Fulton County tribune. (Wauseon, Ohio) 1883-1925, 1921-09-29

N. T., 1S47-5O; went to San Francisco 1850;
worked in meat market 1S50-1; started on his
own account 1851; with Charles Lux started
in cattle business 1867. They acquired SOO,-
900 acres in California, besides other lands in
Oregon and Nevada and at one time had 80,-
600 cattle and 100000 sheep Mr.. Lux died
in 1887 and the business was Incorporated,
Mr.. Miller retaining large interests. Home,
2101 Laguna st. Office, 1914 Merchants Ex-
change building, San Francisco.
This is the Miller and this was his empire. 1t
rose because Miller had genius-the genius of
taking pains-and an aim that refused to be di-
verted. 1t fell because Miller died October "a
1916, and 1t is against public policy that the vast
estate should be allowed to remain intact. 1t is
therefore being broken up and sold pecemeal to
the highest bidders.
The foregoing biography-or autobiography
rather--is said to have been written by Henry
Miller himself. 1t may be the truth and nothing
but the truth but it is far from being the whole
truth. Anyway, it Is a bit skinny as the life
story of penniless German boy immigrant who
acquired million acres of land and accumulated
a fortune of $40,O00O00. 1t can hardly be said
to give much of an idea of the processes by which
a butcher boy could leave behind him the largest
area of land ever assembled under one ownership
In this country. And it is eloquently silent Of
the methods by which he survived and prospered
while other Range Barons" and "Cattle Kings
toppled from their thrones with the coming of
the homesteader and the farmer In short, there
is considerable to be read between the lines of
Henry MilerS laconic autobiography
Well, to begin with the beginning Henry Miller
was chrstened Heinrich Mueller He was the
of a cattle dealer and got seven years of
schooling. At fourteen he went to work for his
father. He got ten thalers for his first years
work. Thereupon he left home. He went to
Holland, then to England and arrived in New
York at twenty. He had saved enough a
hutchpr he able % a n San
cisco when the gold stampede set in. He reached
there with So and went to work at his trade. He
wasted a minute in looking for gold. He
saw there was more money in feeding those who
found gold
Cattle were plentiful in California; under the
Mexicans the export of hides and tallow had been
the chief business of the region. Land was plen-
tiful too. Under the land laws 1t could be had
for a song, If one went at it In the right way.
So Miller took to himself partner, Karl Luchs,
another young German immigrant and started out
to acquire cattle and land. Charles Lux figures
only incidentally In the story; Henry Miller was
the empire builder. Miller got his cattle by buy
ing them and raising them
Miller also bought much land as the years went
on. But old-tme Californans say that in his
early years Miller got land in various ways be-
sides direct purchase. Cowboys filed homestead
claims to sell out to him. One story is that he
mounted a boat on q wagon and drove over thou
sands of acres in the San Joaquin valley later
acquiring much Submerged land" over which he
rode In a boat"
Miller, Of course, did not overlook the impor
tance Of water. though irrigation in those days
had not been dreamed of by Californians. He
acquired riparian rights along the San Joaquin
river wherever he could by homesteading and BY
purchase. He also secured water rights In Other
ways. One of these the patenting Of min
ers inches" for mining purposes the process
equally well for watering stock and rrigatinl
land. Later many attacks were made on his wa
ter rights. He kept lawyers under retainer al