Evening public ledger. [volume] (Philadelphia [Pa.]) 1914-1942, 1918-02-09
THE AMBITIONS OF
SUCCESSFUL MEN
The Leader in His Line Who
Yearns to Be Foremost
in Some Other

TT WAS news To many people TO read ns
i thcy did in an article OF Arthur Bris-
banc's tho other day, that Doctor GARFIELD IS
not merely college president and lawyer
but has been In his time n successful coal
operator and railroad builder. II this Is
true. and we have no reason to doubt II, II
would seem to entitlc Doctor Garfield TO
prominent place In this little gallery OF wcll-
known men who achieving cminenco In ono
line, have always cherished ambition to
shine in some other
The biographical note IN who's Who in
America" relating to Doctor Garfield as we'll
as that dealing with his brother. James H.,
makes no reference to the achievements OF
either In the coal or railroad line This fact,
again assuming that their activities In that
direction were as important and successful as
Mr. Brisbane declares, appears to indicate
that they held those accomplishments in
much lower esteem than others which are
mentioned Each inmate of "Who's Who
invariably prepares his own data
II thcro had been such publication In
Cardinal Richellcu's time he would, perhaps
have described himself as "a poet, for It was
his ambition to he considered onc--although
his contemporaries could never see it-rathcr
than as the shrewd statesman that he was
And William Morris. who poet. nut
who was. above even that, the bencfcent IN
vcntor of the comfortable Morris chair IN
which you, dear reader. may at this moment
be reclining, always wished to be hailed as
great artist.
When you were happy little kid you prob
ably determined to be cop or II fireman or
tho driver of an ice wagon when you grew
up, but that merely marks you as the aver
age man and doesn't get you place In TINS
procession. You've got to come stronger than
that to break in here.
If we could only find them, and get them to
admit It, we're sure there are in this old town
many paEcfuls OF citizens distinguished In
one line still hopeful of waking up some
morning to find themselves famous in another.
Take Colonel Louis !. kolb, for instance.
lie achieved ambition very early. That
was when he held for a year the title OF
bicycle champion Of the United states. You
can guess how long ago that was when we
tell you the trick was done on one of those
high wheels with a little pinwhccl for
trailer Since then he's done lot OF other
things for which people envy him, but his
| life's ambition Is yet unattaincd. lie
wants to be known as "tnc siyer-tongued
orator Of the United States" Hes not mute.
| inglorious," exactly, hut We cant hand him
| that big bouquet this morning.
Then there's his friend Martin Grove
| BrumbaurS' Martin q. was well upon his
way to annex his most-wishcd-for laurel
| when his nomination and election TO tho
Office of Governor threw him temporarily off
| the straight road. He wants 10 be known as
| the country's foremost educator When h.
quits the Executive Mansion at Harrisburg,
| as he recently announced. he's going to re-
| sumo the hot pursuit Of this ambition.
| You may not know that Nicola D'Asccnze
| is widely hailed as one of Americas first
| mural artists and makers Of stained glass !;
| but if YOU lived near him you'd not only
| know his chief ambition but also how futile
| it Is. The odd assortment OF violin notes
oissuinG from his library windows on mild
| evenings would put you wise TO both these
| facts.
| Let us next consider George Wharton Pep
| per- eminent lawyer and pubcist. Those
| 1,S 1ypTN n Inn, hau land it, rpts .,f
| those qualities in his character which would
| make hiT0 truly great in the profession which
| all his life he has yearned to embrace. He
| has often said that IL he could afford il he
| would be a churchman. lie would he truly
| happy II he could do that work with ell his
| heart and soul.
| In the north central section of town, other
| doctors will tell you, is the field of operation
of the busiest family physician in dozen
| States. Scarcely n night passes that he
isn't called out of his bed to preside at one,
| and often as many as four, birthday par
| ties" He keeps two or three motorcars
| always ready for service, so that If one
| breaks down he can hop into the next That
| he doesn't blow up, himself, Is the wonder Of
| all who watch his nervous activities His
| safety valve is :he month Of August. for dur
ing all Of its thirty-one days he hides him
| self upon his farm, And that brings us to his
ambition. lie wants to be known as L. II.
| Virgins farmer
Then there's Frank II. Taylor president
of the s. $, White Dental Company who ha 3
been the successful executive in more big
| corporations than you'd care to shake a stick
| at. He was Westiughouse's right-hand man
| in the WestiughOuse Electric Company for
| four years But the work interfered with his
| health and his notion Of sensible living and
| he switched to a job that was smaller. but
which would lopk laundering big to the aver
| age man, That was with the Mergentha Ter
| Company In London; just president. that's
| all lie came back and bossed the Yale a
Towne Lock Company Of New Haven, for a
while. Then he tried being a gentleman il,
New York 1t cant be done: for when YOU
admit to a Gotham business man that you're
not buying or selling anything he loses inter.
est in you. So he came over here where he
could do a good bit of worl, and yet find time
to play cricket and chess. And that brings
us to his ambition: he'd like to be the chess
| champion of the world.
| There's our little gallery and maybe YOU
| could add to II. If We had the time doubt.
| less many more candidates for admission
| might he expiscated. Get that word, "cx.
| piscated"? If your particular ambition is "a
| possess bigger working vocabulary than
your neghbor, look that one up and put it In
your mental locker T. a. n.