Evening star., 1935-11-03
Hish-Salaried Man Who Started Again
On Thin Dime Pulls Through Slump

BY PAULINE VAN ORSDEL FORD
THROUGHOUT America today
the relief dole is cultivated by
persons of every rank in the
4 State. Many politicians partic-
ularly are conversant with all phases
of buying votes with food. and almost
the entire country seems to be suffer-
ing from nervous indigestion by at
tempting to eat their cake and have 1t
too.
Americans are so gullible that they
may be nodded into a variety of de-
hghtful suggestions for cutting and
eating cake But perhaps the habit of
thinking may be revived after while.
In a Far Western city of this land
there lived. not long since, a hardy
self-reliant shopkeeper who believed
in the fundamental economic law that
some one must make cake before any
cne can eat a cake. There were in
this same area many persons who in
normal times had enjoyed luxury. but
we're now whipped into relief lines.
A Heterogeneous Company.
Among these were two of the clergy
who had been pastors of large and
fashionable congregations. There was
an ex-pugilist who once averaged
$2,500 month, a deep-sea diver who
helped build the Hudson tunnels. a
former African big game hunter.
professional gambler who had oper-
ated on luxurious ocean liners, the eX-
valet of a prince and woman whose
income from stocks and bonds had
been $50,000 year.
There was former editor of Mid
western newspaper and the authoress
of numerous published books. and a
number of doctors, lawyers, dentists,
actors, chemists, architects and en-
gineers on relief dole. A former colonel
of the allies during the World War
was on the rollS-a man whom
destiny catapulted into desperate sit
uations from which he escaped un-
scathed, who won high honors later
as a diplomat, who speaks half dozen
or more languages f1uently, yet who
could not win in the fight against the
depression.
Pulls His Own Weight.
But these are the people who were
bowled over by the depression, and ]
won't deal any further with them. My
only design is to display the pioneer
demand of this America-the de-
mand that every man pull his own
weight. 1t is an individuals story
want to tell, and shall put 1t here
in his own words:
Previous to 1880 was the highest
salaried furniture man who had ever
been in this city. When the furniture
market fell, one of the owners. of the
company decided he could manage
this particular store and was out
just like that tried to re-establish
myself. Then, as trouble has way OF
not coming singly, my daughter ana
each had expensive illnesses.
When my finances were almost to
the vanishing point, met the man
ager of a department store who asked
me to take over the management OF
his furniture departmental $l50 a
month! Well, you know pride can be
insulted just once too often. So de-
cided not to work for any one any
longer, but to 60 into the furniture
business for myself.
Makes 81 First Day.
MY first act was to buy a second
hand cook stove from farmers wlfe.
Since I was known by all the second
hand dealers in town, I was able TO
sell this stove to one of the dealers
sight unseen The dealer also PAID
me for the stove before delivery. With
this money I returned to the farm
house, got the stove and delivered II
to the purchaser-making 81 on the
transaction. After buying groceries
for the family that night reached
home with 60 cents in my pocket.
"The following morning deliber-
ately left before food was mentioned.
During my unemployment ! had been
in the habit of asking for the grocery
list each morning. My wife has been
sensible and moderate in her demands,
and-well, I Just couldn't be negative
about bringing home the bacon. AND,