Year: 1875

The Early Life OF Henry Wilson.


A Washington correspondent writ.
ing to the New York Tribune, has
an interesting sketch of the early
struggles of the late Vice President,
from which we make the following
extracts:


"1n a conversation about two years
ago on the subject of labor organiza
tions and the condition of the labor
ing classes Of this country now when
compared with what it was fifty or
even thirty years ago, Mr.. Wilson
gave me brief sketch of his boy
hood and early manhood, and al
though the leading facts which he
recited have before been published,
the narrative as he related it will be
none the less interesting, and | tran
scribe it from notes which | made at
the time:


"I was born," he said, Gin 1912,
and at the age of ten years was put
out as an apprentice to farmer
From the day of my birth to the day
l was twenty-one years old l never
had a dollar in money to spend for
anything. During the whole of my
apprenticeship my master never but
once gave me penny. On that oc-
casion he allowed me holiday,
with permission to attend muster
seven miles from home, and he gave
me three cents to spend. walked
to and from the muster, and OF
course spent no more than that sum.


"On the Gay l was twenty-one
years odd remember it very well,
one Saturday, the 10th of February
in the afternoon, my master gave me
a yoke of oxen and six sheep. The
latter sold the same afternoon for
nine dollars, bat not being able to
dispose of the oxen that day, l re-
quested my master to keep them tor
me until Monday morning, which he
did, but charged me fifty cents for
it. l paid him this and took the
oxen away. l sold them to man
tor seventy-ivc dollars, and took his
note for the amount. So when | be-
came of age 1 had for eleven years.
work Il was sent to school only four
weeks each year, eighty-four dollars.
I had saved titty-seven cents, which
/ had in some way obtained, but l
had paid fifty Of this to my master
for keeping my oxen two nights. |
then hired myself to a farmer, agree
ing to work for six dollars a month
and board. l used to get up long
before daylight, feed the stock get
my breakfast and just as the east was
beginning to be streaked with red
start off tt the woods with my team.
1 used to place my dinner pail on the
sunny side Of a tree and continue
drawing saw logs until after dark at
night. Then | went home, fed the
stock, ate my supper and went to bed.
My father tended the saw mill most
of the time for many years for forty
cents a day.


'In the spring of the same year !
took my pack upon my back and
started atoot for the town where !
now live, Natick, Massachusetts, one
hundred miles away, and the journey
cost me just sl.25. worked there
at shoemaking, averaging fifteen
hours day, and the last weeks work
l did at the bench was at bottoming
shoes for IS week. Out of this
paid fifty cents for pegs, and 50 tor
board, SO that l had left just $3.50.
| have bottomed fifty-four pairs OF
mems shoes without sleeping, and
that for a little more than fifty cents.
But even at this rate l got some
money ahead, and made up my mind
to work my way through college.
lent my money to Il man in Boston,
and went to the academy at Concord
New Hampshire. | had been there
only six (threeO months when the
man to whom l had entrusted my
fortune failed, and l lost it all.
was so reduced that although l owed
for two or three weeks board l was
absolutely unable to pay 1t, or even
to take a letter from the post-otfice
without borrowing money to pay the
postage. But friend invited me to
remain and board with him, and pay
him when l was able. So l stayed
through the term, and in the winter
earned enough money to pay him by
teaching school. Now the men who
are working at shoemaking ten hours
a day and earn from So to IS day,
complain"


Mr.. Wilson in his speeches some
times referred to the events Of his
early life, and on one memorable oc
casion he did SO most eloquently. In
1858, in reply to the famous "mud
sill" speech Of Gov. Hammond, OF
South Carolina, he said:


"Sir, am the son of hireline
manual laborer, who, with the frosts
of seventy winters on his brow, 'lives
by daily labor l too have lived by
daily labor l too have been a 'hire
ling manual laborer.' Poverty cas1
its dark and chilling shadow over the
home of my childhood, and want
was sometimes there-an unbiddel
guest. At the age of ten years-te
aid him who gave me being in keep
ing the gaunt spectre from the hearth
of the mother who bore me-left the