same old hat and gown Tor
years.
Personally Hetty Green was very
eccentric. She always went to her OIL
flee and worked on her birthday She
thought the wasting of whole day
on anything but business was crime.
Her favorite odd habit was to Doll
an onion every day and carry piece
oft around in her pocket, nibbing 1t
while she worked. She did this regu-
larly for nearly a quarter of a CEN
tury. Each day-she walked usually
to save carfare-she appeared at her
office in the Chemical National Bank
in New York. There she made the
kings of finance bow to her. she
loaned them ready cash, of which she
always had plenty, on only the most
gilt-edged securities and at the high
est nossible rate of interest of which
she never failed to exact, from them
the utmost farthing. In reply to
Chicago minister who wrote her that
she would be lost to heaven If she
insisted on her money from $50,Ooo
mortgage on his church, she SAID:
"You had better pray for my soul
then, because Pm to foreclose within
thirty DAYS, and she did. Examples
of her methods are numberless, but
one is typical of them all. Once a
New York banking house that had
served her faithfully for 20 years and
to which at one time her husband
had been indebted for many thousands
of dollars, was threatened with fail
ure. She rushed to the Office and de-
,manded the S475,0OO she had on de-
posit, as we'll as the millions in securi-
| ties that were held for her. She was
told that such. a swithdrawal meant
failure for the bank and ruin to thou
sands OF. depositors. But she did not
! leave. until her. last penny Was PAID.
The bank went to the wall. To avoid
paying taxes on her enormous wealth,
sshe always maintained legal resi-
Edence In Vermont There she never
was taxed on more than 800, 900. The
shows are examples Of her parsimony
in big matters. In little matters the
81 -
same spirit. was shown. Once, it IT
said, she quarreled with her wash wo-'
man because she would not reduce the
amount of the bill. As. a compfonl-
Use, Hetty ordered that in the future
when the woman washed the petit
coats she wash the lower half OF them.
| This would reduce the labor and would
! enable her to reduce the bill. a