Year: 1875

An Ex-President and his Idea Of Money


Matters--He Never spent Money Fool


ishly.


The stories told of the economical hab-


its of the late ex- President johnson are


many. correspondent says: In money


matters Mr.. johnson was close. He


never spent money foolishly, and kept


his personal expenses at a low figure.


At home he lived very plainly, caring


little for aught else than the substantials


of life. While President he saved more


than one-half of his salary, never spend


ing anything for useless display. He


used to say that man can live COM


fortably in the White House on $4,000


a year. He always watched his expense


accounts very closely, and under no cir


cumstarces would let the outgo exceed


the income. He used to say that his ex-


perience in life taught him that of all


miserable men those were the most to


be pitied who lived beyond their income.


"When man does that" he would


say, "the balance has to come out of


somebody else" He abhorred debt


above all things, and during his life


would never get anything con a credit


He knew the value of dollar, for he


could recall the time when he worked


with the needle, cramped up on the


bench, all the long hours of the day for


Just 81. His habits of economy and


simplicity were formed in the severe


school of poverty, and he carried them


with him through life. He never occu-


pied position that he did not make it


point to save at least part of his salary.


In his earlier life the opposition used to


try to make capital against him because


as legislator and as governor he lived in


a "cheap boarding house at Nashville.


But they made little out of this, for


Johnson would reply that the salary was


small; that it came from the pockets of


the people; that he wanted it to be
small, and that to set an example for
public servants and do what he could to
! Tighten the public burdens, he lived at q
cheap boarding house, and he was proud
of it. The loss of small sum of money


would cause him great annoyance. One
day at Nashville he had a $40 bill in the
main fold of his pocketbook, so that in
opening it it would have q tendency to
drop out. 1t did drop out, or was lost
in some manner, and the search he in
stituted for the missing bill was anus
ing. He looked for it long enough to
have fairly earned it upon the tailor's
bench. "I don't care so much about


the amount" he said, as he peered under
the bed and in all other impossible
places, "but want to know where it is
gone. Ii happen to have little SUI
: plus, want to give it to the deserving,
and not lose it in this way" Notwith-
standing his severe economy, he was
charitable to the poor. have seen him
give away good deal of money. But
he never paid any attention to begging
letters, of which he received a great


many. Hastily tearing letter of this


sort one day and throwing it IN the fire,


he broke out: "These people must
, think I've got all the money in the Uni
ted States because I've been President
of the United States" .... ..
The walters at the hotels where he
} stopped he never forgot, but always dis
f tributed from So to $40 among them,
without distinction of color. He no
| ticed faces and heads, and would often
t speculate as to the future of hotel boys.
i. He used to think that he was imposed
| upon at some hotels because he had
been President of the United States, and
{ was therefore supposed to have plenty
, of money, and to be above noticing q
> few dollars extra charge above regular
l rates. One day, at Middle Tennessee
+ town, we both stopped at the same hotel
5 for the same length of time. My bill
t was SO. At first the proprietor did not
s want to make charge against the ex-
= President, but he insisted upon paying
. his bill, as he always did, and the man
: took $5. At the depot Johnson ap-
/ preached me twirling five dollar bill in
D his fingers, which he had received in
1 exchange for his ten. Chow much did
+ they charge you?" he asked " Three
: dollars" I replied. "Well," he an
}. swered, "I thought they were putting
o it on to me little above regular rates
y for the same accommodations. They
/ charged me five day, and their regular
o rate is three. I reckon they think an
s ex President eats more than anybody
: else." While he had no patience with
!, little gouging of this sort, he did
g not like to accept entertainment without
~ paying for it. When he was invited to
g hotel, and when it was understood
e that he was an honored guest, he would
a never leave without calling for his bill,
$ as if he had not heard that an exception
|, had been made as between him and


other guests. He was emphatically a


"pay man, but he never


liked to pay more than anybody else.
= As A PORTER. An amusing story is
If related of Representative-elect Walker,