TheBookofDanielDrew 10165732

T EE
ALL R I GH S R S R VE D , IN CLU D I N T T
G HA 0? T N T N
RA S L A IO
NT
I O FOR E IGN E
LA N GU A G S , N
I NC L U D I N
G TH E S C AND IN AV IA
C OP YR I GH T , 1 91 0 , B Y D O UB L ED A Y , P A GE CO MP A N
Y
P U B L IS H ED A P R IL , xg xo
E D I TO R S N O TE
’
A caut i on to the r eader i s necessa ry Fr om th e .
fact t h at these pape r s a r e put i n t h e fi r st pe r son

th ro u ghout o ne unwa r ned would get th e imp r ession
,
th at t hey we r e left by M r Dr ew i n fi ni shed fo r m .

,
and t h at my tas k as edi t or h ad been me r ely to

dig u p from th e r u b bish of some attic a bu n dle o f
m anuscript un d i scove r ed these thi r ty years since his
death and h and it over to th e p r i nte r
,
.
T his view wo u l d be the mo r e nat ur a l because o f ,
the following a r tic l e $I quote it in part $ whi ch ,
a ppea r ed in th e N ew York Tr i b u n e F eb r u a r y 8 1 0 5 :
9 , ,
A di y of D i l D w c o t i i g p
ar pic an e re ,
n a n n en
tu s of fo m W ll S t c l b i t i s d
re r er a t re e e e r e an
accou t s of old im fi ci l t s c io s
n -
t e n an a ra n a t n ,
h b
as dis co d I t c m t N w Yo k h
e en v e re . a e o e r t e
oh d ym
t er old u k w hi c h w shi pp d
a an tr n as e
dow f om P u t m Cou t y t
n r g d i c na n o a ra n n e e
of t h fi c i f om h D w st
e n an ier r t e re e at e n
C m l Y st d y
ar e .goi g t h ough h
e er a ,
in n r er
co s i g m t h c m u p o t h di y J im
n n en ,
s e a e n e ar .
‘ ’
F isk m io d of1s t p g s d l so
e nt ne t en in i s a e ,
an a
Co liu s V d bil
rn e E ts of B l ck
an er t . ven
‘
a
F id y t o ch d
’
r a a re u e on .
The a rticle goes o n to state th at the diary woul d be

p repa r ed fo r publication .
F rom t his one migh t infe r that th e p ape r s

which follow we r e receive d fr om the p e n of M r .
D r ew i n th e conn ected form i n whi ch t hey he r e a r e

v i THE B O OK OF D AN I EL DRE W
given Wh i ch imp ression wo u ld be q u ite e rr oneous
. .
A s a m atte r of fa ct the mate r ial o ut o f which this

s eries o f pap e r s h as been made we r e i n the most ,
jumbled and helte r s k elte r form im a gi na bl e E ven

-
.
whe r e I h ave h ad t h e clea r wo r ds o f M r Dr ew to .
guide me I h ave h ad t o E ng li s h i t fo r t h e easy

,
“
comp r ehen s i on o f the r eade r For as the p a ges .

,
themselves state schools we r e n o t plentiful i n ou r

,
ru r al d i stricts a hun d red years ag o ; a n d an e duca

tion o f th e boo k kin d was n o t on ly h ard t o get b ut ,
w a s also litt l e valued in c om pari son with p r actical

—
s ki ll the ab ili ty t o bri n g th i ngs to p ass I n a lte r .
ing his g r a m ma r an d s pe lli ng t h e r efo r e so as to

, ,
make fo r easy read i ng m u c h of th e t ang an d indi

,
v id u a lit
y wh i ch
, to those who k new him D aniel ,
Dr ew possessed to a n u ncom mo n deg r ee h a s ,
u ndou bted ly been s acrificed I n o r de r to whip the

.
life story h e r e reco r ded into something ap proaching

cohe r ence a nd clea r nes s I h a ve h a d to sh ape the
,
t hi ng from the sta r t .
I n fact my sh a r e i n t h e prepa r at i on o f thi s vol

,
ume h a s h ad to be so l ar ge even wri t ing with m y

,
own h a n d pa r ts which were need ed in o r der t o su p

—
ply the connection puttin g these also a s in the case
—
,
o f historic a l dr a ma,
in t he fi rs t pe r son t h a t I h a d
doubts as to wheth er pl a in biog r aphy might not h ave
been the better for m a s bei ng les s lia ble to miscon
,
s t ructio n B u t I decided to le t it go fo r th in t h e
.
fi rst p e rson thro ugh ou t p rov i d e d it c o uld be a c co m

,
E D IT O R S N O TE ii
’
v
p an e i d by a for ewo r d of exp la nat i on I n hi storical .
drama th e poet i c fo r m is su ffic i ent notice to the

,
reade r t h at t h e s peeches a re not sten ogr aphic re

po rts t h o ugh t h e sit u ation s an d s p ir it of the whole
,
a re tru e to hi sto ry I n the p re sen t c a s e I h ave

.
sough t to convey the s a me not i ficati o n b y m eans of

t hi s i ntroduction Th at erro r s h ave c r ept into a
.
work p i eced as this h as been ou t o f s c r aps a nd fr a g

ments is t o be expected B u t I vent ur e to state
, .
t h a t these wi ll be found to conce r n m atte r s of unes

s e n t ia l detai l alone I n the drift and temp e r of the
.
work a s a whole I pledged myse l f to a bsolute a d h e r

,
ence to the o r igina l s .
The eve n ts na rr ated constitute a sti rr i ng and im

por ta nt era in ou r na t ion s histo ry The develop ’
.
men t o f n av i gation on the H udson R ive r brought ,
recen t ly t o the fr ont by th e tri centenni al celeb r ation ; -
t he E rie R ai lr oad and i t s vici ssitu des ; ear l y days i n

W a ll S treet ; the religious s piri t o f a fo rm er age a ,
s pirit wh ich t o day i n a ll of the churches is ch angi ng

-
rapidly for th e b ette r ; the Tweed R ing i n New York

—
City these and other events touched on in the
p a pers whi ch he r e follow a re no t wi th ou t hi s t oric a l
,
v a lue S ome o f the fa c t s and viewpoints here given

.
h a ve n o t to my knowledge fo u nd thei r w a y else

, ,
where i nto p r int .
B o u c x WH I T E .
H d R s id t s S t d y
’
ea e en u ,
T i i y N ighbo hood Hous

r n t e r e
N w Yo k Ci t y
e r .
C O NT E N T S
UAGI
J ay Gould
’
s “
Hist o r y
A M ili t i a m a n in t h e Wa r o f 18 12
E a rl y Ci c u s D y s
r a
L ife as a D rov r e
A B a ck s lid er
O rigi n f t h W a ll St reet Term

o e
“
W at ered ,
Sto ck ”
Ast o r S eek s a n I n t e rvi ew
L ife a t t h e B ulls He a d Ta vern
P io n eer C a tt l D rivi ng e
F a r w ll t o a D ro ver s L i fe
’
e e
E a rl y S t e a mbo at D a y s o n t h e Hu dso n
Commodo re Va n d erbilt Lose s a S t ea mbo at

Ra c e
Wa ll S t reet
Th e Chu ch n M ulb y St et
r o e rr re
Th e E ri R a il ro a d
e
Get s Co n t rol of t h e E ri e
W a ll S t r t in t h e Ci vil Wa r
ee
A Vi s i t f om B o ss Tw e d
r e
Th e R a il ro a d t H rl e m o a
B u ildi n g of Ch urc h e s Ca lifo rn i a P a rk er

“
.
ix
C O NT ENT S
P A GE
Meet s J im Fi sk
Wa r w i t h Va n d e rbil t
Th e P i i g P ss r nt n re
E sc p a J s y Ci y
e to er e t
F o t T ylo
“ ”
r a r
En dof t h W n d T e t y of Pe c e
e ar a r a a
D re
w T h ologi c l S e mi n a ry
e a
A Re d L et t e r D ay
A W re c k on t h e E ri e
P o sp i y
r er t
T d S c ts
ra e e re
T h L o c k U p of G
e re e n b a cks
L igh t W om en
Gold e n W e ddi n g
In s id Hi st o y
e r
A P y Th t Wra er W o g a ent r n
S hoot i g of F i s k by E d S ok s
n . t e
O u w i t d b y Gould
t t e
P i c of 7 3
an
’
Th e E n d
Th e B o o k of D anie l D re w
E M O RI E S t h at s w h at th i s thing is go i ng
’
-
to be Wh at I r emembe r I ll put down

.
’
.
Wh at I d on t r eme m be r I won t put d own

’ ’
.
O r else I ll p u t it d own cautious like so you ll know

’ ’
-
,
it i sn t r eal gospel but only a so r t of think s o F o r

’
- .
afte r going on eighty yea r s a fe ll ow gets a l ittl e m i te

,
r usty as to some of the goo d s p acke d away i n his

uppe r sto ry Whenever I talked with peop l e I
.
di d n t jot it d own wo r d for wor d The r efo r e it s

’
.
’
on ly the g i st of it th at you get he r e in t h ese p ape r s .
Anyhow I neve r was much at write r wo r k J ay -

.
was the boy fo r th at I m ean J ason Gould $He

. .
”
got to calling h imself Jay an d so t h e r est of u s ,
called him by th at n ame too $ I n ou r doing s,

. I -
me a n the doings of Jim F isk J a y Gould a nd me

, , ,
for we we r e in a p a r tne r ship togethe r a long ti m e

“
J ay would do m ost of the w r ite r wo r k J ay - .
,
”
you re the in k slinge r Jimmy would s ay to h im
’
, ,
a nd would pull him u p to the table and sl ap a pen

in his h a nd He woul d do it so r ough th at Jay
.
,
w h o is a sl ip o f a man would wince , B u t Ji m my .

4 TH E B O OK OF D A N I EL DREW
had so h ea r ty a way of sl a pping you on your shoulde r
wi t h h i s big paws th at nobo d y c o u l d stay mad a t
,
hi m fo r very l ong togethe r .
As I started to say Jay h ad a h i gh an d noble w ay

,
of st ri nging words toge t her — a knack which I

“
neve r could get See t h a t openi ng of his History
.
”
O f D el a w a re County which he wrote b a ck in 5 5 ’
, ,
before he came to N ew York to m a ke money It s .

’
wo rth r e a ding ove r and over if fo r no t hing mo r e

,
th an i ts mor al te a chings :
History with t he more and more extensiv e
,
m e aning acq uired by the adv a ncement of civiliz a tion ,
by the di ff usion of education and by the elevation,
of the stand a rd of hum a n liberty h a s expanded into ,
a grand and be a utiful science It tre a ts of man in a ll

.
his social rel a tions whe t her civil religious or lite r ary
, , , ,
in which h e h a s in t ercourse wi t h his fellows The .
study o f his t ory to a free government like the one

,
in which we live is a n indispens a ble req uisite to t h e

,
imp r ovement a nd elevation of t he human r ace It .
leads u s b ack through the a ges t h a t h a ve succeeded

e a ch o t her in time p a st ; it exhibits the conditions
of the hum a n r a ce a t each respective period and by ,
following down it s p a ges from the v a st empires a nd

mighty ci t ies now ingulfed in oblivion bu t which the
fa i t hful histori a n presen t s in a living ligh t before us ,
w e a re en a bled rofi ta bly to comp a re a nd form a more

p
co rr ect a pprec i at i on of o u r own rela t ive position .
“
It 18 cer ta in th a t t he more enligh t ened a n d free
a people become the more the government devolves
upon t hemselves ; and hence the necess i ty O f a c a re
TH E B O OK OF D A N I EL DRE W 5
ful study of h i story wh i c h by s h ow i n g t h e heigh t , ,
to w hi ch man as an i ntellectu al be i ng i s capab l e

of elevating himse l f i n the scale o f usefu l nes s an d
moral wor t h te a ches th at the virtues of a good man
,
are held i n s a cred emul at ion by his countrymen fo r

ages succeeding long aft er the scythe of time h a s ,
gathered the ear t hly r emains of the acto r to t h e

silen t grave S uch thoughts or r ather such re fl ec
.
,
tions as these inspire within the human bosom an

,
a r dent desire to atta i n t h at which is good and shun

th at which is evil a n honest and l a udable ambition ,
to become both great a nd good ; o r as another h as ,
be a utifully wri t ten : Gre at only as w e are good .

’
You ll h a ve to foot it m any a mile to find w rit i ng

’
to eq ua l th at F ine noble words seeme d to come to

.
,
J ay n a tural like If I could

-
wri t e in th.at fashion
I d be stuck up B ut J a y wasn t ; in fact h e didn t
’
.
’
,
’
use to like it when I would remind him o f th i s

“
opening ch a pte r o f his History of D el a ware
Coun ty .
“ ” “
Tw a ddle $ he d s a y ; it s nothing but a lot of ’ ’
gush writ t en when I w a s a you t h o u t there b a ck of

,
”
t he Cat skill Moun ta ins J ay a lw a ys was modest . .
He didn t like to be pushed t o t he front Jimmy

’
.
w a s the boy — I mean Jim F isk — to occupy t he

front p ew He neve r minded it a bi t ; in fact
.
,
would r at her s it t here th a n a nywhere else in mee t ing

th at is s o to spe a k ; because Jimmy didn t go to
,
’
mee t ing re a lly .
Well a s I s ta rted t o s a y I never w a s mu ch on t h e

, ,
6 THE B O OK OF D A N I EL DRE W
wri t er business So I don t w a nt a ny one to sup
-
.
’
pose t h at I m t rying here t o wri t e his t ory like what

’
J ay wrote I h a ven t
. got big enough words fo r
’
th at I n these di a ry p a pers I j ust set it down in

.
,
the first words th a t come t o me And I m not .

’
sc a red t o put the whole story in either What s , .

’
the u s e of digging up de a d dogs some o f t he boys

might say But I m not scared I h a ve been busy
.
’
.
all my d ays a nd n o w th at I m s o o l d th a t they won t

,
’ ’
let me s p e c k il a t e in s t ocks a s I used to I ve got to ,

’
k eep busy So I m going t o w r ite o u t some t hings

.
’
.
Goodness knows nobody need be sc a red a t it Do , .
the best I c a n these p a pers won t st a y i n orde r ;

,
’
they re a mixed u p mess of s t u ff The pages in the

’
-
.
forep a r t of a ch a p t er get lost somewheres in the desk

before I get t o t he finish S O t h at if I c a n t m a ke .
,
’
he a d nor ta il t o the t hing th ree mon t hs afte r I ve ’
wri tt en it w h o else c a m Then t o o people h a ve

,
p
, ,
alw a ys s a id Nobody on earth c a n re a d U nc l e D an

,
D rew s q u a il t r a cks S O wh at i t here to be sc a red

’
.
,
s
of Be s ides even if t he people should get the story

?
, ,
wh at s t he h a rm The boys w h o would be m a d

’
?
a t me for ri pping up old scores a s t hey d call it a re ,

’
t oo t hin skinned They a re sensi t ive t o t he s peech of

-
.
peopl e B ut I m n o t sensi t ive I don t care a hill of

.
’
.
’
be a ns for t he sp e ech of people N ever did I f people . .
w a nt t o know a bout some of t he things th a t h a ve

h a ppened in my life t ime t hey a re welcome I sh an t -
,
.
’
m a ke a ny bones o f le tt ing them know t h e whole s t o ry .

AY w r ote h i s h i sto ry about D e l aware County
i n Yo r k S tate My story the first p a rt will
.
have to be about Putn am Coun ty on the ,
othe r side of the Hu dson F o r I w a s born the r e

.
in 1 7 97 I t was in Ca r m e l on a fa r m above the

.
,
“
L ake on the Pond Hill R o a d
,
alongsi de of ,
Wh a n gt o w n B r ook F ollow u p th at b r ook until

.
you come to a hill on the l eft as steep a s a meeting

house r oof Climb to the top And there j ust a t
. .
,
th e fo r k of t h e r oad whe r e i t turns to go to F a r me r s ’
Mills is whe r e the house stood The r e were locust

, .
t r ees i n the front yard and a wel l o f coo l wate r

,
al ongs i de the house i n the b ack yard

, My fathe r s .
’
n a me was Gilbert D rew He was of E nglish .
ext r act i on My m o the r was a Catherine Muckel

.
worth of S cotch blood as yo u could guess by th e

, ,
n ame S he w a s a m a ster h a nd in sickness a nd

.
-
,
kept i n the house a sto r e of r oots and he r b s There .
was boneset a nd penny r oy a l s m ar tweed catni p , , ,
skun k cabb a ge s a r saparilla wild turnip an d such

, , ,
like I n those d ays it w a s a good thing to h ave a

.
parent th a t knew something about medicine .
B ecause the sad dle b ag docto r w a s ha r d to l oc a te

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8 THE B O OK OF D AN I EL DRE W
j ust when you wanted him He wasn t a l w ay s .
’
very knowing either O l d B l ee d e m P u k e e m

.
’
,
’
and P u rge e m w a s wh a t we used to call hi m

’
“ ”
O ld B listers w a s ano t he r name .
I di dn t get much schooling

’
— somehow never
took to it I n fact t here w a sn t much book le a rning
.
’
-
to t a ke t o in those days C a rmel then wasn t built .

’
up aroun d where the village n ow stands Wh a t .
there w a s of the village nes t led a r ound O l d Gile a d

Meeti ng house at the other end O f the L ake from
-
,
us . O l d Gilea d w a s ne a r Mt Pisgah and a good .

,
t wo miles from my home I t w a s a di fferent kind.
of a place from B rimstone Hol l ow a mile or t w o ,
beyon d O l d Gilead used t o be known only a s

.
Grego ry s Pa r is h
’ ”
un til h e p r eached,
— P a rson
Na than G r ego ry I mean that wonde r ful sermon
,
“ ”
of his from the text I s t here no b alm i n Gilead
,
?
whe r eby the enti r e mee t ing was so set o n fi re

with g o dliness that they named the church
“
Gile a d Meeting house from th at d ay Carmel
-
.
w a s settled by people from B arnstable County ,
on C a pe C od and had lots of r eligion even in it s

,
e a rliest d ays .
Well as I st a rted to say in my day the p re a cher

, ,
used t o h a ve both p a rishes Gile a d an d a no t her , ,
called R ed Mills a few mil e s away He would,

.
ta ke turns l iving for a s pell at one place and t hen

,
for a spell at t h e othe r D u r ing h is stays a t Gile a d

.
he kept a sch o o l i n his house S O th at I got a li tt le .

t r oops up in th e neighbourhood o f A l b any Thi s .
left Putnam an d Westchester Count i es between th e

two like a gra i n of whe a t between the uppe r and
,
nether mill stones a s S crip t ure says The r egion

-
, .
w a s well nig h g ro und to pieces F i r st t h e R ed .
Coats wou l d ove rr un the county Then t h e Pat r iots .
would take a tu r n at it U ntil by t h e time they .

,
both got t hro ugh the fa r ms looked about as hand

,
some as a s kinned r abbit .
S ugar w a s very h i gh We used map l e sugar a .
good dea l F at h e r also would d ri ve o ve r to F ish kill

.
o n the Hudson and get o f t he sto r e keepe r a molasses

,
-
bar r el afte r the molasses h a d been d r awn ou t I n the .
bottom of an empty mol a sses ba rr el is a whole lot

o f c a ked molasses that makes as fine suga r as a ma n
e ver put in his mo uth B ut even with these shift s

.
,
s uga r an d sweeten i ng were sca r ce things S ome .
times w h en we were to h a ve company and sweeten

,
ing was sca r ce mother in making a p i e would

,
swee t en only o n e en d o f i t S he woul d place it on .
the table in such a way that the c o mpany would

get the sweet end ; an d we boys Tom and I $Tom ,
w a s my brothe r a lit t le older tha n me $ would have

, ,
t o s t eer fo r the sour end Molasses was good for .
medicine also Bec a use t he itch was almost ev e ry

.
whe r e in those days I t was well nigh t he most

.
bo t hersome complaint we h ad L ice a r e not so .
serious Afte r yo u get used to them they don t

.
’
bo t her you much B ut the itch is a pes t ersom e

.
THE B O OK OF D A N I EL DRE W I I
t hi n g U n l ess y ou k eep i t d own w i t h a powe r fu l

.
h a nd i t will b r ea k o u t al l over you And molasses .
an d sulphu r w a s a sove r eign r eme d y

-
.
To m an d I h a d to work h a rd often du ri ng scho ol ,
te r m F athe r was old mothe r being his secon d

.
,
w i fe An d ou r fa r m besides w a s almighty r ough

.
, ,
an d hilly S ome parts of it we r e as steep as th e

.
s hi ng l es o n a h o u se Then there we r e the stone s

.
an d r ocks to c l ea r away How sick I got of prying

.
t h ose r ocks o u t O f th e fields wit h an old ax l e fo r a

,
c r owba r and stone boating them ove r to the boun

,
-
d a rie s to make fences o f .
T h e woods we r e so plentiful th at the fa rm was

not of much use except fo r stock r aising An d -
.
stock raising means work pretty nigh all the ti me

-
.
B ecause the r e we r e always poo r spots i n the fences .
And t r ust me the r e i s no cri tt er like a heife r o r a

, ,
b u l l calf fo r fi nding weak spots in a fence pa r ,
t ic u l a rly if it s a line fence And when your c a ttle

’
.
get over in t o th e o th e r fellow s field yo u h ave to ’
get afte r them mighty q uick Also o u r pas t ure lots .
we r e fo r th e m ost pa r t woods We h a d ea r .
marks in those days by which we could t ell o u r c att le

if they got mixed up with others F or example the .
,
left ea r would be notc h ed o n t he t op wi t h th e right

ea r c r opped o ff s qua r e an d a hole in the mi ddle .
S o th at if w e foun d a critter wi t h a notch i n the r ight

ear inste a d of t he left we knew he be l onged t o some
,
body else When you h ave to l ook th rough the

.
woods for you r milch cows t o b ring t h e m home at ,
nigh t fo r milking wi t h no t hing t o go by bu t t he sound

,
o f t he bell dingling from t he cow s neck an d some ’
times n o t even t hat t hey would be so fa r O ff ; why it

, ,
means t hat you ve got work on your h a n ds When

’
.
t here w a s no t hing o u t in t he fields t o do t he chores ,
h ad to be looked a ft er And t hen j us t like a s no t

.
,
“
mo t her would s ay Da n I need a new broom
, ,
.
Th a t would me a n t h a t I d h a ve t o look up a s t r a ight

’
birch s a pling from the woods a nd wi t h a sh a rp ,
j ackknife cu t o n e end o f it in t o s plin t s a n d bin d t hem

a roun d so a s t o m a ke a new b room We h a d to
,
.
c a rt o u r fa rm t ruck or young c a lves eigh t een miles

, ,
a cross coun t ry t o Peekskill o n t he Hudson F rom - - -

.
t here a sloop r a n to New York fo r c a rryi ng p a s ,
s e n e rs
g and freigh t Lat er on a. line of marke t ,
w a gons went t hrough Carmel to Peekskill twice a

week a n d g at hered up the produce o f t he fa rms
,
.
B ut in the early days e a ch farmer had to do his own

,
m a rke t ing .
S O I re a ched the a ge of fi ft een wi t hout much

book le a rning Th en came t he War of 1 8 1 2 And
-
. .
t he school t e a cher wasn t heard of a ny more The

-
’
.
fa rms a s I s a i d h a d been left so spoiled by t he

, ,
R evolu t ion a ry War as h a rdly t o make grazing for

a goose And n o w j ust when t h e farmers were
.
,
get t ing o n their fee t ag a in a long comes the W a r of ,
1 8 1 2 a nd knocks t hings g a lly wes t once more We .
knew in Pu t n a m Coun ty t h at a w a r w a s on even ,

THE B O OK OF D A N I EL DRE W 1
3
though t h e r e wasn t any fight i n g i n ou r section

’
.
B ecause w e used to get news r egula r a l though it ,
would be sometimes a li t tle late in comin g The r e .
w a s t he R ed Bird line o f st a ges from Alb a ny to

N ew Yo rk They ch anged horses at L u d d ingt o n s
.
’
T a vern i n C a r me l
,
— t hese stages r an o nly in
win t er bec a use in summer t r avel from N ew
,
York t o Alb a ny w a s by sloop I n th e summer .
ti me also when the bo a ts were sailing on the rive r

, , ,
there was anothe r line of stages r unning from ,
C a rmel to Peekskill by the tu r npike w h ic h went ,
j us t south of the F ish kill Mountains ac r oss Peeks

kill hollow We got our news from the s t age driver
.
-
,
a s he drove up to Carmel in t he g r eat stage th at w a s

p a inted bright red and wi t h t he bells jingling o n
,
the fou r horses These st a ges would come once a

.
day on thei r way through S ome r s t o Ca r mel to , ,
L u d d in gt o n vil l e an d so on up north
, $It took .
fou r days fo r th e stage t o make t h e trip from New

Yo r k to S tockb r i dge Mass an d B ennington Vt , .
, ,
.
,
t h r ough D in gl e R id g e $ There we r e also post .
r ide r s w h o came into the t o wn eve ry S aturday

,
a ft ernoon on ho r seback wi t h newsp a pers from H a r t

ford a n d Poughkeepsie .
Then t oo we used t o le a rn t he news in a gene r al

, ,
w ay when the cobbler c a me to the house once a ye a r

t o make up the year s supply of boots and shoes for ’
“”
t he household Whipping t he cat used to b e
.
W h at w e c a lled h is visi t — I guess likely from his

I 4 THE B O OK OF D A N I EL DRE W
always driving t he cat a way from h is work b e nch ,
for she seemed possessed t o h ang a round a n d get his

waxed ends j u mm ix e d up This visi t of the cobbler
.
was q uite an event e a ch year F a t he r would pre.
pare for i t by sw a pping a p a ir o f c a t t le o r a lo a d o f

—
potatoes down a t F os t er s ta n yard a mile the o t her
’
side of L u d d in gt o n s Tavern fo r a few si des o f

’
leathe r Then t he cobbler would come fo r a week

.
o r so a nd m a ke t he le a t her up in t o foot wear S o -

.
when the ne w s he brough t w a s a bout a war a nd ,
about the goings o n in t he great world ou t side a

-
,
boy of fift een w a s going to lis t en wi t h bo t h e a rs .
When the cobble r came i t w a s t he boy s wo r k t o whit ’
tle out the pegs fo r him A boy would re a ll y ge t

.
mo r e news from the cobbler t h a n any o t her member

o f t he family since he would be nea r er t o him
, .
I n these w ays li t tle by li tt le we le a rned a bout

, ,
the vi c t ory of Commodore Perry o n L ake E rie and ,
the big doings of ou r navy o u t on the high se a s .
B u t i t seems t h at t hese vic t ories on w at er h a dn t ’
done much good ; bec a use t he mili ta ry ca mp a ign

a long the en t ire nor t hern fron t ier of our coun t ry
w a s going a g a ins t u s The E nglish were pushing
.
in on every side I t looked as t hough N ew York

.
migh t be t a ke n The Presi dent h a d issued a dr a ft

.
fo r troops to defend t he coun t ry And men were .
p a ying a s high a s a hundred doll a rs for a sub s t i t u t e .
Th at h undred doll a rs looked big t o me I t s e e m ed .
a n easy way to e a rn a l a rge lump of money Time s .

we r e g ett i n g h a r de r an d h a rd e r ou t o n our hill s id e

farm ; for banks a ll ove r the country we r e s toppin g
spec i e payment an d si l ve r w a s getting as sca r ce as
,
hens teeth S o when on top of it a ll my fathe r

’
.
, ,
died I decided th at the time h ad come I made u p

, .
my mind to leave the fa r m in charge of my b r ot h e r

Tom $he being the o l dest he w a s by r ights t h e ,
one t o stay home and take care of things $ an d go ,
out an d see the world an d make money as a s u b ,
s t it u t e i n the army F irst along mothe r didn t

.
’
exactly ta ke to the idea B ut I showed h e r I was .
su r e to make big money I was to get one hundred .
dollars out of h a nd ; and as my boa r d in the a rmy

wouldn t cost me anything the money wou l d be
’
,
c l ea r gain It w a s a powerful argument because

.
,
she was th r ifty A hundred dol l ars all in a lump

.
looked pretty nigh as big to he r as it did to me .
B ut j ust then she happened to think of anothe r

thing F or mothe r was o l d fashioned
.
-
.
“ ” “
S ee he r e D anny said she ; you r e unde r age
, ,
’
and to get into the service you d have to tell a lie ’

.
An d besides yo u might get killed ; and then whe r e

,
”
woul d the hun dred doll a rs be P I a nswered th a t I
would agree to le a ve the hund re d doll a rs with her to
keep for me before I started As t o my being unde r
, .
age I told he r not to bother herself a bout that point

, .
I woul d take care o f t h at Women anyhow are apt .

, ,
t o be sq ueamish a bou t business t ransac t ions Men .
a re more sensible t h ey know t h at if a c a t would

eat fish she must be willing to we t her fee t And I .
told mo t her th a t I would t a ke c a re of the age limit .
I calcula t ed t h at fo r a fellow a s tall for h is years as

,
I w a s I could fix my age all right

,
.
And I did The Government w a s h ard pressed

.
for men S o the recrui t ing sergean t didn t narrow

.
’
me down very close when I t old him I w a s o f age I .
go t my hun dred doll a rs h anded it over to mother to

,
keep for me an d in full regimen t als of t he S tate

,
Militia with kn a psack o n b a ck an d musket over

,
my shoulder I set o u t fo r Peekskill There I

, .
found a sloop going to N ew York a nd got a board ,

.
These sloops were big a ffa irs They c a rried people .

,
live stock and freight a ll huddled toge t her When

,
.
t he wind an d ti de were con t rary or when the wind ,
died down a ltoge t her t hey a nchored and you would

, ,
be out a ll night just i n making the t ri p t o N ew York .
I n th at case you d have to sleep the best way yo u

’
could B ut yo u could find a good berth on t he hay

.
o r s t r a w which us u a lly formed a p a rt of t he boat s

’
c a rgo As long a s i t did n t r a in you could pass a

.
’
nigh t very comfor ta ble .
I t w a s a gre at even t in my life this tri p to N ew ,
York When fin a lly we c a me t o where t he H a rlem

.
R iver emp t ies ou t in t o t he N or t h R iver t he m a n a t ,
t he helm pointed i t o u t t o the p a ssenge r s a nd s a id , ,
“
t here w a s the isl a nd a nd t he city w a s at t he lower
,
end o f i t Ano t her hour of s a iling brought u s t o

where t he ci ty l a y We l a nded at a wh a rf a longside
.
I never was cut out to be a soldier N ot th at I .
worried much a bout the h a rdships of life in camp .
When a fellow h a s been re a red on a hill side fa rm -

,
his crad l e a s ap trough an d h as been brought u p to

-
,
e a t from wooden pla t es he s used to pot luck a n d ’

-
, ,
life i n a n army c a mp doesn t seem h a rd at a ll ’

.
S t ill I w a s gl a d when the news came of peace I n .
a battle there s a lways a dange r from bu l let s and

’
b a yone t s and from c a nnon b a lls I m by natu r e

,
.
’
a pe a ce a ble man And I h a d cle a ned u p a hund r ed

.
dolla rs in the space of three months I t w a s a good .
s t roke of business .
I set out for home a s soon a s I w a s muste r ed out .
And for a few d a ys I w a s gl a d to be back B u t I .
soon saw th a t I w a sn t intended for a h umd r um

’
life I h a d h a d a sm a ck of big things an d now the

.
,
everl a sting chores o n the farm didn t gee with my ’
t a stes My brothe r Tom w a s there t o t a ke ca r e of

.
those things $He s a id wi t h something p r etty

.
,
ne a r t o cuss words when I s poke t o him on the s u b

,
j ect t
,
h at since I w a s such a gad a bou t somebody ,
h a d to b uckle down a nd run t he fa rm i n orde r to ,
ta ke c a re of mo t her $ .
S o I m a de my plans Going to mo t her I s a id.

, ,
Mo t her I w a nt my subs t i t u t e money I m go i ng

, .
’
”
i nto business .
“ ”
Goodness s a kes $ she replied ; what is it t his
t i me ? S ome new fa ngle I ll bet to w a ste your ,
’
”
m oney on .
TH E B O OK OF D AN I EL DRE W 19
“
No new fang l e at a ll sai d I ; I m go i n g to ’
be a drover I m going to b uy u p c a ttle fo r the

.
’
c i ty ma r ket And I need the h u n d r ed dol l a r s t o

.
st a rt me o ff I m young B ut th at s the ti me to
.
’
.
’
start in E a rly sow early mow

.
,
.
“ ”
B ut a re you su r e D anny sai d sh e $for th e , ,
“
idea began t o t ak e hold o f her $; are yo u su r e that
y o u won t lose your money
’
P I tol d he r I d pl anne d ’
t h e thing all ou t ; it was going to be a money make r -

.
S he handed the hundred dolla r s over to me and I ,
became a drover .
N ot ex a ctly a d r ove r either in the full sense of , ,
the wo r d I beca me a buyer of bob c al ves T h e

. .
laws against bob vea l weren t ve ry st r ict in those

-
’
days — th a t is they weren t enfo r ced I f yo u

,
’
.
coul d get anybody to buy t he s ru fi the law didn t

’
’
p o ke its nose i n and stop you An d so I would go .

,
a round a mong t he far mers a nd b uy a calf very soon
a fte r it h a d been d r opped I h ad my troubles . .
Bob ca l ves are shaky on their legs Then to o

-
.
, ,
t here s it s mo t he r to bother you I found it easie r

’
.
to g et a r ound the law objec t ion against bob vea l -
t h a n t he mo t her objection — so to spe a k — that

p a i r o f wicked ho r ns when you go to t a ke t he calf
,
away from i t s d a m $ B u t t h e right kind of h a ndling

would do it And then by h urrying the calf to
.
,
m a rket I would get the cri tt er o ff my h ands befo r e

,
it sickened a nd died I d a re s a y th at the flesh now

.
and then w a s pretty soft for re a l good eating Peo .

20 THE B O OK OF D A NI EL DRE W
ple used t o s a y Ve a l bough t from t hat young D a n
,
”
D r ew c a n be sucked t hrough a q uill B u t t hen
.
folks who said these t hings were je a lous of me ,
bec a use I worked hard a nd m a n a ged t o get a long .
B esi des with me it w a s a c as e of calves or nothin g

, .
Because I di dn t h a ve t he money t o go into th e

’
grown u p cattle business You c a n buy c a lves on a

-
.
—
small capit a l yes sometimes without cap i tal a t
,
all Because a farmer who h a s a bull calf on h is

.
,
h ands an d doesn t w a nt t o feed it will oft en let you

’
,
have it on c r edit Sometimes the farmer thinks

.
th at a c a lf is so misshapen a nd puny th a t it is going

to die ; a n d then he wil l be gl a d to get it o ff of h is
h a nds on any te r ms B u t when it comes to p a rting
.
with his grown u p cri t ters a fa rme r i s almigh ty

-
,
pa r t i cula r a bou t whom he t r us ts .

H E S E yea r s of mine a s a ca l f dr ove r we re -
b r oken in upon a lit t le later I went into .
the circus business .
S ome time after the War o f 1 8 1 2 the travell i n g ,
circus came into fa s h ion The people in those d ays

.
lived in li tt l e se t t l ements They were l onely They

. .
did n t h ave much amusement S o when times

’
.
,
became settled once more and the fa r me r s had

r ecove r ed from the war the R olling S how came in
,
and di d lots of b usiness O nly we di dn t cal l it a

.
’
show i n those d ays no r a circus

,
'
no siree T h e
people wouldn t h a ve come nea r us B ec a use the
’
.
preache r s th undered against circuses and a ll such

wo r ldliness To get the t ra de of the church peop l e
.
,
“ ”
w e cal l ed it a Men age rie an d The Great Mo r a l
”
and E ducationa l E xhibition .
Putnam an d Westchester counties were head

q u a rte r s fo r the circus b usiness in ea rl y d a ys pa r ,
t ic u l a rly S tar s R i dge in the town of South e a st an d

’
-
, ,
Pu rdy s S tation j us t below Croton F a lls I guess

’
, .
the r eason fo r this w a s bec a use those two counti e s

,
are j us t no r th of N ew Yo r k Ci ty Being a beautifu l

.
fa r ming r egion with B ridgeport Conn an d D a n

, , .
,
b u ry j us t a c r oss the S tat e line this region bec a me ,
naturally t he winter quarte r s for t he N ew York

shows The ci r cuses would start out fr om o u r
.
section e a ch sp r ing a nd come back t o u s i n the fall

, ,
fo r winter qu ar t e r s I n this way all o u r pa r t of t h e

.
S tate got to talking circus The r e w a s o l d Ha k a l ia h .
B ailey of S ome r s
,
— S o m e rs t o w n Pl a ins it w a s ,
b ack in my day — fiv e miles below C a rme l He .
b rought ove r the firS t elephant ever seen i n the

“”
county .O l d Bett he called he r , I n front of the .
tavern there in S omers the O l d E lephant Hotel

t h ey called it you can see even ye t a pedesta l with
an e l ephant ca r ved on top of it And S e t h Howe .
,
down at Tu r k s Hill ne a r B r ewsters when he came

’
,
’
to make his fine summer home there h ad ston e ,
animals ca r ved and stuck a r oun d t he grounds h ere

an d there Besi des there w a s Ge ra rd Crane of
.
, ,
S o m e rs e ve r b o d
y
u
y h a s heard of Howe and

”
Crane s G r e at L on don Ci r cus
’
Then the r e was .
Turner of B ailey and Turner o f D a nbury ; an d

, ,
l ate r on Phineas B arnum from Bri dgepo r t I s a a c

, ,
.
Van Ambe r g also s ta r t ed his menagerie fr om our

section The We e k s e s also well known in the cir
.
,
-
c u s business came from Ca r mel The town was

, .
full o f c irc u s back in those ear ly days

,
.
So when N ate Howe from down B rewste r s way ,

’
h e w a s S eth Ho w e s b r other — r ounded me up

’
one day as I was o n one of my calf buying trips a n d -

,
sai d he w a s looking for a sma r t a n d h a n dy young

3
m an li ke me t o be a d r iver and an a ll round m a n

,
-
with his show I go t the feve r an d started in They

,
.
put me at a ll sor t s o f work In t hose days the circus .
was a one horse a fI a ir comp a red t o what i t h a s

-
grown to now a nd one man would h ave to help

,
o u t in a dozen d ifi e re n t kinds of work He would

’
be a mule driver c a nv a s m a n g at e keeper and

-
,
-
,
-
feeder o f the anim a ls sometimes a l l in o n e d a y ,

.
An d most like a s not now and then h e would h ave ,
t o tu rn in and help o u t with the clown s p a r t Th e ’

.
c l owns i n those d a ys h ad speaking p arts They .
cracked jokes on t he poli t ici ans and loc a l celeb

rit ie s in the vil la ge whe r e the show was exhibi t ing ,
“
s a ng the b a l la d Betsy B a ker and di d fl ip fl a p s
, ,
.
Th en too since there w a sn t much advertising in

, ,
’
those d ays when w e la nded in a town an d while

,
th e wor kmen were ge t ting t he can vas up the one ,
of us who w a s acting t he clown for the d a y woul d

go along the stree t t ogged out in his tom fooleries
,
-
,
a n d with a bugler p a r a ding in front Aft er he h a d .
got a crowd a round him he would mount a barrel

—
he a d in front of th e vill a ge t ave r n a bou t th e time
t he st a ge arrived if possi ble a n d from t h at s t ump
,
wou ld announce t he show tell where it w a s t o be ,
foun d a n d re a d o fI t he list of t he a ni m a ls t h a t would

,
be shown I used to like t he p a rt of clown I t

. .
w a s fun to cr a ck jokes a nd se t t h e boys a nd gi rls

to laughin g I alw ays did like a good joke a nyhow
.
,
.
I nside t he c a nv a s w e used to h a ve the anim a l s

24 TH E B O OK OF D A NI EL DRE W
a rra nged a l ong one side wi t h t he seats for the people
,
along t he othe r side The performers r ing w a s in the

.
’
middle between the t w o I w a s a good h a n d wi th

, .
the be a sts bec a use I knew how t o h a ndle t hem

, .
With t h e h ay a nimals such a s deer elk zebu cows , , ,

-
an d s o forth I w a s r igh t at home h a ving been r aised

, ,
on a farm E leph a n t s were reg a rded in those d a ys

.
as d a ngerso me ; but my fa r me r t raining with horses

an d h orned crit t e r s m a de me now a good man for
h andling risky beasts of a ll kinds Then when it .
,
came to the big cats such as tigers and o t he r b l ood

,
thirsty v ar min t s I knew how to get bu t chers me at

,
’
fo r t hem o f t he righ t kind and in the right way .
Because I d been so t o speak in the butche r s line

’
, ,
’
a l so U pon l anding in town if it w a s the d ay for

.
,
feeding them we used t o feed the c a ts only every

othe r d ay so a s t o keep them he a lthy ; because in
,
their native state they don t eat much oftene r th a n ’
—
th at I would l ook up some bu t cher a n d get him
to give me a b asket of bones and scraps fo r the c a ts .
I would p ay him by get t ing the clown to m a ke

men t ion o f the b utcher s n ame in some fl attering ’
manner du ring the perform a nce th at aft ernoon

,
.
Some t imes a b utcher would give me a ll t he scr a p

me a t I needed o n condition that h e wasn t to be
,
’
hit by any of the jokes — this wou l d be after I d ’
hinted to him th at the clown was going to get o ff

some good jokes at those merch a nts in t he town
Wh o d idn t suppo r t the show I knew how to h andle
’
.
They keep ringing in your head no matte r how ,
many ye a rs h ave passed s ince I n those days t hey .
di dn t mince m atters :
’
F ar in the deep wh ere da r kness dwe ll s

, ,
A real m of ho r ror and despair ,
Justice h as bui l t a dis m al hell

And laid he r stores o f vengeance t here .
E ternal p l agues an d he avy ch a ins ,
Tormenting r acks and fiery coa ls ,
And d arts to inflict immo rtal p a ins ,
D yed in th e blood of damn ed souls .
I got religion th en a nd the r e When the p r eacher .
“ ”
cal l ed ou t H asten sinne r to be wise I h astened
, , , , .
I didn t s t op to ask wh a t my old comp a nion s would

’
thin k of it $I never di d ca r e wh at people thought

.
of me anyhow $ All I thought o f was to get to the

,
.
mou r ners bench And so it w a sn t long before I

’
.
’
was u p t here in fron t of the whole congregation

,
.
I told them I h ad a fervent desi re to flee fr om the

w r a t h t o come .
I t m a de conside ra ble of a sti r this conve r sion of ,
mine F or a ci rcus m a n to come over onto t he

.
L ord s si de w a s a triumph for the a rmy o f Gideon

’
, .
The bre t h ren gathered a round me with g r eat j o y .
The preache r pressed me to tell the congrega t ion

ho w I fel t I rose a nd spoke Words always di d
. .
c o me sor t o f easy wi th me — t h at i s the plain , ,

THE B O OK OF D AN I EL DRE W 27
eve ry d ay wo r ds Bes i des wh en a y ou n g fe llo w

- .
,
h as p r act i sed speak i ng from a ba rr e l h ead i n fr ont -
o f a vill a ge tavern d r esse d i n out l and i s h fas hio n

, ,
and telling t h e peop l e t h e way to the c ir cus g r ounds ,
h e i sn t going t o be scared at a con g re g ation of

’
peop l e inside a ch urc h So o n the p r esent o ccas i on

.
I had wondrous li berty I n fact I gave in my testi

.
mony with such acceptance th at the ministe r came

t o me afte r the servic e an d told me I ought t o becom e
a preacher This was a side o f the m a tter I h adn t

.
’
looked at I n my t estimony I h a d to l d the peop l e

.
“
t h at fro m this time forth I w a s going t o se r ve t h e
L ord . B ut as t o taking u p p r eac h i ng t h at was a ,
di fferent m a tte r There isn t much ch ance in

.
’
preaching to ge t rich S O after turning it ove r in

.
,
my min d I t old him th at I didn t feel any c a l l

,
’
.
An d I went back to the drover s business ’

.
I w a s g l ad th at I h a d become conve r ted .
Bec a use t he circus business didn t promise t o bring ’
me in any such money as I felt I could make buy

ing catt l e now th a t I d saved up capital enough to
,
’
start in .
OW beg a n the re a l work o f my life F or .
until this t ime I h a d been e a rning money

hit o r miss a s the ch an ce o ffered I w a s
, .
getting nowhere B u t s ta rting n o w in t o the d rove r s

.
,
’
business in good earnest I foun d my m a in bent , .
About this time a w a ve o f prosperi ty was setting

in throughout the country The n a tion h ad re c o v .
ered from the e ffec t s of t he war The banks were .
resuming specie p a yments Tr a de r evived N ew . .
York City w a s calling for bu t che r s mea t D ur ’

.
ing the war she h a d h a d a long fast so t o speak , .
Now she beg a n t o e at Her popul at ion w a s growing

.
like sixty City H a ll P a rk h a d formerly been w a y

.
u p t own Now i t w a s ge tt ing to be in t he cen t re

.
,
with houses a ll around To keep t his big a n d

.
growing ci ty in bu t cher s me at w a s a work in itself

’
.
Th a t w a s where we drovers go t a living Pu t n a m .
Coun ty an d t he region roun d a bout is s o hilly th a t

it is fi t for r a i s ing s t ock be tt e r t h a n for a ny t hing el s e .
A steer o r a sheep c a n t h rive o n hillsides where a

plough would t i p over Besid e s it is o n t he s a me
.
,
si de o f t he Hud s on R iver a s New York a n d only ,
a few miles a bove i t Thus t he H a rlem V a lley

.
,
2 8
le a ding down t hrough Westchester County soon ,
became a ch a nnel through which drovers brought

c att le to feed t he thous a n ds o f h ungry mouths in
the ci ty at t he foo t o f M a nh at tan I sl a nd .
As a drover I h a d trou ble first along the s a me ,
as when I wen t in t o t he c a lf business bec a use the ,
farmers didn t li ke to sell me their ca t tle o n credit

’
.
B ut I m a naged to get a round t h em in one w a y o r

another I would ri de u p to a fa rmer s ho u se
.
’
during th is time of my life I w a s r arely o u t of the

s addle except to e a t o r sleep occasion a lly even d riv ,
ing c attle a t night to s ave time fo r h unge r in t h e ,
belly puts s purs to the heels and instead o f sta r t ,
ing in with tal k a bout buying I would s ay ,
”
Hello B ro t her S o an d S o $th e news o f h o w I
,
- -
“
h ad go t religion helped me with the farmers $; h ow
are you o ff for fa t stock
U pon h is answering that he h a d a p a ir or so of
fi t c att le I d s a y
,
’
“
Well n o w I m t a king a drove in t o the ci ty next
, ,
’
week I f you s ay so I ll t a ke you rs a long too

.
,
’
, ,
a n d sell t hem for you fo r old acqu a int a nce s sake

,
’
.
I know two or t h ree butchers down there in t he

ci ty a nd c a lcul a t e I c a n sell t hose cri tt ers for you
,
at a top price I h a d le a rnt good a n d e a rly th at

.
if you h a ven t go t honey in t he crock you mus t h a ve

’
i t in t he mou t h .
The pl a n wor k ed fine Th at is first a long I .

,
.
got sever a l h undred he a d o f c att le on these t erms ,

3 0 THE B O OK OF D A N I EL DRE W
a n d they seldom fa iled to bring a good p r ice in t he
city So th a t before long I h a d scr a ped togethe r
.
a nice little c a pit a l To be sure the fa rme r s who

.
,
let me h a ve th e stock on these terms would keep

pestering me for th e money B u t I put them o ff w it h .
o n e excuse or a nother Someti m es I would soften

.
a m a n s a nger by p a ying hi m p a rt o f Wh at w a s
’
coming to him an d tell hi m he d h a ve to wa i t fo r

,
’
the b a l a nce until after my next trip I n cases wh ere .
I couldn t q uiet a c r edito r in this way I h ad stil l

’
a nother shift fo r I a lways was a r esou r ceful fe l low

, .
I would ch a nge my b ase of oper a tions to anot h e r

p a rt of the county s o fa r a w a y th a t the fa r me r s I
,
h a d traded with the las t time couldn t r each me ’

.
U nfortun a tely word would sometimes get a roun d

,
a he a d o f me s o th a t when I d ride up t o a fa r m
,
’
house an d try to get c a tt l e without p a ying cas h ,
I would be turned down There w a s L en Clift .

,
over ne a r B rews t ers for one I h a d agreed with’
,
.
him on the price of a c a lf Then as I was a bout .

,
to le a d t he critter o ff I told hi m he would h a ve to

,
trust me a few d a ys a s I w a s a little short o f r eady

,
c a sh j us t at th a t moment .
“
Trust you s a id h e Wouldn t trust yo u no .
’
”
further t h a n you can th row a hog by the t a il .
I didn t ge t riled u p Get ting riled u p is poo r

’
.
business A m a n isn t fit for a business c a ree r until

.
’
he h as learned never t o get riled up ; or le a stwise ,
never to show it on t he outside even if he is a ll ,

THE B O OK O F D A N I E L DR E W 3 1
r il ed up i ns id e I sort of exp l a i ned the t hi ng to

.
“ ”
L en an d coaxe d ; but h e answe r e d a p l ump No
“
every time You ll get the ca l f when I get t h e
.
’
”
money No t a min u te soone r
. .
“ ” ’
L en s aid I fina lly when I s aw that h e wasn t
, , ,
to be moved ; yo u wo n t trust me fo r t h e p ri ce of ’
one lousy l ittle c a l f All right B ut L en Clift

P . .
, ,
the t im e l l come w h en I ll h ave money enou gh

’ ’
’
t o buy yo ur who l e fa r m R em ember Wh at I m .
”
a telling yo u
-
.
And the ti me did come too Afte r I h ad made , .
my fort u ne I boug h t his fa r m an d made i t i nto my

coun t ry seat I h ave go t my family bu ry i ng l o t
.
”
on t h at fa r m now D re w s c l ift
, I n amed t h e.
pl a ce It s t h a t bea u t ifu l farm j ust on th e othe r

.
’
sid e o f the hill ove r fr om B rewste r s Village Th e ’

.
burying lot is o u t by t h e wil l ow t r ees ac r oss the

road from the house down in t h e meadows My ,
.
pa r ents h ad been bu r ied in o ld Gilead B urying

G r oun d at Carmel I got the bodies d ug u p an d c ar
.
ried over to t h is new b u rying lot so I coul d establi sh ,
a family cemetery When a m an makes a n ame .
for himself he wants t o make a family seat to go

,
wi t h t he n ame .
B u t though I h a d a turn down once in a wh ile -

,
s u ch a s this o n e from L en Clift I found many a ,
fa r mer ob l iging enough to sell me calves an d cows

and steers an d sheep on credi t A very good device .
,
I fo u nd was firs t to h aggl e with the fa rmer over t h e

,
3 2 THE B OOK OF D A N I E L DRE W
price a n d be at him down t o t h e l o w e s t penny F or
, .
,
s t r a nge a s i t migh t s ound t h i s inclines t he fa rmer ,
t o trus t y o u Yo u s e e h is min d figures i t ou t some

.
,
t hing like t his :

“
Th at there drov e r is a nxious t o ge t a bo tt om
figure bec a use h e s good p a y a n d me a ns when
,
’
, ,
t he t ime comes t o se tt le up promp t ly a n d penny

,
for penny He w a n t s t o ge t a good con t r a c t bec a use

.
he is the kin d o f a fe llow t o live u p t o i t word for

word To be sure h e is a t igh t fe llow to de a l with
.
, ,
but at least he is a s a fe fe llow a n d so I guess I ll ,

’
”
let him h a ve t his p a ir o f c att le o n credi t In .
t hese w a ys working n o w o n e pl a n a n d now a no t her

, ,
I go t toge t her a nice li tt le sum of money .
I t w a s a bou t t his t ime t h at t he field of business

for d rovers w a s widened t o ta k e in t he gre a t Moh a wk
v a lley The ci ty on M a nh atta n I sl a n d w a s grow
.
ing so fa s t t h at o u r li tt le sec t ion u p in t he H a rlem

v a lley couldn t r a ise c att le fa s t enough to su pply
’
her bu t chers S o a n e w region n o w w a s ta pped

.
,
the coun t ry t o t he nor t h a cross t he Hudson F or ,

.
some time b a ck I h a d been on t he look ou t for a -
new pl a ce t o move t o Ch a nge of p a s t ure m a ke s .
fat s t eers ; a nd it s some t imes good for a business’
” “
m a n t oo So I go t t o going on t rips ou t Wes t
,
.
,
a s we c a lled i t I would rid e u p nor t h a nd cross

.
over in t o t he region a roun d Cherry V a lley $t h at is

where t he m a ss a cre in t he R evolu t ion a ry W a r by
t hose red s a v a ges t ook pl a ce $ T here I would ge t .
34 TH E B O OK OF D A N I EL DRE W
s i de of the r oad to show th at d r ove r s we r e taken
,
ca r e of t h e r e Th e tavern was a l ong p l ain t w o

.
, ,
story house j ust where the tu r n p i ke c r osses a c r eek

, .
The creek flows down from t h e hi gh hi ll s b a ck of

the inn an d h ad sweet and soft wate r at every
,
season o f t h e yea r The c a t t le used to l i ke th e w a ter

.
in th a t b r ook This w hole va l ley i s as l evel a s a

.
ba r n floo r an d flowing with pastu r es

, .
About n i ne miles furthe r along from Mi ddle

bu r gh was an inn k ept by young B r om S cutt at a ,
pl a ce called L ivingstonville He h ad a sign p a inted .
“
an d h ung u p Drovers Ho l m , $The r e used to ’
be a saying a roun d th at t h at sign wasn t spel l ed ,

’
right ; but we d r overs never set much sto r e by spel

ling ; we were a migh ty sight mo r e pa r ticul ar a bout
good feed an d w a ter i n the past ur e back of the tav
ern than fo r good s pelling o n the sign board in
,
-
front of the tavern $ F rom the r e we d go on t o .

’
P r es t on s Hollow a nd C a iro Th en to C a tskill on

’
.
the Hudson R iver Here we d fe rry across a n d .

’
t hen wou l d be on t he N ew York City side of t h e

river $By thus skir t ing close a r ound the C at s kill
.
Mounta i ns w e h ad s a ved miles an d miles in t h e

,
journey from the Moh a wk down and in t o t he H a rlem

valley $ Then when w e were safely on th e e a s t
.
side o f t he Hudson we would vee r in a south e a sterly

,
-
direc t ion into D utchess County There were drovers .

’
ta verns at D ove r Wings Hurd s Corners H a vil a n d s ,

’
,
’
Corners Sodom a nd Somers Th en d ow n int o

, , .
and th r oug h t h e Ha r le m Va ll ey whic h I h ave m en

,
t io n e d befo r e
, an d so ac r oss t h e Ha rl e m R ive r by
t h e K i ng s B r idge O nce ac ross the King s B ri dge
’
.
’
it was b u t a d ay s t r avel down Manh attan I sl an d

’
to Ne w York .
T WAS a bout this time in my li fe that I got
m a rried — t o a n estim a ble young l ady in
my home coun ty F or though my d rover
.
,
trips were n o w t a king m e fa r a fi e ld I didn t cut ,

’
loose from Pu t n a m Coun t y al t oge t her Win t e r .
time would find me b a ck home Yo u can t d r ive

.
’
cattle in the win t er t ime The h ard ro a ds and

.
sh a rp ice would m a ke t hem hoof sore very q uick

-
.
F or drovers win t er t im e is res t t ime $F or t h at

,
.
m at ter midsummer is a lso a b a d t ime for t he drove r

business because in very h o t we a ther a drove of
,
c a ttle would sweat poun ds of good fa t o ff their

fl a n ks before you d get t hem a cross even o n e county $
’
.
F or drovers spring t ime a n d fa ll a re t h e fa vour a ble

season s S o every w in t er woul d find me b a ck
.
in C a rmel doing wh at I could at od d j obs to earn

,
my bo a rd until the ro a ds th a wed out a g a in i n the

,
spring .
Win t er w a s the t ime for socie ty a ffa irs in Carmel .
I never w a s much of a h a n d for socie ty being mo r e ,
fit t ed to size up a cri tt er a nd buy him at a good figu re

t h an I w a s to m a ke much of a shine in soci a l ci rcles .
S t ill I knew h o w t o sp a rk the girls O f a win t er s

,
.
’
3 6
n i ght at Ca r me l we used to h ave h i gh old t im es at

sleigh rides a n d the mite s ocieties T h en the r e .
—
we r e t h e p a r ing bees w e used to cal l t h em ap p l e
-
“
cuts an d the singing school n u t cracking p a r ties -
—
, ,
can dy pulls-
wh a t not ? I was ra t herish slow at
getting started o ff to o n e of these shindigs B ut .
once there a nd i nto the thick o f it I coul d c arry ,
my p art with any o f them There w a s an ap p l e .
c u t one night th a t I remember a s well a s I do my

“
ow n name We were pl aying the g a me Wink
.
an d follow Aft er a while my turn c a me to be It

. .
“
I caught o n e of the girls a n d said : La ura now I ve ,
’
”
got yo u S h e looked me str a ight in the eyes and
.
“
said : D a n you re n o t going t o kiss me unless
,
’
”
you r e stronger th a n I be And I know you be
’
. .
I w a s When it would come t ime for th e refresh

.
ments I used to step forw a rd and help pass t h e

,
fried c a ke new cider apples a nd hickory nu t s

, , ,
fine as anything .
Well as I started to s a y I got m a rried I t was

, , .
mo r e o r less t his way My brother Tom two years .

,
befo r e h ad ma r ried one of the Mead girls who

, ,
lived ove r o n Turk s Hill $j us t below where Se t h’
Howe built his fine home wi t h t hose i mi t a t ion

a ni mals — I t hin k I ve wrote a bou t it fur t her b a ck $
’
.
Thei r fathe r w a s a farm l a bou rer This Abigail .
Mead my brother s wife h a d a sister w h o w a s

,
’
younger j ust a s I w a s younger t h a n my b ro t he r

,
Tom Her n a me was R ox a n a

.
— R oxana Mead .
3 8 THE B OOK OF D A N I EL DRE W
$ Th at s where
’
t he n a me Mead H a ll a t D rew ,
Theologic a l S em i n ary comes from Th at s my , .

’
wife s picture in the H a ll But I m ge t ting a he a d

’
.
’
of my story $ Wh a t more n at ural th a n t h at I a nd

.
,
Roxan a should get acq uainted When your brother .
has got a wife and th a t wife h a s go t a sis t er there

, ,
a re going to be no end o f ch ances for you and t h a t

sis t er to get to know each other And t o make a .
,
l ong story short we up an d mar r ied She w a s , .
tall So was I F olks s a id w e m a de a fin e looking

. .
-
pai r a s we stood side by side t o be yoked toge t he r

by the preacher .
I am sorry to s a y th at I h a d lost my religion du r

ing these drover days I t s h a rd a nyhow for a .
’
, ,
cattle dealer to keep religion He is a w a y from .
home too much D u r ing t hese d a ys I w a s alw a ys

.
on the go — never w a s o n e of your l a zy bones ; -
bet t er t o we a r o u t shoes th an sheets was my mo tt o ,

.
An d when yo u re aw a y from home yo u get sort of

’
c a reless like Yo u h aven t got your o w n people

-
.
’
aroun d t o kind of keep yo u str a igh t ened u p More .
th an t h at it is h a rd to keep religion when you

,
h aven t a ny one ch urch to go t o I n th ese d a ys I

’
.
was scurrying from pill a r t o post sleeping o ut ,
doors o r in b a rns fa rmhouses s t r a nge ta verns, ,
where no t ? And t he upsho t w a s I by a nd by ,
d rift ed from t he me a ns o f grace I b a ck .
slided .
B ut I didn t slip back so fa r a s t o be unmindfu l

’
of my l ost cond i t i on Now and then I wou l d .
feel some mov i ngs o f t h e sp ir it when I wou l d

pass a burying lot particul a rly i f i t was at
,
night The wh i t e stones would st a nd o u t so ghost

.
like i t would some t imes m a ke me clu t ch the bri dle

,
to keep from sh ivering An d the o l d words I .
h a d he a rd so often in meeting would ring in my ,
ea r s
Hark from t he t ombs a doleful soun d ;

,
Mine e a rs a ttend t he cry .
Ye living men com e view the groun d

, ,
Whe r e you must shortly lie .
An d you mine eyes loo k down a n d view

, ,
The hollow g a ping tomb ,

.
This gloomy prison w a i t s for you

”
Whene er the summon s comes
’
.
At such times I a ccounted myself a mort a l worm ,
fallen from gr a ce a n d open t o all the bolts a nd fie ry

,
da r ts of h eaven F rom w hich it c a n be seen th a t

.
,
t hough I no longer h a d the joy whic h first I felt ,
but h a d los t t he w i t ness o f my a dop t ion never ,
t h ele s s t he spiri t w a s not entirely q uenched

within me Accordingly when a r eviv a l broke
.
,
out in C a rmel a t a bou t the t ime o f w hich I a m

now w ri t ing I went The sermon t h at night
, .
was powerful se a rching even t o the divi ding ,
asun de r o f the joints a nd m a rrow An d befo re .

the meeting came to an en d I was won d r ous ly ,
saved .
Glory t o God who t reads the sky ,
An d sends his blessings th r ough ;

Who tells his sain t s o f joys o n high ,
”
And gives a taste below $
I tell yo u t h ough I m not muc h on singing myself

,
’
I swung in o n the rest o f th at hymn
Glo ry to God who stoops his th r one ,
Th at dust an d worms may see i t ;

And bri ngs a glimpse of g l o ry d own
”
Around his s a cred feet .
Besides it w a s a help in business fo r me t o

,
be back among the church people ; bec a use being ,
mar ri ed now I w a nted t o kin d o f set t le down at

,
C a rmel But there were a numbe r o f farmers the r e

.
a bouts w h o were cold shouldering m e s a ying I -

,
owed them for c a lves a n d steers And a s t hey we r e .
for t he mos t part church people I w a s gl a d to get ,
religion once more and b e t a ken back into good

company .
Now I beg a n t o be a pe r son of con s eq uence in

t he community I was mar r ied I w a s b a ck in
. .
t he ch urch And wh at is more I w a s a man o f

.
, ,
money I n fa ct a s to mo n ey I was piling i t u p

.
, ,
pretty fast these days F o r New York seemed to .

O R M E RLY drovers i nto N ew Yo r k C i ty h a d
t o take t heir d roves to the ol d B ull s Head ’
which w a s o n the Bowery La ne not fa r ,
from whe r e t he Bowery The at re s ta nds There .
'
t he butchers from the s ta lls down on F ulton S tree t

would meet t he drovers coming into town and buy
t heir s t ock .
But there w a s a bu t cher by the name of Astor

Henry As t or h is n a me w a s who got into the h a bit
, ,
whenever a drover would be repor t ed a s coming

in t o town of leaving h is b ro t her butchers t ippling
,
“ ”
a t t he Bowery Bull s Head skip ou t t h rough
’
the b a ck door of t he t a vern moun t his horse ride , ,
up t he Bowery R o a d a n d meet t he d rove before

,
i t got down t o where the o t her bu t chers were w a i t ing .
As t or would s t op t he drove a nd pick o u t t he prime

beeves before a ny o n e else h a d a ch a nce at them .
By a n d by t he o t her bu t chers go t on t o h is t rick a n d

a lso beg a n t o ride u p to t he Bowery to mee t t he
”
herds I n t his w a y a new Bull s He a d w a s es ta b
.
’
l is h e d w a y out on t he Boston R o a d where Twenty

, ,
“
six t h Stree t now is $The Bos t on R o a d is now
.
“
Third Avenue $ By my t ime t his new Bull s
.
’
42
’
He a d h ad go t to be the catt l e ma r ket the dr ove r s ,
he a dq u arters fo r t h e city .
—
Hen ry Asto r I got to know him well — was
o n e o f th e mos t th riving b a t chers in t he ci ty He .
was a German He h a d come over in the Re v o l u

.
t io n a r War a s a su tl er following the Hessi an Troops

y .
His b r other John J a cob As t or came over a litt l e

, ,
late r ; and Hen ry starte d him in bus i ness as a ped

d l e r o f knickkn a cks among the tr a ding sloops th at
were tied u p at the W h arves I t w a s in this w a y .
,
I guess th at Joh n J a cob got in with the fu r t r ade r s

, ,
a n d late r m ade a peck o f money ; so th a t h is s o n

gave the Asto r L ibr a ry there a lit t le below where ,
my Bull s He a d t a vern w a s loc a ted B u t this

’
.
is getting a head of my story .
As I w a s driving my herd down th rough the

H a rlem v a lley one d a y I go t to thinking how a nxious
,
Henry Astor alw a ys w a s t o get fa t c a ttle $I worked .
the scheme o n a ny number of t he Ne w York butche r s

a s time went on s o it will be understood th at
,
I m n o w t a king Astor merely as a ty pe bec a use he

’
is one of the best known bu t chers o f t h a t time and

-
because I got to know him perh a ps be tt er th an I

di d t he o t hers $ As I w a s ri ding a long suddenl y
.
,
I hit upon the idea And wi t h me to thin k o f

.
,
d oing a thing mean s t o begin to do it .
We came o n a long t he B ronx R ive r by o l d man

\Vil l i a m s s bridge a n d a c ross Gun Hill R o a d which
’
w a s deep an d he a vy almost a s he a vy I reckoned , ,

a s the t i me when the c a nnons sun k on th a t hill up
to the h ubs and Gener a l Geo rge Washington h ad
to le a ve them to the B ri t ish Then c r ossing the .
H a rlem on the K ing s B ridge I brought the drove

’
over to Ha r lem Village on the easterly side o f the

I sl a n d a bout where Third Avenue now c r osse s
,
1 2 5 t h S t r eet
. Th e re I pu t u p fo r the nigh t si nce ,
there w a s a good i nn wi t h several pastu r e lo t s along

side in th at village I told my cattle boys to turn
,
.
in early an d get a good sleep fo r w e w ould be in ,
Ne w York City on the morrow .
Th at night when all the r est were as l eep

,
— the
cattle boys used to sleep in the ba r n o n the h ayloft
I went out to the drove in the pastu r e alongsi de
the tavern an d emptied sacks o f s alt on the g r oun d
, ,
sc a t t e r ing it so every c r itter co ul d get some Then .
I s a w that al l the bars we r e tight I didn t want .

’
any of them to get out a nd d r ink I l l e xplain w h y .

’
when I get along a li tt le fu r the r People h ave .
“
he a rd tell o f t he expression wa t ered stock th at
, ,
is used in W a ll S t reet This is where t h at th e r e

.
W a ll S t r eet term c a me from So I w a n t t o w rite it

.
down in p r oper order .
After t he cattle h a d been well s a lted an d the bars

a ll s a fe a n d t igh t I turned in and went asleep N ext
, .
morning I got up good and early D idn t need a ny .

’
one t o wake me The c att le were lowing long befo r e

.
t he sun w a s up a s though they wanted some t hin g

,
o r othe r almighty b a d By the tim e I got d ownst a i r s

.
a c o uple o f catt l e b oys we r e up an d gett i ng r ea d y

to l et d ow n t h e ba r s to lea d t h e m o ut t o wate r
, .
”
Hey there w h at a r e you l ou ts do ing ? I ca ll e d
, ,
o ut. Put up those b a r s right away an d b r ing b ack

”
th at c r itter you ve let out ’
.
“ ” “
B u t boss sai d o n e of the m they r e choked ’
, , ,
”
for w ater .
“
Wh at if they a r e s a id I Would you poison .
these c r itters by giving them wate r they aren t ’
u sed t o ? These catt l e are fres h from t h e c o untry .
T h is here is an is l an d sur ro unded by the s alt sea .
The water here isn t wh at it is u p country We

’
.
m ust get them used to t h is new regi o n fi r st I gues s .
I know my business No t o n e o f these c ri tte r s gets

.
a smitch o f wate r until I give the wo r d D ye hea r ? .

’
G0 n o w ; get a bite of feed and we ll start fo r the

’
”
city.
T h us I kept the d r ove from wate r ; an d as soon

as b r eakfast was ove r st arted them along t he turn
,
p i ke At the sa m e time I sent wo r d ahe a d by a

.
r ide r to Henry Asto r telling hi m th at I was coming

,
w i th some prime catt l e an d fo r him t o meet me at

”
the B ull s Head about noon We trudged a long
’
.
,
go ing slow ; it w a s ho t a s musta r d an d I di dn t ,

’
want to swe a t any meat o ff my critters .
—
Below Yo r kville t h a t s t he village tha t used t o be
’
ove r on t he Boston R oad a bout whe r e E igh ty sixth -
—
,
Street n o w crosses ir w a s a litt l e stre a m c a lled

the S aw K ill with a bridge crossin g i t I t wa s
-
, .
THE B O OK OF D ANI EL DRE W
“
c a lled K iss i ng B ridge because couples w a lk i n g ,
out th a t w ay used to k iss whenever they ca m e to

the bridge I t w a s a recognized custom Th e
. .
b r idge i t self was below Yorkville not fa r from where ,
S eventy seventh S t reet n o w cuts th rough It was a

-
.
low stone bridge a nd h ardly to be told from the road

,
i tself B ut I guess young sparks a n d their sweet

.
h ea r ts never failed to know when they were crossing it .
Well by the ti me the cat t le got to that stream on

, ,
the drive down from Harlem Village they were ,
all fire d thi rsty The cattle boys too w e r e gla d

-
.
, ,
to see the w a ter $We used to c a ll these boys .
“ ”
ankle be a ters because they h ad orders when they
,
were bea t ing t he c a ttle n o t to strike any higher th a n

the an kle for fe a r of b ruising the flesh a n d making
,
it unsound for m a rket $ The boys h ad been feel .
ing fo r th e poor su ffering critters an d now were, ,
laying o u t to give them a good long d r ink Bu t , .
I h ad othe r fish to fry I rode b a ck t o whe r e they .
were I n t a king a drove a long th e turnpike I u sed

.
to ride ahead t o pick o u t the ro a d le a ving the boys ,
to follow behin d wi t h the ca tt le I s a id to them : .
“
Boys line u p along the ro a d t here by t he b ridge
, ,
or t hose crit t ers will get o ff a w a y from you .
“ ”
O h t hey ll be a ll right piped up one o f t he
’
, ,
“
lads . They smell t he w at er a lre a dy an d will ,
”
m a ke for it without any help from u s .
“
Make for nothing $ s a i d I I knew how to .
put comman d in my t one when it w a s herd boys I ,

-
was dealing with I don t want on e o f those crit

.
’
’
te r s to get to th at t h ere b rook D i d n t yo u hea r .
’
m e tell you th i s mo r n i ng about t h e poison th at s
in this s a lt a ir an d this isl a n d wate r to c r itters that ,
—
h ave been raised in fresh w at e r regions Not a drop
do they ge t an d pe l t them wi t h dirt c l ods if you ve
,
’
”
got to Get t hem ove r the b r idge dry shod
.
-
.
They minded me They had to They h a d . .
seen me pl aste r mud all over a stee r when he didn t ’
go to suit me an d they knew I cou ld do it to them

, ,
too i f th ey di dn t min d I got t h e d r ove over t h e

,
’
.
bridge high and d ry Pretty soon we were at the .
”
B u l l s Head ’
I told the boys to take the c a tt l e
.
into the pastu r e pen t h a t w a s b ack o f the tavern ,
whe r e the well was Then I went a roun d in front .
t o the tap roo m as soon as I h ad put my horse

-
,
out to look fo r Asto r He wasn t come yet so I

, .
’
went in to dinne r Then I waite d fo r hi m on the .
stoop in front of t h e tavern alongs i de the Boston ,
R oad Pretty soon I saw him come up the turn

.
pi ke r iding his horse I got u p an d shook hi m

, .
by the h and .
“
Go t my message I s e e s a id I a s he was ge tt ing , , ,
“
o ff his horse You know whom t o come to when
.
you w a nt prime stock

“
Well s a id he , I don t know a s I m b uying ’ ’
—
.
much to d a y Marke t s migh ty poor B ut t hough t

.
’
.
I wou l d r ide u p for friendship s sake an d take a ’
,
”
lo o k at you r critte r s $Being a G e rm an h e spoke .
,
crooked E nglish I t w a s curious to he a r him I
. .
wish I could set it down here t he w a y he spoke i t $ .
I w a s in hopes he d go into t he tap room and t ake

’
-
something Bec a use when you re barg a ining wi t h

.
’
a man it s always easier if he s go t something inside

’ ’
.
F o r then he t a kes a rosy V iew of things an d doesn t

’
stop to h aggle over pennies Ge t a le inside o f a .
man it makes him speak a s he thinks B ut Asto r

, .
w ouldn t t a ke any t hing He only asked the l a n d

’
.
lo r d for a drin k o f w a ter Then I s a w t h at I h ad .
an uphill job on my h an ds I w a s glad th at he hadn t .

’
come in a gig an d brough t h is wife a long b ec a use ,
then I d have ha d two of them ag a ins t me ; an d Hen

’
Astor s wife D oro t hy w a s a money ma ker j ust

’
, ,
-
,
like h imself She used to help him in the slaugh t er

.
house doing u p butcher s small me a ts

,
— th at is ’
the tongue liver kidneys an d such like ; she helped

, ,
m a ke him t he rich m a n t h a t he got t o be a fter a

while I knew th at with Hen Astor by himself I
.
w a s goi ng to h a ve my h a nds full B u t I w e n t to .
it wi t h a will I a sked him to w a it for me a minu t e

.
while I s t epped ou t to s e e if my ho r se w a s being fed .
Wi t h t his a s a n excuse I skippe d a roun d to ,
where my c att le boys were I s a i d “

My l a ds I .
$
guess those cri tt ers a re used t o the clim at e by t his

time a n d c a n now drin k in s a fe ty B uckle to a n d
,
.
give them a ll t he w at er t hey c a n d rink .
You should h a ve seen t hem ge t t o work C att le .
boys ge t re a l fon d o f t heir crit t ers A d rover likes .

5 0 TH E B OOK OF D A N I EL DRE W
“
I m not s o very chi r py he grumbled
’
Ho w, .
are you
“
F ine a s a fiddle s a id I ; , a nd wh a t s a iling ’
”
you ?
“
All kinds of troubles he went on The life
, .
o f a c a ttle butcher D an isn t wh at it used to be ’
, , .
There are s o m a ny in t he business now a d a ys And .
housewives come to my st a ll there in th e F ul t on

Mar k et an d buy my best meats — top slices no ,
second cuts fo r them and then when I o r D oro ,
thy go to see them they won t p a y their bills And

,
’
.
the stall is getting so crowded the h ucksters a n d ,
s a lad women h a ve been signing a p a per a gains t

me because they say I ve built my st a ll across t h e
, , ,
’
w h ole en d o f the market and h ave crowded them ,
out unde r the e a ves where they re exposed t o the

,
’
sun and weather I m a licensed victu a ller

.
’
— I
guess I ve got some r ights there And then too
’
.
, ,
th e city fathers these d a ys a r e getting so pernickety .
Yo u remember t he m a rket used to be on M a iden

L a ne —
ir w a s built over a running stre a m t h a t
w a s used a s a ci ty sewer Very h a ndy fo r us .
,
because we could d rop t he swill and such like rl gh t

th rough a hole in t he floor B ut t he Ci ty Bo a rd .
didn t do a ny t hing else but talk everl a stingly a bou t

’
‘
n a useous a nd pes t ilenti a l v a pours a n d kep t it up ,
’
t ill w e moved the m a rket up onto F ul t on S t ree t .
An d now t hey re ge tting more pernickety s t ill

’
.
Why D a n since the small p o x c a me they are get t i ng

, ,
-
TH E B OOK OF D A N I EL DRE W 5 1
so they won t a llow o u r hogs to ru n i n the st r eets

’
”
any l onger .
”
Hein rich Astor $ said I $he liked to be ca l led
“
by h is German name$; wh at won t they be orde r ’
ing nex t ? Pigs in the s t reet are t he best scavengers

a ci ty can h ave You mark wh at I tel l you Hen ;
.
,
if they shut the pigs up th e gutters will get so ful l ,
of slops an d stu ff there won t be any living insi de

,
’
the ci ty limi t s Why i t would take a herd of swin e

—
,
.
to cle a n up wh at your slaughter houses alone d ump

”
into t he street .
“
There you are a gain h e broke i n He w a s , .
“
get t ing riled up That fussy o l d boa r d o f c i ty
.
fat hers h a ve gone and p a ssed anothe r ordin ance ,
th a t butchers mustn t empty any more r efuse i n ’
t he street gutte r s So now w e h ave to ca r t the b l oo d

.
and guts way ove r to the r ive r I d like to know how .

’
dogs to say nothing of the hogs are going to get a

, ,
living inside the ci ty limits if this sort o f thing keeps ,
on . An d without dogs where woul d we be at night , ,
Why j ust the othe r d ay a farm bel o w me o n t h e

,
”
Bowery R oad lost no en d o f chickens by the foxes .
“
Th at loss o f poul t ry wi ll m a ke more c a ll for
” “
cow me a t said I ; a n d Hen be tween yo u and
, , ,
me I ve brought you some of the fittest beeve s

,
’
this trip th a t eve r set foot on Manh at t an I sl and .
”
We ll step out an d t a ke a look if you say so
’
I , .
knew by t his time th at the boys would be th r ough

with the w a te r ing S o w e went o u t . .
S u r e enough when we got out into th e pastu r e
, ,
you couldn t s e e a sign o f a water p a il An d the re

’
-
.
,
as plump an d fat looking a s a m a n ever s a w stood

-
,
the critters I noticed o ut o f the tail o f my eye

.
that Asto r go t interested all to once .
“
There are two or th ree good sized ones in the -
” “
bunch he rem a rked
, I suppose you w a nt t o
.
sell the drove at a lump sum I w a sn t c a lcul at ing .

’
o n buying any stock to day B ut seeing it s you ’

-
,
.
I might be a ble to m a ke an o ffe r for t h e drove as a

”
whole say at so much a critte r
, .
“ “
No said I they go by t he poun d this trip
, , , .
P r ime cattle such as these take a sight o f time an d

fodder to fatten I ve h a d to get this herd together
.
’
o n e at a time the very best from a hund red fa rms

, .
”
B ut it s wor t h t he pains I added when a fellow
’
, ,
can bring to m a rket a drove like t his He punched .
his thumb into two or th ree o f t he cri t ters a nd ,
foun d them firm and solid .
“ ”
Toler a ble good s a id he t oler a ble good
, , .
B ut I m a feare d most o f them will be t ough I

’
.
su ppose though I could use them up for soup mea t

, ,
.
Tell you what I ll do I ll give you t wo a n d a

’
.
’
q u a rter a poun d j us t a s they s ta nd and fo r o n e or ,
”
all .
I said th a t t he figure I h a d se t fo r t his d rove was

four cen t s He gave a snort a n d st a rted tow a rds
.
the t avern as t hough disgusted I didn t make a ny .

’
move to c a ll him back ; I knew th at when a butcher

fin d s wh at he thin ks to be a drove of fat cattle he ,
i sn t going to giv e u p at the first c r ack He likes the

’
.
thought of a n ice fa t c a rc a ss h a nging from the

,
hooks at his stall in the m a rket S o p r e tty soon .

, ,
back he came .
“ ”
D onne r an d Himmel $ he exclaimed an d he ,
“
was re d in the face Yo u drovers take us t owns
.
people fo r sucke r s I l l give you t w o an d a h alf

.
’
an d not a speck more Yo u can take it o r le a ve .
i t Any h ow I m expecting another d r ove r in from

.
,
’
L ong I slan d next week a n d only came up to d a y ,

”
to j ust kin d of look around .
I met him by coming down h alf a cent I h adn t .

’
thought fo r a minute th at I could get the four cent -
price I h a d n a med I h ad mentioned t h at figu r e

.
in o r de r to h ave something to back away from ,
when w e got down to business Yo u must a sk .
m uch t o get a little .
He snorted o ff once mo r e ; but he didn t get so ’
fa r thi s time .Tw o an d th r ee q u a rters said ,
“
h e co mi ng b ack
, An d there isn t a cent in it
.
’
”
fo r me at that figure so help me Gott $ ,
I told hi m the very best I could do was t h ree and a

q uarter and only made i t th a t figure because he w a s
,
willing to take the whole d r ove “

I t s t he bene at h .
’
e n e s t price I eve r saw o ffered for choice stock such

” “
as th e se sai d I
, I t costs money Hen to pu mp
.
, ,
c o r n into a heife r un t il her loi n s st a nd out like the

”
h a ms on a hog .
54 TH E B OOK OF D A N I EL DRE W
He b ac k ed away We dickered a spell longe r
. .
F in ally we h it o n a flat th r ee cent price The cattle-

.
we r e driven o n the scales $They weighed up fine

.
,
as you can believe $ He p aid ove r the money an d

—
,
.
took them o ff down to his sla ughte r pen not fa r from ,
the Bowery I was happy an d he went o ff h appy

.
, ,
too Because a butche r likes to get heavy critte r s

. .
To be sure they cost him more but fa t beef in a ,
butcher s stall goes like hot cakes whe r e stringy

’
j oints wouldn t sell at all S o it w a s wh at I c a ll a

’
.
good bargain seeing th at both of u s were pleased

,
.
It can be seen now wh a t a lucky thought i t was fo r

me — th a t s a lting device The s a lt cost but a few
.
pennies a bag and by me a ns o f it nigh on t o fifty

,
poun ds h ad been ad ded to the selling weight of eve ry

critte r in the drove — a full grown critter will -
drink th at weight o f w at er if you get her good an d

thirs ty Thus I took in a s my p rofits on this t r i p
.
a s fine a penny as a m a n could ask .

F E L T so ri ch fr om my stock wate r ing dea l -
” “
th at I stayed at the B ull s Head tavern ’
a spel l An d a d ay o r two a fte r the business

.
,
with As t o r I sta r ted d own to the c i ty to see about

,
getting a new sadd l e My old o n e w a s so worn .
th at th e s t u fli ng w a s coming out ; fo r a l though I ,
h ad been making m oney fo r so m e years b ack I ,
h adn t felt l ike spen ding any more of it th an I could

’
help My i dea i n those days was : Bette r a hen

.
t o morrow th an an eg g to d a y
-
S m al l s avings if -
.
,
o u keep them u l ong enough mean big s avings

y p ,
b y an d by I f a fe ll ow i s going to be r ich h e must

.
,
g et money wo r king fo r him ea r ly in life A swa r m .
o f bees in May i s wo r t h a load o f h ay ; but a swa rm
in July isn t wo r t h a fly
’
.
Now howeve r I felt r ich enough to a fford a new

, ,
s addle S o I mounted my m a re a n d st a rted down

.
to N ew York I Went by the Bowe ry L a ne I h a d

. .
to Th a t was the only r oad into the city in those

.
d ays I knew th at i t would take me p ast Hen As t or s

.
’
h o use an d I h ad fe l t it would be best not to see

,
h i m fo r a spell if I could help it B ut the r e w a sn t

, .
’
an
y othe r w a
y i nto the city The B r oad W a y .
,
55
5 6 TH E B O OK OF D A N I EL DRE W
which i s now the m a in thoroughfa re right th r ough
the middle of the isl a nd h a dn t been laid o u t then
,
’
.
The place where th a t r oad now r uns w a s swamp

”
a n d low l a n d t he L is p e n a rd Me a dows we
called it A farme r w h o bought a tr a ct o f i t w a s
.
joshed a good de a l his fr ien ds a ll s a ying it would

,
be a good fa rm fo r ra ising a fine crop of frogs S o .
I r ode bold ly down the Bowery La ne .
But j ust before I got to Henry s pl a ce I thought ’
bette r of the matter and tu r ned o ff to the right ac r oss ,
l ots I foun d a l a ne there th at led into the me a dows

.
,
these being dry enough this time o f the yea r fo r

s a fe w a l king for the horse The B r oad W a y by
.
this time h a d run up from the city a l ittle beyon d

an d ac r oss the stre a m whe r e C a n a l Street now is .
$ C a n a l Street got its n a me when they dug out th at

st r eam an d made a good sized c a n a l the r e in orde r
-
,
to dr a in the swamp an d th e Collect Pond j ust above

Ci ty Hall Park $ I c a lculated o n reaching this roa d
.
a cross lots and then following it down into the city

,
.
It took me some time to re a ch it bec a use I h a d t o ,
wind in a nd out t o dodge the wa t er holes B ut I got -

.
o u t onto t he B ro a d W a y ro a d a t l a st Then I was .
all righ t ; fo r in d ry we at her it w a s from here o n a

good tho r oughfa re i nto the city — a lmost as h a rd
a n d s a fe in fa ct a s the Bowery R oad It c r ossed
, ,
.
the C a n al Street B rook on a low stone bri dge Just .
beyond was the Stone B ridge T a vern I knew the .
l oc a lity because aroun d th i s tave r n was a ho r s e

,
n a me that used t o be given t o Sou t h Willi a m S t reet
I h a ppened to look b a ck a n d spied hi m a h urrying -
a fte r to c at ch up with me He must h ave seen me .
cut across lots to dodge going by h is house ; o r

m a ybe he h ad come over from his stall at the F ulton
Market onto Wall Street and h ad ch a nced t o spy ,
me At any rate the r e he w a s a following afte r

.
, ,
-
.
I didn t want to meet him j ust then and there ; I

’
could see th at he w a s in a temper So I turned the .
corner into Willi a m S treet and stepped in t o a tav ,
e r n th at w a s not fa r down t he street I guess I .
wasn t q uick enough ; for a minute or two l at e r

’
As t or c a me in t he front door a lso .
“ ”
Hey yo u s a id he busting in th rough t he doo r
, , ,
“ ”
a nd pu ffi ng h a rd Yo u t a m n e d D a n D re w
, $Hen .
As t or s E nglish w a s more crooked th a n ever when

’
“
he w a s excited $ I v a nt to speak yust o n e word
mi t you you ,
B ut I didn t w a it I t never p a ys to argue w ith a

’
.
m a n when h e s exci t ed a nd Hen now was very

’
r ed in the fa ce ; I s a w a t a gl a nce t h a t he w a s in no ,
s ta te of mind to t a lk a m at ter ove r c a lmly S o I .
h urried o n t h rough t he t a vern a nd out by the b a ck

door There I cu t over on t o t he o t her s t ree t th rough
.
a l a ne before he could s ee which w ay I wen t a n d ,
s o lost him .
I decided aft er t hin king t he m a tter over t h a t I

, ,
wouldn t s t ay in t he ci ty t o get a s a ddle t his trip

’
,
a ft er a ll S o I wen t back t o my m a re unhi t ched

.
,
h er and w a s soon back to the B ull s Head s a fe

,
’
,
an d sound Then I r ode away to Putn a m County

.
for another d r ove of c a ttle .
“
The s aying selling w a tered stock h a s now got
, ,
to be wel l known in the fin a nci a l world S o I ve

-
.
’
w rote dow n in this pape r about th e a ff a ir o f s al t ing

my critte r s Some time l ater I became a n oper a tor
.
in the N ew York Stock E xchange ; I hung out my

s h ingle on B road S t reet An d the scheme w a s even
.
more p r ofitable with ra ilroad stocks If a fellow .
can make money selling a critter j ust afte r she h as

d r un k up fifty pounds o f wate r w hat can t he make ,
’
by issuing a lot of new sh a res of a railro a d or steam

boa t comp a ny an d then selling this j ust as though
,
i t w a s the origin al sh ares ? But fo r this d rover

time in my life these smalle r p rofits seemed migh ty
,
big.
F or I didn t let the s a lting sche m e rest wi t h only

’
the one tri a l After I got b ack to Putn am County

.
I lost no ti me in getting a no t her d rove t ogether

and hu r rying it b a ck t o the ci ty Astor didn t c a re .
’
to buy o f me th is second tri p N ot th a t he kep t .
mad for a ny leng t h o f t ime He w a s t he kind of .
a fellow t o cool o ff a ft er a few weeks O n t his .

,
my next trip to the city I found him a s civil as I

,
could wish B u t he wouldn t buy my c att le

.
’
m a de
a n umbe r of excuses He showed h is friendly spirit
.
,
however by in t roducing me to one of his fellow

,
butchers in the F ulton Market ; so t h a t on t he present

60 THE B OOK OF D A N I EL DRE W
tri p I de a lt with this other butche r I n fa ct I
.
,
found th a t the stock watering p l an whi l e a money

-
,
make r h ad certain dr a wbacks Bec a use fr om now

,
.
o n it compelled me to deal with a di f f erent butche r

’
most every trip But th a t wasn t so b a d as it
,
’
might seem F o r there were lots o f butche r s in the

.
city ; an d in most c a ses I found that the butche r

I d dealt with the l a st time w a s wi l ling to introd uce
’
me to o n e of his competitors a s a drove r that h andled

,
choice stock I t oo k in profits with a big sp oo n

. .
Y THI S an d othe r devices one way or anothe r , ,
I h ad by t h is time got to be to l er a ble well

off I n fact I h ad become known as o ne
.
o f the ri c h est drove r s th at brought catt l e to t h e

New Yo r k market When therefo r e not long afte r
.
, , ,
“
the B ull s He a d tave r n foun d i tsel f wit h out a
’
proprietor wh a t more natural t h an that I shou l d

,
step in and take the position ? I h adn t h ad any ’
experience as a n inn keeper ; but I d h ad no en d

-
’
of dealings with inn keepers And I r eckoned th at

-
.
a man w h o could make money taking care of d rove s ,
cou l d also make money taking care of drovers S o .
I dicke r ed with the people in ch a r ge an d got the ,
place I l eft Putn a m County a nd moved down to

.
”
the B ull s Head’
.
By t h is ti me there w a s a little settlement gro wing

“
u p aroun d th e t avern known a s B ull s He a d
,
’
”
Village . My tave r n w a s the centre o f this village .
So t h a t although we were some miles o u t from the

,
ci ty w e we r e never lonely fo r a minute It w a s

,
.
the cent r e of the New York live stock market D ro -

.
“ ”
vers c a me to the B ull s He a d from York St a te
’
Connecticut Jersey and L ong I sl a nd bringing thei r

, , ,
61
d roves with them Aroun d my t a vern there wer e
.
cattle pens for the care o f fifteen hundred head of

cattle a t once There is nothing bu t the horse
.
market there now to show what the pl a ce used t o

be New York s c a ttle yards h a ve moved sin ce
.
’
”
then They moved from the B ull s Head first
.
’
u
p to F orty second-
S t reet ; then to N inety fourth -
Street ; an d now they a re moving over to Jersey

City B ut in my time there w a sn t a minute in
.
’
the d ay when you couldn t hear there the moo of a ’
heifer the bleat of a lamb o r the neigh o f a ho r se

, , .
Pretty soon a sl a ughter house w a s built across the -
post ro a d a n d below the l a ne which is n o w 2 6t h

-
Street Here and t here a lso were little houses fo r the

.
, ,
hired men t o live in There w a s a store fo r groceries

.
and gener a l merch a ndise All in all q uite a vill a ge .

,
w a s growing up a round the pl a ce An d I as propri .

,
”
etor of the B ull s He a d w a s the king pin of it a ll
’
,
-
.
No t th a t I owned the t a vern Th a t belonged t o .
the Peter L o ril l a rd fa mily They h a d h a d a fa rm .
”
where the Bull s He a d s t ood b a ck in R evolution ary
’
t i mes Gener a l George W a shington st a yed a t the

.
house once a nd too k a me a l of victu a ls t here When .
“
fin ally t he Bull s He a d t a vern w a s built the
’
m a hog a ny t a ble from the L o rill a rd house w a s put

in t o the t a vern as a part o f the furniture When I .
h ad any guests th at I wanted to honou r I would ,
set t hem at th at t a ble for dinner a n d tell them h o w

Gener a l Geo rge Washingt on h a d eaten from it .
Th e tap r o o m of t h e tave r n w a s on the co r ne r

-
.
T hi s was also the o fli c e an d al l a ro und room T h e - .
dining r oom was across the h al l and l o ok ed o u t ,
onto t h e post ro ad w h ich is now Th ird Aven u e

-
,
.
Peop l e eating in the dining r oo m cou ld p ee r o u t

th r ough th e w in dows an d see r iders an d vehic l es
—
passing well nig h all t he ti me because t h is w a s t h e ,
turn p i ke I t w a s t he high roa d to Boston I n

. .
th at d ay all t h e th rough trave l t o N ew Yo r k C i ty

went by my tave r n B ack in my time t h e tavern was
.
seated on a h ill and yo u h ad to g o down in orde r

,
t o reach t he r oad Wh en the city streets were p u t

.
t hroug h this h ill was c u t down an d a gro u n d floo r

,
u t in u nderneath
p .
O u t in the h a ll a wide staircase wi t h a mahogany

,
r ailing led to the second floor U pstai rs the hal l .
ways we r e n ar r ow an d c r ooked A fellow cou l d .
get lost in t hem I n fac t these winding pass ageways

.
,
I m so rry to say were t h e cause of a goo d many

’
,
“ ”
fights The B ull s Head w a s noted fo r i ts fi ne
.
’
”
l iq uo r s such as h ot Tom and Je rry
, tod d y an d -
, ,
such like A drover sta r ting upstai r s fo r bed afte r

.
,
spending h alf t h e night i n the tap room drinking o r -
”
pl aying crack l o o would often get lost u pstairs
-
,
in t rying to fin d his r oom and some t imes would ,
get so tu r ned a r ound th a t he couldn t even fin d his ’
way b ack to t he o fli c e Then from somewh eres in .
a n uppe r h all he d holle r o u t loud enough to wake

’
the dead He d get mad as a D u r h am bu ll He

.
’
.
64 THE B O OK OF D A N I EL D R E W
would call for some one to come and show him wh e r e
he was The sleepers ne ar b y would turn out an d
.
-
cuss hi m fo r making such a noise ; then the fat

would be in the fire Somet i mes instead o f bellow
.
,
i ng fo r help the m a n when he foun d that he w a s

, ,
lost would go into the first room he came to $since

,
w e di dn t h ave keys and locks in those d ays $ swear

’
th at it w a s h is an d set to turn the othe r fellows out

, .
Which would also r esult in a hell r oaring fight -

.
I n t r uth the h al l way s were s o cr o oked that I h ave

,
known o f a perfectly sober man to come downstai r s

of a mo r ning afte r a sight of m u fll e d groans an d
,
swea r word s from somewhe r e upstairs W i pe the

-
,
“
sweat fr om his forehead and o u t with a Mighty ,
L o r d but it s good to get here ; I thought I never

,
’
”
would fin d th at stairway No w and t hen of a night
.
I d h ave a guest arrive at the inn late And then

’
.
I d h av e to light a c a n dle take him upstairs an d

’
, ,
put him in with one o f my boarders This would .
sometimes make the boarder mad He d cuss .

’
around in high fa shion because I h ad n t let him know ’
beforeh a nd who w a s going to be his bedfellow As .
if I could help it t h a t all o f my rooms were full ,
a n d a no t her guest arrived No w and then I used .
t o h a ve a figh t o n my h an ds from t his c a use some ,
of my bo a rders were th a t un reason a ble .
Th e r e was a big whe at fie ld behin d t h e tavern

-
,
an d not far beyond th at a grove of trees Being on .
t he post ro a d picnic p a rties used t o drive out from

-
,
got liq uo r aboa r d he
, s pot va l
’
iant He thinks -
.
he can hi t any m ark at any d istance ; wh ich lea ds

him to pay for no en d of shots th us making mo r e ,
money fo r me w i thout t a king any mo r e of my birds .
So even when in orde r to get a fe ll ow drinking I

, , ,
h ad to give hi m th e stu ff first along without c h arge ,
in th e end it mo r e th an paid These tu r key shoo t s .
we r e p rofitable i n another way also Because if .
t he day w a s a good o n e a lot o f people would come

,
to look on So that besides the fees fo r the sh o ts

.
, ,
I made money from meals s h ed r o o m ho r se feed

, ,
d rinks an d such like

,
.
Th ese s h oots and like a ffai r s we r e held b ack of

“
t he tave r n towa rd s the Winding C r eek as w e ,
called it — C ru m a s s ie Vly in D utch $Th a t s,

.
’
where G r ame r cy Park gets i ts n ame $ This creek .
flowed th r ough the fa rm of Jim D uane and widened ,
out into a pond j ust whe r e Madison Sq ua r e now

is Al o ngside the pond w a s t h e Bloomingdale
.
R o a d $t hat is now the contin uation o f t he B road

“ ”
Way$ A round the B ull s Head vil l age othe r
.
’
se t tlements we r e beginning to sp r ing u p so t h at we ,
h ad neigh bou r s o n a ll si des Not long befo r e .
I c a me t here h a d been a yellow fever scourge

,
in t he Ci ty of New York whic h h a d driven t h e

,
people out t o the suburbs for the summer When .
t he summe r was over and the fever w a s finally

chec ked many of the people li ked it s o well in the
,
o pen co u nt ry th at they st ayed Th us the subu r b s .

TH E B O OK OF D ANI EL DRE W 67
were built up Th ere was a settlement below us

.
” “
on the Boston R oad called Bowery Vil l a g e .
Pete r Cooper kept a grocery store there The .
children used to spen d their pennies with hi m ,
buying ta ffy gingerbre a d a bunch of r aisins o r

, , ,
those round so ur c a ndies th a t l ate r on got the

,
“
name J ackson B a lls
,
Peter s house s t ood whe r e ’
the great Bi ble House n o w is When he moved his

’
home u p to a spot b ack of my tavern on the R uggles

Place a l ongside th e Gramercy Pond he was th at ,
me t hodical h e took his house to pieces marked

, ,
each beam and set i t all up a gain on the new site

,
.
O n anothe r si de from us w a s the fa rm of J ake

K ip alongside the E a st R iver
,
His hous e w a s a big .
double bui l ding made o f bricks brought from ,
Holland I was sorry when it burned down a little

.
wh ile later F u r ther over j ust above us on the

.
,
“ ”
Middle R oad as we called it was Quake r Mur
, ,
ray s summer house set o n a high hill The hill

’
, .
is called after him t o this d ay $Th at s where .

’
C aptain Vanderbilt d ug his wonderful tunnel fo r

the railroad which maybe I will write of l ater o n $
, .
S unfish Pond lay j ust a t the foo t o f t his hill be t ween ,
my place an d Murr a y s Pe t er Cooper h ad his ’

.
glue fac t ory on t h e shores of t his pond and made ,
no en d of money there The pon d w a s a gre a t .
pl a ce for eels an d w a s sure to h a ve some visi t or s

,
from my t a vern whenever a drover would s t ay ,
over a day or two th at is in se a sons when t he fis h ,

ing was good The pon d used to dry up in summe r
. .
Th at wasn t muc h inconvenience to me because

’
i n su m me r I w a s too busy anyhow to go fishing , , .
Wh at fishing I did I h ad to do in the cold season

, ,
“ ”
wh en the B ull s Head wasn t so ful l o f d r ove r s
’ ’
.
The w h ole r egion roundabout was filled wit h

gardens and app l e o r ch a rds Peter S t uyves ant s pea r .
’
tree $the one he br ought from ac ross the ocean $

“
was st i l l stan ding in my day j ust be l ow the B ull s ,
’
”
Head by the side of the Boston R oad A l ong th i s .
r oad a ll the way i nto t h e city si nce i t widened o ut ,

” “
and was called t h e Bowe ry we r e t h e s umme r ,
h omes of r ich New Yorkers O ve r whe r e U nion .
Sq ua r e now is t h e o l d powder house u sed t o stan d

, .
Above th at on the east side of t he B loomingd ale

,
“ ”
R oad was a n eigh bour of mine the B u ck s Ho r n
, ,
’
tave r n It h ad a sign of a b u ck s h ea d and horns

.
’
nailed o nto a post by the side of the ro ad the house ,
being set some distanc e b ack The r e was a ho r se .
shed running out t o the r oad I t was a p ret ty .
good place ; but it didn t h urt me much I h a d ’
my d r overs t r ade a ll to myself Th e B uck s

’
.
’
”
Horn on that side of me and Cato s on the othe r ,
’
side we r e more for fa shion a ble spo r ts on thei r

,
d rives o u t from t he ci ty .
The r e were several fe r ry lines running ove r t o

L ong I sl an d O n e of them w a s a n ingenio u s con
.
t ra p t io n I t h ad paddle wheels worked by six

.
-
ho r ses which walked a round a kind of W in dlass in

,
the cent r e of t h e b oat The t ru c k wa go n s a nd .
passengers wo ul d b e p l aced on t h e d ec k a lo n g t h e
tw o s i des F a r mers an d young wo r k h an ds used
.
to come i nto t h e city fr om L ong Is l and by t hi s fe rry

to ma r ket t h e ir c r ops They a ll p u t u p a t th e
.
“ ”
B ul l s Hea d
’
They we r e good c u st om e r s of
.
m i ne t hese L ong I s l an d fa rm h an ds U s u a lly

,
.
they were gl ad to get to the city li ke a s a ilor to get ,
to po r t About all they t h ough t of was t o h ave a

.
goo d t i me a n d see the s i ghts an d would s wa p t h e ,
fa r m prod uce t h ey h ad fetched w i t h them fo r bo a rd

at my tave r n S o I didn t h av e t o b uy muc h fa r m
.
’
truck for my table These L ong I sland fa r m .
h an ds were good n atu r e d boys an d trustfu l ; they

-
,
left a ll the book keeping t o the h ost Also if t h ey

-
.
,
h a d any money they gave it to me to ta k e c a r e

,
o f for t h em w hil e they we r e see i ng t h e c i ty

, .
I n fact bes id es my wo r k as a tave r n k eepe r I

,
-
,
was a l so at this time a kind of banke r Be c au s e .

,
w i t h a v i llage g r owing u p a r oun d t h e tave r n the r e ,
w a s no othe r p l ace whe r e money could be kept .
“
So a b i g s afe w a s bui l t i nto the wa ll o f the Bul l s ’
”
Head , at t h e r ea r of the tap r oom I t wasn t -
.
’
m u ch l ike t h e ban k safes to day Th i s o ne w a s -

.
j ust a big i ron box wit h dou ble doo r s a n d opened ,
with an ordin ary house key He r e I wou l d p ut -

.
the money th at the peop l e wanted me to take c are

of So m e t i me s I h ad so much of it on h an d t h at I
.
w a s a b l e t o take it dow n t o the b anking h ou ses in

the city and i nvest it there S eeing th at I kept the
.
money fo r my guests I didn t h ave the trou ble

,
’
which some hotel keepers h ave to d ay of people

- -
,
j umping the ir tavern bill When a man would .
h an d me his money to keep I would put it into an ,
—
unse a l ed enve l ope a kind o f open wallet and —
lock it away i n the safe S ince I w a s the only o n e
.
th at h a d the key I thus h ad the fi r st c a ll on t h at

,
money S o i f a m a n got l osing all the money he

.
,
—
h ad an d mo r e too gambling the r e was a b a ck
,
“
r oom upstai r s where crack loo was played and -
,
sometimes d r overs would keep at it all night and

—
late into t he nex t d ay I would see to it when I
h anded him back his money o n his leaving th at ,
his bill to the tavern w a s pai d out first Also if .

,
there was any dispute ove r the size of his bill I ,
w a s i n position to carry my point B ut we didn t ’

.
h ave ve ry many disputes of th at sort D rove r s .
are a r ough and ready good natured lot When

- -
,
-
.
ever they would m a ke a t rip to t h e ci t y t hey would

usually rake in a big w a lletful o f profits and so ,
were n o t close in coun t ing the pennies when it ,
c a me t o settling t heir score a t my t a ve r n .
“
O n such holid a ys a s E vacuation D ay when the ,
people celeb r ated the evacuation of the city by t h e

B ritish troops in the War o f the R evolution my ,
house would be filled with young drovers a nd fa rm

h an ds from the country come in to see the sights
, .
Somet i mes I would have to put th r ee in a bed a nd ,

THE B O OK OF D A N I EL DRE W 7 1
also stow away some of them i n the barn to s l eep on

t he h ay mow These celebrations were something
-
.
wo r t h see i ng There wou l d be a parade i n the

.
morning by mounted and foot soldiers a rtillery , ,
the fire comp a nies the T a mm a ny S ociety target

, ,
companies a n d such like At these ti mes City

,
H a ll P a rk which had a gre a t iron fence around it

, ,
would be surrounded by booths where they sold

r oast pig cide r egg n o g and spruce beer The
, ,
-
, .
d a y would c l ose with a displ a y of fireworks At .
othe r t i mes the young farm h a n ds with money to ,

”
burn an d boots to col l op a s w e s a y could h a ve , ,
good ti mes at the V a uxh a ll G a rdens which were ,
on th e Bowery R o a d just below Peter Cooper s ,

’
grocery store These gardens s t retched cle a n over

.
to wh at is now B ro a dway o n the site where Astor ,
built his public library They h a d a high woode n .
fen ce all aroun d with a ro w of trees j ust inside .
When yo u got in the g a te w a s o n the Bowery

yo u foun d a beautiful garden with gravelled w a lks
win ding i n and out between the flower beds .
Around the sides between the trees were little

, ,
boo t h s fo r two or t h ree people with a t a ble where ,
ginger pop c a kes b a ked pe a rs swi mming in mol a sses

, , ,
a n d such li ke delic a cies were sold I n t he centre

-
.
of a ll w a s a p a vilion fo r music a n d perfor

m a n ces .
I didn t encour a ge my guests to go t o such

’
“
p l a ces b u t t o st ay up at the Bull s He a d an d
,
’
spen d their money there They could find enough .
excitement at my pl a ce F or my tavern w a s one .
o f the r oad houses fo r the stage which went between

-
Park R ow N ew York an d Harlem Vill a ge eve ry

, ,
d ay The stage would re a ch u s a little befo r e nine

.
in the m o r ning h aving left Harlem at seven o clock

,
’
.
A rr iv i ng at Park Row at ten it would st a rt b ack ,
“
i n the afternoon at th ree get to the B ull s Head ,
’
ab o ut four and a rr ive in Harlem at suppe r time -

.
Als o the r e wou l d be eve r lasting d ic ke rin gs in ho r se

,
flesh t o fu r nis h excitement a n d keep the b l ood

“
stirr i ng F o r the B ull s He a d w a s becoming
.
’
the ho r se exch a nge a s wel l as the cattle exch ange

-
fo r N ew York City Those t w o lines of t r ade go

.
togethe r anyhow Fa rme r s would b r ing in their

, .
horses fr om the country to my t a ve r n an d the city ,
people would come there t o look them over I n .
this way from being a master h an d in j u dg i ng

,
cattle I pretty soon c a me to h ave g r eat s kill i n

,
horse fl e s h also I t stood me in h a n d to be u p in

-
.
i t S oun d a nim a ls find q uick buye r s S kill in

. .
horse fl e s h shows itself in selling a n unsoun d a ni mal

-
.
Afte r a time I got so th a t I could t urn a good penny

in a ho r se deal It is a c urious thing how a broken
.
down plug c a n be doctored up a n d m a de into a

fa irly good looking beast for purposes o f a trade or
-
,
s a le I f he s got holes back of his eyes t h rough

.
’
age by working carefully you c a n prick a hole

,
through an d blow under the skin an d so pu ff the ,

74 TH E B OOK OF D A NI EL D R E W
in the road in fron t o f the tave r n While in the .
winter the guests woul d g a ther about the big fi re

pl a ce i n the tap r oom a nd smoke and chew while
-
,
some one r ead the news out loud O ver in one .
corne r was a ta ble fo r checke r s and backg a mmon .
We didn t h ave spittoons in t hose d a ys We didn t

’
.
’
need them ; because I used to keep the floor o f the

t ap room good an d cle a n by means o f a layer of
-
white s and from R ockaway O n e newsp a per would.
last a company for several evenings because pol i ,
tics ran high i n those d a ys and discuss i ons would,
last sometimes far into a winte r s night When ’

.
Andrew J ackson s bank measu r e went through

’
t here w a s suc h high feeling and the p arties were ,
t h at bitter my guests someti mes h ad fis t figh t s

,
-
before the discussion w a s ove r Another t opic of .
discussion one time w a s a book by a Mr F enimo r e .
“
Coope r called The S py
, I t made no en d o f t a lk
.
about t he time of w h ic h I am now speaking Because .
’
most every o t her man you met h a d his own idea as
“ ”
t o w h o w a s the re a l origin a l o f The S py in t he
story I neve r re a d books o f any kin d an d novels
.
,
are a sinful kin d o f book anyhow B ut I couldn t

, .
’
help he a ring a lot a bou t t his book because every ,
body w a s talking about it An d when finally it .
“
c a me o u t t h a t t he origin a l o f The S py w a s no
o t her t h a n t h e s a me E noch Crosby t h at is in the
Gile a d burying groun d u p in C a rmel I w a s mighty ,
in t eres t ed I h a d a whole l o t to t ell about t h e m a n

.
to the peop l e w h o came to the tave r n I t wou l d

.
be a me r cy to put u p a tombstone to ma r k C r osby s ’
g r ave I a l most be l ieve I wou l d do it myself O nly

. .
j ust now I am giving o r d e r s fo r a tombstone in my

o w n family bu rying lot a t D re w s c lift a bi g c r oss ,
c a r ved out of solid g r anite

.
H E S E ta lk s o f a winte r s n i gh t a r o u n d the ’
“
fi r epl ace i n the Bull s Head t a p r oom ’
-
,
we r e g r eat p l aces fo r gett i ng the news .
E ve ry m an who h ad something new not on l y lik ed

to tel l i t b ut was expected to Beca u se newspape r s .
we r e not ve ry n u me r ous and bes i des the r e we r e , ,
lo ts of pe o ple wh o couldn t r ead it even when they ’
h ad one Acco r ding ly news got a r ound in g r eat

.
pa r t by wo r d of mouth The r e was much excite .
m ent I r emembe r ove r the news o f the invention

, ,
of b r imstone matches sticks of wood whic h would

light themselves F o r one day the news came to
.
, ,
u s th at children h ad been seen down on the st r eets

of New Yo r k City selling pine sticks a bo u t five
i nches l ong with something o n the en d o f each
,
s tick ,
so th at by r ubbing it the stick woul d b r eak
o u t into a blaze It made a l o t of stir when some
.
of these pine sh av i ngs we r e actua l ly shown in the

tap r oom one night a nd it w a s seen th a t the back
-
,
log and flint and tinder were n o w out of d a te

- -
.
B u t t h ese loco focos as they were c a lled were

-
, ,
r at h er expensive So I didn t put them into the

.
’
t avern right a way New fangled th ings us ua lly

.
-
76
TH E B O OK OF D AN I EL DREW 77
cost mo r e than they a r e wo r th ; I w a s gett i ng ri c h

by saving the penn i es he r e one and the r e one lik e
, ,
a hen fil l s he r c r op one gr ain at a time So the fi r e

, .
tongs which h ung by the firepl a ce for use by t h e

guests to light t heir pipes with cinders fr om t h e
fi r e were not taken down I neve r w a s much o f
, .
a h and a nyhow fo r new fash i oned th i ngs

, ,
-
.
Another piece of news which w a s beginn i ng t o

be noised a r oun d up in ou r tavern was of a r i c h
, ,
country out West beyond the All egh a n ie s It w a s .
n o t often th at w e got a t r avelle r fr om so fa r away
a s th at . So when w e did w e made him tell a l l ,
he knew I n this w a y I heard tell how the r e w a s

.
a r i ch v a lley out in O h i o c a lled the S c i oto V a lley

, ,
where there was some of the finest beef catt l e eve r

known An d these c a t t le coul d b e b ought ou t
.
there fo r a song A man by the n ame of L ew i s

.
S ande r s ac r oss the O hio R iver in Ke ntucky h a d

, ,
i mpo r ted th r ee bulls an d th r ee heifers from E nglan d ,
of the short horn variety Th e Pattens $I th i n k

-
.
it w a s $ from the South F ork i n Virgin i a h ad a ls o

, , ,
taken w ith them into th at Weste r n country some

blooded stock and h a d brought out the bull Pluto
, .
A blooded short horn cow Venus bulled by Pluto

-
, , ,
h ad helped to people a ll the p a stures throughout

the S cio t o r egion This impor t ing o f found a tion
.
s tock s from E ngl a n d w a s a lso h e lped a long by

Gener a l V a n R ens sel a er up a t Alb a ny who h a d
, ,
j ust been brin in

g g over from E urope the bull W a sh
in gt o n , a nd t wo short horn heifers The sho r t horns
-
.
-
m a ke one o f the bes t beef breeds I h ave eve r seen .
O u r Americ a n c a ttle were mostly of the D evon

the Hereford t he S ussex a nd the No rfo l k o f E nglan d ;
, ,
the Ayrshire a n d the G a llow a y of S cotland ; the ,
K e r rys o f I rel a nd ; the Alderney Guernsey an d

, ,
Jersey b reeds of the Ch a nnel I slands ; with t h e

Holsteins a n d Holstein Friesi a ns fr om Holland -
.
All of these i mported breeds out in the r ich O h io ,
and K entucky reserv a tions h ad bred into an even ,
finer beef c a ttle t h a n o n their n a tive soil Pe r h aps .
this w a s bec a use of the rich g ra ss a nd good q u ality

o f water The short horns were p a rticul a rly sought
.
-
o u t by us drovers bec a use they were beef b r eeds

, .
I n t h a t d a y beeves were more i mportant th an dai ry

cattle Beef is e a sier to tr a nsport than butte r o r
.
cheese bec a use i t will drive overland of itself I n

, .
th at d a y w e didn t h ave h ardly any othe r means

’
of t r a nsporting food s t u ff long distances except to

-
,
drive i t on its own legs No t t h a t t he short ho r ns

.
-
a re not good milkers too ; but they are especiall y

,
good for butcher purposes .
When I he a rd t hese stories about t he Weste r n

l a nds I bec a me mighty interes t ed because the c i ty
, ,
of N ew York w a s growing so a ll fire d fa st it w a s -

,
h a rd t o find enough beeves in the regions rounda

bou t ; so th at the p rice o f fit cattle was go i ng highe r
a nd higher I pondered the m at ter I made up
. .
my mind C a lling Ch a mberl a in t o me o n e day

.
he h ad been my b artender a t the B u l l s Head ’
an d h ad married my d aughter I said to

hi m
R oswell s a id I you ve got to t a ke c ar e of the
,
“
,
’
place here for t w o o r t hree mon t hs I m going .

’
”
out to O hio to get a d rove of ca t tle He l ooked .
at me wi t h eyes a s big a s s a uce r s .
“ ”
Wh at s th a t
’
? s a id he .
”
Just wh a t I s ay I a nswered ,
“
I m going to .
’
bring some o f those there crit t e r s from the West ,
”
right here in t o t he New York market .
How in the wor l d a re you going to get them ove r

” “
the moun ta ins ? s a id he I t s a wild goose .
’
-
”
ch ase ; they ll die if you drive them t h a t fa r
’
.
“ ” “
L eave th at to me s o n s a i d I le a ve th a t to
, , ,
”
me I calculate to manage it fine a s a fiddle
. .
S o I beg a n to m a ke my pl a ns F irst I went to .
Henry Astor the bu t cher He h a d been pre t ty

, .
well riled up ag a inst me once because of some ,
de a ls w e h ad h a d toge t her I thin k I ve wrote .

’
a bout it somewhere in these p a pers Bu t he go t

, .
over being m ad a ft er a time a n d he an d I h a d ,
become good friends once more He h a d m a de a .
peck of money a s a bu t cher in t he F ul t on M a rke t .
So much in fa ct t h a t he h a d re t ired a nd now w a s a

, ,
kind of priv a te b a nker I went t o hi m a nd go t .
a lo a n o f money t o m a ke t he Wes t ern t ri p I s a w .
t h a t i t wouldn t p a y t o drive j us t a herd o f ordin a ry

’
size t h at dis t ance I h a d t o do i t o n a big sc a le

.
or not a t a ll . So I go t the money from hi m
he —
—
made me give all fire d he a vy securi ty and st a rted
o ut . I took a Mr R obinson wi t h me He l at er . .
went in wi t h me in t he b a nking business when I ,
became a W a ll Street O perator He w a s an A .
No I drover ; I w a nted th a t kind of a p a r tne r

. .
I also took a long our cow dogs A good c o w dog -

.
-
is not to be picked u p everywheres A d rover .
l earns when he once gets a good a ni mal of th at

,
type to keep hi m They are marvellous intelligent

,
. .
I ve h ad cow dogs that knew a lmost as much as I

’
-
did a bout driving c a ttle or sheep And they are .
faithful too They a ren t spiggot sucke r s like

, .
’
-
,
some of your hi red help They will work for you .
night and d a y a nd for p a y only a s k a few bones

,
and a pan o f milk at nigh t .
We st ar ted out in the st a ge co a ch going by d ay s ,

’
jou r neys through Jersey and Pennsylv a nia R ob

inson the dogs and myself The dogs were lots
, ,
.
of comp a ny on the journey ou t Much of the way .
t hrough Pennsylv a ni a t he woods were thick ; the

dogs following behind would do some h unting
, ,
o n the side a nd often brough t in a r a bbit p a rtri dge

, , ,
o r such like g a me I t took over a week to ge t t o O hio

. .
O u t there I found th a t wh at I h a d he a rd tell a bout

the richness o f t h at Wes t ern country w a s gos pel .
The S cio t o V a lley w a s full of fat beef ca tt le which

coul d be bought for cash at a price th a t would
h ave made a farmer ou t E a st turn up h is nose at th e
thousand head of live stock S o we h ad to sw i m .
o r ford the rivers .
I n d r iving a he r d the c a ttle are p l ace d first The

, .
dogs a r e trai ned to follow a long just behi nd a nd

a longside the cattle ; bec a use the sheep will come
a long behind o f themselves being ti mi d They , .
don t need much tending Afte r the fi r st d a y or

’
.
two t hey get to know t he cattle and crowd in ,
close behind them without a ny urging It s curious .

’
a nyhow to see h ow a drove of live stock will form

,
itself into a herd aft er one o r two d ays of m a rchi ng .
They seem to get acqu a inted with each o t her they ,
become a kin d of a big fa mily the cows t he sheep , ,
the dogs the horses a n d t he boys They get intro

,
.
d u c e d s o to s pea k a nd h a ng togethe r after th at as

, ,
though they had growed up on one farm .
This flocking spiri t w a s a g r eat h elp on the journey .
Because p r etty soon aft er leavin g O h i o and ge tt ing

over into Pennsylv a ni a the country became so wil d
,
t ha t unless the a nim a ls h a d le ar ned to herd toge t he r

, ,
they could e a sily h a ve s t r a yed an d m a ny would

h a ve been lost I n fa c t t he coun t ry bec a me so
.
,
much o f a wilderne s s a ft e r a while th at I wasn t ’
a lw a ys able to find c att le boys when I w a n t ed

t hem O n a long drive like this you don t h a v e
.
,
’
ca t tle boys for t he en t ire jou r ney Boys such a s .
you hi r e for this kind o f busi ness a r e youngs t ers ,
a nd aren t a l lowed to go fa r fr o m home Therefore

’
.
,
we used to p i ck u p a set of boys i n the set t lement s

we p assed t h rough take them w i th us fo r a d ay s

,
’
drive an d let t hem g o b ack t he next day ta king a

, ,
new set in their pl a ce B ut when w e c a me to the .
mountai ns t he se t tlemen t s were so sca tt e r ed tha t

,
some t i mes w e h a d to u s e t he s ame s e t o f boys fo r

several days journeys The fa rmers along t he road
’
.
were very obliging They seemed to know that .
this was the firs t of wha t would p r ob a bly become

a fr eq uent custom and s o helped me along F odder
, .
a nd living were cheap o u t t here anyhow At nig h t , .
fa ll when I woul d put up at a fa rmhouse a nd as k

,
fo r acco m modations fo r t he drove they would let ,
me h ave it at a most re a sonable figure Some .
ti mes I pai d t hese bills by le a ving wi t h t he farmer

t h e l a mbs or c a lves t hat h a d been dropped during
that d ay s march They were very tru s t ful farmers

’
.
out t here All I woul d need to do someti mes

.
, ,
would be to say :
“
N eigh bou r a couple of miles back down by
, ,
that ledge o f rock you ll fin d a ewe S he droppe d,

’
.
a la mb yesterd ay an d w e left he r behind Pretty

, .
good pair S end you r boy down and you c a n h ave

.
them We c a n t s t op t o ta ke t hem wi t h u s These

.
’
.
new bo r n youngsters would delay o u r m a rch

- .
Tw o o r th r ee o f t h at kind woul d some t i mes pay

our enti r e bill fo r the night s lodging Besides ’
.
,
the r e we r e the c att le that go t sick A cri t ter i s .
oft en too sick t o drive ; when if he can only h a v e ,
a li tt le s pell t o rest up un der a ca t tle shed he ll -

,
’
84 T HE B O OK OF D A N I EL D RE W
get W ell again and t hrive I helped p ay my .
lodging bills by means o f these sick c r itters w h ich

I left behind Besid e s the farmers were gl a d to
.
,
have a d r over come to t a ke their own fatlings O ften .
I cou l d make a sw a p leaving some new d rop ped

,
-
calves o r lambs and take ins t ead good healthy

,
s toc k
.
T h e r e were places whe r e w e h ad to camp o u t

at night When we go t up into t h e Alleghany
.
Mo u nta i ns and started c r ossing t h at wilderness ,
there were sometimes no farm clea r ings for mile

afte r mile When nightfall would ove r take us he r e
.
,
we wou l d have to shift t he best way w e could B ut .
you get used to sleeping o u t a ft er a while Cut , .
browse fo r the horses let t he c r itters p i ck a meal fr om

,
the g r ass and leaves whe r eve r they can fin d it ; a nd

, ,
with a bl a nket over some hemlock b oughs ma ke ,
a bed for yourself ; in the morn i ng yo u eat as tho ugh

there was a wolf i n your belly .
R e a l wolves some t imes used to sc a re us Wolves .
are very fond of veal a nd a t th at t ime they ha d not

,
yet been cle a red ou t of the Weste r n mount a i ns .
The sta t es were trying t heir best to get rid o f t h e

peste r some v ar mints a nd used to o ffer a bounty
for wolves sc a lps I n fa c t in some places t he kil
’
.
,
ling of wolves was quite a business A trap per .
cou l d take a wolf s scalp t o t h e j us ti ce of the pea ce

’
a nd get a sc a lp certific a te payable by the tax ga t he r er -
wh e n the next tax w a s gathe r ed B u t he di dn t .

’
TH E B OOK O F D A N I EL DRE W 85
have to wait fo r the tax g a therer bec a use these -

,
sc a lp ce r tificates were good at mos t a ny s t ore for ’
me r ch an dise The country out there w a s so

.
u n cleared th at there we r e still plen ty o f wolves in

t h e mountains I n fac t some t r a ppers were so
.
,
ab andoned an d t he bounty o n scalps so high

, fo r
a full g r own wo l f $4 0 and for w helps h alf th at
-
, , ,
p ri ce th at they w ould keep a she wolf a n d her litte r -
of whe l ps o u t in some sec l uded pl a ce in the moun

tains in o r der to sell the sc a lps when they were
,
full grown We met with this d anger B ut here

-
. .
again the herding spi r it o f my c r itters w a s a h elp .
At nigh t when t hey would he a r a p a ck of fifteen o r

,
twenty wolves a y e lping in the d a rkness t he cattle

-
,
and sheep would crowd in toge t her shivering with ,
fe ar They wouldn t need a ny dogs or boys to

.
’
round them up I n fact they would h ug in so

.
tight th at they wou l d well nigh s mother t o death -
a weakling th a t might be in the middle of t he herd .
With al l my ca r e I lost a sight of cri t ters befo r e

I got the drove th rough There were t hose devoured .
by the wolves ; an d the stray a ways because we -

,
couldn t stop t o h unt up a lost steer if he go t t oo fa r

’
from t he drove Also some died o f mud fever o n

.
,
-
t h e legs and belly due t o sloppy ro a ds Then there

,
.
were the accidents th a t h appen o n a journey t h r ough

a wild country an d ac r oss deep a n d some t imes swift
rivers O ut of a d r ov e of t w o thousand we los t
.
,
fo u r o r five h und red at l east And do t he best w e .

,
86 THE B OO K OF D A N I EL D R E W
could w e made slow t ime D el a ys were a ll t h e
, .
time h appening A horse would get a wind gall

.
-
on the fetlock o r my m a re would get a swollen

,
h ock and would need to be coddled F inally .

,
after delays and losses w e got the drove in t o the

,
New Yo r k marke t .
And now I found th a t t he trip was wor t h all t h e

ti me and p a ins which it h ad cost I h a d picke d
.
up the cattle dirt che a p in O hio and the price of

,
young fat critters in the N ew York market was

,
so high that I c l eared u p ove r $30 on every h ea d

o f cattle in the drove .
HA D done so we l l on the O hi o t r ip t h at I
followed i t up with seve r al mo r e Th ese .
ti mes I went i nto K entucky and even as far

west as I llinois Because now I knew th a t it could
.
be done and also more or less h ow to do i t The r e

,
.
were acciden t s and delays B ut N ew Yo r k was

.
g rowing so fa st and the price of butche r s meat was ’
climbing a t such a ra te th a t I foun d each time a fine

,
profit w hen I h a d cleaned u p the deal I gave .
Astor back the money he h a d loaned me and h ad ,
enough besi des to pay me fo r my t r ouble .
O f course t hese Weste r n t r ips didn t take u p a ll

’
my time during these yea r s I paid attent i on o ff

.
,
“ ”
a nd on to r unning the B ull s Head
,
’
I w as .
a ls o making sho r t trips o u t a r ound New Yo rk to

pick u p a he r d of cattle he r e an d there The r e .
were some fine gr a zing bo t toms o u t through O r a nge

County I got to know some of those southern
.
counties of York St a te as well as the near b y regions

,
-
of Jersey and Pennsylv a ni a .
O n e d a y some t hing h a ppened to me whils t on a

cattle t r ip I w a s taking up ne a r the H a rlem R iver ,
which h ad a gre a t e ffect upon my life It w a s my .
87
remarkab l e esc a pe from death by lightning and my ,
return to religion F o r I h a d by this time

. I g r ieve
to state it b a ckslided once mo r e The life at .
“
the Bull s He a d tave r n w a s not ve ry favourable
’
to g rowt h in grace Besides I w a s trott i ng about

.
,
here a n d t here Churches were not v e ry nume r ous

.
and my religious life got like t he dead ashes in the

fi r epl a ce here and there perh a ps a live sp a rk but
, ,
the fire for the most p ar t died out I say the r e

, ,
.
,
were still some live sparks ; because a ll d u r ing th i s

t i me of my backslidden st a te I h ad pe r iods when I
was un der conviction ; which me a ns that the sp iri t
was s t ill st r iving wi t h my soul But I was not .
y i elding to these strivings of the spirit I seemed .
to h ave become hardened No w someth i ng was to .
h appen which w a s to bring me back once mo r e

wi t hin the fold never a gain to w a nder
, .
I h a d d ri ven u p to M a n h a t t a n vil l e i n t h e u ppe r ,
pa r t of Manh attan I sland some m i les fro m t h e ,
Bull s He a d vill a ge I w a s in a gig fo r I h ad a

’
.
,
man with me My visit was for the p ur pose of

.
looking over some c a ttle which were on a fa rm up

ne a r th a t town We r e a ched t he place tied t h e
.
,
gig a t the g at e a n d went out into the fie l d whe r e

,
t he c att le were Whilst I w a s looking them ove r

.
I no t iced a h a rd t hun der shower brewing and h u r

-
,
ried t h rough the work This I could d o e a sily

.
,
bec a use I h a d by this time become o n e o f the best

j ud g e s o f c r itters to be met with anywhe r es I .
99 THE B O O K O F DA N I EL DRE W
in Greenwich vill a ge across Bloomi ngd a le R o a d

,
“ ”
from the B ull s Head w a s the house where a
’
man by the na me of Tom P a i ne h a d l i ved He .
”
ha d written a b a d book called The Age of R eason .
To reach his village from my side o f t he island I ,
ha d to go t h rough the po t ter s field where public ’
h a ngings used t o be held The gallows s t oo d right

.
in the mid dle o f what is now Washington S q uare .
O n top of th at gallows m a ny a poor fellow used

“
to s t and never t o w a lk again
,
jerked to Jesus
is what we c a lled it ba ck in those d a ys I don t .
’
see how any one if he had any spark of grace a bou t

,
him coul d go by t ha t gallows and a cross t h at potter s

,
’
field t o the ro a d where P a ine s house w a s wi t hout ’
feeling a horror for b a d men and in fid e l s .
I w a s glad a ft er I h a d fully recovered from the fit

,
into whi ch t hat s t roke of ligh t ning threw me th a t ,
I h ad gone t hrough t he experience and h a d become ,
at l as t soundly conver t ed Because a s it l a ter .

,
t urned ou t t he d rover business w a s not to be my

,
work all through life Jus t a s I w a s beginning

.
mid dle life I left i t s a i d good bye to my li fe at the

, ,
-
“ ”
B ull s He a d tavern and got in t o t he stea mboat
’
business An owner of s t e a mboats ough t to be

.
religious a nd respec ta ble li ke I t m a y not be s o -

.
bad for a drover t o s ta y aw a y from church because ,
his busi ness is a rough a nd re a dy business anyhow

- -
,
.
People don t expect much of him B u t a steam

’
.
boat proprietor is in a higher seat A man of promi .

TH E B O OK OF D AN I EL D R E W 91
ne n c e i s called u pon to be go d ly i n h i s wa lk and

conve r s at i on ; h e s h ou ld h o l d hi s h ead u p lik e a
hen d r i nking water T h e r e was Pete r Coope r He
. .
w a s godly .He w a s superintendent of the S unday

“
sc h oo l the r e be l ow the B ull s Hea d fr om whi ch
,
’
the Bowery Villa g e Ch u r ch s ta r ted . He w a s a

man th at feared God and went to meeti ng on S u n
days I w a s g l a d that I t oo was now on the L ord s
.
, ,
’
si de And though I h ave s u ffe r ed many los s es

.
si nce t h en I a m thankful to say that fro m t h at d ay

,
t o t hi s I have neve r lost my r elig i on .

Y STA R T i nto the steamboat business ca m e
a bout more o r less h a phaza r d There w a s .
a li tt le bo a t r un between Peekskill and

New York by J a ke V a nde r bilt a brother of Co r
, ,
n e l i u s V a n derbilt It w a s in connection wi t h a
.
boat designed to compe t e wi t h t his one of Vande r

b i l t s t h at I m a de the s ta rt
’
,
.
This w a s b a ck in t he e a rly days when s t eam ,
boati ng on t he Hudson R iver was j ust ge tting under

w a y The o l d s a iling sloops were s till i n u s e but
.
,
were r a pi dly becoming b a ck numbers A sloop .
woul d some t imes ta ke nine d ays in going fr om

N ew York to Albany When the C h n cel l or . a
L iv i ng t n m a de t h e t rip once in ni neteen hours

s o
a nd a h a lf people t hought i t a mir a cle and gave

, ,
her t he n a me S kim m r f th Riv e

,
e o B ut even
e r .
t h e sloops were an i mprovement over t he old stage

coa ch bec a use t he fa re by st a ge co a ch from New
,
-
York t o Alb a ny w a s $ 8 a nd it never t ook less t h a n

,
t wo d a ys a nd one nigh t Besides being slow the

.
,
sloops were a lso i nconvenien t ; yes even d a nger ,
some be c a use t he winds on the Hudson a re fl u ky

, ,
s qu a lls rushing ou t oft en wi t hout a ny warning

, from ,
their monop oly S o when Gibbons s ta rted in
.
, ,
O gden h ad him a rres t ed Then D an Webster

.
,
Gib b o n s s coun sel made th at famous speech of his

’
before the S upreme Cour t which b r oke up t he ,
monopoly an d opened the t ide wate r s of all th e

s t a t es to free naviga t ion When Gibbon s foun d
.
himself fr ee to r un bo at s he went a h ead wit h lo t s

,
o f pu s h . He go t a young m an by the n ame o f

Cornelius Van de r b i lt w h o h ad been runni n g a
,
s a iling sloop between New Yo r k an d S taten I s l a n d ,
to be captain of his boat t he B el l o n a This r an

, .
from N ew Y or k to E lizabethtown whe r e i t ship ped ,
its p a ssenge r s to the st a ge coach wh i c h carried -

,
them on t o Philadelphia and the South .
Van d e r b i lt d i d s o well there that he became

s upe r inten d ent of t h e line an d used to go up t o
,
Bottle Hil l to r eport to the owner concern i ng t h e

boat G i bbons by an d by sold th e boat to the
.
Stevens B r othe r s of Hoboken Then young Co r

, .
n e l i u s Vande r bilt took up n avigation o n t he Hudson .
He st a rted a small bo a t c a lled the G n er a l y ck on e a s ,
to run between N ew York and Peekskill a nd put ,
his b r othe r J ake on a s c a p ta in .
Those ea r ly ste a mbo a ts we r e funny things com ,
p a red with the gre a t boats wh i c h a re seen to day -

,
s uch as the D rew and t h e D ea n Ri c h m on d

, .
B ack i n the early d a ys they didn t h ave a ny pilot ’
house The steersman w a s nothing more t h an t he

.
old sloop stee r sman ; only instead of working a ,

THE B O OK OF DA NI E L DR E W 95
tiller at the ste r n he w a s pl a ce d u p on t o p of the

,
cabin with a t ill e r w h eel connecting to the ru dder

,
by a rope an d w a s expose d to the w i n d an d weather

,
.
His s t ation w a s di r ectly over the eng i ne He sig .
n a l l e d to t h e enginee r by tapping with a cane on

“
the roof O ne tap meant Go a h ead
. two taps , ,
B ack u p .
Well as I sta rted to s ay the Gen er a l ya ks on

, ,
c
one d a y blew u p That line between Peeks kill and

.
New York h a d interested me mo r e or less anyhow , ,
because it h ad bec o me t he great way of getting back

and forth between the city an d my o l d h ome in
Putn a m County But I h a dn t thoug h t of going
.
’
into the business myself I coun t ed on buying and .
selling ca tt le all my life But one d ay soon a ft er .

,
J ake Vande r bi l t s b oa t the Gen er a l 7 a c ks on

’
, ,
b l ew u p a frien d of mine came and to ld m e abou t

,
a new ste am boat t h e Wa te Wi fe$ whic h h e w a s

, r 7 ,
pl a nning to r un a s a competitor with t h e V anderbilt

B ro t hers on the Peeks kill rou t e .
He t a lked m e i nto inves t ing a t h ousand dollars

in the bo a t I h ad some money lying aroun d loose
. .
My c a t t le trips toge t her wi t h wh a t money I m a de

,
”
from running the Bull s He a d h ad been bringing ’
,
me in good profits I w a s gl a d t o make a small

.
investment in the steambo a t bu s i ness even though ,
it looked somewh at r isky .
An d i t w a s risky The t hing tu r ne d out a loss

.
t he very first se a son As soon a s w e p u t our boa t

.
on C apta i n Cor nel i us Van de r b il t wh o w a s a s p un ky
, ,
fe llo w bui l t anothe r boat fo r t h e Peekski ll ro ute

, ,
w hi c h h e cal l e d t h e C i n d erell a We ran eac h .
o t h e r h a r d Th e r esult was that m y boat l ost th at

.
s ea s o n
Co rnelius met m e one day o n the wh arf j ust a t ,
t h e ti m e when o ur boat was r unning behin d lik e

“
ol d S ambo He w a s in high spi r its
. You l l me dd l e .
’
”
wi t h my bus i ness w il l you ? sa i d he i n a jok i ng
, ,
“
w ay . See h e r e yo u drove r l et me tell you so m e
, ,
th i ng You do n t know anyt hi ng a bout r unn i ng

.
’
b o ats You kn o w a good deal about j udging catt l e

. .
Th at s you r l ine Bo a ts is my l ine Wate r t r ans

’
. .
o rt a t io n i s a t r ade all by itse l f You d on t un d e r ’
p .
stan d it St i c k to you r stee r s Dr ew stic k to your

.
, ,
”
stee r s .
Th a t got m y dande r u p I got i n wit h a man .
na m e d Ji m S mith We two went up i nto Putn a m .
an d Westcheste r C ounties an d stirred th i ngs up

good an d lively We tol d the people u p the r e t h at
.
they h ad been ch arged too much by Van de r bi l t .
We as ked the m to come in and p u t money into our

lin e because we were an indepen den t company t ry
,
ing to take the side of t he people against the monopoly

w h ich h ad been o ppressing them They flocked .
i nt o ou r pen becau se this Peekskill r oute was their

,
ma i n means o f communication with New York

C ity It stood th em in h an d to buil d u p a competing
.
l i ne Now we we r e in shape fo r b u siness We h a d

. .
side to th ei r knees you skunks up an d sell us out
,
you make te r ms wi t h the enemy beh i nd ou r backs ,

”
an d we lose wh a t we pu t in .
B ut I h a d oth e r i rons o n the anvil I d i dn t fee l .

’
called upon to keep myself back just in order to ,
provide bette r t r anspor ta tion for Putnam County

fa rmers I h ad my own fortune to make
. my own
career to carve out Any fellow except he s a .
,
’
na t ur a l born fool will look out for number o n e firs t

-
, .
There we r e bigger prizes to be got i n the Hu dson

R iver steamboat business than the Peekskill rou t e .
I t w a s these tha t I w a s aft er The Hu dson R iver .
Associ ation was r unning a line of boats from New

York t o Albany C a p ta in Vande r bil t h a d h a d a
.
fa lling o u t with one of the directo r s of t h at a sso $
c i a t io n
,
and had put two rival boats on t hat route
s o successfully that he h a d compelle d t hem to buy
hi m out ; he agreeing t o with draw fr om t he boat

business on th at rou t e for t en ye a rs This left t he .
co a st clear I f Vanderbilt by running competi

.
,
t ion bo a ts could sc a re t hem in t o buying hi m ou t at

,
a good figu re I didn t s e e w hy I couldn t do t he

,
’ ’
s a me S o I bough t t w o boats put t hem on the

.
,
line t o Albany and r a n t hem in compe t i t ion wi t h

,
t he R iver Associa t ion This l a sted for a ye a r At

. .
t he en d of th at time i t t urned out as I h a d expec t ed .
The Associa t ion t ook me in with t hem on a pooling

a rr a ngement my bo a ts sh arin g the t ot al e a rnings
,
of the pa r tne r ship .

THE B O OK OF DA N I EL DRE W 99
T hi s l asted a l i ttle wh ile an d I was feel i n g bi g

,
t o be i n w i th t h e c om pany t h at was ru nn i ng s o b ig
a line o f wate r t r anspo r tat io n By and by I wante d

.
to m ake still mo r e money S o I hit u pon a scheme

. .
W h ile I was stil l in the H u dson Ri ve r Assoc i at io n I ,
p u t anothe r boat on the ro ute as a competit or O n l y .

,
I ran i t unde r t h e n a m e of an o the r fe ll ow g i v i ng ,
o ut th at h e was t h e owne r so as to keep my o wn

,
p a r t in t h e matte r hid Th en I cut p ri ces o n t h at

.
i n depen d ent b o at i n suc h a way as to h u r t t h e A ss o

c i a t io n l i ke sixty Wh eneve r we wou l d ho ld a
.
d ir ecto r s meeting of the A s s oc i ation i f t h ey we r e

’
,
not al r ea d y ta l king about i t I wo uld stee r t h e c o n

,
vers ati o n a r oun d to t h e subject o f this r ival b o at ,
an d as k if so m et hi ng cou l dn t be d o ne abo u t i t
’
.
Because as I s ho wed t h e m i f we all o wed th at b o at

, ,
t o run against us so fr eely o t h e r fellows woul d be

,
e nc o u r age d als o t o u t boats on an d we wou l d s oo n

p ,
be now h e r es Fi nally I go t t h e di recto r s to pas s

.
a r esolut io n to buy u p t h is t rou blesome r ival An d .
I got them to a ppo i nt me t h e agent to go an d see h e r

o wne r with ou r p r opositi o n .
“
I t hink I can fin d hi m right a w a y said I , .
His o ffice is only a spit an d a st r ide from

”
h e r e so to speak
, . They s aid they would hold
t h e meeting until I got b ack S o I left the room
.
,
went o u t w a lked a r oun d the block an d came back

, ,
wi t h m y r eport .
“ “
A penny mo r e buys the whistle said I I ve
, .
’
1 00 THE B O O K OF D A N I EL DRE W
se en t h e owne r and h e is willing to sell O nly our .
’
figu r e isn t q u i te h i g h enough He says he i s m akin g
.
m oney h an d ove r fist Pretty soon he thin ks h e

.
w i l l be able t o put anot h e r boat on B ut he doesn t ’

.
want t o be mean He is willing to se l l if we do

.
wh at h e th i n ks r eason able I f we tack . more

”
ont o t h e o ffe r h e ll c l ose w i th us
,
’
.
T h e di r ecto r s d eb ated Th e boat was h u rting

.
us Anybody could see th at I pu t a word in now

. .
a n d t h en , hinting how this pestersome compet i t or

w a s p r obably in a position to h urt us still more ,
un l ess we got him out of the way r ight o ff F in a lly .
we voted to give the mo r e which the man

h ad asked I left them the r e in t h e meeting went
.
,
out wa l ked a r oun d the block again came b ack

, ,
and s ai d t h e m an had accepted ; an d if they wou l d

m ake out t h e papers then an d there I woul d take
t h e m ove r to him and get the d eed of sale .
I s aw from thi s incident t h at I could match my w i ts

a gainst m o st anybody s Besides this ’
. which ,
I h ad tu r ned into my pocket o u t of the company s ’
funds was not only so much cle a r g a in to me b u t ,
was s o much clea r loss t o t hem S o now I became .
bold as a lion I saw th at this Hudson R iver route

.
to Alb any was making no end of money a nd I w a nted ,
t o own it hook line a nd sinker So I picked a

, , .
qu a r rel wi t h one of my fellow directors and star t ed -

,
out on a rival line o f my own My Wes t h e t r . c s e
was a good sta r te r in this fight S t ill they h a d t h e .

myself couldn t h ave stood i t very much longer
’
now th at I was in con t rol I put the ra t e t o Alb a ny

,
b ack to $3 an d made enough money to pay me for

,
all I h ad lost in the fight .
Those were the d ays before the r a i l road S i nce .
the Hu dson is so w i de and deep an d slow a river ,
wh ile both ban ks are rocky and high s o as to make

railroa d engineering di ffi cult steamboat n avigation
,
between New York an d Albany came m a ny yea rs

befo r e the railroad Thus the tra ffi c by water was
.
la r ge Competition boats were springing up all

.
t he time an d we were everlastingly running eac h

,
other Steamboat rivalry was very high in th o se

.
d a ys I n making speed on our t rips we got so we

.
,
di dn t ma ke full stops a t t he lan dings to let p a ssengers

’
of f
. When w e would come ne ar to a l a nding we ,
would put t he p assengers who were to stop o ff in

a rowbo at a n d towed i t behind the steambo a t Then .
the steambo a t would veer in towards t h e dock an d

sl a cken her speed a li tt le This would permi t t he
.
steersman in the rowbo at t o sheer h is boat a long

si de the dock a n d a s s h e went pas t the passenge r s
,
h a d to scr a mble ou t a n d on t o t he dock Some .
t imes t hey lan ded o n t he dock a n d some t imes in ,
t he w a ter O n e d a y while t rying t o m a ke t his

.
,
kin d of a l a nding at Pough keepsie several p a ssengers ,
were drowned The L egisla t ure t hen passed a law

.
“
pu tt ing a s t op t o these lan dings on t he fly Thi s
cr a ze for speed w a s bad also because it put the
, ,
TH E B O OK OF D A N I EL DRE W 1 93
’
boi lers un de r such p r ess ur e of steam th at i t wasn t
a l ways safe I n a close r ace enginee r s wou l d t i e
.
d o wn t h e s afety va l ve p l ug up the m ercu ry pipe i n

,
the p r essure g a uge so the s t u ff wouldn t b l ow o u t ’
an d t h en c rowd on steam unti l the boi l e r plates

would bulge out into bumps as big as a sa u cepan ;
an d the bo i le r would be weake r fo r the r emain d e r
of its life Besides t h at the pilots wou l d take a
.
,
h and and in racing with a rival boat wou ld so m e

,
t i mes i n a n a rr ow place i n the ri ve r c rowd t h e othe r

boat onto t he shoals or against a barge .
R ate cutting w a s so sh arp th a t I h ad to try a l l

-
kinds of schemes a nd dodges to keep my end u p .
A good scheme I found was to m a ke di ffe r ent

, ,
—
r ates for a ltern a te nights fifty cents for one ni ght ,
and for t he next n i ght Th i s wo r ked we l l . .
F or people he a ring tell of t h e lowe r rates wo u l d

, ,
forget on which night t h e lo we r rate was given and ,
w h en they got to the wh a r f al l packe d u p an d r eady

to travel were usu ally willing t o pay the ext ra r ate
,
r athe r th an go b ack and wait ove r another d ay .
S ometimes we carried people from Ne w York to

Alb a ny for two shillings And o n e time when a
.
,
ri v a l boat the Wa ve sta r ted up o u r boats ca rri ed

, , ,
passengers free The W v e wasn t very he a vily

. a
’
fin anced S he lasted j ust th ree days Someti mes

. .
w e would even p a y p a ssengers a shilling to take o u r

boat r athe r th a n the boat of the opposition line .
B ut this w a sn t so wastefu l a s it might see m beca u se

’
,
a fte r you v e got a passenge r aboa r d you r boat an d
’
o u t i n t h e m id dle o f the r iver h e s at you r m e r cy

’
, .
F o r t h e fi r st hou r or two he thinks he s getting o ff ’
fine B ut by and by he ge t s h ungry ; besides

.
,
ni ght is coming o n and he w a nts a place to s l eep

, .
Then we wou l d stick on enough extra fo r meals

an d sleep i ng privilege not only to m a ke u p wh at
,
we h a d paid him for taking o u r boat but a l so t o ,
pay u s a p r ofit besides .
S ince I was now the chief owner of the big l i ne of

steamboats on the rive r I w a s powerfu l and new
, ,
c o mpetitors didn t h a ve muc h c h a nce I fe l t t h at

’
.
competition h a d to be put down with a st ro ng h and .
The r e w a s a man by the n a me o f Hancox He .
put o n a small boat in op posi t ion t o o u r r egula r

line He called it t he N a p ol eon It w a s a poor
. .
boat It didn t h a ve much show anyhow B ut it

.
’
, .
woul d n t d o to t a ke a ny chances His New Yo r k

’
.
pier w a s furthe r down th a n ours So o n e mo r ning .
in June our boat the D Wi tt Cl i n ton w a s waiting

, e ,
at he r dock working her engines full stroke When .
the N a p l n w a s a short dist a nce from the

o eo
lowe r side of the dock t he h a wsers of the D e Wi tt

,
C l i n ton were cu t with a sh a rp axe S he sprung .
o u t un der a full head of s t e a m an d hit t he N a o

p
l eon j us t forw a rd of t he wheel You d h ave t hought ’
.
t woul d h a ve put th at miserable li t tle bo a t out o f

co m mission altoget h e r I t didn t su cceed as c o m
.
’
p l etel
y as th at But. i t ca r eened he r ove r u ntil h er
1 06 TH E B OOK OF D A N I E L DRE W
B ut if she does an inj unction will be i mmedi a tely
,
se r ved on the bo a t I can a lso state th a t E C

. . .
Corwin h as spurned their o ffers even at a s a crifice ,
of
J W H A NC O X . . .
When a powerful company like mine is th reatened

wi t h competitors on all si des it does not pay to fool ,
wi t h a m a n even though he is j ust a small toad in

,
t he puddle O n e of the ways w e used to work it

.
in order to get p a ssengers an d hurt an opposing

line was by employing runners to go to the oth e r s
,
’
dock an d discour a ge passengers from going by t h at

line These runners used t o be very enterprising
.
fellows O n e of their favourite dodges was to scare

.
the passengers by saying th at the bo a t t hey were

about to take w a s unsafe in fact was li a ble t o blow
,
up a ny minute This dodge w a s p a rti cularly u s e

.
ful if any o f the passengers were women S o this .
m a n Hancox a few d a ys l a ter sq ue a led a g a in in

, , ,
a nother advertisemen t :
M O N O P O L I E S AND P E R S E CU TI O N S
Are t he people a w a re of t he disgr a ceful m a nne r

in which t he Hudson R iver monopoly persecutes
the s t eamboa t N p l on a n d her owners e s p e c i
a o e ,
a lly by hiring the most a b a n doned a n d p ro fl iga t e

wretches to run against her for p a ssengers an d m a k
ing use of the most disgraceful language to preven t
passengers fro m going on boa r d of her They a rc
? $
g ui l ty of the foulest l ies an d assertions We h ad

.
been w e thought on the free waters o f the U nited

, ,
S t a t es but if t his is t he m a nner in which the people

,
a re t o be driven from t heir l a wful a n d honour a ble
p ursuits a w a
,
y then w i t h o ur boasted freedom $
“
Are the people a w a re of the manner in which
w e h ave been driven from pill a r t o post fo r the
last few days ? When t hey foun d they could not
te rr orize the owners o f this boat they said L et s
, ,
‘ ’
c r ush them They are poor a nd cannot stand

.
against such monopolies as we are but a few days

longer Wil l the people su ffer this or will they
’
p atronize the N a p ol eon an d keep the fare at O n e

D ollar an d thus sustain the poo r in fair rates an d
,
h ono u rable p ur s u its ?

NA P O L E O N .
T WAS a caution the s h ameful p r act i ces
,
t h at some o f the steamboat owners b ack

in those days in thei r ambition to get sta r ted
,
and make headway ag a inst o u r comp a ny adopted , .
An empty leech a l ways sucks the hardest and a ,
new co m petito r is usually a fie rc e r one th an a com

petito r of long st a n ding They used to make use
.
of t h e public print in these steamboat r ivalries I f .
comp anies are going t o fight for tra ffi c let them

,
fight it out in their own field say I There wa s

, .
the Al i d a which was some time late r put on the

,
rive r to run against us of the established line .
The way she boasted o f her accomplish ments an d

ran down all other boats w a s a sh ame to see She
, .
u t o u t a card like this

p
S T E AM E R AL I D A
The splendid d a y bo a t Al id a is now the

only d a y bo a t for p a ssengers to depen d upon She .
m a kes all l a ndings a n d arrives in Albany an d Troy

two hours ahe a d of the o l d boat the D ew
, r .
The D r w is twelve years o l d a n d her machinery

e ,
is now so worn as to be nearly broken down O n .
108
I sa a c Newton w a s a leading s t eamboat m a n of
Ne w York City The kind of a proposition I m a de
.
t o him w a s this : We would st a rt a line of steam

“
bo a ts a n d c a ll it the People s L ine
,
He woul d ’
be the presiden t a n d I the tre a surer ; a n d we would

show the country wh at ste a mbo a ting ought t o be .
He fell in with the idea a n d w e formed the line .
He owned the N or th A meri ca n Th at was the .
first ste a mbo a t to use blowers for a n a rtificial blast

in the furn a ce of the boilers run by an indepen dent
engine He a lso owned the S ou th A m eri c a n
. .
These were good bo a ts But whe n w e formed .
“ ”
the People s L ine w e built a gre a t n e w bo a t
’
a nd c a lled it the I s c N ew t n It w a s the first

aa o .
of the flo a ting pal a ces th a t were soon t o m a ke the

Hudson R iver fa mous throughout the world I t .
w a s th ree h undred feet long a n d h a d b erths for 5 00 ,
p a ssengers When she st a rted o ff on her first trip

.
the people crowded the wh a rf bl a ck to see her s a il

a w a y She w a s s o big they thought she was too
.
bulky t o be pushed a g a inst the tide a n d t h at she ,
would either t ip over bre a k down or something , ,
else Bu t s h e s a iled a w a y fine a s a nything And

. .
t he people cl a pped their h a nds Then we added .
the K n i k b k r She w a s buil t for us by

c er oc e .
S mith 86 D i mon Sh e w a s a fine bo a t a nd ha d

.
as m a ny as twelve staterooms in the l a dies s a loon ’

.
We took t h e engine for he r out of the old D Wi tt e
C l i n to n .
THE B O O K OF D A N I EL DRE W 111
P r etty s o on we b o u ght the O regon of Ge orge

”
L aw Li ve O a k Geo rge was t h e name he
w a s known by in steamboat ci r c l es he w a s th at ,
brisk a n d fear l ess He was the one who o ffered

.
to run his boat with on ly one whee l against the o l d

H e n d i k H u d s on fo r a n d wasn t taken ’
r c ,
u p on it T h e Oregon w a s a boat we wante d

.
for our line ; because L aw h ad made he r well known -

.
I in p ar t icu l a r w a s anxious to get he r because she ,
was a thorn i n the si d e of Captain Van de r bilt Van .
d e rb il t an d I never got along very wel l togethe r .
F rom the fi rst w e were more or l ess r unning each

oth er This O regon h ad beat h is boat th e
.
,
C o m m od or Va n d er b il t $he got to be kn o wn as
e
“ ”
The Commodo r e afte r a while because he owned
,
s o many boats ; b u t when I first met h i m he was ,

“ ”
j ust pla i n Captain $ in th at famous r ace from
New York to Cr oton Point an d retu r n I t was .
a distance of 7 5 mil es Vanderbilt w a s a ll fire d

.
-
set on winnin g th at r ace He made b ig p r epara

.
tions Got hi s boat i n the best of t r im The

. .
people s aw t h at he was going to win o r bust S o .
everybody came out to see I t w a s al most as e x c it

.
i ng a s the bu ll etin boa r ds in the city when they

announced S c o tt s v ictory at Ch urubusc o $because
’
this was the time of the Mexic a n war an d there ,
we r e a lot of New Y ork boys in Sco t t s a r my$ Well

’
.
,
t hey ran the r ace an d the Oregon wo n They

, .
said the r ace m i g h t h ave t ur ned o u t d i ffe r ent only ,

Vande rb i l t got wor ked u p with excite m ent an d ,
mixed in at t h e w rong m oment When his b o at .
was about to tu r n the point up at the fa r end of

t h e course be g r abbed the contr ol o f t h e t h ing away
,
from the pi l ot W rong sign als we r e g i ven to the

.
eng i nee r I nstea d of s l owing u p to ma ke a t ur n

.
,
the boat went a r oun d at full speed This lost h er .
so m uch distance th at the O regon got the l ead .,
kept it an d w o n the r ace I t w a s an awful b l o w

, .
to t h e Commodo r e s pride I n fact it was beca u s e

’
.
,
he felt so sore ove r it th at I wanted to own t h e

,
boat th at h ad beat him S o we took the O regon .

,
and ru n it on o u r li ne .
I h ave a l ways s u spic i o ned th at this d efeat was

one o f the things that disgusted the Commod o re
w i t h the steamboat b u siness and made him ,
leave it fo r othe r things Because p r etty soon .
he was giving a ll of his time to r ailroading and ,
didn t bothe r with steamboats much mo r e When

’
.
railroads we r e fi r s t coming in he h ad stuck up his ,
nose at them I n talking with me about them h e

.
,
“
wou l d refer to t hem with a sneer as them things ,
”
th at go on l an d He was a love r o f wate r c r aft
.
,
and did n t li ke to see anything come a l ong that

’
promised to h urt sail and s t eam boats B u t when .
he lost that r ace to the O regon it h u r t his p r ide

something te r rible It wasn t long afte r th at befo r e
.
’
he ch anged his mind about r ail ro ads and was after ,
thei r sh a r es lickety split .

th i s new invention I t crowded itse l f in on me . .
Along the enti r e l ength of my steamb o at route fr o m

New Yo r k t o Albany one o f t h ese new fangled things ,
-
was a buildi n g
-
a railroad was being cut th rough
the steep rocks on the east s h o r e of the river By .
an d b y when it h ad go t up fro m New York a s

fa r as Poughkeepsie we ran a line of ste a mbo a ts ,
from Albany to Pough keeps i e connecting with the ,
train fr om New York Wh en the r oad w a s finished .
clean u p to Al ba ny th e r ai lroad c r owd were so ,
boastful th ey tho u ght they we r e going to run steam

,
boats o ff th e face o f the e a rth An d they made no .
bones in saying so President Boo r man of this .
Hudson R ive r ro a d came to me j ust as soon a s

the last r ai l to Albany h a d been spike d dow n .
“ ”
Dr ew s ai d he you might j ust a s well h a ng
, ,
up your fiddle We ve got you whi pped O w n up

.
’
. .
You r steamboats can t hold out against these things ’
th at go along the rai l s 30 miles an h our l ike a streak

o f lightning Give up the boat business Boats
. .
c a n t live on the Hudson R iver any longer It won t

’
.
’
p a y you t o fight .
B ut I w a sn t going t o knuckle unde r I told him

’
.
,
modest like th a t he did have a big thing there in

-
,
t hose steam buggies of his B ut I w a s going t o s t ick .
t o steamboating for a spell yet And a s t o drivin g .
me o ff the river I guessed I could take c a re o f th at

, .
And I did t o o E ven after the r a ilroa d go t

, .
into ful l r unning my boat s ca rr ied j ust as m a ny

,
p a ssenge r s yes even mo r e th an befo r e T h e r ai l

, ,
.
roa d go t peop l e used t o t r ave ll ing an d th at h e l ped

,
all kin ds o f transpo r tat i on Besi des the g r eat .

,
West was beginning t o open up The r e was K ans as .

,
an d the rus h of people t o get out there an d s ave it

fro m b eing a sl a ve state F or Joh n B rown and.
h i s K ans a s doings got into the pa pers and helped

to m ake the prairies known to the people L ots .
of families whether they cared about the d a rkey

,
q uestion or not got the fever to go West An d

,
.
wh a t pleas a nte r w a y could there be th an to s a i l up

the Hudson to Albany change there to an E rie ,
C an a l bo at o ut th rough the Moh awk valley to

,
B u ff alo and then by water th rough the Great L akes

,
It was a sight cheaper to cart househo l d goods

that way th an to pay r ailroad freight ch arges .
But I h aven t any cause to poke ridicule at r ail

’
r oads They h ave proved mighty good friends to

.
me and my fortunes F o r it wasn t very long after

.
’
this that I got i nto the business myself I t came .
abou t something like this : Transportation w a s

stretching o u t from New Yo r k City not only in
a nor t herly direc t ion bu t Bos t on an d N ew York
a lso wanted t o be tied to e a ch o t he r by a fast route .
Bos t on a nd New York w ere almost as closely kni t

together a s Albany an d N ew York People a nd .
goods were going b ack and forth between them all

“
t he t ime I knew t his because my B ull s He a d
.
,
’
t avern h ad been on the highway which led fro m

1 16 THE B O OK OF D A NI EL DRE W
N ew Yo r k City down east to Boston B ut the .
sta ge coach cou l dn t take ca r e o f t h e t r a ffi c now

-
’
.
S o a l ine of steamboats started up from New Yo r k

out th r oug h L ong I s l and Soun d I an d Geo r ge .
“
L aw L ive O a k George established it T h at .
b r idged over a good p a rt of t h e distance between

the two cities Then from Stonington a r ail r oa d
.
was built the rest of the way to Boston T h e t r a ffic .
th at went over this p a rt wate r an d pa rt rail line

- - - -
,
soon showed th at it was to be a m oney make r ; t h at -
this was wh at the two cities h ad long been wait i ng

fo r As soon as I saw t h at I wanted to h ave cont r ol
.
,
o f t h e r ail road end of the route as well as of t h e ,
steamboat end So Van derbilt and I went in an d

.
“
bought enough sh a r es of t h e Boston and S toning
”
ton R ailroad to control it I n fact his fa mily .
,
an d I were p r etty closely t i ed u p togethe r in those

days Because at this ti me besides the partnership
.
,
between him a nd me in this rail r oad his b r othe r ,
J a ke was with me in the S t onington L ine of stea m

boats B ut my life h asn t had so much to do with
.
’
J a ke He w a s never the pusher th at his brother was

. .
I w a s getting busy now in still another di r ection .
Some time before this since the best fishing is in

,
deep waters I h a d become a broker in W a ll S t r eet

,
.
By this time th at section of New Yo r k City h a d

gone th r ough a wondrous c h ange from wh at it h ad
been in my first visits to the city Wall Street wasn t .
’
any longer the m a r ket place of a big village It .

1 18 THE B O OK OF D AN I EL DRE W
stood fo r R obe r t Weeks K elly $the We e k s e s we r e
also big people in t he circus business up in Carmel $ .
Th is K elly thoug h h ad m ade most of his money

, ,
in the drove r business He was a s h rewd th rifty .

,
drover a n d aft er Ch amberlain died he became

,
my son in law So since w e t hr ee knew each other

- -
.
well we started together in t h e banking an d broker

,
business .
Wit h so many fis h poles going at once I was -

,
kept tied close to busines s Neve r was m u c h of .
a fellow to take vacations any h ow and d ur i ng , ,
these days I wouldn t h ave h a d a ch ance even if ’
I d wanted to There were some business men

’
.
wh o kept drawing o ff their thoughts to poli t ics and

a ff airs of sta t e An d if a fellow h ad been so
.
minde d he could h a ve t a ken up a de a l of his ti me

,
in t a lking about s uch things because t here w a s ,
lots of excitement those days There was the Mexi .
can war And then the S lave q uestion down S outh

.
go t people a ll stirred up B ut I w a s t oo busy t o .
bo t her with such things When a fellow is making .
money he gets busier every ye a r Because t he mo re .
money he m a kes t he more investmen t s he h a s to

,
search o u t in order to keep h is money working

,
.
An d t he more investmen t s he h a s t he more money ,
he s going to make Which me a ns still more t ime

’
.
in finding safe employmen t for it And so o n . .
S uch far o ff t hings a s w a rs in Mexico Missouri

-
,
C ompromises an d S lave Wa r s in K a ns a s cou l d

, ,
THE B OOK OF D A NI EL DRE W 11
9
not be allo w ed to come in a n d take my thoughts

away from business .
But I did n ow a n d then ta ke t ime o ff to s e e the

sigh t s F or instance t here w a s the big celebration
.
,
when Henry Clay visited t h e ci ty He came up to .
be p r esent w hen t he body of President John Quincy

Adams w a s brought on to N ew York from Washing
ton I h ad a l w ays r egarded Clay a s a great man
. .
He h a d been the one to import D evo n s Herefords ,
an d a l o t o f fine short horns from E ngl a nd and was

-
,
helping t o introduce t hese breeds into th e K entucky

and O hio l a nds N ew E ngl a nd s favourite was
.
’
the D evon There w a s a l so the long horn Texas

.
-
cattle w hich w a s being bo a sted about by the West

,
orners B ut I never took much to those l ong horns

.
-
.
They are but one remove above the bu ffa lo a n d ,
are ungainly c r itters The polled D urh a m of O hio

.
is far better fo r ordin a ry pu r poses being q uiet at ,
the feeding r ack and troughs I kind of took to .
Hen ry Clay bec a use he w a s s o hot t o get th e fa rmers

out in his section of the country t o take u p with
high gr a de breeds o f c att le O n h is fa rm in K en
-
. s
t ucky they used t o s a y th at he h ad a s fine a fa t stock

a rr a y a s a man could a s k t o see Those Western .
soils a nyhow helped a whole lo t in improving t he

, ,
breeds of live s t ock There w a s the red h o g of New

.
Jersey w hich formed t he foun d at ion for t he l a rge

,
a n d he a vy a nimals exported to the Wes t I n dies ;

when sent West it took o n plumpness a n d bec a me
th at grained meat which co r n growing countri es
fin e - -
alw a ys give to a he a l t hy breed The s a me thing .
h appened with the white hog o f Pennsylvan i a .
Befo r e he w a s sent to Northern O hio he w a s a ,
tough an d l a nky animal ; but out there he bec a me

fine and p l ump O u t West al so they got to cross i ng
.
the Berkshire a n d Chin a breeds upon the common

hog a n d made something finer th a n h ad ever been
,
seen befo r e Those Western St a tes were great

.
in imp roving the q uali ty o f butcher s me a t Henry ’

.
Clay would to my thinking h a ve m a de an A No 1

, , .
President if h e h a d ever been elected .
B ut after a while we didn t h a ve so much ti me ’
“
over a t o u r b a n king house o f D rew R obinson ,
”
8 6 Co .fo r discussing breeds of catt l e We h ad .
our h ands full in h a ndling the business th at bega n

to come in When you a r e l oaning money buying
.
,
and selling r ai l ro a d a nd ste a mbo a t sha r es an d su c h ,

.
like it keeps you goi n g I f you don t look out

, .
’
one sli p will m a ke an alm i ghty loss I n fa ct o u r .
house m a de a slip a t t he s t art O n e of our c u s .
t o m e rs w a s a fellow w e h a d known for some time .
He owed u s My partners were for exten d

ing t he lo a n I w a s a g a inst it They begged
. .
ta lked a bout old frien dship s s ake a nd such like ’
, .
They got me to consent R esult w e lost the — .
money Th a t t a ught me a lesson S entiment is

. .
a ll right u p in the part of the city where your home

is B ut downtown No D own there the dog th at
.
, .
profi t s slow and sure Bu t I w a s in fo r bigger
, .
t hings So w e sol d t h at line to t he S ar a toga a n d

.
Whi t eh a ll railroad and I put t he money in t h , e
form o f cash for s p e c k il a t in g My experiences h ad .
told me t h at I h a d skill in getting de a ls worke d

t hrough and th at these would bring q uicker gain s
,
t h an the slow poke method of regular busines s

-
.
So I wen t in t o opera t io n s in the stock m a rket .
People h ave cou pled my n ame along with F i k s
a n d Gould B ut it will be seen from wh at is here

.
being s e t down t h at I was in a dvance of bo t h o f

them Here I w a s an opera t or in Wall S tree t
.
, ,
when the S t ock E xch a nge w a s new I was a middle .
aged man o n t he S t reet when Ji m F isk w a s a b a by

in the cradle a nd before J a y Goul d had seen t h e
,
ligh t of d a y I migh t a lmos t s a y I w a s their W a ll

.
S t reet p a ren t Many of their schemes a nd methods

.
t hey l earned from me I w a s the pioneer The . .
w a y to m a nipula t e stocks a n d work W a ll Stree t

.
dickers w a s well nigh unknown when I firs t wen t-
in t o t he business I t hough t up many o f t he schemes

.
o u t of my o w n br a in Those w h o c a me a ft er h a d
.
no t h ing t o do bu t copy my ide a s Gould a n d F isk .
t hey wer e pu pils o f mine bo t h of t hem I helped ,

.
t o m a ke t hem They were a p a ir o f col t s ; I broke

.
t hem in I t is e a s y n o w t o l a y o u t a c a mp a ign for

.
working t he m a rke t Bu t b a ck in my e a rly d ays .

,
i t w a s n t s o e a sy by a long sho t I h a d t o invent

’
.
w a ys of doing i t I h ad no guides to s t eer by

. .
WAS gett i ng now to be a powe r in t he fin a n
c ia l m ar ket Acco r dingly I w a nted to live
.
right in the city a n d no longer out in t he

,
sub urbs I got a house o n B leecker S treet j ust

.
,
whe r e Mulbe r ry Street runs in t o it — No 5 2 .
Bleecke r it was,
— the upper corner tow a rds t he
Bowery Th a t section h ad fo r merly been the
.
blackbe rry region for M a nh att a n I sl a nd When I .
”
was a t the B ull s He ad Bleecker S t reet w a s a lane
’
,
l i ned with blackber ry bushes an d in the be r ry ,
season w a s a great pl a ce for picnics fr om fa r an d

near I t was a lso a good region fo r snip e shooting
.
,
an d a lso for h unting ra bbits B u t by now yo u .
woul d ha r dly h a ve recognized the place F or t he .
city h a d grown u p into it The digging out of the.
st r eam j ust below into a c a n a l $where C a n a l S t reet

now runs $ h a d helped to dr a in t he frog me a dows -
u
p in the Bleecker Street section of the isl a n d The .
B ro a d W a y w a s pushed u p t o U nion S quare $a s it

w a s by a n d by c a lled $ a n d t a cked onto the Bloom
,
in gd a l e R o a d which continued it up to t he middle

of the isl a n d ki t ty corner Where Gr a ce Church
-
.
n o w stan ds t h e re u sed to be an old high pe a ked

,
-
1 23
1 24 THE B OOK OF D AN I EL DRE W
b arn ; bu t th a t fa rm w a s now being cut u p into
building lots a n d criss crossed by city streets
,
-
.
The church I a ttended w a s on Mulberry Street ,
not far be l ow my house An d now I set in to go .
to meeting every S und a y ; I w a s a lso present on

pr ayer a n d cl a ss meeting nights I never lost my
-
.
re l igion aft e r t his You won t read in these papers

.
’
o f any m ore backslidings by Da n D rew I t took .
a good de a l of the g ra ce o f God t o re a ch me B u t .
when fin a l ly he got me landed s a fe a n d sound within

the fold he held on to me I h a ve never slid b a ck
,
.
from th a t time to t his O f course I h a ve h a d

.
,
my cold se a sons E very person h as those You

. .
c a n t live o n a mountain all the ti me No w a nd

’
.
then I h a ve found myself in t he v a lley But I h a ve .
never fa iled to ge t back to the mount a in top e x p e ri -
e n ce s .
We used to h a ve glorious times i n t h a t old

Mulberry Stree t Church F rom the Bowery vill a ge .
by Pe t er Cooper s grocery store where he w a s

’
superin t endent of the S und a y school t he church -

,
moved firs t down t o t he nor t h side of S eventh S tr eet .
But th e reviv a ls t here were s o powerful the neigh ,
bours beg a n t o objec t Some good s a in t would

.
get t he power a nd would be well nigh o u t of his -
senses S uddenly he would come t o a nd wi t h

.
,
“”
migh ty h a lleluj a hs would t ell o f t he things he
h a d seen I don t s e e why people should object
.
’
t o shouting Ch risti a ns I m not a shouter myself

.
’
.
the mercy seat until he gets them th rough also .
And if it s twelve o clock mi dnight before the meeting

’ ’
i s o ver he isn t going to care

,
’
.
But the nei gh bours did They s a i d the chu r ch

.
was a bad thing fo r p roperty values So they r aised .
s o me money an d bought two lots near Th ir d Avenue .
Th ese they gave to the trustees of t he church on

con dition th at they move the meeting house over -
th e r e The trustees consented an d the building

was put Up O n e d a y Z e k iel Moore a merch a nt
.
,
an d membe r of the S eventh St r eet Chu r ch saw a ,
vacant p l ot on Mulberry St r eet ne a r Bleecke r and ,
got the ide a of building a church t h e r e So J ake .
B unting c a lled a meeting at h is house on C r osby

St r eet a nd the thing was sta r ted The r e we r e
,
.
g r eat doings when our new meet i ng house was fin a lly -
dedicated D r B angs preac h ed the se r mon th at

. .
afte r noon How some things stand o u t in a pe r son s

.
’
memory $ It was fr om L uke I 79 The se r m o n , .
was me a nt mostly for us who were s aved This .
was a s it should be A dedication sermon i s to the

.
saints ra t her th an to the sinners .
The pre a cher descri bed the da r kness o u t o f wh i ch

we h a d been delivered I could a l most feel the
.
heat of the flames a s he pictu r ed t he thing an d ,
showed how we h ad been sn atched as a bran d fro m

th e burning Although I h ad been in the b ack
.
s l iding cl a ss often and long I was no longe r i n th at

,
state of alien ation nor appointed unto wr a th My .

THE B O OK O F DA N I EL DRE W 12 7
d e lig ht was now in witnessing an d testimonies I .
could with joy gaze into the lower depths w hi ch ,
once used t o send s h ive r s an d goose fl es h al l ove r m e

-
.
Waken and mourn ye heirs of hell

, ,
L et stu bborn sinners fear ;

You mus t be driven from earth to dwel l ,
A lo ng forever the r e .
S ee how t he pit g a p es wide for yo u ,
An d flashes in your face .
And thou my soul look downw ar ds too

, , ,
”
An d sing recovering grace $
The r e was a ti me when th at sort of thing woul d

h a ve made me h a ng on t o the seat in fron t to keep
from slipping down in t o the pit But now my feet .
h a d been pl a ced upon the rock I was no longer .
bui l ding on the san ds but on solid foun dations

,
.
Hay a nd whe a t a nd stub ble the fire will consume

these But the rock stands when the nearer wate r s
.
,
roll.
These thoughts m a y seem poky a n d d ull to some .
Th at is bec a use t hey h a ve never experienced religion .
I t w a s in this Mulberry S t reet Ch urch an d in the

big marble church on F ourth Aven ue which a li ttle ,
l at er I w a s ins t rumental in building t h at I spen t a ,
good sh a re o f my t i me ou t of business hours When .
a m a n goes t o pr a yer mee t ing a nd class mee t ing

two nights of the week and to church t wice on S un
,
day and o n week d a ys works a t h is o ffi ce from
,
-
morning t ill nigh t h is life is made up of a bout two

,
things work a nd worship .
I n order to know wh at a m a n r eally is you ve ,

’
got t o see hi m n o w an d t hen a way from h is o ffi ce .
Business isn t the whole o f life Business shows

’
.
one side o f a m a n His church a nd home life show

.
the other side Th at is where a good many of the

.
revilings against me h a ve come fro m They h ave .
come from people w h o h a ve seen me only at business .
E verybody knows th a t business is o n e t hing an d a ,
man s ch urch a n d home life another t hing I h ave

’
.
—
h ad to sh a rpen my wi t s coun t t he pennies close
in order to make money But t here h as been some
.
thing t o D an D rew besi des j us t getting rich an d I ,
w a nt people to know wh a t this o t her something is .
U nless a business m a n is a lso a converted man ,
with the witness o f the spirit within hi m he is l ike ,
a hog under a n a pple tree — so busy crunc h ing

the frui t th a t he doesn t h ave t ime to look up t o
’
where t he frui t comes from I t isn t fa ir t o j udge

.
’
a m a n by h is down town life alone Business

-
.
,
a nyhow slobbers a fellow up I t s li ke t e a ching a c a lf

,
.
’
to drin k ou t o f a p a il you re sure t o get splashed

’
a nd dirty B usiness is a scramble for the c a sh

. .
Nobody looks fo r manners aroun d the meal tub .

and got a g r ant of money fr om t h e L egislature .
But this h adn t c a p rie d the roa d to comp l etion

’
.
I t hung fi r e It was built only h a l f way to L ake

.
-
E rie — was l ike a bridge thrown h alf w a y across -

,
about as m uch u s e as no b r idge at a ll The L egis .
l a t u re woul d n t g r ant any mo r e money Also Amer

’
.
i can capita l got cold feet The th i ng l ooked bad . .
I t was at this time th at E nglish investo r s c a me to

the r escue They put u p thei r good money bough t
.
,
the r oad s pape r helped the th i ng out So th at

’
,
.
by an d by a p ai r of rails w a s l a i d c l ean th r ough to

D un ki r k.
Then the r e was a great j ubi l ee Al l the people .
”
i n th at part of the state joined i n the Hurr a h .
T h ey had been je a lous of the E ri e Canal section of

Yo r k S tate Now they cou l d hold their he a ds u p
.
with any Becau se wh at is a cana l with its poky

.
,
old boats compared to a rail r oad 5 00 miles long

, ,
wi t h t r ains scooti n g over t he r ails like a s t reak of

lightning $ Thirty miles a n hour now w a sn t con ’
s id e re d remark a ble ; soon t he t rains could keep u p

t h at speed t he whole dis ta nce To celebr a te the .
completion of t he ro a d t wo t r a ins of cars ran ove r

the route There were m a ny invi t ed gues t s
.
— the
Presi dent D an Webs t er a n d lots o f the othe r big
, ,
wigs It w a s in t he spring of the ye a r When

. .
fin a lly they got t o D unkirk a t La ke E rie t hey h a d ,
a big ba r becue U nde a tent were victu a ls fo r

. r
well nigh a tho u s a nd people Whol e r oast pig

-
.
a nd oxen were se r ve d on the tab l es . The re was a

g r eat s ig n hu ng up w i t h,poetry on i t :
Tis done t is done the mighty ch a in

,
’
, ,
”
T h at bin ds L ake E r ie to the main .
T h e r oad first along r an to Pie r mont on the H u d

s on. They h adn t been able t o g et th rough t h e
’
B ergen Hil l whic h lay j ust b ack of Jersey City

, .
S o h ad to go up to Pie r mont a s the next best place

of reac h ing the H u dson Wash i ngton I r vin g s
.
’
country seat was on the ri ver on t h e opposite ban k .
He coul d look over an d see the t r ains come down

to t he shore ; fo r t he r e was a pier a mile long th at
ran out into the wate r fr om Pie r mont I t h ad to .
be t h at long bec a use t h e Hudson i s sh al l ow at t h at

,
point $R ight where Washington I r ving h ad h is

.
e state was where t h e th r ee patriot soldie r s got

Majo r And r é when he was trying to escape from
We s t Point during the t r e a son o f Benedict A r nold $
, .
Th a t place Piermont h ad formerly been a fishing

, ,
vill a ge called T a ppan S l o t e The p l ace h ad sup

.
por t ed th ree fishing sloops B ut now th ree ste a m

.
bo a t s took t he pl ace of the sloops Gre a t shops .
a n d engine houses we r e b uil t and a swi t ch ya r d

-
,
-
.
Piermont — a long pie r running r ight into the

mountain b ack on the shore ; I suppose th at s whe r e ’
t n e village go t i t s new name became a boom town .
This plan of h aving the e a ste r n te r min al of t h e

r o a d at Piermont h a d its drawb a cks I t w a s twenty
.
four mi l es up the river fro m Ne w Yor k Ci ty S team .
boat s could take c a re o f t he travel a ll right in summer .
B u t i n winte r it w a s a di fferent m at ter I n th at d a y

.
t h ere w a sn t so much tra ffic in N ew York B ay an d

’
on the North R iver as there is now So th a t in a .
cold winte r the flo a ting ice not h aving any t hing

,
to break it up used to j am a nd free z e soli d from

, ,
shore to shore The E rie Ra ilroad boats to Piermont

in winter h a d to h ave a ch a nnel cut fo r them through
the ice S ometimes they h ad h ard work keeping
.
even this open The ch annel would someti mes

.
get so na rrow t h a t the boat could j ust ski m p th rough .
S k a ters o n the ice would come a longside a nd j u mp

onto the guard r a il o f t he steamboat o r o n t o the
-
,
fa lse prow .
However in s pite o f t his di ffi culty the r a ilroa d

,
d id well a lmos t from the start F or o n e thi n g

.
,
the people living alongside were so proud of the

thing t h at t hey pi t ched in a n d helped i t in e ve ry
w a y they could They looked upon t he E rie R oad
.
a s a p a triotic a chievemen t Bec a use peop l e as

.
fa r aw a y a s E urope were talking about t his wonde r

ful engineering fe at th a t Americ a h a d put through .
More t h a n t h at t he ro a d r a n t h rough a prosperous

,
re gion F rom R ockland t o Ch a ut a uq u a the r e we r e

.
,
rich farm l a nds on bo t h sides I t t apped t h e

.
D el a w a re a n d Hudson C a n a l a t Port J ervis Branch .
l ines quickly spread out o n bo t h sides an d serve d

1 34 TH E B O OK O F DA N I EL DRE W
to keep them away fr om h is a r my which w a s up in
the Highlands B ack i n my d rover days t h ese
.
fo r t i fications we r e still stan din g They ran out from

.
the south s i de o f the mountain a mile an d a h alf ,
up fr om Majo r S u ffe r n s mansion $That mansion

’
.
is where Genera l George Washington ma de his

h eadq uarte r s when his army w a s c a mped there $ .
” “
I n this gap and o n t o p of the high torn
, th at s ’
a D utch word fo r steeple — before the r ail r o a d

came with its smoke a nd dust yo u could l ook well
,
nigh into N ew York H a rbou r They used to tell .
the story th at General George Washing t on u sed t o

c li mb to the top o f th at hill and watch fo r t h e
B r itish th rough a spy glass J ust a little beyon d
-
.
th i s a mile o r s o to the west is whe r e o u r d r oves

, ,
of cattle and i n fact all the t r a ffi c which went th rou gh

,
the gap use d to cross the R amapo R ive r T h e r ai l

, .
ro ad when it came built its b r idge right a l ongsid e

the old turn pike b r idge B ack in my drove r d ays
.
,
Judge Pierson h ad his iron works there for rolling and

splitting iron an d making cut n a ils The r iver
, .
here in t his gap furnished fine wa t er power And .
the moun ta ins r oun d a bout ar e so full o f iron ore

th at in a lightn i ng s t orm yo u could h a rdly get away
from t he fiery bolts no m a tter which w a y you r an
, .
To be there in a lightning sto r m would make a

sinful man wish he h ad listened to wh at t he preacher
said a nd had made himse l f thunder proof against -
the wr at h of God .
TH E B OOK OF D A N I EL DRE W 1
35
W h y to s h ow you t h e ric h ness o f t h at co u nt ry

, ,
long before t h e ra i lroad was even t h oug h t o f o u t ,
beyon d Pierson s I ron Works M a jor J a ke S l oat

’
h ad p u t up a big cotton mill I t w a s in a D utc h .
settlement S loat was very anx i ous to keep a good

.
tone in his settlement He h ad a grocery an d .
general store and wouldn t a llow a smitch o f ru m

,
’
o r intoxicatin drink to be sold anywhe r e in the

g
p l ace The mill w a s in a beautifu l grove D utch
. .
g irls worked i n the mill Their homes were back .
in the woods a l l around here one and the r e o n e , ,
very cosy little cottages It was a God fearing .

-
people Judge Pierson a l so kept liq uo r o ut of h is

.
vill a ge So th a t a ll the way th rough t h at section

.
it was a poo r place for drovers to stop o ff in Because .

,
s i nce t h ey weren t allowed to se l l liq uo r no o n e

’
would put up a tavern Th ey figured t h at without .
a tap room a tavern wouldn t p a y expenses So ’

-
, .
we d rovers wo ul d plan to go t hr ough t h at section

i n th e d a yti me and reach some tavern furthe r on
, .
Because if w e l a nded there at night it w a s a case

, ,
of sleeping o u t u n de r the open sky .
N ot fa r from the Tuxedo Gap u p in the moun t ains , ,
was a woodchopper s settlement c a lled Johnson ’
town They m a de a living by burning ch arcoal

.
,
which they c a rried down to the Ra m a po R iver for

use in t he iron furnaces They a lso whittled o u t .
wooden spoons a n d chopping bowls which they ,
s old Th ey wer e a g ood people B ut they didn t ’

. .
know very mu ch about the go i ngs o n i n the great
wo r ld o u t s ide When the r ailroad trains began to
’
co m e th rough t h is Tuxedo Gap t h ose woodsmen ,
h ea r d t h e sc reech of the engine as it went th ro u gh

t h e woods — it w a s pretty nigh all woods i n t h ose
d ays s o th at a sq uirrel could almost go through
,
fo ur c ounties from tree top to tree top without

- -
,
to u c h ing ground they thought it was the sc r ea m

of some new kind of w il d a nimal ; fo r the woods
t h en were infested with p anther a nd o t her varmints .
So o n e night they gathered with axes a nd pitchforks

i n t h at p art of t h e woods wh ere the scre ech i ng h ad
been hea r d night a fter night t o m a ke a n a mbuscade
,
fo r t h e beast Wh en the engin e fi na l ly came rus h ing

.
through the woods and t h e d arkness with a l ong ,
tai l o f light st r eaming be h ind t h ose mountainee r s

,
r us h ed away sca r ed This new kind of varmint was

.
t oo m u c h.
Th e Mon r oe I r on F urn ace about three miles,
beyond S l o a t s Burg w a s where Parrott m a de his

’
guns which became famou s in the Civil W a r There

,
.
was an iron mine six miles up from there in the

mo u n t ain whose o re was said to be the s o ve re ign e s t
,
in all the count ry fo r the making of cannon $Th at s .

’
why the Parrott gun became so noted $ It w a s .
great i r on also for making n ails ; a nd some distance

, ,
from there at the South F ields back in my d r over

, ,
days w a s a flou r ishing n a il works O nly smart

,
.
an d h andy ch aps we re employed i n those wo r ks ,

1 38 TH E B O OK OF D A NI EL D RE W
kept a ta vern a t th a t pl a ce right clo se to the tracks ,
with a flourishing g r ist mill back of it He u sed to .
fee d the tr a vellers ; Turner s R estaurant got to be

’
famous the whole length of the E rie R a ilro a d because

of its fine victuals $ Here you came into a r egion
.
fl o wing wi t h mi l k an d butter S ome of the finest

.
sh or t horn beeves th at ever came to the New Yo rk

-
ma r ket were pic k ed up in this valley The p as .
tu ri ng w a s o f good quality in summer a nd in winter

,
the fodder was p l entiful Fr om here a ll the w ay

.
al o ng t he route of the E rie it w a s a great b r ee d in g

,
section It made big money by selling c ri tte r s to

.
us drovers long befor e t h e r a ilroa d came

, .
E S I knew something of the ri chness of
,
th at c o unt ry through which the E rie

r a il r oad was being built So when it .
,
was at l a st finished I h ankered to get it into my

,
h ands I felt th at I could make money out of

.
it When yo u own the hen you own the eggs

.
,
also An d when yo u control a r a ilro ad

.
— th at s the ’
sa me a s owning it you own wh at the r oad makes .
I went about it li ke this The r e was by this

.
time a ch a i n of ra ilroads th rough the Moh awk

Valley an d the centr a l p a rt of York S tate They .
“
coupled togethe r a litt l e l a ter to fo r m the N ew
, ,
”
York Cen t ra l . This ch ain of r ail r oads out of
A l b a ny cou l d be made in connection with my
,
s teambo a ts on the Hudson a b a d co m petitor of

,
the E rie for the th rough wes t ern t ra fli c With my .
Hudson R iver bo a ts I w a s in a posi t ion to fa vour

this Cen t r a l L ine with r at es on t he th rough t ra ffic
a n d so m a ke myself an enemy of the E r ie whom it
would s ta n d t hem in h a nd to m a ke t erms with To .
m a ke doubly sure I se t my t r a p a t the o t her end

,
also . O u t on L ake E rie w a s a line of boa t s con

n e c t in
g with t he E r ie R a ilro a d a n d fo r ming it s
1 39
r o u te to the fa r West Soft ly I bought a controlling
.
interest i n th i s steamboat line Th i s gave me .
power ove r the E rie in th at di r ection I took s t ill .
a third step O ut in western New Yor k there was

.
a line o f r a i l r oad connecting both the Centr a l L ine

“
and t h e E rie It w a s known as the B u ff a lo an d
.
”
State L ine R ail r oad Wit h out l etting anyb o dy
.
know w h at I w a s d oing I go t enou gh st o ck i n t h i s

,
dinkey little r oa d to control it .
Now my trap was set I l et i t be known t h a t I

.
was p l annin g to g i ve t h e railroad w hi ch r an th rough

centr a l New Yo r k a better th ro ugh r ate both on ,
“
the Hudson Ri ve r steamboats an d o n t h e Bu ffa lo
”
and State L ine connection with the West th an ,
t h e E ri e cou ld meet I a l s o hi nte d to the E rie

.
Compa ny th at i t woul d very so o n h ave to give me

a bigge r s l ice o f the through r ate fo r the use of my ,
L ake E ri e li ne of steamers .
The E r ie people got i nte r ested in me then almighty

q uick Fo r I h a d their line bottled u p corked at
.
,
“ ”
both en d s good and tight Wh at do you mean
.
,
“
t h ey asked , by giving th at New York Centr a l
c r owd bette r r ates th an yo u do us
I a nswered so r t of cool like that I h adn t thought
,
-
,
’
th e E r ie woul d care ve ry much They h ad neve r .
s eemed to give much thought to D an Dr ew o n e w a y
or the othe r I s a i d I w a s kin d o f surprised th at

.
t hey even knew I w a s living .
“ ”
Wh at do yo u mean by th at ? they as ke d .
142 TH E B OOK OF D AN I EL DRE W
any t i me yo u wish So I set about to ma k e t h em
.
bo rr ow money and to bor r ow it of me

,
.
Th is w a s not so e a sy to d o as one mig h t th i nk .
Because the C ompany was p r osperous It d id n t .

’
need a ny more money The r oad was so won de r .
ful an a chievement th a t i t was a l most a m a r k of

pa tr iotism fo r the people i n th at r eg i on to pat r onize
i t an d help i t a l ong I t was not only a Yo r k
.
State thing it was an Ame ri can institut i on

,
— the
fi r st great t r unk line r a ilroad the world h a d ever
-
seen So money flowed in fr om all s i des Con

. .
d u c t o rs eng i nee r s br a kemen t r ack walke r s p r ou d

, , ,
-
,
t o be working for such a fine and gre a t ente r p ri se ,
were honest and faithful No won der t h e r oad .
pai d dividends Th i s was du r ing t h e p a n i c of 5 7

.
’
th at I set about to get cont ro l of the road Money .
everywhere else was tight — so much s u ffe ri ng ,
in fact th at the New York C ommon Counci l put

,
labou r ers to wo r k gr a ding the new Cent r a l Pa r k ,
in order to r elieve the distress And yet with .

,
stocks everywhe r e else slumping b a nks fai l ing , ,
gre a t comme r ci a l houses t oppling on eve ry side ,
that very year the young a n d th r ifty E rie R ai lr oad

pai d no less th an eight per cent dividends I f a . .
r oad could do th at so soon a fte r it w a s built and wh i le

i t was ge tt ing onto its legs so to speak wh a t woul dn t
, ,
’
it do when it ha d settled down to real business ?

Yes it di d look like a hopeless task t o m a ke a r oa d
, ,
th a t was a s flou r ishing a s t his bo rr ow money of me .

3
B ut I was l ike a s t eer th a t sme l ls t h e c l over ; h e wil l

eit h er find a ho l e th roug h the l ine fence o r make o n e ,
.
This E rie enterprise in my life let me s ay right

,
h e r e got a lo t of people to disli king me

, Bec a use
.
,
“
they s aid ,before D an Dr ew got hold o f it the ,
E rie w a s o n e of the best and most th riving proper

ties in the country — Americ a s pri de
’
— longest
and finest rail r o a d in the world — the bringer
of blessings to all the sou t hern tier o f counties
in the E mpire State Where a s when he got
.
,
through with it so these enemies of mine s aid

, ,
“
it s treasu ry h a d been sq ueezed dry t he r oad ,
brought to bankrup t cy it s rolling s t ock run down

, ,
a n d t he r o a d bed become a de a th tr a p and a t a ker

-
”
of h uman life An d the evil didn t stop with him
.
’
,
“
s o t h ey went on ; for when t h is D an D rew fi n a lly
let go his clutch on t he finances o f the road he h a d ,
set at work a ch ain of influences which were to make

t he r oad a b y word a nd s e t b a ck the development of a
-
,
”
t h ifd part o f Yo r k St a te fo r the sp a ce of fifty years .
O h they ripped it onto me good a n d h a rd

, I .
sup pose I h ave p u t up wi t h such a buse during my

life a s h ave few o th er men t h at ever lived B u t .
,
bei ng o f a peace a ble d is p o s it io n I h a ve forgiven

,
these enemies o f mine a ll t he h ard t hings t hey s a id .
I a lw a ys turn the o t her cheek a s it were A quie t

, .
cow can get along with shor t horns ; a n d if when ,
enemies revile you a n d s a y a ll m a nner o f evil a g a inst

y ou, you don t a nswer
’
back but
, j us t go on your
own peaceable w ay it sort of takes a l l the s pun k o ut ,
of th em ; by an d by they get ove r being ma d ,
an d stop t h e ir mud th rowing Anyhow I neve r did -

.
,
care pea s h ucks wh a t people we r e saying about me

-
.
So m a ny have taken a kick a t me th at if I were

tende r I suppose I d be s o so r e by th i s t i me t h at I
’
couldn t s it down ; but my s ad dle l eat h er so to

’
s peak h as become tough so th at I don t mind t h eir

, ,
’
kicks any mo r e .
The t r ut h is I was h a rd pus h e d for fun ds when

,
I sta r ted i n o n this E rie business My fortune h ad .
stopped g ro wing And no matter how much a man .
has w h en h e co m es to a point whe r e h e stops get

,
ting r iche r he is sca r ed The pan i c o f 5 7 h ad c u t

,
.
’
o ff a nu m be r o f my dividends I w a s doing nothing .
more th an h olding my o w n I wasn t making any .

’
p rog r ess E ach night didn t see me a ny further

.
’
a l ong towa r ds becoming a rich man than the mo r n

ing I wasn t getting ahe a d E ve ry m a n of spi r it
.
’
.
wants to be getting ahead .
Besides with this p a nic year of which I m now

,
’
writing a new sta t e of a ff a irs c a me about in fin a ncial

,
“
circles The panic w a s known as the Wes t ern
.
Blizza r d It p u t o l d fogyism out of da t e forever

.
more The men w h o conducted business in t he

.
old fa shioned s l ow poke method

- —,
the think o f - -
the othe r fellow method

- —-were swept a way by
this panic o r at le a st were so c r ippled u p th a t they
,
didn t figu r e much in the wo r ld o f a ffai r s afterwards

’
.
146 TH E B OOK OF D A N I EL D R E W
s t i ff as a line fence B ut the E rie w a s so prosper
.
ous ho l ding its o w n even in thi s panic year of 5 7

,
’
th at the directo r s now decided to go ahead and t ry t he

well nigh i mpossi ble t a sk of getting into Jersey Ci ty
-
.
Some time befo r e this passenge r s to Ne w York ,
h a d got into the h abit of leavin g t h e E r ie at S u ffern

S tat ion and getting on to anothe r r oad which brought
,
them into N ew York by the way of Paterson N ew ,
Jersey A sho r t c u t road ove r t hi s r o u te h ad been

.
-
buil t by p r ivate cap i tal O r r ath e r th i s short c u t .

,
“
w a s a chain made up of th ree r oads ; the U nion
” ”
Ra ilroad the R am a po 8c Pate r son and the
,
“
Paterson 86 J e r sey City A ll of t h em were .
s h ort The U nion in fact was o n l y h alf a mile

.
long but was needed in making t h e final connec t ion

,
with the E r ie These were a l l na rr ow gauge roads

.
-
t h at is nar r ow gauge for th at time They woul d

,
-
.
be c all ed standa r d g a uge to day for t h ey we r e bui l t

- -
,
on t he E ng l ish st a nd a rd five feet eight an d a h a lf ,
inches wide which h a s since been adop t ed by all

,
t he railroads of Americ a But the E rie w a s a six .
foo t road R igh t here was one di ffi cul ty The

. .
E rie rolling stock couldn t run on this narrow gauge

’
nor could t he na rr ow g a uge c ar s and engines run on -
t he bro a d t r a ck of the E rie .
This sho r t c u t t h rough Pate r son when i t got ,
to within two miles of t he Hudson R iver followed ,

“
the track of The New Je r sey Ra ilro a d 8:
Tran s po r tat i on th rough a hole in Bergen Hill
i nto Je r sey Ci ty T h at w a s then the only w ay

.
t h r ough th at h i ll I t h ad been c ut at t h e l owe r

.
end whe r e the m o untain was nowh e r es near so

,
b r oa d an d so h ard to tunnel as i t was further up .
B u t this c u t t h ro ugh the hill was al r eady t a ken .
I t w a s the only tho roughfa re fr om New York to

Phi l adelphia Was h ington and t h e South So i t
,
.
h a d all it cou l d d o t o h a ndle its own tra ffi c An d .
fo r the E rie Ro a d w i t h its great trunk line tr a ffic

,
-
,
to t ry to use t h at same p assage way would h a ve -
b lo cked it tigh t S o an indepen dent h o l e th rough

.
the mountai n was nee d ed and furthe r up t o o wh ere , , ,
t h e tunnelling w a s h a r d .
B u t the di r ecto r s took the bit in t hei r teeth s o t o ,
spea k They vote d to buy t his Paterson short c u t

.
consisting of the three r oads running o ut to S u ffern ,
and l eaving the n a rr ow g a uge a s it w a s to l a y a

, ,
thi rd r ail so as to accommoda t e t h e E rie s six foot ’

-
r olling stock They a l so voted to dig a tunnel

.
u n d e r Bergen Hill and to build a lo ng dock a nd

,
termina l in Jersey C ity .
I was h appy Here was the c h ance I d been

.
’
w a iting for I set abou t soft ly t o increase t he

.
di ffi culties the road was mee t ing in this job s o a s ,
to ge t her to a po i nt where she would h ave t o cu t

her divi den ds fin d her b a l a nce by a n d by on t he
,
o t her side of the account shee t a nd fin a lly h a ve t o ,
raise a lo a n I didn t let t he othe r direc t ors know

.
’
wh at I w a s doing I n orde r t o keep my pl a ce on

.
the E r ie Board I m a de believe I w a s working fo r
her inte r ests So a ll unbeknownst t o them I bega n
.
, ,
to put obst a cles in the w a y of these i mprovement s

which t h e r oad was undertaking No t big enoug h .
o bstacles ,of cour s e to stop the i m provemen t s alto

,
toge t h e r All I wanted w a s to get the r oad into hot

.
w ater so i t would be come a bo r rower

, .
I had t wo o r th r e e ways of th us sti rri ng up t r o u ble .
O ne was by me a ns of the R ocklan d County re p re

s e n t a t iv e s in the L egislature at A l bany Piermont .
and the ot h er sections o f R ocklan d County h ated

to s e e the terminal of the road moved to Jersey City ,
like a c a t h a tes must a rd Because to be a great .
r ailroad termin al was booming Piermont an d the

sur r ounding towns Her popul ation w a s growing
. .
S he promised to become a city in no time They .
didn t take at all to the i dea o f losing this an d of

’
,
h aving the terminal moved to a city in anothe r state .
York State h a d given some grants o f money to see

the railroad buil t S o now t he R ockl a n d County
.
people got u p all kin ds of objections in the L egisla

ture ag a inst ch a nging the ch a rter of the road so as
to permit it to go down into Jersey City These .
di ffi culties at Al b a ny g a ve me a ch a nce to depress

the securities of the ro a d by hin t ing aroun d through
,
Wall Street th at the ro a d was losing its favour with

the powe r s at Alb a ny a nd th at it a pparently was no
,
longer to be York St a te s pet insti t ution but an

’
o utlaw from n o w on The bill w a s at last put

.
for my pu r pose — the popula r min d was in a scary
con dition in r efe r ence to so big an d ris ky a j ob .
People we r e open to a ll kin ds of r u mou r s .
Acco r dingly while the wo r k was going on I

, ,
softly started r eports th rough Wall Stree t to the

e ffect th at the tunnel wasn t gett i ng along as pros ’
e ro u s as h ad been hoped fo r — d iffi c u l t ie s were

p
being met with it was all right to try to dig n arro w
tunnels th r ough small hills ; but to dig a tunne l
for a six foot r ailroad th rough a moun t ain as big
-
,
an d h a r d as Be rgen Hill w a s being foun d a dif ,
fe re n t matte r . An d there we r e dangers too I , ,
hin t ed which h adn t been calculated on The

,
’
.
workmen we r e getting scared to be so far in t he

bowels o f a moun ta in where they didn t know wh at
,
’
might turn up any minu t e in the sh ape of un known

cave r ns of wate r cave ins foul gases an d such like
,
-
, .
I nvestors a r e sk it t ish folk I t s the business of .

’
W a ll Street to ca tch the slightest hints an d act u po n

them ; which makes i t the easiest place in the wo r ld
to get r umou r s going Accordingly when thes e
.
,
hints we r e d r opped by one like myself who w a s ,
known to be on the inside o f the Company s coun ’
cils investo r s took t hem a t once for v a luable points

,
a s to t he state of E rie s a ffairs A ru mour par

’
.
,
t ic u l a rl y if it comes from some source on t he inside ,
o nly needs t o be s ta r t ed I t sp r eads then of i t self

.
and keeps getting bigger Capital got scared As . .
soon as it was learned th at the E r ie R ailroad in this

TH E B O OK O F DA N I EL DRE W 1
5 1
Be rg en Hi ll t u nne l h a d b i tten off mor e t h an i t co uld

c h ew i n fact see m e d t o be g ett i n g s i ck o f th e j o b
,
an d migh t give u p i n di s g ust investo r s became ,
sud denly uncer ta in concerning the stock E rie .
slu mped from sixty th ree down to thirty th ree S o

- -
.
th at the road now couldn t raise money like she ’
h a d used to .
This set back came at the ti me wh en she needed

-
the money most because j ust then her pay roll was
,
-
enormous There we r e new s u ppl i es to p ay fo r ;

.
workmen in the tunnel to pay o ff every month ;

t he costly righ t of way th rough Je r sey City ; freight
yards in th at c i ty ; a big new station to build ; an d
a long dock o ut into the water ; an d t h e job of getting
a ch arter th r ough the L eg i slat ur e at Trenton an d
th r o u gh the Je r sey City Coun cil The Company j ust .
h ad to h ave money The r e h a r dly h ad been a .
ti me when she needed capital mo r e th an she did

j ust now But capital now wasn t fr ien d ly The
.
’
.
di r ecto r s met in a s ad faced session and as ked wh at -
could be done .
When t hey were most in the dumps I stepped ,
forw a rd I a nnounced that I would be t he road s

.
’
helper Since the other men of money we r e getting

.
col d feet a nd seemed to be losing fa i t h in t he en t er

p ri se
,
I would let t hem h ave a lo a n of my money ,
a ll t h a t I could r a ise I f t hey wan t ed a million a n d

.
a h a lf I d s e e in some w a y or o t her t h at t hey got

,
’
, ,
it
.
152 TH E B OOK OF D A N I EL DR E W
They took m e u p I pa i d ove r t h e m oney an d

.
,
t o ok as secu ri ty a ch attel m o r tg age o n the r o ll ing

stock I h a d the sow by the ea r at l ast Fr om
. .
n o won , fo r almost ten ye a rs I h ad the E rie R ai l

,
r oad in my b r eeches pocket so to s peak It is , .
alw a ys an advantage in W a ll St r eet operations t o

be on the ins id e of a r ai lroad o r a big i n dustr i a l
conce r n Yo u know then the monthly ea r ning s
.
, ,
befo r e they a r e given out to the public You get .
e ar liest not i ce of any favou r a b le o r unfavourab l e

h appening Yo u h a ve access to the t r ansfe r books
.
an d know whe r e all the circulating stock is Any .
dange r s t h at h ave a r isen to the r oad s p rope r ty ’
or a ny new c o nnection favou r able to the r oad s ’
ea r ning ca pacity is known to you lon g befo r e the

,
ou t side i nvesto r s h ave go t t he tip S o th a t you can .
go onto the Stock E xch ange and s p ec kil a t e i n t h os e

s h ares w i t h your eyes open whilst t h e rest o f t h e
,
s e c k il a t o rs a r e going it blin d An i nsi der s pos i ’
p .
tion is as good a s money in t he chest .
Besides I h ad now a nothe r advant a ge as wel l

, .
Not only could I predic t well nigh every tu r n in -
E rie sh ares I could do even better I co u ld ma ke

. .
i t t urn in eithe r direc t ion I chose I h ad the horse .
by the h alte r so to s pe a k a n d could lead him where

, ,
I w a nted I f my oper a tions o n the Stock E xch ange

.
made it needful for the stock to go up I coul d give ,
o ut th at the r oad was p r ospe ro u s a n d her -
s tock wo u ld o up O r i f I was i n a Bear i s h tem e r

g .
p
1
share any one can see wh at a fine little s um it would
,
a mo un t tO .
The r eup o n I would turn r oun d an d work i t the

other way I was n o w sho r t of th e stock
. th at is ,
was sold o ut I would the r efo r e buy la rge blocks

.
of it at the low figu r e of $65 a s h a r e Now it .
stan ds me in h and to h ave t h e stock go u p in value .
S o I give o ut a sta tement to the e ffect th at my li tt le

di fficulty w i th the road w hich h ad been noised ,
abroad some weeks before has been settled ; I ,
h ave dec i ded not to foreclose my ch attel mortgage

a fter all — the road has foun d a way t o fix
up the matte r with me is very prospe rous in fact , ,
is likely to decla r e a big dividend shortly I mme .
d i a t e ly with these r efreshing r u mours spreading

,
abroad E rie stock begins to go up By a n d by

, .
she t ouches again t he top notch figure s a y ninety -

, , .
Now I sell an d in t his w a y clean up $ 2 5 more on

,
every sh a r e of stock I h a d dealt in .
This is the adv a n t age of opera t ing from th e

inside Yo u w in bo t h going an d coming When
. .
s t ock is going down you a re a Bear and m a ke money ,
by i t s fall When the s t ock is going up you a re a

.
,
B ull and make money by t he r ise I n fac t I worked

, .
,
t his so p rospe rous th a t aft er a while t hey m a de it

,
in t o a kind of a proverb It go t t o be a s aying .
a round the s t reet : Da niel says up — “

E rie ‘ ’
goes up D aniel says down

. E r ie goes down
‘ ’
.
”
D aniel says wiggle waggle it bobs bo t h w a ys $
‘
-
’
HA D by t hi s t im e got too ri c h to l i ve d own
in B l eecke r Street I w a s beco m ing o ne of
.
t h e b ig bu g s i n the fin anc i a l wo r l d The r e .
we r en t so many back i n those ea r ly days

’
—J ake
Li tt l e Vanderbilt an d a few ot h e r s I f these
,
.
fellows co u ld h ave big fine h ouses to live in I thought

, ,
I ought to h ave one too .
S o I went w a y u p to S even tee nth St r eet I dec i ded .
if I was go i ng to move at a ll I m ight as well m a ke

a big move While I w a s about I t I bought a l ot .
the r e on t he co r ner facing U nion Sq ua r e Th at

, .
sq u are h a d been the p arade g r oun d fo r Company

“
D rill a n d Gener a l Training back in my Bull s ,
’
”
Hea d d a ys N ow it h ad been tu r ned into a pub l ic
.
p a rk Some fine houses were being built aroun d

.
it So I wanted to live the r e too an d be in the

.
, ,
company of the money kings .
I built a big house a four sto ry mansion of b r own

,
-
stone on the lower corner of t he street F or I h a d

, .
money now A m a n with a big j a r of bu t ter can

.
s pread his bre a d thick My site ex t ended b a ck

.
some dist a nce a long Seven t een t h S t reet a n d I put ,
up a b a rn with a cow shed and horse stable joined

,
- -
1 55
1
to the house I h ave a l ways h ad a h an kering for
.
ca t tle Though I was now a c i ty d we l ler I was

.
,
bent on keeping at l e a st a m i lch c o w The s me ll .
of c a ttle now and then pa r ticula r ly when he is ,
cooped up in a city sort o f does a fe l low good It

, .
makes h i m fee l young again Someti m es when I .
h a ve been worr ied well nigh t o death i n some tight-
place in my s p e c kil a t io n s I h ave got u p of a mo r ning

,
an d walked out th rough the b ac k ya r d and i nto

the cow stable — fo r I h ad bu il t my home i n
-
such a way th at by walking o u t t h ro ugh t h e con

s e rv a t o r o n the first floor I went down i nto a l itt l e
y
b a ck ya r d j u st beyond which was the sta b le a nd cow
,
shed O n ce the r e the smel l of the cow an d h o r ses

.
,
would t a ke me back to o l d days and ma ke me ,
forget my wo r ries I could go back to th e b r eakfas t

.
t able a new man ready to face anything F a m ily

, .
prayer afte r b r eakfast would als o help to put spirit

in me We didn t h ave muc h fo rm o r ce r emony i n
.
’
these d a i l y devo t ions Getting my family aroun d

.
me I wo u ld r e a d a port ion fr om the S cripture s

,
.
Perh a ps then we would sing a ve r se or two of a

hymn pa rticula r ly if we h ad a p r eache r staying
,
with u s — I gave preachers the run of the hou s e

then w e woul d kneel an d I w o u l d o ffer prayer .
The n from the fa mily a lta r I would step out

t h rough the b ack y a rd an d if my h i r ed man ,
w a sn t ar oun d would h a r ness the h o r se my

’
s e lf — I h ad a bl a ck horse fo r many ye a rs — to
1 58 TH E BOO K OF D A NI EL DRE W
When t he Civil War fin ally broke ou t I w a sn t ,
’
su r e fo r a spell whether I wanted to see Yo r k St at e

go into it or no t Because if t h e n ation went to
.
,
smash and our s tat e w a s mixed up in it we would

, ,
be in the sm a sh u p t oo Whils t if we stayed out

-
, .
,
of the muss a n d t he sm a sh u p c a me we could save

,
-
,
our b a con Bec a use our s tat e a nd par t icularly

.
,
New York Ci ty w a s in posi t ion to get a long even

,
if t here w a sn t a ny n at ion In fact there m i ght be

’
.
,
a dv a n t ages in being independent of the res t of t he

country a sovereign ty a ll by ourselves F ern a ndo .
Wood w h o w a s M a yor of Ne w York when the W a r

,
b r oke out suggeste d th i s in a mess a ge to the Com

,
mon Council He w a n t ed t hem t o consider whether

.
i t might no t be t o our a dv a n ta ge to become a free

and independent ci ty S a id he .
Why should not New York Ci ty inste a d of ,
suppor t ing by her con t ribu t ions in revenues t wo

, ,
t hirds of t he expenses of t he U ni t ed S tat es become ,
a lso eq u a lly independent ? As a free ci ty wi t h bu t a

nomin a l d u t y on impor t s her loc a l govern men t ,
would be suppor t ed wi t hout ta xes u pon her people .
Thus we could live free from t a xes and h a ve che a p ,

”
goods ne a rly duty free -
.
I t w a s a puzzle a nd I for one couldn t j us t m a ke

,
’
up my min d We in New York were a commerci a l

.
se t We didn t h a ve New E nglan d s hot he a dedness

.
’ ’
-
to ge t exci t ed over Neg r o cotton pickers down South -

.
THE B O O K O F DA N I EL D RE W 1
59
And if t h e gene r a l s m as h u p was to come i t was

-
,
true th at N ew Yo r k as a fr ee an d sove r e i gn c i ty ,
h aving such a fine h arbour l ocation coul d get goods ,
from E u r ope fr ee of d uty an d keep all of th at tari ff

money to herself B ut then on the other h an d it
.
, ,
w a s to the advantage of us money kings to h ave a

big count ry to operate in ; because rai l roads cross
the country without regard to state bound ar i es .
We wanted a big l a ndscape so we cou l d d o a big

b usiness I t was a h ard thing to dec i de wh ether
.
,
to go in for the W a r a n d stan d by t he U nion or stay ,
o ut an d m a ke ourselves free an d indepen dent .
But Ab e L incoln came to Ne w York an d made

a speech in Coope r U nion Th a t turned the people
.
towards the preserv a tion of the U nion I t wasn t .

’
much o f a stump speech L incoln s voi ce I always

.
’
t hought w a s t o o h usky to make hi m a popular

,
t a l ker B ut people w h o came away fr om Cooper

.
U nion th at night got the notion th at this q uestion

o f stan ding by the U nion w a s really o f conside r able
i mportance The speech made a lot o f talk over

.
t he city an d even roused so m e o f the boys on the

,
Street w h o commonly we r e cal m hea ded li ke myself

,
-
.
Then when on t op of t h at speech the shots were fired

, ,
on F ort S umter it made such an al mighty s t ir a mong

,
the people gener a lly t h at w e Wall S t reet men h a d to

get in s t ep A fellow woul d h ave been very u n p O p u
.
l ar then if he h ad stood out against the Wa r It was

, .
now a cas e of fi g ht it out no m atter wh at t h e co s t

, .
Wh at won t m a ke b utte r must go into cheese I f
’
.
th e Wa r must come I deci ded t o m a ke it h elp my

,
fortunes And I must say t h at I soon began to

.
won d er how I h ad been of two minds as to the a d v a n

tage o r disadvant a ge of a war F o r I saw very .
q uickly th at th e W a r of th e R ebellion w a s going to

be a money maker for me Along with ordin ary
-
.
h appenings we fellows in Wall S tr eet now h a d i n

,
ad dition th e fo r tunes of wa r to s p e c k il a t e about

and th at always m a kes g r eat doings on a s t ock
exch ange I t s good fishing i n troubled waters
.
’
.
As I lo ok b ack now I see th at I neve r made more

,
money o r h ad four years th at were all i n all more

,
genuine l y p r osperous th a n those fou r yea r s of t h e

,
War . Commonly the t hings th at belong to guns

,
and b a ttles and soldie r s don t appe a l to me I’

.
made some money once — I guess I ve men

’
t io n e d i t in these pa pers somewh e r es — by ,
wearing a kna psack for th e Govern ment in t h e ,
Wa r of 1 8 1 2 B ut I saw even a s a boy th a t t hi s

.
thing th ey call patrio t ism i s a mighty slow way i n

which t o rol l up a fo r tune I h ave noticed si nce .
,
th at t h e fellows who a r e all t he t ime h u r rahi ng fo r

th eir country don t get fa t b an k accounts
’
F or
i nst ance there w a s al l o f th at t a l k about th e
,
Mi ssouri Compromi se When I w a s getting

.
st a rted i n Wall S treet th ere were people who

tal ked of no t hing else b u t M issouri — discussi ng
sometimes w a y i nto the night An d t h ey a re fo r .
these d ays of th e Wa r we wh o we r e on the insi de
cou ld cal l t h e turn o f a stock l ong before t h e
gene r a l publ i c .
This made very profit a ble bus i ness I n fa ct .

,
I got to tak i ng a gre a t interest i n the Boys in Blue .
I c a me to look u pon them as he roes Thei r pay .

,
to be su r e would h ave to come out of t he taxes

, .
We r ich men wou l d h ave to foot most of the bil l .
S t il l I d id n t let th a t thought bothe r me I felt

’
,
.
th at the Boy s i n Blue someti mes tramping all night

,
th r oug h feve r swamps a nd ac r oss m ount a ins or ,
lying in the ca mp hospitals s i ck and wounded an d

dying ea r ned all the mon t hly pay they got Bec a use
, .
they we r e beating the waters so to s peak a n d we, ,
in Wal l St r eet were getting the fish There was .
the Ant i et am C ampaign for instance I t w a s worth

, .
a good deal to a Wall Street s p e c k il a t o r th a t one ,
campaign Because whilst the peop l e all t h rough

.
,
the N orth we r e s t ill won de ri ng wh at was the fa te

of th at expedition we by ou r unde rg r oun d telegraph
, ,
lines so to spe a k knew the outcome of the c a m

, ,
ai n
p g a
,
nd tu r ned i t t o such good use in t he s t ock
m a rket th at we m a de a lmost enough from t h at one
de a l to p ay the w a ges o f eve ry Boy in Blue in t h at
army When R ich mond was fin a lly t a ken I for
.
,
one w a s so r ry to h a ve t he W ar come to a n end s o ,
great h a d been my ch ange of v i ew towards t he w hole

a ffa i r .
XV I I I
N E day b i g Bi ll Tweed d r opped i n on

,
m e at my h ouse on U n i on S q ua r e He .
h ad got inte r ested in E rie s p e c k il a t io n s

some t i me befo r e and as I was the hea d an d front
,
of E rie h e use d to co m e to see me in regard to tu rns

,
in the stock His old Bowe ry boys anyhow h ad

.
, ,
been in large pa r t b u tche r s apprentices I h a d

’
.
known the New York butche r s si nce earl i est d ays .
S o I h ad been in close touch wi t h Tweed s r an k ’
and file fo r a l ong time b ack even when he was ,
“
forem a n of the Big S ix E ngine Company an d ,
h ad got i nto trouble with that othe r engine co m p any

fo r b l ocking thei r way to a fi re so his comp any
could get there first $It h ad been those butch e r
.
boys then which h ad stood by hi m an d h a d helped

hi m ou t of th at trouble $ S o when he went into
.
,
politics I w a s gl a d t o ge t i n with him personally

, ,
beca u se he w a s becoming a person o f importance

in the a ffairs of the city I t s alw a ys a n advan ta ge
.
’
t o a big oper a tor in the Stree t t o be on person al
terms with poli t ic a l leaders .
Tweed had in t urn seen t h a t i t s t ood hi m in h a nd

to be o n i n t i m a te t erms wi t h me Aft er he h ad .
got out o f the ch air bus i ness which his fathe r h a d ,
built up before him down o n Pe a rl Stree t he h ad ,
got into E rie s p e c k il a t io n s good a n d deep E rie .
sh ares h ad got to be t he le a ding s p e c kil a t io n on

the m a rke t F or a s he a d of th at ro a d I h a d foun d
.
, ,
ways of using i t s sh a res in W a ll S t reet whereby I

coul d some t imes m a ke a t urn o f t en points in E rie
i nside o f a mon t h A stock t h at bobs b a ck an d
.
fo r t h a s suddenly as th at is going to be followed

,
by
$ a great crowd of s e c k il a t o rs
p Tweed w a s one .
of these . He thought he could make more money

s e c kil a t in
p g in E ri e th an he could by making c h ai r s .
So he gave up th at business an d put a l l of h i s money

,
into W a ll Street mostly i nto E rie .
O n the d a y th at I am speaking of I s aw t h at h e ,
was grumpy over these E rie ventures of his He .
was a s cross a s t w o sticks I used to take my visitors

.
up in t o the sit t ing room on the first floor facing ,
the S q u a re $Why in the plush rocking ch air in

.
,
-
th at room Jimmy F is k s a t an d t a lked wi t h me

,
t he very morning of the d a y he w a s shot $ Wel l .

,
as soon a s Tweed c a me in an d w a s se at ed I s aw ,
at once t h a t he w a s a ll het up a bout something or

o t her He s ta r t ed right in He s a id I an d my
. .
E rie crowd were no be tt er th a n a crew o f blood

suckers ; a n d he swore profa nely He h a d been .
brought pret ty near to b usting up so he s a id An d ,

.
he told of the pile of money he h ad lost how it h a d ,
crippled him up a nd such like

,
-
.
m i ne wo r ked a li feti m e t o bu i ld u p th at ch ai r
b u siness $ An d n o w it s been swep t away $ And ’
’
wh e r e s the m o ney gone ? I l l te l l yo u w h e r e i t s ’ ’
go ne $ It s gone to bui l d s u c h fine b ro wn stone

’
-
m ans i ons as the o ne you r e l iv i ng i n ri g h t at t hi s ’
minute $ And i f you don t be gi n to d o s om ething ’
“
fo r me Dr ew sai d he I m going to g et back at
, , ,
’
y ou $ Sweet Jesus $ D o y o u thin k I m go ing to

’
be a sucke r a nd l et yo u h ook me like this a l l t h e

’
t i me ? I took the points you ve been g i v i ng me ,
th i nk i ng yo u we r e on t h e sq ua r e And you ve .
’
done me dir t $ When you ve let me win once you ve ’

,
’
tu r ne d aroun d and sucked i t al l back the very next

day $ And i t don t go any l onge r D an You ’
, .
fel l ows in E r ie h ave got to take me i n wit h yo u .
Th at s all t h e r e is to it O r I l l make i t s o h o t fo r
’
.
’
you you ll wish yo u d neve r been bo r n $

,
’ ’
I l et h i m go on Big b a r ke r s a r e s m a l l biters
. .
I knew th at if be blus t ered a r ound like th at befo r e

h and he wouldn t do much I t s t h e still fellows
,
’
.
’
th at I ve always been sca r e d of The r e s V a nde r

’
.
’
bilt O n e of his mottoes used to be :

. N eve r
tell anybody what you r e going to do until y o u ve ’ ’
done i t When he was going t o rip a $fellow he d ,

’
never le t t h at fellow know beforehand Bew a re .
of q uiet dogs an d s t ill wate r s S o I let Tweed h a ve .
it o ut in ta lk Anyhow he w a sn t so poor a s he
.
,
’
t r ied to ma ke o ut He had a diamond in his shir t

.
boso m which looked as b i g as an en gine s h ead ’

7
ligh t And he went a round town with a coa ch

.
and a team of ho r ses I suppose it cost him more

.
to sup port his kept women th an it wou ld an o r dina ry ,
householde r t o ta ke care o f a home .
By and by he go t over his fu ry Then I began .
” “
to t a lk I called hi m Bill
.
$ Tweed was a man
th a t h ad a lo t of good in his hear t spite of a ll ,
th at his enemies say against hi m I a l ways foun d .
I cou l d d o more with hi m by kindness th a n i n any

other w a y Yo u need smooth wedges to get into
.
a knotty piece o f timber .
“ “
B i l l said I why don t yo u get into Cong re ss
, ,
’
”
ag a in You ve got gifts
’
.
“ ”
Congress $ s a id he Congress is the pokiest .
o l d hole under heaven $ Any young s quirt can go

down to Washington and if he s go t t he gift o f ,
’
g a b c a n cut a figure B ut a s to money m a king

,
.
-
,
there s no t hing down there fo r a man o f talent

’
.
I suppose I know mo r e Parliamentary L aw th an

anybody in Congress But th at doesn t m a ke a ny
.
’
money for yo u I c a n make more in six month s

.
a s Street Commissione r of New York th an I could ,
in Congress in a h undred ye a rs All t hey talk abou t .
down there is F ugitive Sl a ve La ws I d li ke to .

’
know wh a t in th under I c a re about F ugitive S l a ve

La ws $ I neve r was inte r ested in niggers a nyhow , .
They re no go od I ve got a lot of them now ove r

’
.
’
t h e r e in th at ward by the rive r But th ey don t .

’
stay fixed like my Sixth Warde r s do They r e all .

’
the time flopping t o the other si de p a rt icul a rly now ,
th at the Wa r h as set in I ve got to h ave money

.
’
.
My expenses are he a vy I can t l ive like one o f

.
’
you r goody goods And if yo u big wigs don t take

-
.
’
”
me in with yo u you ll wish you h ad
,
’
.
I tu r ned o n him sort o f coo l like Bill said I -

.
, ,
how wou l d you like to go in with a street r a ilw a y

de a l ? Yo u are a Commissione r of Streets for the
city I guess yo u have a l o t to d o also with the
.
”
Common Council don t you ? ,
’
“ “
I should s a y I h ad said he , I ve got a ring .
’
”
in the nose o f every mother s son of them ’
.
“ ” “
Well s aid I h ave yo u been fo ll ow i ng th a t
, ,
a pplic at ion o f some N ew York pa rties up at Alb a ny

t o get a franchise to l a y a p a ir of steel r a il s down
B ro a dw a y
“ ”
Yes he replied ; a little
,
.
Has it occurred to yo u th a t th ose fe l lows i n the

L egi s lature — the Assemblymen and Sen ators
would turn a pretty penny if they were allowed ,
to dispose of t he B ro a dw a y fr a nchise
” “
O f course t hey would s a id Tweed Id ’
, ,
like to know wh at e a r t hly right they h ave to meddle

wi t h N ew York City a ff airs This is ou r h unting .
”
g roun d They h a d be t ter keep o ff
. .
“
Jus t wh a t I w a s t hin king of s a id I An d , .
they tell me t h a t V a nderbil t is st a rting i n to hea d

th a t Albany proposition o ff on his o w n account ;
b ecause in the ch a rte r of his Ha r lem R ail road
, ,
H E Harlem R ailroad w a s t h e o ffsp r ing
o f the stage co a ch th a t used to run by
-
“
my B ull s Hea d tavern That stage
’
.
line w a s from Park Ro w N ew York City up to , ,
Harlem Vi ll age a bove where 1 1 0t h Street n o w is

, .
As the people moved o u t from New York and settled

u p in t h at sec t ion Harlem grew t o be a good sized
,
-
t o wn When rail r oads were at last seen to be

.
p r acticable t hings a line,

o f r a ils w a s laid from t h at
v i llage down to N ew York and w a s c a lled the Har

,
l em R ailroad bec a use it went to Harlem V ill a ge .
The r a ils were not l a id along the O l d Boston R oad .
I t would h a ve scared t he ho r ses Anyhow t he .

,
st a ge co a ch people didn t like t he new fa ngled

-
’
-
ste a m buggies a ny too much a nd never would h a ve ,
allowed their post roads to be en cro a ched upon in

-
th a t fa shion So t he r a ils were l a id a lit t le t o the

.
west of t he Bos t on R o a d where F ourth Avenue ,
now runs .
The H a rlem railro a d firs t a long w a sn t much ’
t hought o f I t s s t ock j ust before the Wa r sold as

.
low a s eigh t doll a rs a sh are But instead of allow .

,
ing it t o stop with Ha r lem Village they now began ,

to ru n it up th r oug h the Ha rl em Va ll ey w h e r e I ,
used to drive my c r itte r s down fro m P u tnam C ounty

’
to the city By an d by i t got clean u p t o B r ewste r s
. .
Vande r bilt about this time h ad a lot o f loose money ,
an d began to invest in the stock o f this r ail road .
His frien ds laughed at hi m They thought the .
sh a r es were h a r dly wo r th the pape r they we r e printe d

on said the r oa d wo u ld go up the sp o ut soon o r
l ate B ut h e kept at it an d by an d by o wned a
.
,
big block o f stock I got in too an d s oo n owne d

.
, ,
conside r able of i t .
The dep o t was down on F ourth Avenue at Twenty

sixth S treet Th e t r a i ns didn t run a ll the way
.
’
down there It was thought th at engines we r e not

.
fitted fo r climbing hills So four h o r ses used to

.
take eac h c ar o ut fr o m the station and dr aw it

th r ough t he st r eets u p t o F orty th i r d S t reet There
-
.
t h e c a rs were made u p into a tr a in an d h itched onto

an engine whic h took t h em flying o u t to B r ewsters ’
.
By a n d by Vande r bi l t got r i d o f th at bothersome

Murray Hill wh i c h st o od sq uare i n t h e m i d d l e of
h i s c ar line by digging a t unnel right th ro u gh the
,
bowels of it .
This tunnel made the Commodo r e very p r oud

o f himself . A good m any people h ad said when ,
he h ad beg u n t h e t u nnel t h at it was too big a job

,
th at he couldn t g o th r ough wit h i t B ut he h ad

’
.
done it h ad widened F ou r th Avenue fo r ty fe et

i n o r der to make r o o m — and now w a s so vain
1
7 2 TH E B O OK OF D AN I EL DRE W
glorious th at he pl a nned a still bigger scheme He .
would take th at street ra ilw a y end o f his H ar lem -
R ailroad and continue it down from Twenty sixth -
Street to F ourteenth there turn the corner over ,
into B roadway and then run it a ll the w a y to the

,
B attery By this time Bro a dw a y h ad become a

.
much travelled t horoughfa re A street c a r line

-
.
-
th rough it would be a money m a ker Here is where -

.
,
by mean s o f taking the C ommon Council into our

partnership Tweed a nd I got in o u r scheme
, .
I set to wo r k I bought some more of the H a rlem

.
stock $The price h a d got away beyond th a t

.
eight dolla r figu r e $ Then when I an d the r est of

-
.
,
us w h o we r e o n the de a l h ad got pretty well lo a ded

up wi t h H a rlem w e go t the C ommon C ouncil to
,
pass an ordi n a nce permitt i ng Vande r bi l t to go a he a d

a nd l ay h is r a ils down B roadw a y The M a yor .
signed it I nst a ntly the stock went so a r ing The

.
, .
L egi s l atu r e u p at Alb a ny were mad as ho r nets .
They saw a ll t he good fat pickings goi ng to t he

Aldermen and C ouncilmen o f New York C i ty ,
r at her th a n t o t hemselves B ut they couldn t do .

’
a ny t hing ; bec a use t here w a s the clause in V a n

d e r b il t s o l d H a rlem Ch a r t er permitting such a
’
thing t o be done whenever the Ne w York City

“
a uthorities gave thei r consent The Ch ancellors .
”
ville R ise c a me a long j ust a t this moment a n d
“
also helped Hooker with wh a t he c a lled t he finest
.
,
”
army on the planet h a d fo r months been watching,
1 74 THE B OOK OF D A NI EL DRE W
j ust now T h e Harlem R ailroad was al r eady ea r n
.
ing money because it went thro u gh the r ich H a rle m

,
V a lley And now wi t h t he B r oadway franchise

.
,
a dded t h e r oa d was bound to r ol l u p big dividends

,
fo r eve rybody who owned a nything i n it So at .

,
least most o f the people figu r ed Th u s when

, .
,
o u r Bea r crowd began to sell the stock short people ,
snapped at ou r o ffers of the s toc k li ke a pike bites

a t a shiner .
Then w e tol d the Aldermen an d Counci l men

t h at the time h ad come to touch o ff the fireworks .
So they met Tweed was a master h and anyhow

.
, ,
in manipu l ating a l egisl a tive body He could make .
t hem do most anything he wanted He w a s a big

’
.
,
overgrown ch ap full o f spiri t s and could boss men

, ,
a r ound like sheep or c a t t le The Boa r d and Com .
m o n Council took our orde r s They passed an .
ordi nance r econsidering thei r fo r me r decision as to

t he B r oadway franchise Then they rescinded .
the grant .
H a rlem dropped like a shot part rid ge V a n der .
bil t a n d his crowd t hought when the Aldermen h a d

,
fin a lly been brought t o p a ss the measu r e t h at t he ,
fr a nchise w a s then a s good a s gold He didn t .

’
realize that there were some of us w h o h a d inside

powe r with the City Fat hers and could turn a trick
or two V a nderbilt who be l ieved i n getting a
.
,
t hing done and then let them howl w a s s ta r t ing ,
t o dig up the st r eet a nd l a y his r a ils We got a n .

i nj unction fr om the C ourt of C ommon P l eas p ro

h ib it in g the laying o f the track We thought n o w
.
t h a t the stock which h a d been at seventy five

,
-
,
w ould drop to fifty B ut some t hing h appened The

. .
cour t dissolved our inj unction V a nderbi l t sus .
t a in e d the market And do the best we cou l d

.
, ,
the price refused to sag below seventy th r ee The -

.
city politici ans we r e fo r the most p a rt men of s mal l

me a ns Thei r margins were soon exh austed They
. .
were sold o u t I h ad been a he a vy owner of Har l em

.
in my own right so I myself go t o u t o f the h o le in

,
fai r ly good sh ape .
Then the battle fie l d shifted to Albany -

A .
favourable repor t w a s purposely given out from

the L egisl ature a s to the p r os pects for a B ro a dway
fr a nchise fo r the H a rlem R ailro a d H a rlem j umped .
from seventy five t o o n e hundred and fifty K now

-
.
i ng something of wh at was to h appen behind the

scen es I i n the face o f all these a ppearances went
, , ,
and committed myself heavily to the short side .
Because this fa vourable r eport which h a d been sent

o u t was only a blin d ; as soon a s the stock in obedi ,
ence to i t j umped up t he legisl a tor s at Albany

, ,
sol d t he stock short for a decline Then they out

,
.
wi t h t hei r t rick —t hey turned a nd defe at ed V a n

d e r b il t s bill I n two d a ys t he p rice fell fifty points
’
. .
B ut j us t as I w a s beginning to count my profits ,
t he t icker began to tell another s t ory — the stoc k

t urned It went up to 1 2 7 ; to 1 4 0 ; to 1 5 0 ; yes
.
,
to 1 8 5 . I saw at once th at ou r boat wh i c h h ad been ,
s ailing so p r ospero us h ad struck some kind of a ,
sn a g An d the n atu r e of i t wasn t very l ong co mi ng

.
’
—
to ligh t w e h ad sold s h o r t m o r e s h a r es
o f stock th an there we r e i n t h e whole capita l of the
r oad We we r e in a co r ner O u r e ffo r ts to wiggle

. .
out only raised the price of the stock still higher .
It touched 2 8 5 E ven a t that figu re we co uld n t

.
’
b uy any Vanderbi l t h ad us tight

. .
I t w a s a case o f comp r omise Wh en de li very .
time came I went u p to see him He h ad his o ffi ce

, .
o n F ourth St r eet We h ad a l ong ta l k together

. .
I s a i d there was no use beat i ng a roun d t h e bus h

I w a s corne r ed — I couldn t make my del i ve r ies
’
—I mi ght as wel l o w n u p fi r st as l ast I tol d .
hi m t h a t in th i s part i cu l ar dea l he h ad been too s ma rt

fo r me We h ad ove r sold the ma r ket I wanted to
. .
make te r ms I tol d him t h at I l o o ked t o lose some

.
money in the a ff a ir an d asked him to make it ,
as small a s he could I sh o wed him th at custome r s

.
—
a r e like fid d l e strings yo u mustn t sc r ew them
-
’
too t ight Anyhow he w a s in a position to l et me

.
,
o ff scot free if he felt so incline d Because he was

, .
squeezing lo a ds o f profit out of the other fellows in

my crowd and so could a fford to le t me go free
,
.
I remin ded him h o w he an d I h ad been old friends ;

“ ”
in fact I h ad n a me d my boy Willia m Henry
, ,
aft er his boy .
B ut V a nderbilt didn t soften D rew s a id h e

’
.
, ,
1
thought fo r a spe l l of l ay i ng down on my cont r acts
a n d telling Vande r bilt right to his face that I didn t ’
ca r e h ow much pape r of mine he held he couldn t ,

’
collect i t a nd th at s all there was to it B ut the ’

.
trouble is that wou l d h a ve given me a black eye

,
on the Street W a l l Street conducts its de a ls on a

.
“ ”
Pay u p principle when you ve made a con
- -
’
t r act keep it They d on t l ook w i th favou r on

, .
’
a ny one who t r ies to sq ui r m out The Stock .
E xchange Board j a cks you up good and q uick if

you don t live u p to your word I didn t want t o
’
.
’
h urt my fu t ure in the Street As to the l a w courts .

,
they a lso didn t o ffe r me much help ; bec a use they

’
hold th a t th e paper you have given to the othe r fellow

makes a legal cont r act which you mus t live up to , .
So there I w a s I thought o f turning to Tweed . .
He controlled m a ny of the j udges a nd I might ge t ,
o ff i n th a t w ay But j ust now I wasn t i n very thick

.
’
wi th Tweed This whole a ffai r o f the H a r l em

.
corne r h a dn t hel p e d him h a rdly a ny more th a n it

’
h a d me We h a d st a r t ed o u t to sq ueeze V a nderbilt ;
.
a nd unfortun a tely w e h a d got sq ueezed ourselves

, , .
So th at Tweed j ust now w a s in a b a d h umour .
Besides his pride h a d su ffered a fa ll At Henry

, .
Clay s funer a l Tweed s or at ion i n the B oard o f

’
,
’
Aldermen a kind of a fune ra l sermon over t he

,
life a nd de at h of Clay w a s some t hing he ,
h a d ta ken a gre a t pride in I t w a s t he fi rs t .
public speech he h a d ever m a de And a s it now .

,
TH E B OOK O F D A N I EL DRE W 1 79
t ur ne d o u t i t w a s hi s last Fr om beco m i n g a
, .
gr eat statesman and a moulde r of publ i c op i nion ,
Tweed because of th i s Ha r lem a ffa ir h ad sudden ly

, ,
taken a fall F o r w hen he and his Alde r men passed

.
Van de r bilt s B roadway franch i se measu r e it h ad

’
been in violation of Judge D ue r s inj unction a n d ’

,
D uer go t so m a d th at he up and put the whole

Boar d of C i ty F athers Tweed a long wi t h the rest
, ,
i n j ail Tweed w a s terribly worked up over it

. .
He s aw that he cou l dn t be a statesman and a leader

’
of pu blic opinion a fter such a mish ap as th a t ; a nd

,
he go t almigh ty so r e about i t To mention Ha r lem

.
to him n ow w a s like a re d rag to a bull He sput .
t e re d an d swo r e so profanely when I d try to talk

’
w i t h hi m about it th at I saw it wasn t muc h u s e

’
,
.
Neve r theless I used it as an argument wi t h

,
V an derbilt Going t o the Commodore again I

.
,
to l d h i m th at I h ad come to make a settlement if

he was in the mood fo r it I hinted th at I h ad more
.
or less of an inside tr a ck with t he law courts o f

N ew York C ity since I knew some o f t he politicians
,
pretty close ; a nd t h at if he wanted to fight it out

to a finish I could m a ke a p e e k of trouble for hi m
, .
He knew t h at I was more or less in wi t h Tweed ,
the S t ree t Commissioner o f New York Ci ty a nd h is ,
crowd and V a nderbil t s future plans h ad a whole

,
’
lo t t o d o with t he use of N ew York Ci ty s tr ee t s We .
ca me to a se t tlement Vanderbil t h ad a lot of

.
e nterprises under way and didn t want to ge t into ’
,
THE B O O K OF D AN I EL DRE W
'
1 80
—
l itigation if he could help ir h said he didn t e
’
h ave time to bothe r S o we h it upon a figu r e a t

.
which I could settle my con t racts I wrote my .
c h eck and the thing was finished It cost me well

, .
nigh h alf a million But I was glad to get o ut

.
even at th a t figu r e Because i t left me someth ing

.
,
an d fo r a time i t l o oked as though I m i gh t be stripped

of all my goods Wh en you r e corne r ed in selling
.
’
s h ares s h o r t yo u a r e in a te rri ble fix The fe ll ow

, .
who h as co rnered yo u if he i s so minded can ta k e

, ,
every l ast cent yo u ve got Because as I h ave p u t

’
.
,
i t in t h e fo r m o f a poem $I m not much o f a r hy m e r

’
b u t I suppose I cou ld h ave tu r ned my h an d to ve r s e

m aking i f I h ad set my mind to i t$
He th at se l ls wh at i sn t his n ’ ’
Must b uy i t back o r go to p ri son

, .
This Ha r lem co r ne r d i d me m o r e h u r t t h a n
j us t t he l oss of the money To h and over a h al f .
million i n cold cash di d me lots of d a mage And I .
couldn t blame it on anybody else eithe r I felt

’
,
.
l ike a cow that had stuck h e r self Besides it h u r t .

,
me in the S treet They sn i ckered at me now w h en

.
I was coming to my ofli c e o r going h ome at nigh t

,
would n u dge each other when they saw me pass i ng ,
“ ”
an d whisper : He went shor t of Harlem In .
fact that got to be a saying o n the S t r e e t to mean

, ,
any kind of a ha r d l u ck blow

-
.
H E Ha r le m loss ma d e a big h o l e i n m y
hea r t And some m ight suppose th at
.
I w a s so i n the dumps by i t that I became

sou r and b acksli d ed from religion B u t t h ey would .
be mistaken I know the r e are people who se r ve

.
God only so long as they are prosperous When .
an unlucky stroke falls they cu r se religion B ut I,

.
don t It doesn t do any good S pit against

’
.
’
.
Heaven and it will fall back into your o w n face

, .
B esides the L ord doesn t g u arantee to make a

,
’
man prosperou s in each and every un de r ta king .
It isn t all butte r th at comes fr om the cow ; only

’
a pa r t is worked up in t o b u t ter ; an d in some ch ur n

ings the bu tt er won t come a t all no m a t t e r how
’
h a rd yo u wo r k the splasher .
B esides I h ave foun d th at religion is often most

,
needed just in th e times when yo u a re in the dump s .
F rom every stormy wind t hat blows ,
F rom every swelling tide of woes ,
There is a calm a sure re t re at ;

,
Ti s found benea t h the mercy se a t

’
.
More th a n t h at I h ad by t his time investe d

, a
1 8 2
3
’
wh ol e lot of money i n my c h u r ch an d could n t ,
af fo rd to lose it The t r ustees of the o ld Mulbe rry

.
S t r eet Meet i ng House when they saw th e peop l e

,
m oving u p town wanted to move the chu rch u p

,
a lso,
and be in t h e he a rt of the r esi dential dist rict .
I helped this p la n along I t w a sn t fit n o w th a t I

.
’
h ad become one o f th e money kings that I s h ou l d ,
wo r s h i p in a dingy b uilding down o n Mu l be rry

S treet I told the trustees I would h e l p them bu i ld
.
a new meeting h ouse They j umped at the o ffer

. .
That big m a rble structure on F ou r th Avenue at ,
the corner of Twenty s econd S treet i s the result

-
, .
We h a d big doings when the new chu r ch was

finally dedic a ted It h appened I reme mber on a
.
, ,
S unday morning i n early May D r D u r bin . .
“
pre a ched the sermon His text was : . Behold the
L a mb of God which t aketh a way th e sins o f th e
,
”
world D r D urbin was a master h and a t theological
. .
exposition He knew as much about the fine points

.
of doctrine as most any m a n I ever met He was

’
.
lea r ned in the S criptures He w a s an advocate o f .
free grace a n d coul d argue fo r hours for he w a s a

, ,
m a n o f strong convic t ions He fel t the impor ta nce .
o f right theologic a l t hinking I n fa ct he never .

,
seemed so h appy as when he w a s U phol ding the true

F aith and attacking dangerous forms o f doctri ne .
He was a positive man ; s o much so th at in matters

of theology he a nd I didn t a lw a ys a gree B ut I ’
.
h ad to admire his cour a g e The Prophets o f the .

O ld Testament times I suppose we r e n o t a l ways , ,
l oved by eve rybo d y P r ophets o ften h ave to speak.
pla i n t r uth an d hu r t people s feelings S o wh e n ’

.
,
Dr D u r bin s i deas didn t j us t j ibe with mi ne

.
’
s ay ’
in t h e matter of Justific a tion and Holiness con ,
cerning which we h a d some little di fference of belief ,
for I h a ve always held th at the witness o f o u r con

ve r sion c a r r ies with it j ustifying grace and will of
itself in time s a nctify every unh a llowed a ff ection
, ,
I d i d n t hold it against him ; he meant al l r ig h t

’
anyhow .
O n the present occasion however his V iew s , ,
ag r eed with mine to a T There h a ven t been many .

’
discou r ses from the sacred desk th at h ave done me

mo r e good th a n this one F o r h e outlined th e plan .
o f sa l vation He showed h ow won de r fully we the

.
,
conve r te d h ad been delivered from o u r l ost an d

,
fa ll en estate I n pictu r ing th e sin sick soul he di dn t

.
-
,
’
u s e any l a dy wo r ds I t was a soul h e sai d t h at

-
.
, ,
h a d no light either above or roun d a bout ; and in

,
t h a t st a te s a i d he all of us w h o were there in th at

, ,
congreg a tion h a d at some time o r o t her been God s .

’
w ra th h a d burned a g a inst u s while we were in that

state of r ebellion so th at Justice in its righteous
, ,
anger had come ne a r to sink u s in t o Hell B u t

,
.
Fr ee mercy pe rformed th e g r e a t transaction and h ad ,
plunged us into the crysta l stre a m The blood of .
s prin kling which s pe a ket h better things than the

,
b l ood o f Abel h ad availed to c a ncel all ou r

,
blood t h at h as been so freely shed h as pai d the debt

all the debt I owe S o that with unfeigned sin.
,
c e rit
y we
, r est in our glorious advocate F illed .
with his r ighteousness the sin convincing spirit ,

-
now passes by o u r door as it did the I sr a el i tes in ,
E gyp t of o l d F or i t sees the ma r k of the bloo d

.
o n the lintels and visits its doom now only o n the

,
homes of the un regenerate The pearly g a tes .
swing wide Glo ry to the L a mb $

.
When the p r eacher w a s through the h ymn th at ,
followed was sung in a way to show t h at the earnest

words of the speaker h a d no t been spoken in v a in .
There w a s a volume to it a nd a glo ry that doesn t ’
come a s a tri bute to mere hu man e fforts .
When it was all over an d the benediction h ad ,
been pronounced I waited fo r D r D u r bin to come

,
.
down t o me Since it h a d been my money which

.
h a d really made this l a rge and beautiful mee t in g

house possi ble this dedic a tion service was one i n
,
which I n at urally fel t a personal interest y e s — ,
even a responsibili ty I w a s t he r efore not only

.
, ,
ple a sed bu t gre a tly relieved t h at t he se r vice h ad gone

o ff s o prosperous Now at t he close I didn t u s e ’
.
m a ny words in expressing my sentimen t s to t he

pre a cher S ome t imes t he greatest feeling is pu t
.
in t o the fewest words I t ook him by the h a nd .

,
pressed it w a rmly and looking hi m i n the eye

, ,
said : B r other D urbin I th ank you for th at ser ,
mon .
T h e many peace ful an d sooth i n g h o ur s I h ave

spent in th i s c hur c h s i nce th at open i ng day h ave ,
r epa id me a ll t h e money I gave to it To be su r e .

,
they didn t ca ll t h e church a fter my name ; but city

’
c h u r ches don t often d o th at

’
U p in Ca r me l they .
di d And I don t know a finer kind of a mon u ment

.
’
fo r a man t h an to h ave his n ame eng r aved on the

fr ont of some fine c h u r ch Any one w h o goes up .
t o th at town to day will see it —-

ca r ve d in so l id
“
stone ri ght ove r the doorway :
,
D aniel Dr ew
”
C h urch So m e of t h e people in C a r mel h ave got
.
“ ”
to calling it the S t D aniel D rew Ch urch . B ut .
I a l ways rega rd ed t h at as mo r e of a n i ck name -
t h an anythin g else It s a caut i on anyh ow the .

’
, ,
way th at the yo u nge r gene r ation i n this he r e l a nd

of ou r s g i ves n i ck n a m es t o t hi n g s T h ey don t
,
-
.
’
s eem to h ave r eve r en ce the way t h at y ou ng peop l e ,
u sed t o h ave in my day .
Then aga i n t h e r e i s the L ad i es S em i n a ry of

,
’
m i ne i n Ca rm e l
, R aymond t h e c ir cus man in
.
,
th at village n a m e d it fi r st a fte r h imself It looked

,
.
for a time as thoug h h e woul d plant h i s fa m ily n a me

into the life of the town deeper t h an my own could
be planted E ve ry man w a nts h is family n ame to
.
be reme m be r ed at least in his n ative town You

, .
c a n stick up a g r avestone with you r na m e c ar ved ,
on it B ut th at s a dead thing B ut put the money

.
’
.
into some institution th a t will go on living ye a r -
after year ; yo u h ave h itched you r se l f now to some

thing th a t s a l ive The monument would h ave
’
.
l et your name r ema i n unspoken fo r marble is ,
dumb B ut insti t utions l ast from gene rat ion to

.
gener a tion and speak out your n a me const a nt l y

, .
It i s wor t h a man s while to build two o r th r ee of

’
them d uring h i s lifetime even though they are pretty ,
cost l y at the ti me Therefore I was gla d wh en .

,
the way opened fo r me to take R aymond s schoo l ’
and make it i nto D rew L adies S e m in ary About ’

.
the only thing R aymond h a s got u p in Carme l now

”
is Raymond Hill wh ere the r e s a burying groun d,
’
.
A burying g round is a dead thing b u t semin aries ,
are l i ving things O ve r at B r ewsters also they

.
’
, ,
were building the i r ch urch I gave to it .
I n this case they didn t put my n a me o n the chu rch ’

.
I n fact the ch urch doesn t bear the n a m e of a ny

,
’
pe r son a t all But the people aroun d there al l

.
know th at if it h adn t been for me giving a plumb ’
h a lf of the cost the church might never h a ve been

,
built Perh aps they will p u t a memori a l win dow

.
in after I am gone
, .
B u t I don t bo a st My gift s to religion a nd such

’
.
like are n o t a l t ogether gifts They a re a sort o f a n .
investment I have always held th a t wh a t you give

.
to t he L ord comes b a ck to yo u God h a s a long .
memory F or a time he m a y no t seem to h ave

. .
no t iced your gift a n d yo u think mos t li kely he h a s

,
fo r go t a ll a bou t i t B ut he h a sn t S uch things .

’
.
never slip his min d Soon or l a te he will even it .

,
m ost p r ofitable There s th at a ffa i r with the man
.
’
” “
Pa r ke r from the West
, California P a rke r they ,
called hi m because he ca m e from th e P a cific Coast

, .
I m ade a fine penny out of the dicke r I had with

h i m B ut i t wasn t altogethe r my own d o i ngs
.
’
.
I didn t l ook him u p It was as thoug h I sat in

’
.
my o ffi ce and he came an d made me a present of

h is money I guess it was his father who h ad a c c u m u
.
lated the fo r tune ; an d now the son h ad got it and

h ad come to N ew York City to swe l l it bigge r as , ,
h e th oug h t A fat calf makes the sweetest veal

. .
See i ng he was anxious I took h i m into a poo l wh ich ,
I w a s ca rry i ng on j ust then fo r the pu r pose o f B u ll

in g E rie sh a r es Pa r ker came to me . .
” “
Mr D rew sa i d he I m willin g to take charge
.
, ,
’
o f this , if you say so You h ave so many i r ons i n .
the fi re yo u ought to be gla d to h ave a pa r tne r h el p

,
o u o u t wit h one o f t h em I am willing to ta k e this

y .
pa r ticul a r stock camp a ign o ff from your shou ld e r s .
B ut I will prob ably need your help befo r e I get

th r ough I thin k I c a n boost the stock a numbe r
.
of points B ut in o r der to get i t to the notch wher e

.
it will stick an d take c a re of i t self I will need mo r e ,
funds than I individu a lly have Therefo r e at the .

,
r i g ht time will you h elp me ou t

,
I s a i d o f cou r se I woul d ; I d see hi m t hrou gh ’

.
And at the time I meant it B ecause I owned a .
l a rge block of E r ie sh a res j ust then and was only ,
too pleased to h ave some one boost them fo r me .

T HE B O OK OF D A N I EL DRE W 1 91
He t h an ked me and went away s ay i ng t h at h e ,
wou l d get to wor k at o nce .
I soon saw th at he was ca rrying out the p l an w i t h

energy A flood of b uying orders poured into t h e
.
ma rket E rie rose point by point I was g l ad

. . .
E ach point of rise meant a dollar more in my

pocke t for every sh are I held .
By an d by however I became less B ullish than

, ,
I had been Parker s buying now h ad boosted it

.
’
from 1 00 clean u p to 1 2 3 I thought I t a good time .
to get rid of my holdings It never does to ove r .
stay a market Wait one day too long an d you

.
,
will so m etimes miss it altogether I n Wall St r eet .
the sec r et of success is to know when the i r on is

h o t an d then strike Parker when he entered i nto
.
,
this dicker with me h ad almost three hundred ,
thousand do l la r s S o I issued an order to my broker

.
$ unbeknownst to anybody $ to sell .
I didn t dump the sh ares onto Parke r al l at once

’
.
That wouldn t h ave been good policy With too

’
.
big an amount to take c a re of all of a sudden he d ,

’
h ave become discouraged S o I fed the stock out .
to him by d riblets s o to speak — didn t want to ’
destroy h is absorbing power I o ffered i t only in .
thousand lots a nd even in lo t s o f five hundred

,
sh ares each .
I w a s gl a d t o see t h at he took t hem ; a nd this ,
too wi t hou t suspecting any t hing The blocks being

,
.
so s m all he like as not thought t hey were coming

,
fr om scattered parties th r oughout the country he r e ,
one and there one Towards the en d howeve r in

.
, ,
o r de r to get ri d of all my ho l dings whilst the price

was at the top notch an d before the market b ro k e I
-
,
dumped rathe r heavy blocks of it onto him At .
one time I was sca r e d I feared I had ove r done

.
the thing B ecause the p r ice s a gged like old S ambo

. .
It looke d as though I h ad unloaded onto Parker a

j ag o f the stock that was too heavy fo r him B ut .
he must have go t under the load like a plucky fellow ;

for the stock was taken and still the p r ice held u p
,
fine .
He came in to see me soon after He was p r etty .
we ll het up by t h is wo r k of suppo r ting the market .
He wiped the sweat fr om his forehead as he sat down

i n my inne r o ffice When I saw him come i n
.
I w a s anxious first along I fe a re d he h ad discove r ed

.
who it was th at h ad been feeding all of th at stock

t o hi m . B ut I w a s q uickly put at ease He was .
still friendly towards me I saw that he w a s not .
of a suspicious turn of mind .
“ ”
Well U ncle s a i d he a s he sat down $every
, , ,
“
body called me U ncle $; I ve been poun ded pre t ty ’
h a r d the l a st d a y or t wo a s yo u prob a bly h a ve seen

,
from the tape B ut I didn t le t t hem bre a k my lines

.
’
.
O nce or twice they h a d me pretty ne a r b ushed B ut .
I pulled myself toge t her each time An d I thin k .
”
I h ave held my own .
“ ”
Why what is i t
,
? said I I h aven t followed .
’
194 T HE B O OK OF D A N I EL DRE W
h i s speech But I don t know as I can let yo u
.
’
”
have that m o ney after all , .
He looked u p at me wi th a start li k e a colt when ,
it s s u ddenly fr ig h tened I w a s glad th at I h ad a

’
.
cle r k j ust outsi d e the d oo r of my pr i vate o fli ce ,
w i th i n easy r eac h if I s h ould need him ; because

o u never can tell what these We s terne r s wil l do
y
when they get excited .
“
Wh a t s t h at said he I don t believe I un de r
’
.
’
”
stood yo u .
“
Wh y it s j ust as I s a id I rep l ied
,
’
I fin d th at , .
I m not a ble t o let you h ave that money

’
I s aw .
that it was best to h ave the thing over q uickly B ad .
news to a man is like pulling a tooth I f yo u fool .
aroun d with the forceps sor t of ten der like i t will -

,
make it a l l the ha r der The kin dest course is to .
be ste r n hea rted j ust fo r a minute ; yan k the tooth

-
o ut ,
then it s al l ove r T h at s wh at I di d now I
’
.
’
.
h andled him without mittens I plu mped th e .
a nnouncement out at him in s t r a ightforwa r d fa shion :

“
Couldn t possibly do it My money is t ied u p
’
.
”
j ust now tight a s a fid d l e string -
.
“ ”
But said he an d his voice go t very low an d
, ,
”
q uiet M r D rew you promised
,
.
,
.
“ “
Tut t ut s a id I ; j ust a mere word th r own o ut
, ,
in casu a l talk I didn t intend it to be in the n a tu r e

.
’
of a h ar d and fa st a greement There wasn t any .

’
”
thing put down in w r iting .
“ ”
I know that s a i d h e ; b u t between m en a, ,
THE B O O K OF D A N I EL DRE W 19
5
g ent l emen s ag r ee m ent i s even mor e b i n di ng th an

’
’
do c um ent s p l aste r e d o ve r w i t h sea l s an d a n o ta ry s
”
sta m p .
“
Wel l s ai d I you ll h ave to exc u se me fr om
, ,
’
goi n g i nt o a d i sc u ss i on o f the matte r w i th you I .
’
h aven t the t i me just now I h ave s o me i mportant .
”
bus i ness on h an d th at I ve got t o see to ’
An d I
a r ose to bring t h e i nte r view to an end I neve r
,
—
believe i n h and l ing a nettle ten de rly I didn t .
’
want to get into an a rg ument with him D idn t know .

’
w h at he might do if h e got wo r ked up Hot h eade d .

-
fel l ows sometimes get ve ry sud den if t h ey are het up

“
by an argu ment I m sorry my son if you a re
.
’
, ,
disappointed I t s un avoid able I can t help you

.
’
.
’
with any money I s h all h ave to bid you good

.
”
m o rning .
He bit h is lip Hi s face t u r ned w hi te all of a

.
” “ ’
sud den . O f cou r se M r D rew , s a i d h e you ll
.
, ,
give me a chance to say t his : Th at I am by this

act of yours a ruined man $ The earn i ngs of a life
t i me h ave been swept away $ U nless yo u keep you r
p r omise I and my fam ily are a t this mo m ent reduced
,
to begg a ry $ D o I unders t and th a t your answer is

”
final ?
“ ’
It s fin al s ai d I ; if you ve lost any money
,
’
,
go an d begin earning it b ack E very time a shee p .
”
ble ats it loses a mouthful $ This hope . I held o ut
to hi m w a s of course a r ather small plas t er fo r a

big sore B u t it was the best I could d o $
. .
1 96 TH E B OOK O F DA N I EL DRE W
I star t e d at once to t h e doo r to l et hi m out I .
cou ld see t h at he w a s b o t h e r e d c o ns i de r able F o r h e .
so r t of stagg e r e d as h e walke d across t h e floor .
An d h is eyes gl a z e d ove r so m et h ing li ke a steer

,
j ust after h e h as been h i t He d id n t say good bye

.
’
-
.
He st u mble d o ut t hro u gh t h e o ffi ce door an d went

away .
I was g l a d when t h e i nte r v i ew w a s o ve r I k new .
’
th at I d h ave to go t h rough i t ; an d n o w wa s r e l i eved .
Pa rk e r too k i t in a di ffe r ent w ay fr om wh at I h a d

looked fo r I nstead of fla r ing u p h e to o k it so
.
,
q u i et li ke t h at I kin d of felt so rry fo r hi m B ut

-
.
I wasn t i n Wall S t r eet fo r m y hea l th I f h e thought

’
.
I was goin g to lose m oney i n orde r to h elp him he ,
h a d come to the w r ong s h op t h at s al l B us i ness ,

’
.
i s b u siness When I h ad to l d hi m some d ays be for e

.
that I d h elp him o u t w i t h t h e m oney I was i n a

’
,
d i ffe r ent p o sition fr om wh at I now w a s For I .
h a d now d i spose d of most of my E r i e sto ck So .
t h at I d h ave been a fool to loan Parker any money

’
to keep t h e price of the stock up Wh en I h av e .
sol d out my sha r es it i sn t to my inte r est to k eep

’
the price u p I t s to my i nterest th en to h ave t h e

.
’
p r ice of th at p a r ticul ar stock tu m ble j ust as fast

an d as fa r as it will Becaus e I can t h en b uy i t
.
in once m o r e .
An d th at i s what h appened i n t h e p r esent case .
It wasn t an h ou r o r t w o afte r Pa rk e r left m y o ffi ce

’
,
befor e E r ie fell off se ve r a l p oi nts For Pa r ker .

NE
d ay abou t this t i me I was i n my o ffi ce
, ,
at 2 2 W i lliam St r eet when t h e boy came ,
i n and sa i d there w a s a m an i n the outer

“
o ffi ce by the name of F isk He wants to see you .
on a business matte r .
“
Sen d him in said I I said it t o the boy sor t
, .
of careless l ike not expecting a nyt h ing much I t

-
, .
w a s a name t h at didn t mean anything to me

’
.
T h ought i t w a s some strange r coming to see me on a

s mall a ffai r o r other I tu r ned to the stock ticker
.
once mo r e and to re a ding t he q uotations The

, .
door opened A man c a me in

. .
“
I m F isk s aid he He stepped u p an d took
’
, .
“
my h and He w a s as brisk as a bo tt le of a le J a mes
.
F is k J unio r of N ew York an d Boston

, , Jim F isk .
‘
,
’
the boys call me where I m known B ut I suppose

,
’
.
he r e I ll have t o p ut on all t he lugs Mr D rew I

’
. .
,
h ave come to sell those Stoning t on sh a r es o f yours .
I got my h and loose from h is and s at down I , .
got my b r eath aft e r a minute Not th at I w a s mad . .
S omehow o r othe r you couldn t get m a d a t t he

,
’
fellow he h ad suc h a hea r ty w a y abo u t hi m An d .
he w a s so almigh ty s ur e o f him self he m a de every ,
1 98
bod y e l se su re of him t oo He was a b ig m an , .

,
h eavy set wit h b lo nd h air an d a m o ustac h e t h e

-
, ,
c olo u r o f a Jersey c o w He wo r e a ve l vet vest c u t.

,
low so as to show well nigh h a lf o f h i s shi rt bos o m

,
- -
.
H i s h an ds we r e fat and h ad r i ngs a ll ove r t h em

,
.
I cou l d see he was a fe ll ow to sc r ape up an a c q u a in

tance on short notice .
“
An d may I as k wh o i s th i s M r J ames Fi s k .
,
”
Jun ior ? I man aged to i nq uire a fte r I h a d got my ,
breat h again $I a l ways did h ave a knack o f be i n g

.
ve ry c o l d an d d ign i fied when I wanted to $ .
“ “
O f course y ou can ask sai d h e I ll g i ve ’
, ,
.
y ou the whole ped i g r ee i f you w ant it I m fr om , .

’
—
Ve rmo nt o n e of you r Green Mountain boy s I .
w a s a pe d dler up the r e Got t o be the Prince o f .
Ped dl e r s Th at s wh at they cal l ed m e My fat h e r

.
’
.
was a peddler befo r e m e E verybody a r oun d Ben .
n in t o n kno w s my fat h e r B ut they know me a

g .
mighty s i ght bette r I p ut my fat h e r i n the sh ade

.
be fo r e I d been a pe d d l e r six months I m o n e of the

’
.
’
o ahead sort N eve r was cut o u t to be a m o ss

g
-
.
gathe r e r I t s push with me

.
’
a ll t h e time And .
if you want to ent r ust me with the sale of t his r ai l

road stock of you r s I ll prove it t o yo u U p t h e r e
,
’
.
in Ve r mont I h a d h a r d ly sta r ted out befor e I h a d

a peddler s w a gon wi t h four horses
’
Jobber in .
‘
silks sh awls d r ess goods j ewelry si l ver w a re and

, , , ,
-
Yan kee no t ions — th at s the w ay my sign re ad

’ ’
.
To s ee me c om e into a t own y ou d h a v e tho ugh t t h e ,

’
2 00 TH E B O O K OF D AN I EL DRE W
c ir c u s h a d a rri ved I n fact I got the idea fr om a
’
.
,
c ir cu s I used to t r ave l wi th Van Ambe rg s t h at ,

’
-
”
w a s befo r e I became a pedd l e r .
“ “
Wh at ? said I ; di d you use to t r avel with Van
”
Ambe rg s Men age ri e ?
’
Well I guess I got to be assistant doo r keepe r in

, .
th at s h ebang E ve r hear o f it .
“ ”
E ve r hear o f i t ? said I Wh y old I ke Van .
,
Am b e r g sta r ted th at show of his fro m my pa r t of

the c o unt ry u p i n Putnam County I know s o me
, .
”
th i ng about the men agerie business myself .
“ ”
I s th at so ? said he Sh a ke again pa r dne r $ ,
’
I did n t know when I came in he r e th at I was get
”
t i n g a mong my o wn kit h and kin .
“ ” “
Wh y yes s a i d I ; I was in the ci r cus b u siness
, ,
b e fo re y ou w a s bo r n C ame nea r being in it yet .

,
”
fo r t h a t matte r .
“ ”
I want t o kn o w $ said h e S ay did you h ave .
,
t h e w il d mu l e same s they d o now fo r the fa r mer ’
, ,
”
b oy s to r ide once a r ound the r ing for five dolla r s
‘
P ’
“ ” “
No said I We h adn t thought o f th at back ’
.
,
”
i n my ti m e .
“
Then you don t know wh at fun it is s aid he ’
, .
L o r d it used to sp li t my sides with laughing $ I n

,
our s h o w w e h ad a mule picked up somewhe r e in

o u r t ra vels Picked him up fo r a s ong for th at
.
,
m atte r . He was so wild the farmer we bought hi m ,
o f couldn t do anything with him B ut we b r oke

’
.
h i m Th at i s we brok e h im enou gh fo r o ne o f the

.
,
20 2 TH E B O OK O F DA N I E L DRE W
t it ies th at the h ouse in Boston w h ic h s u p p li e d him

, ,
Jordan Ma r sh 81 C o began to notice him and

, .
, ,
before long gave hi m a job as t r avellin g salesma n .
No s o one r h a d he m oved to B oston th an he g ot

acq uainted wi th a woman there w h o was i nfluenti al ,
with some of t h e Massach u setts po l itic i ans in Was h

in gt o n $Jim my always d i d h ave a w ay of getting
around women $ The house h e worke d fo r h ad a
.
l ot o f b l ankets they c o uldn t get r i d of F isk said’

.
h e wou l d d o th e t ri ck S o he got this woman to

.
give h im lette r s of i ntrod u ction to one o r two b i g

men fr om Massachusetts i n Was h ing t on He went .
down there it was j ust when the Wa r was getting

unde r way kep t open house fo r a few d ays go t ,
some C ongressmen in wi t h him and sol d the who l e ,
batch of bl a nke t s t o the U ni t ed States Governmen t

at a high figu r e He pe r suaded U ncle S am tha t
.
they we r e just the thing fo r the soldie r boys .
F isk also it seems m a de some money on the side

, , ,
w h ile h e was in Washing t on smuggling cotton ,
through the U nion l ines The blockade o n the .
S outhe r n ports h ad by th i s time go t so tigh t t h at

“
co t ton w a s bringing wa r prices N othing l i k e .
”
knowing an oppor t uni ty when you see it said F i s k , ,
“
i n telling me this pa r t o f his life The r e down .
S outh w a s cotton sta cked u p in g r e a t piles pe r

fe c t l y useless and waiting fo r a ch a nce t o get t o mar
ket O n the other side was the N orth h u ng ry for
.
,
c o tton S ays I to myself : Jim F isk J u nior you

.
‘
, ,
TH E B O OK OF D AN I EL DRE W 2 93
’
a r e to b e the middle man between these two need s - .
”
So I set to work I got the co t ton th r o u gh
.
.
“
How did you do it ? sai d I
“ ”
I m not t elling sai d he ; but I got it th r ough
’
This w a r is a great thing fo r b usiness anyway , ,
“ ”
s a id he ; don t yo u t hink so ?
’
I said t h a t depen ded .
”
O f course sai d h e ; I mean for b usiness of th e
,
right ki nd You stock market riggers here are bag

.
-
ging money h and ove r fist I f the Wa r la s ts long .
enough you won t h ave vaults big enough to sto r e

,
’
away your coin I always di d thin k anyhow th at

.
, ,
John B rown w a s a b ully fellow for sta r ting this w a r ,

.
Tell yo u wh at Dr ew t hose soldie r boys i n blue a r e

, ,
o ur b est friends Tramp tramp t r amp the b oys

.
‘
, , ,
a r e marching and you Wall S t r eete r s r a ke i n the

,
’
”
S h ekels .
I answe r ed th at I thought U ncle S am s so l d i e r ’
b oys were in deed ea r n i ng th eir wa g es An d although .
i t wou l d cost an almighty bi g s u m in taxes t o pay the

bi lls when the Wa r w a s ove r st i l l ta ke i t all i n all , , ,
pe r h aps it was money we ll spent F o r i t ce r ta i nly .
was ma king good times in W a ll S treet .
Well F isk s success in selling th e blan kets to

,
’
U ncle S am gave him a h a n dle ove r Jordan Marsh ,
81 C o . He went b a ck to them while th e sale was

“
still h anging fi re and sai d : I ve got the contract
,
’
.
Now I want y o u to take me into the fi r m

”
.
They didn t appea r ve ry anxious B ut F i sk sa i d

’
.
he h ad s om e o f th e cont r acts s i gne d i n his own
n a m e and un l ess th ey took hi m i n th ey co u ldn t
, ,
’
h ave t h e or de r s S o t h ey h a d t o gi ve i n He
. .
b ecame one o f t h e C o o f the fi rm . .
“ ” “
B ut co nt i n u e d Fi s k o ur pa r tne r s hi p d id n t
, ,
’
j u st t ur n ou t ve ry s c rum p ti ou s Tho s e B o s t o n .
m e r c h ants are s o a ll fire d r espe cta bl e They a r e

-
.
too conse r v a t i ve T h ey t h in k th e g ood name o f t h e

.
h o use w i t h s m a ll e r p r ofit s i s w or t h mor e than a

s mal l e r na m e w i t h bi gge r p ro fits We d i dn t hi t ’
.
i t o ff we ll toget h e r and the u ps ho t was th ey

, ,
ve ry s oon a s k e d me to leave I d id fo r a r em u .
nera t io n T h ey pa i d me s i xty thou sand dol l a r s to

.
et o ut I s ta r ted i n the d ry g oo ds b u s i ness myse l f -

g .
,
a t the c or ne r of S umme r and Ch auncey St r eets ,
B oston B u t i t didn t go C a m e t o N ew Yo r k
’
. .
wit h wh at mo ney I h ad l eft I sta r te d i n as a Wa ll .
S t r eet o p e r at or R e s ul t lo st eve ry cent I h ad

.
,
.
T hi s was a yea r ago Ha d a si l ve r watch . na ry

a n o t h e r th i ng I was as fl at a s a nigger s nose ’
. .
A m yet for t h at matte r

,
B ut I m g o ing to b e a
.
’
r ich m an yet Th ey can t keep me down An d I

.
’
.
h ave c om e to you U ncle with this S tonington

, ,
p r oposit io n I t . will h el p make yo u r icher an d ,

”
i t ll b ring s o mething t o Jim F isk to o
’
, .
I as k ed him h ow he proposed to go a bout t h e

deaL
“
I l l te ll yo u said he
’
I l ea r ned th at the re
,
.
is a Boston c r owd that would like to b uy o u t y o u r

d o a good turn to a man s u ch as t h at I feel l i k e
,
doing it So I gave his son young B elden a chance

.
, , .
Very s o on I was using t his fi r m of F i sk 81 B elden

fo r most of my impor t ant deals A big operato r s’
.
business has to be done o n the qu i et The relation

.
shi p between a Wall St r eet ope r ato r an d his broke r

i s a c l ose o n e I n o r de r t o manipulate the ma r ket
.
,
you must keep mum wh il e yo u a r e doing i t The .
b r oke r is the only one besides you r self w h o knows

wh at y o u re do i ng He i s i n a posit i on to g i ve y ou
’
.
away if h e wants to S o I w a s gla d to h ave a

.
b r oke r age h ouse that I could be confi dential with .
P r etty soon F i sk and I we r e i n a l ot of d eals togethe r ,
a n d i n E r ie m o st of al l.
H E E ri e wa r wa s now about to o pen I t .
was t h e b i ggest figh t I was eve r in So .
I w a s gla d I had got an able he l per like

Jim F isk ; fo r I w a s going to need pa r tne r s now as
neve r befo r e .
It w a s a fight as anybody might know between

, ,
Vanderbilt and m e Pre t ty much all o u r lives we .
have been figh t ing each o t he r When h e h ad a .
good thi ng it always kind of seemed as though I

,
wanted it t oo; an d when I had a good thing he

, ,
neve r slept easy till he h ad a fi nger i n it Tha t .
h ad been the case wi t h s t eamboats an d it was now ,
to be the case also with t he E rie R ailroad

, , .
Vande r bil t s make u p an d mine we r e di fferent

’
-
.
I suppose th at accounts fo r o u r everlastingly cross

ing horns His way w a s t o b r eak down opposition
.
,
by ru shing straight through it ; my way was to go

arou n d it He was the d o g I t h e cat A ca r believes
.
, .
in going soft foo t ed -

in keeping its claws hid till
the ti me co mes to show t hem A dog goes wi t h a .
big bow wow ; my pl a n h a s alw a ys been to go a t a

-
thing q ui eter A cat won t spring at a dog from

.
’
in fr ont t is n t good tactics

’
S he gets around on
’
.
2 07
the fl an k claws the dog from behi nd an d so does a
, ,
lot o f damage without being in any danger herself .
T h e Commodore w a s a lordly fellow He used to .
dr i ve a team of horses and would go ri ding u p F ifth

,
Avenue as though he owned bo t h sides of i t Hit; .
house w a s down on Washing t on S q uare among t he

silk stockings I n winter he would wear a fu r
-
.
lined coat and a s t ove pipe hat ; w a s ve ry prou d o f -
h is pe r son As for me I w a s neve r a h a nd fo r vain

.
,
glo ry Top boots such as I used to wear in d r ove r

.
-
,
days h ave always been good enough for me An d

, .
I neve r coul d see the use of paying expensive p r ices

to a tailo r when you can get a suit ready made fo r -
less th an h alf the sum As for cu tt ing a W ide swath.

,
I never did take to i t My turn o u t of one horse and

.
-
a d octor s gig w a s good enough fo r me When th e

’
.
B r oadway stages started in t hey were cheape r yet ; ,
so I used them .
S ome of my friends used to scold me because I

“
did n t dress up They d s ay : U ncle D an w h y
’
.
’
on earth do you w a lk a roun d wi t h such an old s t ic k

”
as t hat fo r a cane ? B u t I t old them I wasn t ’
p roud Th at stick h a d once been the h an dle of an

.
a lmighty good umbrell a And now t h at t he u mb rell a .
part was o f no u se any more I felt it would be a ,
shame to throw away t he s t ick ; because the stick

was i n just as good a condi t ion as when I h ad bough t
the u mbrella ye ar s before .
Anothe r di fference between the Commodore and

Vande r bilt s faith i n the fut ur e of o ur co u nt ry
’
sometimes led him i nto r eck l e s s expenditu r es D ur .
ing the C i vil Wa r he was willing to h ave that c o n

fl ic t come to an end even though i t was maki ng ,
good bus i ness fo r u s ope r ato r s in Wa ll S t r eet ; because

he figu r ed th at with the count ry p r ospe r ous once
,
mo r e he wou l d b e prospe r ous als o He even gave

, .
a million do ll a r boat out r ight to th e Government

-
,
fo r use as a gun boat to he l p hu rry the Wa r to an

-
,
end He seemed to think the count ry s inte r ests

.
’
and his own we r e one and the same — a position
which l eads a fellow into al l k i nds of ext r avagance .
It s a l l r ight to love you r count ry ; b ut a fellow ou g ht

’
to l ove himself too I loaned some o f m y S toning

,
’
.
ton L ine boats t 6 the Gove r nment du ri ng t h e Wa r ;

but I cha r ged r ent I n the yea r 62 a l one Abe .
’
L incoln paid me fo r the u se of t h e boats .
So I was really so rry when the C i vil Wa r was ove r .
F o r then an e r a of p r osperity set in ; an d p r o s p e r ity

isn t good for a Be a r operator
’
.
The Commodo r e g a ve a million dolla r s to Vander

bilt U niversity — right out of h a n d He di dn t .
’
seem to have any fe a r of losing his fortune and dying

poor I h a ve believed in giving so rt of cautious like
.
-
.
I g a ve a qu a rte r million a s an endowment to found

-
D rew Theological S emina ry B ut I kept the p r in .
c i a l in my own hand s only paid ove r the interest

p
each yea r th a t i s I paid th e inte r est a s l ong as
,
I was a ble I h ave alway s be li eve d t h a t a m an

.
s hould b e h a n di e r w i t h a r a k e t h a n w i t h a
fork .
Wel l t h e E ri e fi gh t was b et w een V a n d e rb il t and m e

,
.
I h ad been t h e rul ing sp i rit in E r ie now fo r ten years ,
and h ad m ade s o mu ch m oney ou t o f th at r oa d

t h at othe r peop l e go t j ealous Pa r t of those ten.
yea r s was C ivi l Wa r ti m e S toc ks we r e bob bin g u p

.
and d own li ke a boy s kite I was on the inside

’
.
an d c ould take advantage of these j u mps .
T h e Civ i l Wa r was o ve r ; Van d e r b il t now vowe d

t h at h e wo u ld get c o nt r o l of the E ri e R oad an d put
m e and my c r ow d o ut o f business fo r good an d all .
He sai d we we r e noth i n g but a nest o f g a m ble r s th at ,
we we r e u nsettling the entire ma r ket by our s p e c ki

l a t io n s and that he w ou ldn t fee l s afe fo r his other
’
p r ope r ties u nt i l the E r ie R ail r oad ha d a l so been

p l aced i n wh at he ca ll ed safe h an d s S o h e set out.
t o b uy a cont rolli ng inte r est in the st o ck

I gu ess wh at m ade h im so mad was 3 C onve r t
”
ibl e B on d s che m e t h at I wo r ke d about this time .
The E ri e R oad wante d th r ee million do ll a r s to make

s om e im p r ovements I l oaned her t h e m o ney and
.
,
took as securi ty fo r t h e loan three million dolla r s

of bonds which we r e c o nve r ti ble int o stock ; and a l so
twenty eight thousand sh ares of unissued stock
-
w h i c h t h e r o ad j u st then h ad on h an d This pro .
vid e d m e in a l l wit h fift eight tho u sand sh a r es of

y
-
st o c k T hu s fo r t i fied and when the S t r eet didn t ’
—
.
k n o w t h at I he ld t h e s e s h a r e s I went o nto the

E xchange and sold E rie he a vily s h o r t . E rie w as
then at 95 and p r omised to go still highe r People
, .
r eckoned th at I was a r eckless plunge r The weeks .
r an a l on g Pretty soon it came time fo r me to

.
d el i ve r The price he l d st r ong at 95 My enem i es

. .
b egan to snicke r They s aid I was co r ne r ed B ut

. .
I took t h e twenty eight thousand s h a r es I h ad kept

-
u p my sleeve and dumped th e m in t o the ma r ket

,
al l to o nce I t was pro b a b ly the biggest su r p ri se

.
Wall St r eet u p to th at time h ad known P r ices we r e .
knocked into a cocked hat E rie gave one p l unge .
fe ll to 4 7 Wh ic h m eans I m ade the oth e r fe l

.
,
l ows pay me $ 95 a sh a r e fo r stock which was c o st

i ng me now only $4 7 So I clean ed up $4 8 on .
eve ry s h a r e dealt i n I t was the fi nest scoop I h a d

.
eve r made I t i s t r ue those

. sh a r es h a d ,
b een i nt r usted to me only to hold as security u nti l

the r oad should pay back my loan B ut in a bus i .
ness deal you can t stop fo r eve ry little tech nical i ty

,
’
.
Vande r bil t s a i d th a t sort of t hing h ad to stop .
And he was goi ng t o be the one to stop it S o h e .
sta r ted in He didn t t ry to conceal his moves He

.
’
.
let eve rybody know He went out in the open m a r

.
ket and made his bids He said th at t he E r ie R oa d .

,
i n s pite of all the di r ty wate r a s he called it

in its stock could be made once mo r e i nto a divi
,
d end ea r ning p roperty ; and th at it woul d be worth

-
m oney to him an d to the public gener a lly to ma ke

it into a good r oad once more A t least h e was .
Yes s a i d h e b u t whe r e in time could I fin d
, ,
such a man
“
I m the o n e and I s po k e up good and p r o m pt
’
, .
He l aughed a g r eat big laug h $Vande r bilt had .
a hea r ty way of laughing as though he was n t afr ai d

’
o f anyt h ing or anybody He u sed to poke fu n a t .
me o n the occasions when he and I we r e on good

te rm s because I didn t l augh a good l oud la u gh ’
“
l i ke h e did Why in th u nde r D an don t you
.
, ,
’
”
l a ug h when you set o u t to do i t he u sed t o s ay , ,
and q uit that hen cackle o f y ou rs which is no nea r er ,
a real l augh than o n e of my ol d S taten I sland pe r i

auge r s wou l d be to a mode r n paddle wheel b o at -
He gave one of those l aughs o f his now .
“ ”
That would be a b ully good idea $ he sai d .
You a r e j u st the fellow to ta ke in a s confidential

fr iend and partner D r ew you r e as c r ooked as a
.
,
’
wo r m fence You d betray me insi de of t wenty

.
’
”
fou r h ou r s .
“
I wouldn t betray you a t a ll s a i d I
’
I guess ,
.
I h aven t fo rgotten th e time when we used to b e

’
friends tog ether I n the ol d ste a mboat days Why .

,
b ack the r e m th at W terw itc h a ff air a

“ “
Yes yes sai d he
, ,
I remember o l d steam
.
boat days We have known each oth er quite a

.
whi l e haven t we
, I don t know b u t wha t I might
’ ’
”
give you one mo r e t r ial He thought for a spell
. .
D o you really think D an if I t o ok yo u b ack th at

, , ,
yo u could play fair

I don t believe anyt hi ng a bo ut i t sa i d I

’
I , .
k n o w I could And I m i n a pos i t i on to d o you a

.
’
”
whole lot o f help .
“
I declare I believe I ll try it said he
, B ut ’
,
.
wait I g a ve my p r omise to put yo u o u t The

. .
B oston c r owd w a nts to ge t r id of you An d I told .
them th a t a t this next annu a l meeting I d see to it ’
”
th at you were not t e elected -
.
“ ” “
Ye s s a id I ; b ut you c a n tell t h em you h ave
,
”
changed you r mind .
“
Th at isn t t he way I do things sai d he
’
A , .
”
promise is a p r omise .
“
Well if th a t is t he way you feel I answe r ed
, , ,
why n o t work it this way We ll go a h e a d and hold

? ’
the e lec t ion I will be left out We ll put a

. .
’
dummy i n t he place i nste a d o f me Thus you ll be .

’
keeping your promise with the Boston c r owd Then .

,
a fter t he election is ove r the dummy can r esign and ,
”
I will be appointed i n h i s place .
“
T h a t s cert a inly a fruitful noddle you ve got
’ ’
” “
th e r e U ncle said th e Commodore
, , I don t just .
’
t a ke to that w ay of getting out of t he di ffi culty .
B u t maybe it s a s good a s a ny We ll c a ll i t
’
.
’
”
se tt led .
The election was held My n a me didn t appe a r .

’
in t he list o f those re é l e c t e d to the B oard I t looked .
as though I was out of E rie fo r good a nd a ll B ut .
t he next day t he d ummy resigned s a id th a t on fur

ther thought he was not a ble to take it and wo u ld
2 16 THE B OOK OF D AN I EL DR E W
have to be r e li eve d We r elieved him I ste p p e d

. .
into hi s shoes I was back into m y o l d p l ace

. .
N ow I was r eady fo r wo r k I sta r ted i n T h e r e

, . .
was no t im e to be l ost Vande rb i l t wo uld soon h ave

.
complete cont rol of E rie un l ess I b l oc k ed him .
Al r eady I h ad F i s k wit h me as a pa r tne r I needed .
anothe r man Th i s othe r man I foun d in J ay

.
Gould .
J ay h ad been wo r m i ng his way i ns i de of E ri e for
some time b ack He h ad given up w r iting h is

.
tories h ad also sold his tanne ry business out in

-
Pennsy l vania He h ad come to N ew Yo r k with a

.
patent r at t r ap to sell Then he got into the S treet

-
. .
F i r st along h e dea l t in small r a ilr oads B ut w h en .
he saw wh at a bag of money I was ma ki ng o ut of

E r ie he began to invest in its stock He got in with .
some of the stock holders an d by now h a d b e come

-
,
a di r ecto r hi m se l f and one of the p o we r s i n th e r oad .
I took h i m now as a p artne r He was a t t h e h ea d .
of a clique in t he B o a rd of D i r ecto r s th a t I ne e ded

in my fight against V a nderbi lt S o he and Ji m .
F isk and I now stoo d t ogethe r like th r ee blood

b rothe r s against the Commodo r e o u r common foe , .
Gould w a s j us t the criss cross of F isk He was -

.
a n un de r sized ch a p a nd q uiet as a mouse I never

, .
liked his face I t w a s dark and covered a ll ove r

.
,
wi t h whiskers so you could hardly see him As t o .
F isk yo u couldn t help but like h i m Jimmy did

,
’
.
m e o ne o r tw o d ir ty de a ls befo r e h e died Howeve r .

,
until to mo r row And this other fem a le ch ar mer
-
.
he r e Mr D rew allow me to ma ke yo u acqu a in t ed

.
,
” “ “
with the prim a donn a of Mazep pa a n d The
”
Fr ench S py Then h e would send o u t for a r es
.
t a u ra n t man have victuals brought in a nd would

, ,
serve up a banq uet to his b a llet dance r s right in his

p rivate o ffi ce He wouldn t ca r e wh at the expense
.
’
w a s ; and he di dn t mind whether he had known th e

’
gi r ls before o r n o t S ometimes they would b ring .
in anothe r gi r l one he had never met and say

, ,
“
We ve b r ought Annie along You must meet her
’
. .
”
They all say she s the s a ssiest queen in town ’
—
.
“ ”
Th at s fine he would answer ; and she s a l n l n
’
,
’
too ; she s h a ll enjoy t he c ar ous al with us The mo re .
the mer r ie r The wo r ld can neve r have too ma ny

.
girls of t he ki nd th at a re t oyful a nd cu ddleso m e .
I used to scold Jimmy fo r t hese wenching bouts o f

his ; but my scoldings didn t count fo r much ’
.
“
Th at s all righ t U ncle he d a nswe r
’
You re , ,
’
.
’
old a n d dri ed up There s n o fire in your veins .

’
.
B ut for a g a y young buck like me a little s pice in ,
t he midst o f a h a rd d a y s work is needed I never ’
—
.
”
w a s one o f your Josephs wom a n proof .
S o I didn t h a ve much peace of soul wi t h ei t her

’
of t hese par t ners of mine Gould quiet a s a cl a m .

,
$
and F is k t he devil s own B u t bo t h of t hem were

,
’
.
handy in a s t ock m a rke t dicker ; an d t h a t w a s wh a t

-
I needed j ust now The E rie w a r w a s r a pidly com .
ing on I had to have p a rtners th at could help

. .
XX I II
H E N y ou s et o u t t o rid e a c o l t s ee th at ,
you r sa d d l e i s gir t good an d t i gh t .
Th at s w h at I did n ow I di dn t want
’
.
’
to tac kl e the Comm o dore befo r e I h a d fi r st m a d e

goo d and r eady Th i s i s t h e way I set about i t
.
At o ne of the meet i n g s of t h e E ri e B o ard o f Direc

to r s I got th e matte r o f steel r a il s to ta ke t h e p l ace
of t h e o ld and u nsafe ir on r ails acte d u pon by t h e
B oa rd O u r r oa d fu r t h er was be i ng h u r t beca u se
—
.
, ,
i t ha d a s i x foot t r ack whilst the other r ail r oa d s

,
we r e be i ng bu il t w i th only a na rro w that i s t h e , ,
p r esent stand a r d gauge t r ack The ir ca r s cou ld n t

-
,
.
’
go on o ur r oad no r ou r s on thei r r oa d I t h ad b een

, .
p r oposed th at the E r ie l a y a t hird r ail i nside t h e

othe r two r ails in o r de r t h at na rr ow g a uge r o lli ng
,
-
st o c k cou l d run o n the t r ack in the same tra i n if ,
need be with our own b ro a d gauge c ar s This

,
-
.
,
a nd the steel r a ils to r ep l ace th e i r on ones were two ,
such neede d improvements that I now made them an

excuse fo r getting t he road t o issue some new sh a r es
of stock By me a ns o f my con t rol of the E xecutive
.
Commi t tee I got them t o vote t o issue ten mi llion

,
d o l l ar s of convertible bond s t h e proceeds o f w h ic h

,
2 19
2 20 THE B OOK OF D A N I EL D R E W
—s o they supposed were to go into these—
improvem e n t s .
The a dv a n ta ge of conver t ible bonds w a s t his

There w a s a provision in t he ch a r t er forbid ding t h e
E rie R o a d t o is s ue n e w s t ock except at p ar
which w o uldn t h a ve sui t ed my purpose B onds
’
.
would h a v e b e en equ a lly useless seeing t hey a re ,
o f n o v a lue in s t ock e xch a nge dickers -

Bonds con .
ver t ible in t o s t ock ho w ever were j ust the thing

, , .
B ec a use it w a s only a nother n a me for an issue of

stock at t he m a rket ra t e .
So now I h a d o n e hundred thous a nd shares of

stock at my dispos a l w henever I should care t o t u r n
,
the t r ick O f course leg a lly s pe a king t hese sha res

.
, ,
we r e not j ust a t my di s pos a l ei t her ; b e cause they ,
were me a n t a s a means of r aising money to be pu t

in t o t he improvemen t s a n d repairs th at the road t he n
needed Bu t a ll s fa ir in love and w a r An d in t his
.
’
.
p a r t icul a r c a se I fel t t h a t I w a s more in need of this

nine or t en million t h a n t he E rie R o a d w a s The .
ro a d w a s under my m a n a gemen t bec a use I c o n ,
trolled t he E xecu t ive Commi tt ee a n d t herefore , , ,
t he fin a nces I fel t t h at I w a s en t i t led t o a few

.
pickings a s i t were I t s a n ill cook t h at c a n t lick

,
.
’ ’
h is o w n fingers So inste a d of using t he money to

.
,
buy s t eel r a ils I h a d t he o l d i ron r a il s turned in

, ,
order t o bring t he unworn outside edge onto the

inside now O f course t his w a sn t a l t oge t her a s
.
,
’
s a fe a s n e w t e el r a ils would h a v e b e en Bu t I
s .
222 THE B O OK OF D A NI EL DRE W
Van de r bilt wanted to buy E rie sh a r es All right . .
I w a s wi lling he should buy a ll he wanted I n fa ct .

,
I thought I would help him in the m a tter So I .
went ont o the market and sold E r i e short in enor ,
mous q u a nt i ties .
My frien d s thought I w a s going it wil d Wh a t .
in the wo r ld Uncle a re you up to they said t o me

, , .
“
D on t you remember those luckless Bears th a t
’
went short of Harlem an d got their feet caught in the

t r ap ? Th at s j ust wh at you r e doing now Th e
’ ’
.
Commodore is going to corner you tight as a fly i n a

”
tar barrel
-
But I only smiled
. .
The Commodore now le a rned t h a t I w a s a g ai ns t

him and go t very much het u p
, His crowd .
taunted me .
“
You re a lready beginning t o count your p ro
’
“
fit s said I to t hem D on t boil the p a p till the
.
’
child is born t h a t s a ll And I went on selling the

,
’
.
stock short .
V a nde r bil t now m a de a move which he h a dn t ’
tried before He wen t t o the l a w cour t s a nd got ou t

.
a n inj unc t ion forbidding me a nd my crowd to issue

any more shares o f E rie stock This l a st w a s a .
proceeding I w a s not willing t o st a nd for As chi e f .
di r ector o f E rie I h a d a right to operate he r as I

,
s a w fit Bu t here w a s V a nderbil t going t o the l a w

.
cou rts an d putting a higher power over E rie s a ffa irs ’
th a n I w a s He w a s tying my h a nds So I went

. .
in t o t he l a w court business t oo I c a lled a counci l

-
, .
THE B O O K O F DA N I E L DR E W 22
3
of G o u ld and F isk We decided s i nce Van de r bilt

.
,
h a d got a j u dge o f t h e S u p r eme Cou r t o n his s i de

to issue inj unctions fo r h im th at we d get a j udge
,
’
too S o we went out t o Bingh amton and got a j udge

.
,
the r e Vande r bilt s j udge h ad enjoine d us fr om

.
’
issu i ng any mo r e E r i e st o ck This new j u dge of

.
ou r s n ow got o u t an inj uncti on comman ding us to

iss u e mo r e stock He wasn t a New Yo r k C ity
.
’
ju d ge But he h ad as much powe r s o fa r as h is

.
,
lega l standing w a s concerned Because these C i r cuit

.
C o u r t j u dges w or k side by si d e Any one j u d ge h a s

.
powe r extend i ng ove r t he enti r e state O rd ina r ily .
they a r e supposed to stand by each othe r ; b ut th is

w a s j ust aft e r the Ci vi l Wa r when th i ngs were ,
—
topsy t ur vy Johnson was being i mpeached T h e
. .
legal mach i nery of the country w a s th at unsett l ed w e ,
co ul d do with it most anyth ing we wanted

’
.
When Vande r bilt h ad got o u t his inj unct i on ,
r estrain i ng us fr om manufactu ring any new ce rtifi

cates of E ri e stock he though t th at he h ad all the
,
lea k s corke d u p at last good and t i ght He .
suppose d therefore t h at in i ssuing or d ers to his

, ,
bro k ers to take a ll the E r ie that was o ffe r ed he ,
wasn t in any possible d ange r I went onto the

’
.
E xch a nge as though n oth i ng h ad h appened and ,
p r oceeded t o sell more E rie I sol d all th at I could

.
di dn t set any limits

’
— a g r eed to deliver all the
stock I could find buyers fo r O f cou r se in the
'
.
,
Co mmodo r e I foun d a r ea dy buye r .

People now thought me plumb c r azy U ncl e .
” “
D aniel h as gone cle a n o ff his head s aid they It s ,
.
’
got to be second n ature with him to sell stock sh or t .
He goes onto the B ea r side by fo r ce of habit I n .
t h is dea l he h asn t any mo r e chance th a n a g r ass

’
h oppe r in J an uary The Commodo r e h as got hi m

.
this time He s fixed it so th at Dr ew and his crowd

.
’
can t manufactu r e any new stock and he h as roped

’
i n a l l the floating s upply th at is still on the ma r ket .
And ye t he r e is U ncle D anie l still o ffering to de li ver

the stock i n unlimited amounts Where s he going .
’
to get it when these con t r a cts ma t ure ? D rew is

d aft He s go i ng it b l ind and will run h is head
.
’
”
against a post Thus they talked I l et them
. . .
I was still able to find my way around i n a Wa ll

S t r eet transaction a s they soon foun d out .
By and by the t ime drew nea r when these sho r t

” “
contracts o f mine wou l d mat ur e $I say mine . .
O f course F isk and Go u ld were with me

, B ut I .
w a s the leade r of the pa r ty so I speak of it in my ,
own name $ Jimmy came to me and s aid : G u ess

.
it s about ti me t o play o u r a ce of trumps don t yo u

’
,
’
thin k so We ll make R ome howl

?
’
I s ai d I
guessed he was right S o we called in J a y We. .
held a council o f w a r We decided th at the t i me

.
had come to set o ff the gunpowder .
Accordingly w e w ent to a p r inting house and g o t

,
-
them t o p r int a hund r ed thous a n d sh ares o f E rie .
$I t was those converti ble bond s now being tu r ned

mercy a nd a ll of h is p r ope r ty a lso B esi des w i t h
, .
,
hi m b usted u p the r e woul d be a gre a t s mash in

,
values a nd we on the B ear side of the market would

,
then profit all a long the line It s fa r mo r e i mpor .

’
tant in a business w a r to brea k down th e man him

self than to bre a k do w n a ny p a r ticul a r piece of h is
,
property Bec a use when the m a n goes under all o f

.
,
his fortune is a t your dispos a l S o these bright .
new sheets of p a per looked very be a uti ful to U s .
They were j ust so m a ny a dditions to o u r a m m u n i

tion supply I could a lmos t h a ve hugged th a t print
.
ing p r ess sh e w a s th at friendly to u s Jimmy o f

,
.
,
course h a d to h a ve his joke

, .
“ ”
Th a t inj unction of the Commodore s s a id he ’
, ,
was a imed ag a inst the freedom o f the press As free .
bo r n Americ a ns we couldn t st a nd for th a t Give u s ’

.
enough r ag p a per a n d we ll h a mmer the everl a sting

’
”
t a r o u t o f th a t m a riner from S t a ten I sl a n d .
“ ” “
O h come n o w s a id J a y ; let s don t get r a m ’ ’
, ,
b u n c t io u s We re n o t out o f the woods yet O u r

.
’
.
contr a cts t o deliver t he stock a re r a pi dly m a turing .
We h a ve eng a ged t o h a n d over to the Commodore

such enormous blocks o f it t h a t I c a n t sleep nights ’
thinking o f it And something m a y h a ppen ye t t o ge t

in our w a y .
“
H a ppen $ s a i d Ji mmy a nd he w a s a s c a lm a s a
,
“
c at with ki tt en s ; I d like to s e e a nything h a ppen $
’
I f this prin t ing press don t bre a k d own w e ll giv e

’
,
’
th e old hog a ll t he E rie he w a n t s .

I scolded him B u t in my hea r t I was g l ad to

.
h ave a p a rtne r who w a s so cock su r e F o r we -

.
we r e in a tick l ish p l ace I f any hitch sho ul d come .

,
w e would certainly find ourselves i n the tightest

co r ner a man was ever in and got out alive ,
.
Jimmy s s pirit kept u s in hea r t F ort u nate ly the

’
.
,
printing p ress didn t bre a k d own I t kept on with

’
.
it s k l ic k e ty klack smooth a s clock wo rk

-
,
As fa st -
.
as the b l a n k ce r tificates were tu r ned o ut an d th e

printer s in k h ad d r ied F isk took the m an d made
’
them valid by putting in the prope r signatu r es The .
” “
D evil h a s got ho l d of me he r ema r ked ; I might ,
”
as well keep on signing S oon t he enti r e issue was
.
fi nished a nd tied up in a ne a t bund l e at the Com

,
p an
’
y s o fli c e The stock
. w as now goo d fi nanci a l
pape r .
B ut there was sti ll a d a nge r And beca u se the .
a m ounts at stake were so high we dete r mined to ,
take no ch ances The Commodo r e mig h t hea r

.
th at ou r p r inting press h ad been once more at work ,
and get his j u dge to enforce his inj unction by ,
attaching this new bunch of E rie sh a r es I n which .
case we wouldn t h a ve time t o prin t a ny more ; for

’
o u r deliveries were maturing t he very next day The .
Commodore s j udge w a s in N ew York City right

’
at the se a t of war Where a s o u r j udge w a s w a y

.
out in Bingh a mton ; so th a t t he Commodore could

a ct more q uickly t h a n we ; a n d this w a s a time when
minutes would count .
So w e t ook measures The new stock w a s over .
in the E rie o fli c e on West Street We tied up the .
books o f newly prin t ed certific at es in a ne a t pape r

bun dle Then w e c a lled the o ffi ce boy a n d told
.
him to take th a t bundle over to the Tr a nsfer O ffi ce

o n Pine Stree t He st a r t ed o u t wi t h it When he
. .
w a s j ust ou t side the door something h a ppened , .
He re t urned empty h a nded and white a s a sheet

-
, .
He s a id th a t a m a n a big blonde individu a l wi t h ,
a yellowish moust a che a nd a large shir t front h a d —

rushed upon him whil s t he w a s in the h a ll gr a bbed the ,
bundle from him a n d h a d whis ked o ff wi t h it before

,
“
he could s a y boo .
“ ”
D e a r de a r $ s a id the S e cret a ry $he w a s the one
,
w h o h a d been enjoined from i s suing this stock $

“ ”
th at s t oo b a d $ B u t he t old the b oy n o t to min d ;
’
he h a d done h is best a nyhow ; it w a s n t h is fa ul t ;

’
a nd sent him b a ck to h is desk We a ll preten de d .
to be het Up over the m a tter ; but w e were pret t y

cal m insi de Bec a use w e could h a ve m a de a pre tty
.
close guess a s to who h a d gr a bbed the bundle a w a y

from t he boy Bu t of course if it h a d come t o the
.
, ,
taking o f evidence in cour t t he S ecre t ary coul d now ,
cle a r h is s kir t s ; because t he s t ock h ad been sn a tched

out o f h is keeping T h at s a me a ft ernoon t hose
.
sh a res t urned up a t the o ffi ce o f our broker He .
parcelled fifty t hous a nd o f t hem out to his s u b

a gen t in ten t hous a n d sh ar e lo t s No w w e were
-
.
re a dy fo r oper a tions .
E r ie h ave come r aining down on us in the last h alf
hour with more coming o u t
, every m inute Wh at .
sh all we do
All the answe r h e gave was : S upport t h e m ar
”
ket .
As he d i dn t see m at al l fl u s t e re d h is broke r s got

’
cour a ge went b ack and took o u r o fferings They

, .
succeeded in a bso r bing t h e who l e fifty thousan d

sh ares wi thout l ett i ng the m a r ket s ag mo r e th an a
po i nt o r t w o .
But now ca m e t h e deat h stroke These d el iv .
e ri es of st o ck we r e m ade r ight a way As soon as the .
E xc h ange saw th at t h ese certific a tes were crisp an d

new wi t h the p r inter s in k h ardly dry o n t hem the
,
’
sec r et was o u t I n defiance o f V a n derbilt s inj un e

.
’
t i on w e h ad set o u r prin t ing press t o work

, .
The landsli de then b r oke loose F o r if w e h a d .
been ab l e to cut t h e leg al r ed tape wit h w h ich V a n

d e rb il t h a d tried to tie o u r hands — had foun d a
way to start the p r inting press t o work once more
w h y it w a s good night t o the Commodore
,
-
Because .
there is no limit to t he amoun t of bl a nk shares a

p r inting press can turn o u t White p a per is che a p .
it is bought by the re a m Printer s in k is a lso .

’
dirt cheap An d if we could keep on working t h a t

.
kind of de a l — m a ke Vanderbilt pay u s fifty or

six ty dollars for little pieces o f p a per t h at h adn t ’
cost us two cents w e would very soon have all o f

,
h is cash ladled out of his p ocket i nto ou r s .

THE B O OK OF D AN I EL DRE W 23 1
I t was I guess the darkest hou r in Vander

, ,
b il t s l i fe He h ad staked his r eputation and a good

’
.
sh a re o f his fortune on this E rie fight ; an d now w e

h ad sud denly un m a sked a batte ry th a t w a s pouring
hot shot into h is r an ks thick a n d fast No won de r .
his fol l owe r s beg a n to desert him They fel l o ff by

.
twos and threes There was a small si z ed panic all

.
-
t hrough the Vanderbilt party U ntil now they h ad .
looked upon thei r leader as able t o take ca r e of t h em .
S ome of them h ad begun to think that he w a s a

sort of su pernatur a l person one th at could n t be
,
’
touched by mortal hands B ut now his career seemed

.
to h ave come to an en d He w a s no longer the high

.
and mighty one th at he had been .
This w a s the moment w e h ad been waiting fo r .
I n wa r it is good generalshi p to know when to strike .
We now dumped t h e othe r fifty thousan d shares

onto the floor of the E xch a nge all to once The .
p rice which h ad been at 8 3 d r opped li ke a dead

, ,
heife r I t was a s t hough the bottom h ad fa llen

.
o ut no t hing w a s left to su pport things D own .
and down and down it went clean to 7 1 C o n s id

, .
ering t he number o f sh ares involved an d t he size of ,
the tr ansactions it was the biggest stroke Wall

,
S tree t h ad ever seen The Commodo r e himself

.
wasn t a ble to st a n d o u t a ny longer The p r ic e

’
.
ra llied a little before the d ay was over for i t was ,
seen th a t the Commodore w a sn t a s yet entirely ’
swamped — h e took all th e stock th at we o ffe r ed ,

even the last fi fty thousand and pai d ove r his good
,
cash for it B ut the market h ad ma de a fatal b rea k

. .
N othing he o r his friends could do would bring it

back ag a in An d the d ay closed wi th me and my
.
c r ow d g loriously on top
.
2
34 T HE B O O K O F D A N I EL DRE W
out in Bingh amton a nd wondered if w e could get ,
him t o issue an inj unction enjoining Vanderbilt s ’
j udge from sending u s t o j ail B ut I w a s a frai d .
we wouldn t have time to reach him F o r the mes

’
.
sage went on to say th a t Van derbilt w a s hopping

m a d and was swearing by a ll the god s he could
,
t hink of th at he would clap eve ry last m a n of us

,
behin d the b a rs before the sun went down that

nig h t .
“
The r e s no sun to go down anyhow
’
said , ,
Jimmy looking ou t of the window ; it was a foggy

,
day an d seemed t o be getting worse

, .
”
F or he a ven s s a ke shut up $ s a id J a y ; a nd
’
“
I spoke u p too I said : Jimmy t his is no time .
,
for you r fooleries I n tackling the Commodore it .
kind of looks a s though we h a d woke u p the wrong

passenger We h a ve got to do something a n d do
.
,
”
it almighty q uick .
“ “
I m a greeable said he
’
I ll tell yo u wh a t,
.
’
I m going to do I m going t o get my sh a re of this

’
.
’
swag over t o Jersey in a bout two j erks o f a l a mb s ’
t ail ; a lso I m going t o live t here myself for a while

,
’
.
U p in B ra t tleboro in my ki d d a ys I used to see , ,
in dividu a ls w hom t he sheri ff was very a nxious to

in t erview scoot th rough the covered b ridge which
,
t here str a d dles t he Con n ec t i cut ; a n d once on the ,
N ew H a mpshire side sn ap their fingers at t he ,
Vermon t sheri ff I h a ve been feeling the need .
of a ch ange of a ir for some time b ack and thin k ,

t h at t h e climate o f Je r sey wo uld s ui t m e t o

a T
J u st t he thin g I r emarked j ump i ng up, , .
O nce ac r oss th e ferry we will be out o f York S t a te s

’
j ur is d iction Van d e r bilt s processes and w ri ts

.
’
c ou l dn t tou ch us there I thin k we d bette r b e get

’ ’
.
t i n g ove r there at once .
“
No t unti l we h ave packed u p t h ese souveni r s
” “
o f th e Commod or e sai d Jimmy I t was ve ry
, .
kin d of him to sen d U s so m any bi r t h day ca r ds

a n d he began t o get t h e b undles of g r eenb acks
t o gether .
“
And there a r e the account books of the E r ie
R ai lro ad and th e o the r r ecords including the t r ans ,
” “
fe r books put i n J ay , N eve r wou l d d o in the .
wor ld to leave th ose thi ngs behin d fo r Vander

h ilt s lawye r s to g et hol d of The E r ie R ailroad
’
.
is packed wit h in t h e books and p ape r s right in

t h is o ffi ce I f t h e C o m modo r e got the m i nside o f
.
,
t h r ee months he d h ave the r oad r e or ganized B e

’
.
s i des we can t tel l h o w long o u r stay may be ove r

,
’
the r e Th e r oad w i l l h ave to be ope r ated while we

.
a r e the r e J ay was .alw a ys a tho u ghtful sort of

ch ap He coul d look a long ways ahea d
. .
“
Guess you r e r ight s aid Jimmy ’
And t he ,
Commodore s idea of r eorg a nization fo r the road

’
woul d reo r gani z e u s o ut o f it into the ne a rest m u d

”
g utte r .
“
O r into the Lu dlow St r eet J ail sai d I It s ’
, .
m y feelin g i n the matte r t h at we ou ght to be mo v i ng
”
r i gh t a way .So we set to wo r k We got t o gether .
a l l the papers b oo ks a n d other va l uables wh i ch

, ,
we could easily m ove a nd car r ied the m into a d r ay

, ,
fo r ca r ting over to the Jersey City ferry .
The po l icem a n on the West Street beat between ,
C h ambers an d C o rt l a n d t saw us rushing o u t o f the ,
E r ie o ffi ce with o u r pockets a n d a r ms j ammed

wi th bundles o f g r eenb a cks w i th b ags p ackages , ,
mo veables of all k in ds He h u rr ie d ove r He . .
c a ll ed to u s to h a l t .
”
Wh at s al l th i s muss about ? said he O n
’
.
account of the mist he cou l dn t make out ve ry well

,
’
wh o we we r e and so was ve ry ste r n i n his m anner

,
.
“
Hol d you r ho r ses a m i nute I gu ess I l l take .
’
”
a h an d i n th i s .
B ut we ca ll e d o ut to hi m th at i t was a ll ri ght ;
t h at w e we r e the o ffi ce r s an d E xec u tive Co m mittee
o f the E ri e R a ilro a d an d h ad been compe ll ed to
,
m ake a h asty move to other headq u a rte r s As .
h e was c l oser now he s aw who w e we r e He apolo .
ize d fo r hi s mist a ke He said he was sor r y but

g .
,
th r ough the fo g as he s aw us hu r rying out h e

, ,
thought we might be thieves .
“ ”
Guess ag a in s aid Jimmy ; yo u were w r ong
,
that time We r e not thieves Why bless you r

.
’
.
,
s ta r s we r e the owne r s O nly a ce r tain in divid

’
,
.
,
ua l in Wall S treet with whom we h ad a little m is

u n de r standin g yeste r d ay h as kind of st r uck up the j ig
,
“ ’
I m not going to s a y good bye to anybody -
,
“
I rep l ied I m go i ng to l eave o n this here boat ;
.
’
o u fel l ows can be as foolh a r dy as wish I l l ’
y y o u .
notify my home when I get onto a nother so il .
S o I went ont o the boa t a n d gave o r ders to the cap

ta i n t o push o ff E ven then I d i dn t fee l s afe until
.
’
the gates h ad been shut t h e engine started an d a , ,
fine st ri p of wate r sp r ead between me an d Van d er

hilt s p r ocess serve r s I n fact I couldn t be alto
’
-
.
,
’
gethe r sure even t h en because the j u r isdiction o f ,
t h e York State cou r ts reaches to the m i ddle of t h e

Nort h R iver ; I didn t know but wh at he might h ave
’
some of his s h eri ffs concea l ed o n the fe rry boat to -

,
n ab me befo r e the boat got i nto Jersey waters S o .
I didn t move ar ound much I didn t want to

’
.
’
att ra ct attent i on This w a s ten o c l ock in the

.
’
morning At th a t time of d ay there isn t much

.
’
t ra fli c on the r ive r i n the Jersey direction Th e r e .
w ere only a few o n boa r d I di dn t h ave m u ch ’

.
trouble keeping o u t o f sigh t When the boat .
reached the middle of the river I go t my s pirits ,
u ; an d when a t l a s t she bumped in t o the sl i p at

p
Jersey Ci ty and I was o n foreign soil I felt more
, ,
like my old self V a nderbilt now could ge t me only

.
through ext r adi t ion papers from the Jersey o fli c ia l s .
And when it came to th at I though t I could have ,
someth ing to s a y .
We h a d arranged t h a t T a ylor s Hotel which is ’
a stone s th r ow from the ferry terminal in Je r sey

’
Ci ty should be ou r headq ua r te r s So I h ad o u r
,
.
goods taken ove r there an d went the r e myself T h at ,

.
aft ernoon was a busy one I n moving from N ew .
York City w e had moved a lso the E rie R ailroad

he a d o ffi ce The trains were r unning a s usual
. .
We h ad t o est a blish some kind of headq u arters in

Taylor s Hotel I got from the l andlo r d the use o f
’
.
s everal r ooms which connected with each othe r ,
and told him that I expected some m o r e of my

party over at any time .
All d ay l ong I looked fo r F isk and Gou ld B u t .
they didn t come I began t o think they h ad

’
.
decided to stay ove r in N ew York fo r the night .
B u t sho r tly after d a r k in t h ey ca m e And they , .
we r e a bed r agg l ed p ai r o f m e n .
“ ”
Wh at in the wo r ld s aid I Yo u d i dn t
’
$ .
h ave to sw i m ove r did yo u ,

“ ”
P r etty nea r s aid Ji m my ; in fact it looked
, ,
fo r a spe l l as t h o u g h we we r en t going to get here at

’
a l l It s a beast o f a d ay We ca m e ove r in a r ow
.
’
.
boa t
“
A r owboat s aid I How s t h at ? An d I .
’
lo o ked at J ay He pointed me t o F isk

. .
“ ”
You tell hi m s aid he , .
Why not h ing special

, said Ji m my O n ly , .
w e we r e taking a bite t ogether a t D elmonico s afte r

’
,
a h a r d d ay s wo r k when a message c a me th at the

’
,
she r i ff was a fter us We decided to scamper We . .
’
d i dn t d a r e t r ust t h e fe r ries Because afte r t h e .
2 40 THE B O O K O F D A NI EL DREW
news of you r depa r tu r e and of the mov i ng o f the
books and the headqua r te r s of the E r ie R ail r oa d
got o u t Vande r bilt was so t h unde r ing m a d we
,
t h ought h e migh t h ave watche r s n o w at eve ry fe rry

te r minal S o we went down to you r People s L ine
.
’
dock The S t 7 o h n was in t h e slip We told

. . .
h e r captain who we we r e used y o u r n ame an d said , ,
we wanted hi m to h e l p u s ove r to the Je r sey s hor e .
He l et d o wn one of t h e li fe boats and sent two of -

,
h is men to r ow u s o ve r I said : R ow up st r ea m .
‘
,
so as to keep out of t h e t r ack of t h e fe rr ies We .

’
got al o ng all r ight u ntil we got to t h e mid dle of t h e

r ive r ; wh en I ll be b l asted i f the fo g wasn t so thick
’ ’
and with t h e nigh t coming on we got lost $ We ,
couldn t do anything but r ow a r ound in a c ir cle

’
.
We ca m e deuced nea r being ru n down two o r t h r ee

times but man aged to dodge By and by one of t h e
, .
Pavoni a fe rry boats came along S he looked a s

-
.
t hou gh s h e was going to r un us do wn su r e pop ,

-
.
We cal l ed out We made them h ea r j ust in ti me to

.
vee r th e i r bo a t o ff Then we got hold of h e r gu a r ds

.
and h ung on We came mighty nea r being swamped

.
from the sw a sh of the p a ddle wheels It w a s as -

.
slippe ry a job as a man eve r h ad B ut we ma n aged .
it An d here we a r e a little the wo r se for wear

.
, ,
but h ale a nd whole At least I am J ay over the r e .

,
.
looks as though he d cave in Chee r up my hea r ty $ ’

.
,
”
Nothing is lost save h onou r .
“
Th a t s j ust wh at I m thinking of
’
said ’
,
WAS a gr eat i nconven i ence t o me to h ave
to mo ve s o suddenly i nt o an o t h e r state an d ,
my fee li ngs tow ar ds Van de r bi l t in it all

we r e not the mo st frien dly I m i ssed my home a
.
good dea l I was at this time nig h onto seventy

.
yea r s o l d A m an of those years can t p ack u p an d

.
’
m ove so s u dden l y as he h ad m ade m e do without ,
be i ng p u t t o a l ot of h a r dshi p An d I was acco r d

.
in gly in hopes t h at Vande r bi l t wouldn t be a ble to

’
l ive th ro u gh t h e pounding t h at we we r e giving him .
Because if h e should bust u p we cou l d go back to

,
N ew Yo r k at once But if he should man a ge to

.
keep his head above wate r h e co ul d wo r k it so as to

,
make us stay in Jersey — nobody knew how long .
And fo r a time the prospects we r e bright It .
looked as though V a n derbilt would go un der a ny

minute He h ad s ta ked his fortune on this E rie
.
fight ; an d now when he h ad thought he h a d m e

,
cornered tight as a bull s knot I h a d up a n d given

’
him the sli p An d I h a d saddled onto him a h u n

.
d r ed thousan d sh a res of fr esh E r ie stock a t over

seventy dollars a sh are -
stock which h a dn t cost ’
me anyth i ng m o r e th an the pa pe r an d the expense of

pr i ntin g I t w a s a c ri t i cal moment for him H i s

. .
fr iends an d fo llo we r s whose fo r t u nes depende d o n

,
his h ung ro und hi m t o watc h hi s act i ons They

,
.
wanted t o see if h e was eq ual to the st r ain Because .
the market w a s i n a p a nicky con dit i on O u r fi ght .
h a d been on so big a sc a le th a t it h ad s u cke d all

the rest of t h e S tock M a rket into i t I t l ooked a s .
though the biggest c r as h in the histo ry o f Wa l l St r eet

w a s about to come Because Van derbi l t was likely
.
to keel ove r An d i f he went a l l the stocks th at he

.
,
w a s inte r ested i n would go A floo d of selling o r de r s .
woul d pou r into the m arket an d an en or mous panic ,
would follow S o hi s fol lo we r s hu ng o n h i s eve ry

.
movement I believe if h e h ad weakened so much

.
as by the q u i ve r of an eyelid a mo an o r t h e twitc h ,
ing of a muscle it wo u l d h ave been im mediately

,
whispe r ed ab r oa d t h at the Commo dor e was giv i ng

way an d then the l ands l ide wou l d h ave c o me
, .
B ut unfort u n ate ly he didn t weaken He h a d

, ,
’
.
p ai d ove r seven m i lli on dol l a r s fo r t h e sto c k w e h a d

s ad d l ed onto h im w i thout a m ur m ur F u r the r
,
.
,
not only h ad m y m an oeuv r e h u r t h is r ep u tat io n fo r

success but it h ad with d r awn from Wall St r eet seven
,
million doll ar s in ca sh This with drawa l tightened

.
the money m arket Money ra tes went u p stocks

.
,
went down L arge r margins were deman ded of the

.
Commodore for the carrying of his investments a t t h e ,
very moment when it w a s h ardest fo r h i m to ge t ready

cash B u t h e m an aged it
. .
2 44 THE B O O K OF D A N I EL DR E W
Wh e r e i n the world Vande r b i lt got the money to

s u pp or t t h e m ar ket at t hi s ti m e o f t i mes in h is li fe I ,
never fo u nd out Wh ere in the wo rl d a l so h e got

.
, ,
all th at st r ength o f nerve to stand u p un de r the

st r ain not showing s o much as one sign o f weaken i ng
, ,
i s mo r e t h an I can see t hr o ugh Why I h ea r d a fte r

.
,
ward s th at even whilst h e was be i ng pounded t h e

,
h ar dest he woul d d ri ve hi s s pan of ho r ses al o n g t h e

,
Avenue t o th e Pa rk c al m as anyt h ing ; fr eq uent t h e

,
t h eat r e d an ces an d s uch li ke vanities o r spen d a

, ,
whole even i ng p l ay i n g wh i st with h i s fri ends As .
fo r m e I neve r i ndulge i n wo r ld l y am u se m ents

, ,
wh i c h t h e D iscip l ine fo r b i ds o r so m uc h as t ou c h
,
ca r ds those D evil s pl ayt hi ngs H o w i t was t h at

’
.
h e da r e d do t h ose things an d at t h e ve ry time t oo

, ,
wh en i t l ooked as t h oug h he might g o unde r the ,
t i me of a ll times wh en he o u g h t to h ave been mour n

ful and fasting an d p r opit i ating t h e W r ath i s p a s t ,
unde r stand i ng .
B ut h e did An d h e weat h e r ed t h e sto r m He

. .
even kept U p a s h ow of spi r its as tho u gh nothin g h ad

,
happened Just when thin g s were at thei r mo st

.
c r itica l one of his b r okers went to him and asked

,
“
M r Van de r b il t will y ou sell s om e E rie s t o ck
.
,
”
now ?
He answe r ed in a t h unde ri ng tone : S ell ? Y ou
”
fool no $ Take eve ry sha r e o ffe r ed
,
.
I t was too ba d th at we we r en t a ble to b r eak down ’
the Commodore s i r on ne r ve ; beca u se it meant that

’
We h a d the rooms leading o ff from th at for our
sleeping q uarters O u r d in n e r a t night was served
’
in a private dining room Jimmy l a id in a store of .
wine and told the lan dlord to p ut himself o u t on his

bill of fare We got a line of messenge r s ar r anged
.
between our hotel an d the E rie Terminal at the

L ong D ock Soon we h ad an o ffi ce fo r t h e E r ie R ail
.
r oad set u p in Taylo r s Hotel t h at fo r the time being

’
at least w a s as good as the o ne i n West S t r eet

, .
The Je r sey City people we r e mightily pleased to

h ave us with them T h ey felt th at o u r presence the r e
.
was an honou r to t h e city seeing that we we r e the ,
head and front of the E r ie R ailroad F or now .
they ha d not only the main depot of the r oad

within their city limits b u t the business head ,
qu a rters a s well an d the p r esen ce of it s E xecutive

Committee We encou r aged this feeli ng in them
. .
It s a good thing to h a ve the people who a r e round

’
about you favou r able to yo u An d in the p r esent .
c a se I h a d re a son very soon a ft er t o be t h a nkful

, ,
for it B ec a use this E rie wa r $and it w a s a r eal war

.
,
t oo as wi ll be seen even t hough it h a s never got

, ,
in t o t he histories $ soon got to the point of open

violence .
We c a me over t o T a ylor s Hotel on a Wednesd a y ’

,
in t he mon t h of M a rch $j ust two ye a rs aft er t he close

of t he Civil W a r $ Things ran a long more or less
.
5
smoo t h for a d a y or two B ut I fe a red t h at eve ry

.
t hing was not going to be r ight fo r long B ecau s e .

th e Frid ay follo w i ng fel l on th e th i r teent h o f t h e

month T h at s a l ways bad I w a s afr a i d s o me
.
’
.
th ing would h appen ou th at id entical d ate B ut i t .
didn t The next d ay a l so passed o ff c a lm S u n

’
. .
d a y I went to c h u r c h i n t h e morning because I felt,
as neve r befo r e the n eed of comfo r ting wo r ds .
B es id e s I wanted to set an example to the r est i n

, ,
the m atte r o f atten dance on the state d p r eac hi ng of

the gospe l B ecause $and I g r ieve to state it $ I
.
w a s in the midst o f a n ungod l y set B esi des myself

.
,
I don t k now as th e r e was anothe r Ch r isti a n in the

’
party They we r e all fo r th e most p a rt p r ofane

.
, ,
men an d brea kers of th e S ab b a t h They knew .
th at I was a p r ofesso r of r eligion ; s o now I wanted

them to see th at I didn t leave my piety behind when
’
I was away from home .
The S un d a y ki nd of made me feel mo r e at ease

seeme d t o ta k e away some of t h e fea r th at h ad
come o ve r me wh en Fri day fell o n th e t h i r teenth .
S o w h en t h e next mo r n i ng Mon day d a wned I

, , ,
was mo r e o r less calm I w a s seated with my feet

.
in a ch air i n o u r Hotel Taylo r h eadq ua r ters th i nk ,
ing how nicely we were getting a long in spite of th e

su dden ch ange from h ome life to life i n a strange
state When sud denly news came th at a b and o f
.
toughs h a d come over from N ew York Ci ty They .
we r e collecting on the L ong D ock and a roun d t h e

E rie D epot ; and as t he d ay wore on their numbe r s
, ,
i nc r eas ed .
I at o nce gave o ut my expl a n a tion of it I sa i d .
th a t Va nde r bilt was t rying to kid n a p me He .
c o ul d n t get me i n hi s clutch es by leg a l me a ns with

’
o ut ext r adition papers from t he Jersey a uthorities .
An d we we r e so in favou r with the Jersey people

by this time since they be g a n to h ope w e would
m ake Je r sey City the pe r manent headquarte r s h ere
a fte r of t h e E r ie R ail r oad th at Vande r bi l t i n hi s
r age was dete r mined to get me by fai r means o r
fo u l ; s o he h ad collected a lot of hoodlums from t h e
W a s h ington Market dist r ict by o ffe r ing a r ewa r d
,
of fi fty t hous and dolla r s to any one who would b r ing

m e o ve r t o N ew Yo r k City and into his h ands aliv e .
B ec a u s e as soon as he h ad me on Yo r k S tate soil

, ,
h e c o uld se r ve a summons on me fo r violating

the inj unction of h is j u d ge B a r na r d He d cla p me
,
.
’
b eh i nd t h e b a r s in the L udlow S t r eet Jail and then ,
h ave me so at h i s me r cy th at i n all likelihoo d h e d ’
squ ee z e o u t of m e the fifty thousand h e h a d pa id fo r

my captu r e and pe r h aps a whole lot more
,
.
“ ”
Jimmy t r ied to pooh pooh me o u t of my sca r e
- .
He s ai d Vande r bilt wouldn t go about a thing in so

’
clumsy a fashion as th at B ut it was all r ight fo r

.
Jimmy to be at ease He wasn t th e o n e th e Commo

.
’
do r e wanted I was th e big fish he w a s a ngling fo r

. .
I f he c o u ld st r ike me down m e t h e head of the, ,
enemy s fo r ces he could r ound u p the r est of t h em

’
,
e a sy S o i t stood me in h and to protect m yself

. .
A gene r a l o ught neve r to expose his own person .

2
Ci ty D ist r ict we h ave on o ur side the S upreme
,
Court i n the B ingh amton D ist ri ct The j udges .
a r e issuing so many i nj unctions back and forth that ,
so far as the l aw stands there i sn t a lawye r at the

,
’
N ew Yo r k ba r can unravel the sna rl At such a .
time the fe ll ow wh o has t h e cas h r ight i n his o w n

fi st is a sight bette r o ff th a n the fellow who t e c h n i
cally h as t h e l aw on hi s side but witho u t the cas h
, .
Wi t h the money in o u r fist we h ave nine tenths of

,
-
the L a w ; an d Van de r bi l t is we l come to the othe r

”
tenth J ay added with a gri n It was seen by
, .
Jimmy also aft e r we h ad he l d ou r council of war

, ,
that my s u s picions as to Va nde rb ilt s hand i n t his ’
move were not so c ra zy afte r a ll The thought of .
put t ing o n a u niform and of h av i ng r eal sol die r s

to c o mm an d s or t of appeale d to Fi s k anyho w
, ,
.
We deci ded to take immediate steps of defence .
I called C h ief o f Poli ce Fo wl e r and he go t fifteen

,
picked men fr om th e Jersey C ity p oli ce fo r ce to guard

“
t he a ppro a ches to T a ylor s Hote l’
F o r t Taylor ,
as Jimmy no w called it Then we su mmoned .
I ns pecto r Maste r son w h o w a s Gene r al S u p e rin

,
ten dent of Police fo r t he E rie R ail r oad He org a n .
ize d a force of the E rie R ail r oad employees to p at ro l

t he L ong D ock and th e s t reets around our ci ta del .
Three twelve pounders were mounted on t he dock

-
dividing the ferry from t he Cuna rd wh a rves with ,
the Hudson County Artille ry i n r ese r ve .
I n asmuch as it promised now to be a s tat e of w a r ,

TH E B O OK O F DA N I EL DRE W 2
5 1
we d eta i led ou r se l ves each to h ave c h a rge of so m e

,
pa r t i cu l a r pa r t of t h e d efense Maste r so n was .
u nde r m y c h a r ge b ec a use I could s u pe r v i se hi m

,
”
and hi s men without going o ut fr o m the F ort ; a n d
I thought i t best at t h is p ar ticu la r c r isis not to
expose myself unnecess ar i ly We h ad a smal l n a vy .
h asti ly g a the r ed I t consisted of fo ur life boats

.
-
,
m anned by a do z en men eac h T h ese we armed .
w i th S pringfie l d r ifles Jimmy took c h arge of t h e .
navy .
“
I ll take ca r e of th a t en d he s a id a s soon as a
’
, ,
“
fleet of a rmed boats h ad been suggested I wi s h .
I d th o ught t o b r ing ove r one of my un i fo r ms

’
.
Ji m my li ked to be in comman d of boats so l die r s ,
an d such li k e w h e r e he could g i ve o r ders with a

,
l oud voice an d wea r a swo r d $He used to li ke n oth .
ing bette r th a n to go up t h e Sou n d on one of hi s

steamboats wa l k u p an d down the d ecks cove r e d
,
w i th go l d l ace and t h en w h en he h ad got t h e boat

, ,
s o me distance u p th e S oun d a n d the p assenge r s were

a ll to s l eep an d cou l dn t l ook at h im any longe r he ’
would h a ve anothe r boat come an d take hi m o ff

an d b ack to the city $ So now as soon a s a r e a l .
,
n avy was un der way Jimmy sai d t h at he d t a ke ,

’
ch a rge of it Th at w a s t he place of greatest

.
d anger he s ai d an d he wanted to be on t he fi ring

, ,
” “
line S o he became t he Ad mir a l
. I t was a .
n ame h e li ke d a nyhow F is k was a v a inglorious

, .
m an Still he wasn t a timid pe r s o n

.
— wasn t
’ ’
afr aid of a ny t hing fo r t h a t m a tter He cou l d face
, .
“
a street full of she r i ffs wit h ou t sc a ri ng The r e s .
’
”
no g a llows built high enough to h a ng Jim F isk he ,
used t o say .
Besi des the gu ar ds around F ort Taylor we sent ,
o ve r a do z en detectives to watch the ferry te r min a ls

i n New Yor k C i ty an d al so on the Jersey si de .
These were scouts so to speak to l et us know of the

, ,
advance o f the enemy before they got within d an ,
e rs o m e d i st a nce We set fi ve othe r detecti ves t o

g .
watch the h oodlu m neigh bou rhoods in New Yo rk Ci ty ,
an d fin d out if there w a s any recruiting going on .
We h ad a dozen couriers to run back a n d for t h

“ ”
from F ort T aylo r to the E rie R ail r oad t o ca rry
o u r messages Because t he business of the Road h a d
.
to be c ar ed for even during the st a te of w a r in wh ich

,
w e t hen we r e Gould was in ch a r ge o f t his t he

.
,
Business D ep a rtment F o r freight agen t s divi .

,
sion supe r inten dents a n d such like were repo r ting -
to u s now a t T a ylo r s Hotel inste a d of a t t he o ffi ces

’
in Wes t S tree t J a y w a s always a good h a n d at busi

.
ness de ta ils With F isk as Admir a l of the n avy and

.
,
Jay in ch a rge of running the r a ilroad t h at left me ,
free t o su perin t en d the l a n d forces for ou r defen ce .
As n ight drew o n I h a d Chief F owler an d Mr , .
Ga ff ney p r esident of the Jersey City Police Com

,
“
missioners over a t F ort Taylor to a council o f
,
war I t was seen th at t he nigh t was t he time of

.
g r eatest d anger Should the enemy ch a rge down

.
2
’
don t you get to sn i velling You ll be taken care .
’
of a l l r ight My n avy is on gu ar d I f V a nderbilt

. .
t ri es to come over we ll swab t h e deck wi t h hi m

,
’
.
I h ave mounted some artil l e ry on the docks The .
m ili t ary forces of the c i ty are a r oused Yo u an d the .
”
m oney wi ll be l ooked afte r .
“ ” “
Yes s aid I ; I believe you care mo r e a bout
,
g u a r ding the money than y o u do a bo u t gua r ding m e .
I a l most believe you would li ke to h a ve me caught

”
an d ta k en ove r there into Vanderbilt s c lu tches ’
.
”
Bos h and tommy r ot $ sai d he ; don t you know ’
w e are j u st as anxio u s to keep y o u a way from the

Commodore as you a r e yo ur self ? A p retty b r oth
yo u wo ul d spice up fo r the r est of u s if you an d he ,
”
got you r noddles together .
” “
We ll then s a id I i f you a r e s o set on taking
, , ,
ca r e of me why don t yo u do it and increase t he

,
’
gu a r ds ? Why a t h o u san d o f those hood l ums fr o m

,
Cherry Hill m i ght come ove r he r e in the midd l e of

the night in ro wboats — no one knows Th e y d .
’
be eno u gh to carry o ff this whole ho t el l ock s t ock , ,

”
an d b ar rel a n d us inside of it $
,
As to crossing th a t Nor t h R iver i n r owboats

”
at night s a id Jimmy r est your boots th a t if a ny
, ,
o f them t ried it t hey d be o u t of commiss i on by

’
the time they got to this side It s the gol d a mnedest .

’
r iver to get lost in th at I ever saw in all my bo r n

days While as to gua r ds
.
— j ust step out he r e a
minute . He t ook me out th rough the dou ble doo rs
i nto t h e big oute r r oom ; t h e r e h e s h owed m e t h e

watc h men T h ey we r e sleep i ng on be d s m a d e of
.
blan kets s p r ea d on t h e floo r As we came i n t h ey .
a r ose an d saluted u s re a l milit ary style .
“ ” “
M r Dr ew said Jimmy these are t h e men
.
, ,
who a r e p rotecting yo u an d they look we ll ab l e to ,
do it don t they
,
’
I h ad to say something I answered that they d i d .
l ook to be st r ong men loy a l a n d true if t h e ti m e

, ,
came to fight An d I h a d no dou b t they woul d be

.
willing to give up t hei r lives if need be at the ca ll , ,
of duty The men s a luted once mo r e and we went

.
,
back i nto o u r o w n rooms .
E ven t h en I didn t ge t a good night s r est

’
Th e ’
.
trou b l e was I couldn t be sure of the kind o f t r eat

,
’
ment I would ge t a t the h an ds of those toughs if ,
they once go t me in t o t hei r clutches I n fact I .

,
thought I d r ather h a ve fallen into Van de r bilt s own

’ ’
h an ds t h an in t o theirs Because they we r e a vio .
lent set o f m en I tossed o n my bed consi d e r able

. .
B ut I h ad some comp a ny in my mise ry because ,
Gould was even worse o ff J a y w a sn t anywhe r e s .

’
near so good a sleeper as I E ven a mi dst ordin ary .
business worries J ay used to h ave nigh t s w h en he d

,
’
lie aw a ke fo r hours Why he even ha d a cu p o f

.
,
ho t mil k by his bed for him to drin k in t h e night

,
when he couldn t get to sleep any other way

’
.
The night wo r e away w ithout any attack T h e .
next d ay the news of o u r p r epa r edness got ove r to

,
N ew Yo r k Then we knew we we r e less l ike ly to
.
b e distu r bed . Because in war when you r en e my

,
k nows you a r e r eady for him h e isn t anywhe r es nea r

’
so l ikely to come at you Afte r a few d ays the th r eat

.
of vio l ence passed away B ut we st ill k ep t up o ur

.
u a r d pa r t i cu l a rl y at n i h t
g , g .
2
mov i ng the headq ua r te r s of t h e r ail r oad to t h e i r
soil .
We wo r ked t h is last leve r all w e could We .
wante d at least the a ppea r ance o f a settled a bode

in Je r sey City so th at the Commodore woul d give
,
u
p t h e j o b of wait i ng fo r us to come b a ck and go ,
to something else We made believe th a t w e liked

.
i t in Je r sey even bette r th an we h ad over in N ew

Yo r k I n fact we even went so far as to get J ay to
.
,
buy a beautiful house in Je r sey City and to give ,
out th at he would move his fa mily the r e s h o r t ly .
With these helps we got the bill j a mmed th r ough

both houses of the L egislature a t Trenton The .
Gove r no r signed it This w a s no t ice served on

.
Vande r bil t th a t w e were in this fight in earnest He .
was b o a sting that he woul d keep us ove r the r e until

we frie d in o u r own fat till we s t ewed in ou r
”
own j uice was the way h e put it S o now w e .
show ed him we could stay in Jersey j ust as long as

was necess a ry .
A t T aylor s Ho t el Jimmy w a s a ll t he time getting

’
o ff jokes .A t the dinner ta ble a t night h e w a s full ,
of mir t h He st a rted a kin d o f a c a mp fire t o t a ke

.
“
up o u r time a ft er dinner w a s t hrough We ll .
’
hoist the flag o f N o surrender a t t his ci ta del he

-
,
used to s ay a nd he would ge t some of t he people

,
a bout him of an evening to sing w a r songs He was .
getting to be high cock a lorum i n o n e of t he militi a

-
r egiments over in N ew Yo r k C ity and l i ked to keep ,

U
p the m i lita r y i d ea I.used to l augh at hi s jokes ,
even when I didn t see much fun i n them h e h a d

’
s uch a he ar ty way of getting them o ff H e wou l d .
joke me by saying th a t the Commodore w a s of more

“
use in the world than I was Vande r built an d
.
”
D an d r ew was the way he used t o put it S til l
, .
I was gl a d fi r st along to have him and Gould wit h

, ,
me at Taylor s Hotel F o r I felt the need of partne r s

’
.
in t h e fight I h ad o n my h ands I t s a fine thing .

’
w h en fr iends do each other a good tu r n You .
scratch my back and I ll sc r atch you r s a s we used

’
to say in d r over days help me and I ll help you ’

.
B ut afte r a few days at F ort Taylor o u r r el ation ,
ships became a little st r ained And t his got mo r e .
so as o u r s t ay lengthened B ecause I h ad b rought

.
over with me a big sum of money the p roceeds -
fr om the sale of stock to Vande r bilt and Jimmy

and Jay wanted some of it They kept peste r ing .
me to divi de u p with them U ntil t h at s u m of .
money came in among us I can truthfully say th at

,
we h ad been as fr iendly togethe r as anything L ike .
dogs which play togethe r free and h appy until ,
there s a bone th rown a mong t hem I w a s a lmos t

’
.
so r ry I h ad the money they pestered me so fo r it

, .
F rom the time they got t heir eyes o n those green

b a c k s w e agreed like three c a ts in a gu t ter
, I was .
a nxious t o h a ve the w a r come to a n en d an d get ,
aw ay from t hem .
We tried in several ways to hit b a ck a t th e Commo

dore a nd l ay him o u t F o r no o n e must think th a t
.
in this war we we re on ly on t h e defensive an d th at ,
Van d e r bilt was doing a ll t h e attack i n g We soon .
came to see t h at the best way to fight fi r e is by start

in g a b ack fi r e We h ad Vande r bilt a l ready on the
.
rack because of the money he had lost to us a n d

, ,
because of the st ri ngency caused by th e withdrawal

of that money to the Jersey soi l N ow w e .
started in to push t h e fight sti l l closer h o m e to h im ,
by attacking his p r oper ty the New York C ent r a l ,

.
We announced th at the E rie was going to cut by

one third both its passenger a n d freight ra t es from
-
N ew York to B u ffalo We actually m a de a st a rt

.
by cut t ing the p a ssenger rate s o l o w from $ 7 to

$5 th at the N ew York Cen tr al couldn t possibly ’
meet it $In fact the E rie R ailroad coul dn t a fford

.
,
’
t he rate either ; but then we as its E xecutive C o m

m it t e e were in a tig h t fix and t h ought it no more
th an right th at th e E rie shoul d come to our rescue $ .
We a lso le t i t be noised a b ro a d t h at we pl a nned to

star t a fifty cent fare line o f bo a ts from N ew York
- -
to Alb a ny whi ch would hurt Van derbilt s Hudson

,
’
R iver Ra ilro a d .
We got in a n at t a ck on hi m i n still a thi rd way .
We go t o u r a gen t s to in t roduce in the L egisl at ure

at Alb a ny which was then also i n session a bill
, ,
lega lizing t he issue of stock th at our

prin t ing press h a d t urned o u t S ome sco ffers called
.
“ ”
it A Bill to L egali z e C ount e rfeit Money B ur .
2 62 THE B O OK OF D A NI EL DRE W
word to t he p r ess th at I h a ve started o ff to O hi o ,
to push the comp l etion o f the eighty miles of b r oad

gauge t r ack fr om Akron to Toled o to give us th at ,
connection with Chicago we have been tal king ab o ut

so l ong A l so d r aw o ff a h alf m i l li on d olla r s fr o m
.
-
the E r ie t r easury — $ch a rge it u p to sun dries $

as my ammunit i on So we told t h e news pa pe r
.
repo r ters th at Goul d was o ff o n the O hio t r ip We .
gave hi m a t r unk full of g r een bac k s an d sta r te d ,
him o ff to Albany sort of quiet like -

.
We h adn t wo r ked it a ny too soft l y The mo m ent

’
.
h e got to Albany an d h ad set up his hea dq ua r te r s

at the D elevan House Van de r bi l t got win d o f it
,
an d h ad his New York j u dge summon him t o N ew

York City right o ff to answer a writ Gould went .
back to N ew Yo r k in r es ponse to the w r i t He then .
“
got th e case put o ff The j udge s aid Mr Gould
.
, .
,
I ll postpone the tri a l F u rt h e r I ll put yo u un de r

’
.
,
’
the persona l ch a rge of an o ffi cer who will see th at

”
y ou don t esc’
a pe us S.o t he j u dge de ta iled an
o ffi ce r t o be w ith Gould every minu t e He said to .
“
him S ee to it o ffi cer th at he doesn t ge t o u t of
, , ,
’
”
your sight Gould went back to Alb a ny The
. .
o ffi cer went along a s a kin d o f va l et At the D ele .
v a n House Gould very soon h ad the sen at ors an d

a ssemblymen coming t o see hi m by ones a n d twos
a n d th rees No w an d then he went u p in pe r son
.
to the Capitol on the hill .
He ca r ried on my business the r e so successfully

t h at Van d e rbil t b egan to scare an d got word sent to

t h e o ffi ce r w ho was i n c h a rge of Go uld So t h e .
o ffi ce r hinted th at Gou l d s p r esence was ve ry muc h

’
desired b ack in New Yo r k Goul d answe r ed th at .
h e w a s sick an d cou l dn t possibly stand a ra ilw a y

’
journey to N ew Yo rk at this time wou l d h ave to

wait for a few days
“
Now see h e r e s aid the o fli c e r ; yo u don t
,
’
come any such game as th at on me You were .
well enough j ust now to go up to the Capitol in a

snowstorm I f y ou can d o that an d if yo u c a n
.
,
spen d the day an d h alf the night i n you r sec r et con

fe re n ce s w i th c o mmitteemen fro m the L egis l atu r e ,
I guess you r e st ro ng enough to make the trip to

’
”
Ne w Yo r k with me when the Cou r t o r de r s it
,
.
Gould s a i d he cou l dn t thin k o f it

’
— it would
be t o o great a st r a i n on h is st r engt h i t was inh uman
for any law cou r t t o ask hi m to do it So the o fli c e r .
h ad to co me back t o New Yor k a l one an d r e port

to the court th at his p r isone r w a s virtually a r un aw ay ,
fo r he h ad r efu sed to obey the Court s comman d ’

.
T h is g a ve Gou l d a few d ays longer to be at liberty ,
which he employed in fixing u p some more legis

’
l ators F in a lly he got enough to secu r e the bill s
.
p assing .
But i t h ad been costly work Those fellows at .
Alb a ny were a slip pery lo t To keep one o f th em

.
,
even a fter you d got hi m w a s like holding a w e t

’
eel b y the t ail they we r e t h at unt ru s t wo r thy Wh en

, .
you h a ve secured a S en a tor t o vo t e your w a y a t a ,
price o f a nd then h a ve him flop t o t he o t he r

si de for well it shows t he kin d of people
,
I h ad to de a l wi t h in t hese tr a ns a c t ions The .
N w Yo k I n d p n d n t c a lled th is L egisl at ure

e r e e e
of 1 8 6 8 t he wors t a ssembl a ge of o ffi ci a l t hieves

”
t h at eve r disgr a ced t he C a pi t ol of the E mpire S tat e .
And t here we r e times in t he conduc t of t hese nego

t i a t io n s when I t hough t t h at t h a t edi t or w a s right .
I n the commi t tee o f inves t ig at ion which the S en a t e

appointed a ft erw a rds t o look in t o t he ch a rges t hey ,
t ried t o cover up t hemselves by atta cking me O n e .
of the sen at ors s a i d t h at my conduc t in t hese m a tters

“ ”
had been wh at he called disgr a ceful and he ,
“
expressed h is belief t h at Gould a nd F isk were
concerned an d prob a bly in t eres t ed wi t h D rew in
,
t hese corrup t proceedings I give h is ex a c t words

.
3,
bec a use t hey h a ve found t heir w a y in t o t he o ffi ci al

documents o f the S tat e ; o t herwise I wouldn t h a ve ’
no t iced t hem .
The u ps a nd downs of t he Bill a s i t w a s on it s

w a y th r ough the L egisl at ure w a s t he me a ns of a ll
kin ds of ru mours on t he S t ock E xch a nge The .
whole m a rke t w a s unse tt led V a nderbil t di dn t .

’
like t h a t s tat e of a ff a irs The figh t w a s hur t ing hi m

.
consi derable His New York Cen t r a l slu mped from

.
1 2
3 t o 1 09
. He h a d s a id he woul d suppor t t he
m a rke t if he h a d t o mor t gage every doll a r of proper ty
he possessed Bu t t h e job was t oo b ig F urther
. .
2 66 THE B O O K OF D A NI EL DRE W
bilt t o me Ji mmy a nd J a y were so all fire d susp i cious
,
-
o f me . They were a fr a id I w a s going to betray

t hem an d make terms with the Commodo r e with
“
t hem left out I ll s t ake my b a ck teeth you re
.
’ ’
planning to flop Jimmy s a id once An d he issued

, .
orders t o t he l a n dlord t o t ell all t he se r v a n t s t h a t no

m a il matter or bi t o f paper of a ny kind was t o be
de livered t o me without his seeing it firs t He .
wouldn t even let me get a telegram but he must

’
open i t before it go t in t o my h ands .
B ut the Commodore w a s clever and wo r ked it

ve ry sh rewd He go t a de t ec t ive to come to T a ylor s
.
’
Hotel an d put u p there a s a commerci a l traveller .
This detective slipped a no t e t o t he h e a d wai t e r

for we a t e in a priv at e dining room a s a prec a ution ,
a gainst process servers - — a n d t old hi m t o h a n d i t

to me The he a d w a i t er said t he orde r s from t h e
.
proprietor were s o s t rict th at he w a s like t o lo se

h is job if he took a ny no t e to me .
“
Th at s a ll righ t s a id t he de t ec t ive ; V a n derbil t
’
”
will give you a no t her j o b when you lose t his o n e .
So t he no t e w a s h a n ded t o t he w a i t er a n d he slip ped

i t t o me on the s ly .
The no t e w a s shor t I t re a d some t hing li ke this

. .
DR E W
I m sick of the whole d a mned b u s m e s s
“ ’
.
”
Come a n d s ee me VA N D E R B I LT . .
I t ried to m a ke a w a y with t he paper at onc e .

But I wasn t q ui c k enoug h T h e r est h a d sp i e d

’
.
it an d now we r e fu ri ous at t h e hea d wa i te r They

,
.
went to the p r oprieto r and stormed a ro u n d so th a t

the poor fellow lost his job as he said he wou l d .
But Van de r bilt made it right by ta ki ng hi m int o

his employ .
I decided t o m eet the Commodo r e s o ffe r of peace ’

.
Not th at I fe l t any g r eat love towa r ds him He ha d .
been calling me a ll kinds of names d uri ng my s tay

in Jersey — s ai d I was no bette r th an a batte r
pudding ; th at I w ou l d turn tail on my pa r tne r s
an
y time he wanted me to ; that I h ad no bac k bone
an d such li ke An d whilst I was sta r tin g r umours
-
.
a bout hi m th r ough Wall S t r eet i n r etu r n fo r the ,
mean things h e was doing to me he u p an d sa i d to ,

“
fr iends Th i s E rie war h as taught me th at it neve r
,
”
p a ys to k i c k a s kun k It hu r t me considerable
.
when these r emarks of his came to my ears I h ad .
h alf a min d to re sent them B u t I now concluded .
to forg i ve hi m He di dn t know me th at is all ;

.
’
,
he s ai d those h a rd th i ngs about me igno r ant l y I .
deci ded I d go ove r an d see hi m B ut I woul d do

’
.
i t on a S unday Because on th at day pr o cess servers

.
-
c a n t ply their trade D uring those twenty fou r

’
.
-
hours those who are hounded by the l aw h a ve a

,
d a y of freedom nei t her the she r i ff no r his depu

ties can touch you .
So when S un day c a me I set out from the ho t el ,
supposedly fo r an afternoon s walk When I w a s ’

.
out of sight I ch a nged my course a nd slipped ove r ,
t o N ew York I foun d V a nderbil t a t his house on

.
what used to be t he Pot t er s F ield but was now ’
c a lled W a shington S q u a re It w a s a fine big house .

,
red brick wi t h white trimmings I w a s very cordial .
in my g r eetings t o him I though t it best t o show .
a frien dly spirit a n d a ct a s though nothing h a d

come between us .
“
How do Commodore said I a n d I gras ped
, , ,
“
h im by the h and The sight of you is good fo r .
”
sore eyes .
“
Come in said he He was short as pie cru s t
,
. .
I saw t hat those conver t ible bonds were sticking in

h is gizzard B ut I m a de u p my mind t h at I d kee p
.
’
swee t anyhow let him be mi ffed as much a s he

, ,
pleased .
“
You ve got a fine house here Commodore
’
, ,
I rem a rked sitting down in a n easy chair a nd cross

,
-
“
ing my legs in a friendly sort of a w a y I t be at s .
a ll cre ation how t his ci ty is a growing Why b a ck -

.
,
in my B ull s He a d d a ys t his here pl a ce where

‘ ’ ’
you ve go t your fine house u sed to be c a lled S hin

’
bone Alley t he gr a ves a roun d here were a s t hick

a s bugs on a pumpkin vine Those were gre a t ol d
d a ys a nyhow I oft en t hin k of t he t imes when
,
.
”
you a nd I were in t he ste a mbo a t business t ogether .
B u t Vanderb il t puckered up t igh t er t h a n choke

“ “
cherries N ow s e e here s a i d he ; le t s don t
.
,
’ ’
get gushy O f course I d like t o be a ff ec t ion at e

.
’
I t h ad been a lm ost a month now s i nce o u r m ove
t o Je r sey and I h ad o t hea r ti l y s i c k of i t B esides
, g .
,
the r e w a s anoth e r side to the thing D u r ing the .
legislative contest whi ch we we r e waging i n Alb any ,
each tu r n i n the t i de o f fortune u p t h e r e h ad been

followed by h un d r eds o f s p e c k il a to rs i n Wall S treet ,
to take advantage of the turns i n E ri e stock w hich

the r umou r s fr om Alb any ca u sed O n e d ay it .
would be noised ab r oa d th at V an de r b il t was su r e

to w in ; and E r ie would go u p Then a day o r tw o
.
afte r i t wo ul d be r epo r ted : U nc l e D an l and h is ’
c r owd h ave g o t control of t h e Senate ; th ey a r e

going to pass t h e ir bill an d ri vet th e ir h old on the
,
E r i e R ai lr oad fo r ever . Whe r eupon E ri e sh a r es

would go d o wn Th us outs i de r s we r e getting j ust
.
as much s p e c kil a t ive advantage i n Wa l l Street as

we we r e because their guesses as to th e outco m e
,
at Alb any we r e as good as ou r s We i ns i de r s didn t

.
’
h ave any bette r ch ance th an th ey .
I b ega n t o s ee th at it is poo r p ol icy fo r big men

in Wall S t r eet to fight each othe r W h en I am figh t.
ing a mo ney king even my victo ri es a r e dange r some

, .
Take t h e p r esent situ ation I h ad scooped a fi ne

.
p rofit o u t o f th i s E r ie deal an d i t was fo r th e most

,
pa r t in so l id cas h B ut
. an d h e r e w a s the t r ouble
— it h ad a ll come out of one man Van de r bil t , .
N atu r a lly i t h ad l e ft him ve ry so r e And bein g s o .
powe r ful he was able to fight b ack As h as been

,
.
s e en h e did fight b ack He h ad put me and my

,
.
p a r ty to a l ot of i nconven i ence T h at a l ways h ap

.
pens w h en you take money from a man o n you r

o w n level O n the other h and if I h ad taken these
.
,
profits from ou t si ders it would in the agg r eg a te

,
h a ve amounted to the same s um B ut t he lose r s .
would h a ve been s c a ttered a ll over th e whole coun t ry

and so wouldn t h ave b e en able t o get toge t her a nd
’
hit b a ck A thous a nd doll a rs o f my t ot a l profits

.
would h a ve come then out of a lumber merch ant ,
say in O sh kosh ; five h und red doll a rs from a co a l

deale r in N ew Haven ; eight h un dred dollars fro m
an undertaker in Pough keepsie ; a thousand dolla r s
or two from a doctor in Syracuse ; and so o n he r e ,
a lit t le and t here a little M a ny drops o f wate r

.
m a ke t he mighty oce a n and many small profits, ,
added toge t her m a ke t he big profi t Thus by

, .
,
ma king my money from people o n the ou t side an ,
i nsider like myself could m a ke j ust a s much in t he

long ru n a n d not raise up any o n e enemy powerful
,
enough to c a use him discomfort .
So as the t ime fo r the conference with V a nderbilt

,
drew nigh I made plans to be t here good a nd p u n c

,
t u a l I t hought i t best to go t here a lone Gould

. .
a n d F isk would prob ably wan t s o much for t hem

s elves when it came t o a se tt lement wi t h V a n derbil t
, ,
th a t I w a s a fr a id if t hey were t here too t he t hing

, ,
wouldn t go o ff smoo t h We h ad set t he conference

’
.
fo r t he home of E x J udge Pierrepont Gould an d

-
.
F is k knew th a t some t hing was in the wind S o .

,
2
in o r de r t o put their he a ds in a b a g I m a de believe ,
th a t I w a s going t o le t t hem be a p a r ty t o t he a ffa ir .
“
When t he fin a l se tt lemen t is m a de you mus t ,
”
be th ere s a id I , .
You be t your gible t s we ll be t here Jimmy ’
r emarked Won t we J a y .
?
J ay grinned and
’
s a id he d try to m a ke i t convenien t t o a t t en d
’
D on t .
’
”
get the kin k in your head Jimmy a dded t h at , ,
you r e going to s ee t he Commodore a lone when i t

’
”
comes to dividing u p t he sw a g .
I saw fr om t his t h a t I w a s going t o h a ve a job on

my h an ds to get the thing fixed up wi t hout t heir
knowing it S o I hit u pon a scheme O n t he. .
night o f the conference I m a de t he a ppoin t men t

with F isk a n d Gould bu t I fixed it at t he F ift h ,
Avenue Ho t el in Ne w York Then when w e s ta r t ed .
ove r I made an excuse an d s a i d for t hem to go on

u p to the F ift h Avenue Ho t el a he a d and w a i t for
me They a greed an d star t ed o ff I then s kipped
.
,
.
over by ano t her w a y a nd wen t to t he house of Judge ,
Pierrepont .
I was gl a d t o find t h at V a nderbilt h a d kept t he

appointmen t We went in t o Pierrepon t s d r a wing
.
’
room drew up a round t he ta ble a n d were soon

,
busy wi t h o u r t re aty of pe a ce .
“
Now le t s unders t an d one t hing firs t o f a ll
’ ‘
“
s a id Van derbil t This t en million b at ch of E rie
.
-
t h a t I ve p a id good money for h a s go t t o be t a ken

’
,
o ff my h ands S o D rew se t your wi t s t o t h at end

.
, ,
j u st at a time when the t hi ng was go i ng s mo oth
as anything .
However I m ade t h e best of i t I told th em th at

, .
I h ad been p l anning to look out fo r thei r inte r ests ,
whether they h ad come o r not I h adn t thought .

’
i t necessa ry to i nv i te them to th i s particula r confer

ence bec a use often the ea r ly stages of a negotiation
,
can be h andled better by one pe r son a ct i ng fo r all ,
th an by them act i ng for the m se l ves B ut th at w a s .
no m a t t er now I f t h ey chose t o be p r esent as fa r a s

.
,
I w a s c o n c e rn e d t h ey were we l come We made p l aces

, .
fo r them at the table and got once more to wo r k , .
“ ”
Th i s is whe r e w e d got to said Van de r b il t ’
, .
The nine m il lion dollars wo r th of stock th at was

s add l ed onto me i s to be bought back an d we r e ,
’
going to c a ll the thing q uits .
“ ”
B ut whe r e i s th at n i ne m illi ons to come fr o m ?
as ked Ji mmy .
“
Why D r ew he r e says he p r oposes to take i t
,
”
out o f th e E rie treasury .
Jimmy g a ve a long whistle of astonishment By .
” “
the L ord Almighty $ s a id he th at s a corker ,
’
.
Commodore I m an ungodly man Wall S t reet

,
’
.
sucks t he conscience out of a fellow a nyw a y ; an d ,
I don t know as I had a ny l a rge amoun t of it even

’
before I went there But t here a r e some t hings th at

.
even I c a n t stan d fo r And this almighty robbery

’
.
”
of Dr ew s a g ai nst the E rie R ail r oad is one of them
’
.
“
I m not say i ng anything myse l f a s t o the eq uity
’
, ,
5
o f hi s t hi n g Dr ew p r op o ses
t sa i d Van d e r b il t ,
.
“ ’
It s none o f my bus i ness anyway I n t h ese m atte r s ,
.
eve ry man m ust chew his ow n meat B ut h oweve r .

,
o u ar r ange i t some way h as 0 t t o be foun d fo r

y , g
taking this dirty b atch o f stock o ff my h ands o r ,
by the L ord Go d I ll hound yo u cu r s from n ow to

,
’
”
K ingdom Come .
I t r ied to p e r su ade J ay an d Ji mmy to consent

to t h e plan I s h owed them how they h a d made
.
s ome money i n the ir sho r t s a les An d though of .

,
cou r se they wouldn t be cleaning up so muc h on this

,
’
deal as I stil l I was olde r ; they h ad lots of time yet

, .
I told them I couldn t stan d it much l onge r at Tay ’
’
Ior s Hote l T h ose q ua rte r s we r e so c r amped
.
,
c ompa r ed to wh at I d been used t o I felt about

’
as comfo r table the r e as t h r ee i n a bed A man a t .
my age I told them needs to be home an d enjoy

, ,
his friends I pleaded with them until well on

.
towa r ds mi dn i ght .
At l ast J ay spoke U p He h ad been silent a .
good sh a r e of the evening He neve r was muc h .
o f a fellow t o talk anyhow I used to w i sh I could

, .
be silent li ke hi m for it s the still hog th at eats the

,
’
most He now h ad a few wo r ds with Jimmy on

.
the side As soon as it w a s over he spoke u p ; J a y

.
took a masterful tone at th at moment which I h ad ,
neve r seen him take befo r e I n fact Goul d was a .

,
d i fferent man fr om th a t ti m e on a leade r r athe r ,
t h an a fol l o we r .
Mr Vanderbil t s a i d he ; we a re willing to
.
,
come t o some such a rr a ngement We will a llow .
Dr ew here to keep t he profi t s he h as made in t h i s

de a l an d to draw the money ou t of t he E rie t re a sury
, .
”
B ut and he s poke now in so positive a t one t h at
I h ad to open my eyes to see if it w a s re a lly t he q uiet
“
m annered Gould I h a d fo r merly known t he r e s ’
got to be one con dition a t ta ched Da n D rew h as .
”
o t to get o u t of t he E rie R ailroad for good an d a l l
g .
I began to speak Up at once I didn t like the .

’
i dea of l e t ting go my hold on E rie O n e of my .
ide as in coming to a settlement w a s t h at I migh t get

bac k into Wall S treet a s a railroa d man a ger a nd
so as an inside r I started to explain the thing
. .
B ut they wouldn t let me t a lk

’
.
“ ”
No w s ee he r e
,
b roke in the Commodore
,
I .
su p pose I ll h ave to preside at this mee t ing You r

’
.
a r r angements a s t o the E rie R ailro a d a re so me t hing

th at don t ex a c t ly concern me I m not responsible
’
.
’
fo r t h at ro a d D on t know bu t wh at a ll in a ll
’
.
, ,
I am j ust a s gl a d t h at I m no t B u t we mus t cond uc t

’
.
t his mee t ing in p a rli a men ta ry fa shion All in fa vour .
of t he b a sis of se tt lemen t a s jus t s tat ed n a mely , ,
t h at D rew is t o be left in possession of t he money

he h as m a de a nd himself t o ge t ou t of t he ro a d
from t his t ime for t h forevermore s a y Aye And ,
‘
.
’
then All opposed s a y N o

,
“
,
‘
.
’ 9’
The vote w a s pu t a n d of course I w a s vo t ed down

,
.
I knew perfec t ly well t h at if i t c a me t o coun t ing

B ut I don t want you to think it w a s bec a use I didn t
’ ’
h ave money enough I f I wan t ed t o I t hin k I cou l d

.
,
r aise the cash to buy your c r owd body a n d breeches , .
B ut I confess th a t I h aven t money enough t o buy ’
up th at printing p r ess of yours I n the present .
state of our country s j urisprudence there doesn t ’
,
’
seem to be any limit t o the amount of certificates

o f stock t h at o u fellows can manufa cture out of
y
wh ite paper I m willing to own up D rew th at
.
’
, ,
”
he r e s a case whe r e you fooled me Good night
’
. .
“ ”
I s aid Good n i ght an d w a s gl a d to be o u t
, ,
into the st r eet a free m a n once more .
Anyhow Van derbilt h ad only himself to blame

,
for this trouble he h a d got himself into He h a d .
no call to mix up in E rie matters I f he t hought .
I was going to submit tamely an d le t hi m push me

asi d e wi t hout fighting back he h a d the wrong s o w ,
by the ea r s th at s all The t rou ble with V a nder

,
’
.
bilt w a s he h a d an i de a th at the l aw is the highest

,
power in t he l a nd He now s a w h is mist a ke He

. .
neve r stopped to thin k t h a t l a w is no such won der

ful thing aft er a ll La w is li ke a cobweb ; it s made
.
’
fo r flies a nd the smaller kin d of insects so to speak , ,
b ut le t s t he big bumblebees bre a k through I .
showed him in t his a ffa ir th a t I w a s t he bumblebee .
Whe r e t echnicalities o f t he l a w stood in my way ,
I have always been a ble to brush t hem aside easy

a s anything I n this E rie w a r we h a d j udges from
.
N ew Yo r k Bin gh am t on Alb a ny a n d B rooklyn

, , ,
i ssuing contrary inj unctions I t h as been called .

,
“
The d arkest scene in the history o f Amer i can
j u r isp r u dence I don t know a nything as to th a t
.
’
.
When you re in business you c a n t split h a i rs o r

’ ’
bo t her ove r technicali t ies .
B ut a nyhow wi t h t he set t lemen t t h at h ad now

, ,
been re a ched V a nderbil t h a d been t a ken c a re of ;

,
the loss h a d been s a d dle d on the outside people .
Th at is alw ay s the s a fe w a y ; bec a use a s I guess ,
I ve alre a dy wrote the outsiders are so nume r ous

’
they can t get toge t her a n d hit b ack It must h ave

’
.
been one of these ou t siders w h o wro t e a poem a bout

this E rie w a r .I never thought much of the poetry
of it. I t h a s a lw a ys seemed to me no better th an a
string of foolish j esting F or my p a r t I like hymns
.
bette r
Cornelius the great Cornere r

, ,
A solemn oa t h he swore ,
Th a t in his trouser s pocket he ’
Would pu t o n e r a ilro a d more .
And when he swe a rs he means it ,
The s t ou t o l d Commodore .
B u t brooding o er t he E rie s a t ’
I n fa c t on t he s a me l ay
, ,
A bird t h at fe at hering h is nest

,
A ffi rmed by ye a a n d n a y
, ,
B efore he d budg e h e d s e e t hem

’ ’
Much fur t her th a n I ll s a y ’

.
S a id he un to t he Commodore
Your b a rk is on the s e a ;
Bu t do not steer for E rie s isle ’
Since t h at s been struck by me

’
.
Go m a n of sin a nd leave me he r e
, ,
”
To my t heology .
The de a rest ties on earth to some

Are pl a inly r a ilro a d t ies ;
So li t tle wonder th a t he spoke
I n ange r a n d surprise
Te a rs would not flow ; the Commodo r e ,
It seems h ad d a mmed his eyes

, .
S uch E rie sigh t s such E rie soun ds

, ,
C a me from this E rie crew ,
It seemed indeed a den of lines

Prepa red for D aniel D re w ;
No t s t range th at he a t last r esolved
To m a ke his o w n a doo .
Fl eeing from j a rs perhaps the j ug

Da n looked t o foreign l a nds ,
And t o h is bre t h ren s a id Arise $

“
,
These Bonds pu t o ff our h a nds ;

We will un t o New Jersey where ,
”
My S emin a ry s ta nds .
Jus t how t he joust m a y t ermin a te

Nobody knows or c a res .
No need to a s k h ow fa res the fight

They ll ask u s fo r our fa res
’
And whichever side m a y win will plow ,
The public wi t h its sh a res .

X X VI I
HAT S emin a ry spoke n of i n the poe m

w a s D rew Theological S em i n a ry in M a di
son New Jersey
, My founding o f it
.
came about i n th i s way

I h a d been spoken to seve ral t i mes by the p r eachers
w h o used to visit at my house w hen they c am e to
N ew York say during Conference week or fo r
,
othe r occasions about how fine i t would be to est a b

,
lish a great theologic a l ins t i t ution I h ad le t them .
know th at I migh t be willing when the ti me shoul d ,
come Because th i s w a s j ust when the Civil Wa r

.
was over I w a s then Tre a sure r an d M a n aging

.
D irector of the E rie R ailro a d an d w a s making ,
money so fa s t I could a fford t o give some o f it a w a y .
S o one day a couple of pre a che r s B rothe r M c C l in ,
tock a n d B rother Crooks c a me an d s a w me at my

,
house I knew wh at they were coming fo r a n d w a s

.
,
t here to meet them I t h ad to be done more or less

.
i n formal style I let t hem in an d h ad them ta ke

.
se at s
.
They said : We h a ve come to see wh at s piri t

o u a re in B rother D rew in reference to t he Cen
y , ,
t e n a ry Movement th at i s a bou t to be in augur at ed .

Wh at o ffe r ing a r e yo u willing to make i n to k en o f

you r gratitude t o God fo r you r c o nnect io n w i th h is
Ch urch
I answe r ed r ight up : I a m w il ling to d o nate
two hun dred an d fifty thousan d do ll a r s fo r t h e
”
en dowment o f a Theological S e mi nary .
It d i dn t t a ke long to cl i nch the th i ng Afte r

’
.
five mi nutes t h e i nte r view en ded I neve r shall .
“
fo rget thei r h an dc l asps and the ir h ea rty G o d b less
”
you s a s they said good bye at the door
’
,
-
.
We h a d othe r i nte r views Th e co mmittee began .
to suggest to me that this would be a g r eat m onument

t o D an i e l D r ew if the s chool shou l d b e esta bli s h e d
,
on a l a rge enou gh s cale I answe r e d t h at w h en I.
u t my h and to a thing I us ually di d i t i n p r ope r

p ,
fash i on I n fact I couldn t a fford to h ave my name

.
’
connected with any i nstitution if i t was to be only ,
a one ho r se a ffai r
-
.
“
S up posing we should c a ll it Dr ew T h eologica l ‘
”
S emina ry B rother D rew ,
’
?
“
Why b reth ren I h ave just said th at if my name
, ,
is going to be attached to it i n so out and out a fash - -
ion I sh a ll h a ve t o t a ke care of the school a n d s e e

,
”
i t t hrough no m att er wh a t it cos t s
,
S o I s a id I .
would give firs t t he ground an d b uildings S econd

, , .
,
a s t h e foun d at ion of a libr a ry twen ty fiv e t hous a nd ,

-
doll a rs F o r a perm a nen t endowmen t fund of t he

.
Ins t i t u t ion two hund red a nd fifty t hous a nd doll a rs

, ,
a s soon a s t he ch a rte r should b e secured the followin

g
winte r And I would swell the amount finally to
.
h a lf a million .
I t w a s so big a gift th a t a public meeting was

needed i n o r der to celebr a te i t They were setting .
ou t to raise a million doll a rs i n al l as a fund to ,
celeb rate the o n e hundredth ann i ve r sa ry o f th e

-
church in Ameri ca The b r et hr en felt it would

.
give the whole movement fo r this C enten ary F und

a big boost to announce rig h t at t h e sta r t a gift of
,
a quarte r o f a mi l l i on doll a rs from me S o a meeting .
was ar r anged to be held in my bi g c h u r c h on F ourth

Avenue I l ooked forwa r d with a g o o d deal of
.
pleasu r e to the time when t h e gift was to be p u b

l ic l y a nnounced .
F inally the n i ght came a round — a Thursday

evening late in J a nu a ry It was a sto r my night
,
. .
B u t big prepa r a t ions h a d been made fo r the meeting

and the church w a s fi lled All ou r c h urch es in th e .
ci ty h ad joined t hei r choirs into one which now ,
filled t he b a ck g a llery of t he church A great choir .
—
i t was well nigh two hun dred voices I should
-
,
judge The congreg a tion w a s so l arge I said to ,
—
.
“
myself I f the we ather h a d been fi e to night this
,
n ,
”
ch urch wouldn t h a ve begun to hold t he people
’
.
B ro ther Crooks opened the m eeting since he a n d ,
B ro t her M c C lin t o c k were the ones that h a d seen me

in t he interview a t my house The opening hymn .
w a s t ha t well k nown one which is so full of prai s e ;

-
,
and when the enormous choir began it we in t h e ,

looked U pon my gift a s a kind of seed th a t w a s not ,
only go i ng to do good in itself but w a s going t o

,
unlock t h e pu r se st r ings of ot h er r ic h m en :
-
W h en He fi r s t the work began ,
S mall and feeble w a s His d a y ;

N ow the word do t h swiftly run ,
Now it w i ns i t s widening r ay .
Mo r e and more i t sp r ea d s an d g r ows ,
E ver mighty to p r ev a il ;
Sin s st r ongholds i t now o e rt h row s
’ ’
S h a k es the t rembling gates of He l l .
S aw ye not the cloud arise ,
Li ttle as a human h a nd ?
No w i t sp r e a d s a long the skies ,
Hangs o e r all the thi r sty land ;

’
LO $ T h e promise of a showe r
Dr ops a lr eady from a bove ;
B ut t he L ord will shortly pou r
All the spi rit of His love .
When the tu r n of Bishop J ames came to s peak ,
he said th at in this Cen t en ary Celeb r ation the a utho r

i t ies had p r oposed t h at i t be not only a spiri t u a l one ,
but also t a ke a fin a nci a l ch a racte r An d t hese two

.
fe a tu r es the spi r i t u a l a nd the financi a l were com

, ,
b in e d in D r M c C l in t o c k s speech which closed

’
.
,
t he evening He wen t o n to show the supreme

.
impo r tance of the doctrine o f holiness in t h is l ife .

TH E B O OK OF DA N I EL D REW 287
O ur Church s a i d B rother Mc C l in t o c k h as
, ,
put forward as i t s very element ary though t the grea t ,
central pe r vading idea o f the Holy Book of God

from the beginning to t he en d : The holiness of
the hu man soul hea r t mind an d will It might
, ,
.
be called fa nat i c i sm but dear friends th at is our

, , ,
mission I f we keep t o th at the nex t centu ry is

.
,
ours I f we keep to th a t the triumphs o f the next

.
,
cen t u ry sh all t h row those that a re past far in the

sh ade O u r wo r k is a moral wo r k Th at i s to
. .
s a y t he work of ma king men holy The r e i s our

, .
”
mission The r e is o u r glory There is o u r power
. . .
Then he went o n to show the i mportance o f holi

ness in consecra t ing your pocke t book S ai d he -
.
a n d now c a me the pu blic announcement

I think i t righ t to s a y th a t o n e o f your members
h as set you a noble ex a mple I hope th at D aniel .
D rew s life may be s pared to see the e r ec t ion of a

’
Theologic a l Semin ary to which he h a s consecrated

a q uar t e r of a million doll a r s a n d to which he will,
give as much more befo r e i t is finishe d I t is a gran d .
”
sta r t .
I wish I coul d pu t i t down on p a per t he a pplause , .
I s a t q uie t t h rough i t a ll Bu t I thin k I t ook more

.
re a l joy ou t o f t he joy of those people when my gift

w a s announced t h a n out o f most a ny t hing else in
’
,
my life I felt a s t hough I was doing a work which

.
perh a ps w a s bigger t h a n even I myself could realize .
I t seemed a s t hough I was no longer j ust a person ,

bu t w a s a gre at and mighty force working fo r my ,
fellow hum a n beings th roughout the wide world fo r ,
all ages to come F o r the speaker went o n

.
“
Go d h as given u s as yo u h ave been told to night
,
-
,
mighty power We stand here upon o u r eastern

.
coast and l ook o ve r yon der ; there is old E u r ope .
We stand upon o u r western coast an d look yon der

to the west again and the r e s o ld Asi a Asia the
, ,
’
.
,
land of population E urope the l a n d o f ideas

.
,
.
And America — the land in which popula t ion and

ideas are t o come together No w thin k o f th at $ .
Here is the field where the prolific energies o f the

Asi a t i c life a re t o be pene t r at ed th rough and th rough
wi t h the sh arp and living i deas o f a vi t al Ch r isti an
civiliza t ion Are w e up t o t he gr a ndeur o f th a t
.
”
though t ?
This w a s the closing speech O f course nothing

.
but the doxology could bring such a meeting to a

fit close And t he swing which was given t o those
.
grand old words will be remembered I suppose , ,
by every o n e in th a t congregation
P ra ise Go d from whom a ll blessing flow
Pr a ise Him a ll cre at ures here below ;
,
Pr a ise Him a bove ye He a venly hos t ; ,
Praise Fat her S on a nd Holy Ghost

,
.
The weeks which followed this mee t ing were

busy weeks They were busy for me because I
.
,
w a s j us t ge tt ing in t o t he E rie w a r $which I h a ve

which O pened t he Hudson R iver an d m a de my
ent r ance in t o the s t e a mbo a t business possible His .
son Willi a m Gibbons w a s now owne r of the estate

, , .
I looked ove r the pl a ce It w a s in a beautiful part

.
of the country The t own there h as since got t o be

.
”
known a s t he Ci ty o f R oses The country place
.
which Gibbons h ad buil t at the F orest w a s l arge .
There w a s a c a rri a ge house a horse b a rn a n d the

-
,
-
,
owner s residence
’
— a big building with six white
pillars in front Gibbons a nd I dickered for a wh ile

. .
We came to terms The money was p a id ove r A

. .
deed w a s secu r ed .
We were in a hurry t o begin t he school S o w e .
fitted up the buildings j ust a s they were Gib b o n s s .

’
mansion w a s m a de into the m a in h all of t he S e min a ry .
“ ”
I got it c a lled Mead Hall $a fter my wife s n a me ’
before I married her$ The carriage and horse b a r ns -
”
were fitted up fo r dormitories t h at s wh a t the ’
professors c a lled them ; i t means places to sleep in .
An d in the month o f Novembe r 1 8 6 7 came th e , ,
exe r cises which opened the school .

XXV I II
T WAS a r ed l ette r d ay in my l ife th e d ay t h at

-
,
I w e n t out to Madison N J to attend t h e , . .

,
opening of my seminary All the b ig men .
o f the church were present G r eat p r eparat i ons.
had been made for the event I was t h e cent r al .
figu r e B u t my walk a nd conve r s ation th at day

.
we r e modest as becomes a Ch r istian I n fact my

, .
ch urch paper in desc r ibing the celebration used

, ,
these exact words
Of all the company p r esent at Madison o n th i s

opening d a y t he most modest and unassuming
,
pe r son w a s Mr Dr ew himself A lad y wh o

. .
exp r essed a desire to see the founde r of the S eminary

was told in o u r hea r ing that the most unp r etentious
elde r ly gen t leman she saw would be Mr D rew . .
The d escri ption w a s pe r fectly exact Though .
grateful to t he church for i t s recogni t ion o f t he gift ,
t here is in hi s manner no trace o f self consciousness -

.
M r D rew h as been happy in a great oppor t uni ty

.
,
an d h as h ad th e wisdom to use i t well His ex a m p l .
will ins pi re our men of means t o go forward in the

s a m e direction .
It was a Wednesd ay . By t en o clock t h at morn

’
2
91
2
9
ing the m a i n street of Madis o n was fi l l e d with peop l e ,
g uests fr om nea rl y a l l the E astern states going t o a ,
ne i ghb our ch ur ch which ha d kindly opened its

d oor s for t h e se r v i ces At ten th ir ty t he service
.
-
b egan Dr Mc c li ntock gave out th e opening

. .
h ymn While it was being sung I couldn t help

.
,
’
but thin k o f the p r ivilege th a t was mine in here

founding a schoo l th at was to sen d fo r th young men
year by year to bu i ld up the walls of Z ion and to
d i spense the since r e milk of the wo rd
With stately towers and bulwa r ks strong ,
U n riv a ll d and alone

’
L oved theme of many a sacred song

God s holy c i ty shone
’
.
Thus fair was Z i on s chosen seat ’
The g lo ry of al l lan ds ;
Yet fai r er and in s t rength complete ,
The C h r is t ian temp l e stand s .
The faith ful of each clime an d age

This glo ri ous ch urch compose ;
B uilt on a rock wi t h i dle r a ge
, ,
The t h re a t n in g tempest blows

’
.
F e ar not ; though hostile bands alarm ,
Thy God is thy defence ;

An d wea k and powerless eve ry a rm
Against O mn i p o tenc e .
The n th e s
p ea k e rs b e ga n . Dr J o hnson fro m
.
,
If I w a s inclined at t h at moment t o forge t my
m odesty j ust a little I don t know but wh at I really ,
’
di d fo r get it when t he l a st spe a ke r o n the morning s ’
programme Dr N orth got up Aft e r expressing

, .
,
.
his admi r ation for the be a u t iful scene which we were

there enacting he sa i d th at other gift s from othe r
,
r ich men were also greatly needed Then wi t h an .

,
outb urst he exclaimed ,
“
O h th at we h ad o n e mo r e D aniel Dr ew $
,
Th i s closed the morning s exe r cises I h ave wrote ’

.
about t he thing in full because it was an historic ,
occasion N ot that I remember o u t of my head all

.
the word s that we r e spoken an d the things tha t were

done It s all here befo r e me in c l ippings fr om
.
’
my N ew York C h r is ti a n Adv oc a te .
At the conclusion of the morning exe r cises we ,
repa i red several hun dred strong to the S eminary

, ,
ground s a short distance west o f the village whe r e

, , ,
in the edifice here t ofore known as the F orest Hill

Mansion a n d now l a vishly reconstruc t ed the guests
, ,
foun d in the room which is henceforth to be the

,
ch a pel a sumptuous entertainment provi ded by my

,
liber a lity for their refreshmen t an d bene at h whose ,
s a voury burden the ta bles li t era lly groaned ; while

others were a s bounteously p r ov ided for in the town
h all turned for the t ime being into a tas t efully
, , ,
garlanded refectory $R efec tory me a ns a place to .
eat $ Afte r doing ample j us t ice t o t he viands now

.
sp read before them in prodig a l profusion t he visi ,

THE B OOK OF D A N I EL DRE W 2
95
to r s many of them distinguishe d d i v i nes who h a d

,
come from afar to grace the occasion w i th thei r

presence and whose eloquence signali z ed t he in a u gu
,
ral and h as m a de t he event memorable were invited ,
to ex a mine the b uildings a nd groun d to which ,
they promptly respon ded a nd conclude d thei r ,
inspection with the most unboun ded a d mi r ation

of the prem i ses p r ofuse felici t ations to the
,
donor and unq ualified a pproba t ion of the ju dg

,
ment of him an d his advisors in the select i on they

had made .
I n fact the me a l t h a t d ay w a sn t a ny of you r

,
’
nose b ag feed s
-
no sn a tch an d go kin d o f a thing
- -
.
We h ad moved ta bles into the big room of what h ad

been old To m Gib b o n s s house The meal was a ’
.
rib tickler A restaurant m a n h ad been hired for

-
.
the occasion He h ad got o r ders fr om me to put up

.
as costly victuals as he coul d fin d an d send the bill ,
to me And now as I looked over the crowd an d

.
, ,
saw them stowing the good thi ngs away under t h ei r

belts I w a s glad I hadn t b een stingy in the m a t t e r
,
’
.
I remembered how in my o l d drove r d ays I used

, ,
to get h ungry enough some t imes to d rin k pig s milk ’

.
We didn t have any such vi ands as these to eat b ack

’
in those d a ys .
The exe r cises in the a fternoon began a t h alf

past two This was n t a S unday Yet t he ser
.
’
.
vices were almost like wh a t they a re o n a L ord s ’
D ay . We started o ff by singing th at hymn whic h

isso fit w hen young men are set t ing forth into the
beautifu l l ife of the Ch r istian ministry
Go preach my Gospel saith the L ord ;

, ,
Bid the whole world my g r ace receive ;

He shall be saved who trusts my word ,
And he c o n d e m n d who won t believe

’ ’
.
I ll make your gre a t commission known

’
And ye sh all p r ove my gospel t rue ,
By all the wo r ks th at I have done ,
By all the wonders ye shall do .
Teach all t he nations my comm a nds

I m with yo u till the wo r ld shall en d ;
’
All powe r i s trusted 1n my hands

I can destroy an d I defend .
Philip Phillips was the r e and sang in a sweet ,
”
voice : There Will B e N o More So r row There .
I n the mo r ning h e h ad a lso helped out with his

“ ”
be a u t iful hymn : I ll Sing for Jesus
’
Aft er the .
solo D r M c C l in t o c k made a speech in which he

,
.
told abou t t he school a nd i t s pl a ns S a id he .
The full exten t of Mr D rew s gift w a s not .

’
annou nced at t he beginning He is one of t hose men

.
who do more t h a n they promise Yo u should know .
t h a t he foun ded a Young L a dies Ac a demy at C a rmel ’

.
Th at gift w a s en t irely ap a r t from an d in a ddi t ion

to t he Cen t en a ry gift involved in the Theologi c a l
S eminary Wh a t will be the extent of these two
.
2 98 THE B O O K O F DA N I EL DRE W
N othing can be nobler t h an to give t he fun ds and
moneys which God hi mself h a s bestowed .
I wis h I coul d give mo r e of h is talk I t w a s a ve ry .
good speech It mad e me bette r acquainted with

.
his college u p t he r e in Connecticut ; an d I h ave

hel pe d it out also w i th some money .
The speech o f B is h op J anes w a s o n e th a t I t hought

must do the young students for t h e minist ry a lot of .
good I n fact t h ey we r e wo r ds that everybody

.
,
ought t o l ay to hea r t He s a i d .
I assume t h at al l the young men w h o come

here for the a dvantages of this institution wil l
be Christian young men ; th at h aving received the ,
gr a ce of repentance they have been j ustified by

faith and regene r ated by D ivine G r ace I a ssume .
,
also t h at t h ey h ave been led to feel in their own

,
minds that they we r e moved by the Holy Ghost to

t a ke upon them the work an d o ffi ce of the Ch r is
t i an pas t orate ; t ha t they don t ta ke upon themselves
’
this honou r but a re called to it of God a s w a s Aaron

, , .
I a lso assume t h at the church h as been convinced

o f t he correctness of the convic t ions by t hei r n a tural
gift s and Christian graces and the unction at t en d

ing their religious exe r cises and h as recommended,
t hem to t he travelling connection for p a storal wo r k .
N ow with t hese assumptions I a sk wh at is

, , ,
necessary fo r these young men ? K nowledge and

disci pline They a r e a mb ass a do r s o f God It
. .
is t he r efore all impo rta nt tha t they h a ve a know

, ,
-
ledge o f Go d of His min d of H is will of H is rel a tion

, , ,
99
to us an d espec i a l ly of His m i n d and w i l l conce r n

,
i ng ou r sa l vat i on I t i s necessa ry th at t h ey shou ld

.
u n d e r stan d human ch a r ac t er the con dit i on of t he

,
h uman min d a n d t h e hum a n hear t the p assions , ,
a ffections aspirations desi r es and pu r poses o f

, ,
men .
N ow o u r discipline s ays that w e are to rea d

th e B ible and s uch books a s he l p to a knowledge
o f the same ; and t he o riginal languages of the S crip
tu r es may be impo r tant to us in le a rning these

things in giv i ng us t h e di fferent sh a des o f mean
,
ing and en a bling us more pe r fectly to u n de r s tan d

our t ra nslation of t he word of God N ow having .
,
t his knowledge of God and man w e nee d d r illing , .
We propose to train ou r young men i n t h e camp .
We expect men he r e t r ained to fight in the ski r

m is h e s of t he L ord or to l e a d a fo r lorn hope O ur .
Gove r nmen t doesn t send men to West Point to pre

’
p are them to ca r ry the musket but expects eve ry ,
man to be an o ffi cer An d in the education o f men

.
he r e w e don t expect t h ose w h o go fr om this in s t it u

,
’
tion si mply to stand in the r a nk and file of I mm a n

uel s Army We expect every man to be c o mpetent
’
.
to be a leade r and lead forwa r d G o d s sac r amenta l ’
h o sts an d to le a d onwa r d and onw a rd until a ll

, ,
t he cohorts of error a re driven from t he worl d a n d ,
the standard of I mmanuel is triumph ant over all

l a nds An d I c h a r ge th e founde r of this i nstitu t ion
.
a n d the t rustees and facul ty to see to it tha t the

you ng men under t hei r care are not only i nfo r med ,
b u t disci plined and drilled un t il r eady fo r c a mp or

,
field .
I call u pon th e authori t ies of this i nstitution to

s ee t h at t his pl ace is our Je r usalem whe r e the ,
young men who t arry he r e sh all be indued with
powe r from on high and go forth in the n ame an d
strength of God to subdue this w o r ld to His author
ity I now invoke the benedic t ion o f God upon
.
our beloved brother whose m u n ific e n c e h a s brough t

,
us together on t his occ a sion And I p r ay t h at .
God may command His blessings upon those w h o ,
from time to time enjoy its adv a nt a ges Th at

, .
,
being themselves blessed by it they may be m ade ,
a blessing to m a nkind .
The last spe a ker w a s Dr Allen of Gi ra rd College

. .
He s poke more o r less o ff h a nd But his wo r ds -

.
were full of me a t
I f the r e has eve r been any preju di c e in o u r

church ag a i nst our men of wealth the donations ,
of Mr D rew would do much to c a use it to dis appe a r

.
a nd to vanish forever The church needs the money

.
of its wealthy men I f more of them would give

.
a cco r ding to their means as our worthy friend h as

,
1v e n no doubt this prej udice woul d enti rely cease

g , .
I will only ad d th a t in speaking of the eminent

,
founder of this I nstitution we fe a r hi m not a s a ri ch

,
man If my classic a l friend D r M c C l in t o c k will

.
, .
,
a llow me I will pu t a neg at ive in a classical des

,
c ri t io n Virgil once used :

p
“
N o n ti meo D a n a os d o n a f re n tes e .
$Those words t a cked onto th e t a il end there ar e ,
from one of t he de a d l a ngu ages I don t j ust remem .

’
ber now wh at it w a s th a t some one told me they

XX I X
WAS g la d t h at the open i n g of my theologica l

S c h ool came j ust when it did B ecause .
it fitted into a niche in th e yea r s work when ’
I h a d the ti me to attend it If instead of coming

.
,
i n N ovembe r it h ad come t w o month s earlier it

, ,
would have found me right in the mi ds t of my

dicker t o get b ack in t o t he D i r ecto r s B oard a nd ’
Tre a suryshi p of the E rie R o a d And if it h ad come

.
three month s l ater i t would h ave foun d me in t he

,
midst of the w a r wi t h t he Commodo r e Maybe .

,
j ust at t h e time when t he opening services were

being hel d i t would have found me at Taylor s
,
’
Hotel O f c o u r se in th a t latter case I could h a ve

.
,
gone to Madison i t being also outsi de of York

,
State s j urisdiction S t ill it would have been in co n

’
.
,
“ ”
v e n ie n t fo r me ; bec a use those weeks at F ort T a ylor
were weeks of so much dis t ress o f mind th a t I couldn t ,
’
h a ve entered into t he spirit of the inaugur a l occ a sion

a s I felt it deserved .
These we r e months a nyhow in which I w a s h a rd

, ,
pushed by b usiness c a res Just when the firs t year

.
o f my Theologic al S emin a ry w a s drawing t o a close ,
a b ad accident h a ppened o n the E r ie R o a d which ,
02
3
0
enem i es t r ied to l ay at my doo r An express t r ain

.
was coming along from the West o n e n i ght It h ad .
made t h e tri p safely until i t got to C a r n s R oc k ’
some sixteen miles wes t of Por t Jervis The r oad .
at t h a t point i s cu t into the side of a preci pice ove r ,
h anging a gorge It was t he last place whe r e a r ail

.
road treasurer would like to h ave an accident .
As b a d luck would h ave it j ust at t h at point is

,
whe r e the accident took pl ace .
As the t r a i n was r ushing along i n the d arkness

of the early morning the wheels in some way got o ff
,
the rails an d four c a rs we r e hurled down the emban k

ment They dropped eighty feet to t h e bottom
.
an d were crushed into a tangl e d ma s s Twenty .
two people were killed and all the su r vivors mangled

, .
The rear ca r was a sleeping coac h This was so .
s mash ed th at th e passenge r s inside cou l dn t get out ’

.
I t caught on fire and the p e ople were bu r ned alive

, .
The s h r ieks of the passenge r s as th ey t r ied to get out

o f t h e bu r ning car we r e desc r ibed in th e newspape r s
,
t h e next d ay Public feeling was a r oused The

. .
peopl e o ut a r oun d Po r t Jervis held an in di g nation

meeting They got u p an inves t iga t ion t o find ou t
.
”
the cause of th e murder a s t hey c a lled i t They
, .
seemed to thin k th a t some of us w h o we r e at the hea d

of t he r oad h ad set abou t to kill t hose poor p a ssen
gers inten t ion a lly I t w a s t he most unheard o f
.
-
ch a rge th a t a m a n ever h ad to st a n d up against .
S o I w a s glad when the investig a tion committee h ad

got th r ough and m ade its r ep or t B ecause then .
it was seen very clearly th at the hor r ible thing

“
wasn t a mu r de r a t all b ut ha d h appened jus t by
’
acciden t .
However I w a s no t al t oge t her pleased at the way

,
this commi t tee wo r ded i t s r epo r t I had t r ied to .
give ou t t o the public that the accident ha d bee n

caused by the sp r ing ra ins an d by t he softening of the
,
road bed due to the winter s frost coming out of the

-
,
’
g r oun d causing the r ails to sp r ea d un de r the weight

,
of the engine B ut t h e co r one r s r eport said that the

.
’
accident w a s due to th e ro tt en condi t ion of the r a ils .
I t said t h a t an inspec t ion of t he track at t h a t

point h a d showed tha t some o f the rails h a d
been used so long t ha t they were worn to rags .
This incre a sed the public clamour The inves t iga .
tion wen t on further an d dug up unple a s a n t

points in connection with my m a n a gement of the
r oa d .
The t ru th is I h ad been obliged for some time b a c k

,
to scri mp expenses on t he road bed The s u p e rin -

.
tenden t of t h at depar t men t ha d been peste r ing me

“
for a long t ime b a ck bec a use of t h e worn ou t a n d
,
-
”
ro tt en condi t ion of the r a ils as he put i t He w a s , .
a fai t hful fellow one who t ook the welfa re of the ro a d

,
ve ry much t o hear t B u t he was for improvemen t s

.
,
no ma t ter wh a t the cos t I had t he fin ancial end .
to look a ft er N ew r a ils for five h undred miles of

.
road bed cost a sum o f money w h ich track fo r emen

-
c a me out against me and my fellow ope r ato r s of the
r oad without any charity a t all
The di r ecto r s of the E r ie R ailway it said , ,
dese r ve the moral rep robation o f the community .
Had they been in any degree as solicitous fo r the

prope r condition of thei r road and for the s a fety
o f the p assengers whom they entrapped into their
trains as t h ey h ave shown themse l ves for the pe r

,
sonal advantages th at m ight a r ise fr o m speculating

i n the stoc k this horrible catastro phe would not
,
h a ve h appened The L egislatu r e is in session an d

.
,
we hope th at it w i ll do something to protect the

public against the mingled r apacity and neglect
of the E rie R ailw a y management ; let i t decide th a t
”
travelle r s sha l l not be re cklessly massac r ed .
But I didn t care wh at the pape r s said No matte r

’
.
wh a t you do people a re s u r e to put a wrong c o n

,
s truct i on upon it The best w ay is to be boiler

.
plated so to speak and n o t mind wh at the p a pe r s

, ,
s a y A b a re foo t ed conscience would su ff er con

.
-
s id e ra b l
y in t r e a ding a mong thorns F or inst a nce .
,
t here w a s old E noch Crosby I guess I ve wro t e .

’
a bout hi m in these pa pers s om ewhe r e He s the .

’
one t hat w a s a spy during the R evolu t ion a ry War ,
a n d now lies up in t he O l d Gilead B urying L ot at

C a rmel Th at m a n when he w a s working a s a spy
.
,
for the p at riot tr oops in the w a r h ad to tell stories ,
now and then t h a t didn t just squa r e wi t h the tru th

’
.
Well he was th at p r ickly i n hi s consc i ence that afte r

, ,
9
th e w ar w asove r h e wouldn t j oin the ch u r ch

,
’
,
because of those fib s he h ad been forced to tell He .
w a s a lways p r esent at meeting ti me He was even .
tre a surer o f t he church B ut for y e a r aft e r year

.
, ,
he wouldn t a pply for membershi p because he wo r

’
ried so much over t hose little lies he h ad tol d while

he w a s a R evolutionary spy People told h im he .
w a s good enough to join any ch urch B ut he .
wouldn t hear t o it This lasted going on thirty

’
.
year All th at ti me he was interested in the church

.
an d a worker fo r her Fi n ally wh en he h ad got to .

,
be an ol d man he u p an d said he would unite with

,
the ch urch if they were willing to take hi m in Wh ich .
they did S o he became a member This was when

. .
I w a s a boy in Ca r mel The people then were a ll .
talking about how E noch Crosby h ad fin ally got into

the church .
Wh at I m s aying is C r osby ought not to have

’
been so thin s kinned Those little fib s he told were

-
.
when he w a s in active business I f he h ad told the .
gospel truth every ti me he wouldn t h ave been so ,

’
good a s py He h ad to stretch th e t r uth n ow and

.
then in orde r t o get h is work done He was a foo l

,
.
to thin k t h at j ust because he h ad h ad to do th a t s ort

of thing in h is business life he coul dn t get into t h e ,
’
ch urch Th e ch urch isn t so s kittish as th a t Som e

.
’
.
folks th i n k she is B ut s h e isn t S h e s not sq ueam

.
’
.
’
is h in such matters S he takes a practical view o f

.
things every time Why the r e was th at p r eache r I

.
,
3 98 TH E B O OK OF D A NI EL DRE W
h a ve w r ote about wh o got me to g i ve the m o ney fo r
,
Dr ew S emin ary He didn t st i ckle over wh at my

.
’
ene m ies were saying abo u t me He used to tell .
the sto ry o f the founding of the sc hool li ke th i s ,
It was ru mou r ed that D an i e l Dr ew was dispose d

to foun d as a than k o ffe r ing t o God a Theological
,
-
,
S chool in o r nea r New York We we r e appointe d .
by our denomination a committee to wait u pon Mr .
Dr ew and asce r tain his position I sh a ll neve r .
fo r get the pleasant inte r view which we had with

M r Dr ew I n h i s home With the utmost simpl i city
. .
o f manne r he informed us that it was h is wish to
devote a q ua r te r o f a million dolla r s to the foun ding

of a Theological S chool L et me pause fo r a mo .
ment to give my imp r ession of this r emarkab l e man .
To m e he was one o f the pleasantest figures in ou r

fold R eticent no doubt but loyal to his chu r ch
.
, , ,
an d sensible to his obligations to o u r denomin atio n

fo r bui l ding u p in hi m the traits th a t h ad led t o his
p r os perity He delighted to thin k of the way h e
.
h ad been led on For my pa r t I am g l ad t hi s schoo l

.
,
bea r s his n ame .
I f E noch Crosby h ad bee n a ble to do his d ay s ’
work and always tell t he full truth then of cou r se

, ,
he should B u t t here a r e ti mes when it isn t s o

.
’
e a sy A business man h as got to get a long someho w

. .
Better th a t my h o g should com e dirty h o me th a n n o ,
hog a t a l l .
on leaving the o ffi ce I s et the combin a tion of t he s a fe
” “
at the letters which spelled the word D o a re , .
The next day I w a s kept at my house for some ti me .
The clerks wanted to open the safe So they sent .
u p I told them the combination was fo r the word

.
“ ”
D o a re They didn t talk back They were too ’
. .
much sc ar ed of me for th at They t ri ed to open t h e .
safe Pretty soon they sent a g a i n :

. M r Dr ew .
,
wh at was th e word th at you s aid was the combination

”
fo r the safe this mo r ning ?
“ ” “
Do a re I said an ordin a ry house d o a re b a r n
, , ,
”
d o a re stable d o a re
, any kin d of a d o a re .
“ ”
B ut th ey insisted there are five lett e rs to
, ,
the combination of ou r safe Are you su r e it s the .

’
”
word d o a re ? We ve tried it several ways ’
.
“ ” “
O f course I m sure $ s aid I Turn to those
’
.
”
lette r s and it will work .
B ut they h ad t rouble with the thin g a n d final ly ,
I had to go down and help them o u t When I took .
the t hing in h a n d the s a fe opened a s easy a s a ny t hin g

,
.
I turned to the m
“ ”
There said I i t opens as easy as an old s ack
, ,
.
Just d o a r e - - -
.
’
I h ave foun d o u t since th a t the ordin a ry house

d o a re is commonly spelled in a di fferen t way from
t h at An d I d are s a y some of those clerks poked
.
fun at me at the time ; but it wasn t when I was ’
.
—
a round Book learning is something bu t thirteen ,
million dollars is al so something an d a m i ghty sigh t ,

mor e Why o n the walls o f my hou se o ut at Dr ews

.
,
c li ft I h a d
,
fr a m e d an d h ung u p a cance ll e d check
, ,
o f mi ne fo r o n e m i ll i on dollars I t used to m ake .
the people o u t the r e stare their eyes out when they

came to see me an d I would show the m t h at picture
o n the w al l .
Then the r e we r e m y steamboats I was now .
p r esident of the People s L ine I saac Ne W t on h a d ’

.
been th e fi r st p r esident But du r ing the C ivil Wa r .
the boat th at w a s na m ed after him got a fire an d had

t o be sent t o the botto m It w a s du ri ng one of he r .
trips up to A l bany an d while she w a s oppos i te,
F o r t Wash i n g ton It w a s foun d th at the fi r e h ad

.
b r oken o ut because the b ack part o f the a r c h o f th e

sta r boa r d b oil e r h ad b l owed down d ue to the sh at ,
te ri ng of the p i ns whi c h ho ld the b r aces i n position .
T h e excitement and exposu re was t o o much fo r poo r

Newton $he w a s an o t h e r of your thin skinned men $ - .
Ni ne of the passen g e r s l ost the ir lives i n t h e acci d ent

to h i s boat He s i c k ened an d died
. .
S o I beca m e p r es id ent S t Joh n too k my place . .
as treas ure r Then we built th at g reat new boat

.
,
the D rew I don t m e a n t he o l d D a n i el D r w

.
’
e .
Th at w a s a d ay b o at I neve r w a s ve ry p r ou d of
-
.
her She w a s too n a rr ow When she h ad many

. .
p assengers aboa r d she would list ove r l i ke a ho r se ,
w i th a sore foot The D rew didn t list ove r S he

.
’
.
s tood up her keel even n o m a tter how many p a s

, ,
s e n e rs s h e w a s c a rry i n F h w a float i n g
g g or s e a s .
3 1 2 TH E B O OK OF D A N I EL DRE W
palace — and i s even yet C ost S he .
could s l eep a t h ousan d peop l e I w a s proud to .
h ave my pictu r e at the head of the stai rway leading

u
p i nto t h e passenger saloon Maybe people h ave .
wonde r ed to see as the owne r o f so great a boat a

, ,
plain looking m an his fa ce c ri ss c r ossed with

-
,
-
wrinkles But I sta r ted o u t as a boy so poor I

.
,
didn t even own a rowboat

’
And i t s always the .
’
case a wri nkled purse makes a w r ink l ed face I

, .
suppose too th at some people h ave thought Van der

, ,
bilt a m uc h mor e stylish m a n th an me because he ,
wears hi s b ea r d o n the side s of his face whil st I wear ,
mine u n d e r m y chin B u t those l itt l e points don t .

’
count And I h ave seen peop l e stand at that plat

.
fo r m h a l f way u p the st a i r s an d look at my full length

-
,
-
po r t r ait t h e r e for as much as five minutes at a ti me .
I used to r ide on the boat often It was a pleasant .
way to take a t r ip on a hot su m me r s night ; and ’
didn t c o st a penny I n go i ng to S a r atog a I used

’
.
t o ta ke one of the brid a l ch a mbe r s for my s tat eroom ,
if the r e we r en t any brid a l couples o n board D uring

’
.
the su mme r time at this period of my life I a nd

, ,
my fam i ly used to h ave a tent up in the garden

back o f the G r and Union Hotel taking our meals ,
a t the hotel ta ble I could go to S aratog a without

.
its cost i ng anything ; an d I u sed to like t he a ir u p

there Th at is the w a y I got acquainted with Joh n
.
Mor r issey He h ad his gambling house right oppo

.
site th e Cong r ess Park So when I would go out .

he surprised me o n e year by sending to t h e New York
market a pair of oxen which took the p r i z e We .
h ad a big time down in Wall Street when those oxen

“
we r e led th rough O n e of them was called C om
.
“ ”
m o d o re V a n derbil t a n d the o t her D aniel D rew ,
.
They were all fixed up wi t h flags and trimmings

an d knickkn acks There was a ban d of music
.
to lea d the procession When they ca me by my .
o ffi ce a t 3 0 B r oad Street I l ooked out o f the

, ,
door and w a s proud to think I h a d a s o n th at could

r aise a pair of cattle like th at Their pictu r e was .
painted in oil and is a witness to this day to the fin e

,
stock th at these York S ta t e hills can bree d when a ,
man knows h o w .
Besides my mon ey and boats an d farms there ,
w a s some t hing else which made me one of the big

men o f th e country This w a s my position i n t h e
.
Street I t s a great thing to be an insider E ven

.
’
.
a man wi t h a s much mon ey a s I wouldn t h a ve been ,

’
so bi g a s I w a s unless h e h a d been on the inside

,
‘
o f the great operating cliques We were so powe r .
ful th a t even the law couldn t get in a n d bothe r u s ’
wi t h it s t echnicali ti es The L n d n Ti m s h ad to
. o o e
a dmit our gre at power Th at pape r come o u t with

.
a howl like t his

The p a r t ies concerned h ave long a go shown
t ha t t here I S no financi a l ini q uity which persons
in comm a nd o f money c a nno t commit in W a ll Street
wi t h entire impunity as reg a rds leg a l conseq uenc e
,
1
i n t h e Ci vil C o ur ts an d ve ry nea rl y a l s o as r e g a rd s
, , ,
social p o sition .
Of co u rse this L ondon p a per w a s bo u nd to be

“
more or less bitter an d blow a bout fin ancial
,
”
iniq uity and such like Bec a use the British stock
-
.
h olders in E rie h ad for a l ong time back been trying

to oust me from control of the road Th at is why .
th is sheet of theirs kept slurring me as it did .
But I didn t care I was on top At this time

’
. .
in my life all my eggs h ad two yolks Most every

, .
deal I went into turned o u t prosper ou s I w a s as .
c o ntented as mi ce i n a c h eese .
XXX I
S O M E TI M E S w i sh I h ad staye d i n t h e
stea m bo a t bus i ness and l et Wa ll Street
’
alone I d h ave made m on ey i n a m or e steady
.
way a nd w i t h out the r isk S t e am b o ats are not so

.
li ab l e to Ups and d o wns as stocks a r e And at t h i s .
t im e I was earning fr om my ste a mb o ats a lone enough

money to h ave made me in ti me a m a n of comfo r t
ab l e me a ns
.
B u t the troub l e with business of th a t kind is ,
there a r e so many l i tt l e th i ngs to look a fte r whic h ,
k e ep you on the go well nigh all the t i me Because

-
.
the profi t s fr om a business line ar e m a de u p of a

lot of sm a l l profits ; and each detail is liab l e to le a k
money unless yo u look o ut .
F o r instance there w a s th e one item o f t he b a r on

, ,
my ste a mboats Going into the b a r one day on the

.
steambo a t D r w w h o should I see the r e but the

e ,
Captain of the bo a t t a king a d r in k I w a s going .
to be mad a t firs t a nd stood w at ching hi m in order

,
to think what I should do He stood ve ry cool .

,
finished h i s gl a ss put it d own an d then paid the

, ,
bartende r a q u a rte r When I saw th a t I wasn t

.
,
’
so mad .
h a d been want i ng the S kiddy engine for this other
boat a l ong time b a ck I gave o u t that her r unning
.
on the r ocks j u st at this time when the s a le was a bout

to be m ade w a s an acc i dent wh i ch I h adn t h ad
,
’
anything to do w i th But he r stock holders made

.
-
a big fuss They went i nto cou r t an d sued me fo r

.
s i xty thousan d d olla r s The th i ng d r agged and

.
d r agged and now finally the cou r t h a s m ade me pay

,
it . It me r e ly s h ows the vexat i ons of spirit th at

come wh en yo u a r e in a business l i ne .
I like Wa ll St r eet because yo u stand a chance o f

makin g money there so much faste r than you can
in the s l ow poke w a ys of r egula r bus i ness O n e
- .
tu r n of t w o o r th r ee po i nts in sh a r e s w i ll if yo u are ,
o n the ri ght s i de and h ave put o u t a b i g enough line ,
net yo u as much money in six d ays as an ordin a ry

business wo ul d i n six months By th i s t i me I h ad
.
got so th at I knew al l the ins an d outs of Wall St r eet .
There a r e t r ade secrets in eve ry call i ng The new .
come r is always a t a discount compa r ed to the old

veter a n I found th a t many t i mes now I could
.
turn this expert knowledge o f m i ne to account .
O n e mo r ning I remember I w a s r i ding down to

, ,
the S t r eet in the c a rri a ge of a young stock operato r

who h a d t a ken m e in with him to s ave p a ying fa re
,
in the B roadway st a ge He knew that I w a s o n the

.
insi de of some of the big stock ma r ket operations -

,
and he thought he might get some inside tips I had .
’
looked fo r something o f the s o r t to occ u r I t s a .
THE B O OK O F D A N I EL DR E W 3 9 1
c a u t io n the w ay outs i de r s hang around peop l e w h o

’
a r e on the i nside The flies get at you when you re
.
c overed with honey Whilst w e were d r iving d own

.
B roadway he pu mped and pu mped ; but I was as

du mb as a h eifer I made believe there were big
.
things j ust then under way which w e w h o were ,
on the inside didn t want other people to get onto

,
’
.
Well when w e reached the St r eet an d he h ad got

, ,
t h e carriage stopped in fr ont of my o ffi ce I opened ,
the d o o r an d stepped o u t I n doing so I cont r ived.

,
to bump my h at against the t o p of the doo rway .
I t was a black felt h a t $I like black felt for a h at

. .
I t s so d u ra ble
’
You c a n wea r o n e several
.
yea r s before it begins to show signs of wea r $ My .
h at fell o ff and some pieces of pape r fell o u t O n

, .
th o se pieces of p a per I had written wh at seemed

to be orders to my brokers : B uy 5 00 E rie a t 68 ,
“
B uy at Buy E rie at the ma r ket .
B uy E r ie at and such like O f cou r se -

.
,
as they spread over the floo r of the car r iage he o r ,
any one else couldn t help but see wh at they we r e

’
and r ead them I made believe I was awfully put

.
o u t to h a ve the secret given a way like th a t I m a de .
a scramble as though to g a ther them up before any

one should see them ; then I s a id good bye an d -
went into my o ffi ce .
I calculated he would most likely act o n the hint .
And he did He drove r a pidly to h is o ffi ce He

. .
“
told his crowd of the discovery he h a d made A .
3 29 THE B OOK O F D A N I EL DRE W
big Bulling movement in E rie is o n $ The old m a n
“
$ th at s
’
wh at they sometimes called me $ is buying
E rie $ A campaign is under way Boys w e .
,
”
must get in on this $ S o he bought a block of five
thous and sh a r es o f E rie The r est o f his c r ow d
.
followed him Thei r combined buying forced E rie

.
up point afte r point .
Th at was wh at I h ad been looking fo r I had been .
w a nting fo r some time b ack to find a buyer for some

o f my su r plus stock Now it w a s coming my
.
w a y fine . I im m ediately d umped onto the market

all the E rie i t would stand I succeeded in disposing
.
of a large sh are o f my holdings a t the t op figure .
Then o f course the m a rket broke It s a gged fou r .
points in the nex t t w o days My broker frie nd a nd.
h is crowd were badly c a ught He c a me to me with

.
a face a s long a s your a rm ; s a id how he h ad been

led to belie ve th at the r e w a s going t o be an upward
movement in E rie ; he had bough t heavily ; an d now
“
i t h a d a ll gone to s m a sh U ncle wh at in the
.
,
world sh a ll I d o
I t old him he could d o a ny t hing he pleased And .
I couldn t keep from chuckling at t he fine way I h a d

’
go t hi m to gobble the b a i t I n fa c t I a lw a ys did

.
like a joke So much so t h at t hey go t t o c a lling

.
“
me t he Merry O l d Gen t leman of W a ll Street .
“
They h a d other n ames for me too ; such as t he , ,
” “ ” “
S pecula t ive D irec t or ,
t he Big Be a r t he O l d ,
”
M a n o f t he S t ree t a nd so on Some of these .
3 2 2 THE B OOK OF D AN I EL DRE W
’
a few m onths work I p a id i t B ut I made u p . .
’
my min d I d get it back And I did I was t a lk . .
ing with him not long afte r I tu r ned the conversation .
to Wall Street m a tters .
“ ” “
S onny sai d I
, you w o n t h at l a wsuit for
,
me an d I ve taken a kind o f liking to you I want

,
’
.
to help you We fellows on the inside someti mes

.
know wh at s go i ng to h appen i n stock market a ffai r s

’
-
be fo r e ot h e r people It s my advice to you to take

.
’
some of your sp ar e cash all the money you can lay ,
”
you r h ands on in fact and buy E rie stock
, , .
He held o ff He s a id th at his business w a s l a w

.
an d not the stock market He believed th a t a shoe

-
.
make r should stick to his l asts F ai r wo r ds m a de .
h im look to h is pu r se And such li ke .

-
.
“ ” “
No w son s a id I
, , do as I s a y I knew your
, .
fathe r An d because o f that fr iendship I feel a

.
,
kin d of i nte r est i n you I w a nt to see you get a sta r t

. .
Yo u b uy E rie B uy all you can of it at the present

.
,
”
m a rket price Trust me you ll never be sorry
.
,
’
.
He thought for a while He s a id he gues se d he d .

’
try the thing for once .
That w a s wh a t I d been w a iting for I went

’
.
out an d immedi a tely g a ve orders to my brokers to

sell all the E rie t hey could Soon the ticker told .
me th a t my brokers were finding a buyer for the

E rie they were o ffering I thought I could give .
a p r etty sh r ewd guess a s to who w a s the buye r I .
s upplied him w i th a l l h e wo u ld take By the time .

2
t h e m a r ket b r o k e I h a d sa ddl ed h i m w i t h enough

,
E ri e at a good high figu r e to sluice fro m h i s p o cket

into m ine all of th a t fee whic h he h ad scooped o ut
of m e j ust a few weeks befo r e I now called the
.
account even .
X XX I I
OR a spell a ft er set t ling up with the Com

mo d o re a t the close of the E rie Wa r ,
I got ou t of W a ll S t ree t I w a s by this time

.
over my scri p t ur a l a llowance of t hree score ye a rs and

ten I thought I h a d e a rned a res t I figu r ed th at I
. .
h ad made my w a d and now should begin to enjoy it

, .
L et worldly minds the world pursue ;

I t h as no charms for me .
O nce I a dmired it s t rifl e s too, ,
But gr a ce h as set me free .
I seemed to myself to be now in a q uiet h arbou r ,
like th a t fine big bay th a t dents in from the Hudson

R ive r at F ishkill I could look o u t from that safe
.
retre a t onto the h um a n vessels t hat were tossing

in the billows outside . F rom every stormy win d
”
t h a t blows t h a t h a s a lw a ys been a fa vouri t e
hymn o f mine And th at o t her t une too
.
,
Oh, Beul a h La nd Swee t Beul a h L and

, ,
Where on the highest mount I s ta nd ;

I look a w a y a cross the sea
Where mansions are prepared for me ,
And V iew t he shining glorious shore ,
My he a ven my home forever more

,
.
3 2 6 TH E B O OK OF D AN I EL DRE W
St r eet O pe r ators can swear eve r lasting vengeance
.
o n each othe r one day and be t h ick as mol asses

,
befo r e sundown t h e next I n financ i al c ir cles it s .

,
’
the mo ney th at co u nts No matter how mad yo u .
may be at a fe l low i f yo u need his m oney yo u make

,
U
p w i th him easy as anything E rie w a s still a .
money m ake r So I wanted to get on t h e i nsid e

-
.
o nce m o r e I f I c ou ld h ave anothe r t ur n o r two

.
at t h e m i l king stoo l s o to speak I felt I d be will i ng

, ,
’
to r et ir e fr om act i ve business altoget h e r Acco r d .
in gly befo r e the s um me r w a s o ve r I w a s cal l ing

, ,
o n Go u ld an d F is k and t h ey we r e co mi ng to see
,
m e j u st as thoug h we h adn t h ad any di ffe r ences

,
’
at a ll Befo r e I knew it I was b ack i n t h e th i ck

.
,
of th i n gs and busy as a pup

,
—
.
We now set o u t on a Bea r campaign w e t h r ee ,
G ould F is k an d I Being backe d by Twee d an d

, .
h is p o l i tica l c r owd it p r omised big r etu r ns B ut

,
.
i t r eq u ired a l ot of nerve I n fact before it was .

,
th rough i t r aised more excitement th a n I h a d b a r

,
gained for It was the L ock u p o f green b a cks

.
-
.
I t seemed a foolh ardy thing to do — go sho r t o f
stocks j ust at that pa r ticul a r time Because it .
was t he fa ll of the year The Gove r n m ent rep or ts .
showed th at b u mper crops were to be h arvested in

nea r ly all pa r ts of t h e co u ntry A big t ra fli c from .
the West to the seaboa r d was p r omised Th e .
election o f Gene r al G r ant as president w a s a lmost

a s ett l e d th i n g ; an d i f h e wa s e le cted the p ol i cy o f ,
THE B OOK OF D A N I EL DRE W 3 7
2
th e G o ve r n ment wou l d b e an i mmed i ate r esumpt i on

of spec i e p ayment Money w a s easy as an ol d s h oe
. .
Wh en money is easy stocks g o u p Beca u se at ,

.
such t i mes peop l e h ave got the means to ma rg i n

la r ge ho l dings and so a r e hopefu l and B ullis h I t .
was about the l ast time in the world one wou l d h ave ,
said to begin a Be ar cam paign B ut th at s r eally

,
.
’
j ust t he ti me in whic h to begin it Because the w ay .
to make money i n Wa ll St r eet if you are a n i ns i de r , ,
is to calculate on what the com mon people are going

to do and then go an d do j ust the opposite When
,
.
eve rybody is Bullish that is j ust the time when yo u

,
can make the most money as a Be a r if you wo r k it ,
r igh t An d we of our litt l e cliq ue thought w e could

.
wo r k it ri ght .
Wh en money i s easy the pu b l i c buys stocks and ,
so the pr i ces go up The way to do w e ca l c u l ated

.
, ,
would be to make money tight Th en peop l e would .
s ell ,p r ices wou l d go down an d w e could cove r o u r

,
sho r t cont r acts at a fine low figu r e I n this wo r k .
of mak i ng money tight w e were helped by one fact .
The Gove r nment in o r de r to r esume speci e p ay

,
ments h ad adopted a policy of contr a c t ing t he

,
a mount o f g r eenbacks in ci r culati on I t w a s refus .
ing to reissue green b ack notes after i t h ad once got

them back into its vaults .
B u t th at wasn t enough to tighten the currency

’
to the point where it would se r ve o u r ends So we .
set a bou t wor kin g it our se l ves For t hi s pu r p o se .

3 28 TH E B OOK OF D A NI EL DRE W
we made a poo l of money to the a mount of fou r teen
millions F isk and Gould provided ten mi l lions an d
.
,
I agreed to put in four millions .
The banks a s everybody knows are r eq ui r ed

, ,
b y l a w to keep as reserve t wen ty fiv e per cen t of -

.
thei r deposi t s This is in order to t a ke c a re of thei r

.
deposito r s When their c a sh on h a nd is over a nd

.
above this t wenty five pe r cent ma rgin b a nke r s

-
.
,
l o a n money free and easy As soon as thei r cash.
begin s t o creep down to the twenty fiv e per cent -

.
limit which can a lmos t be called the dead line

ban kers begin to get the cold shivers ; t hey tighten
thei r rates and if the need is urgent enough call
, ,
in thei r outst a nding loans K nowing this w e m a de

.
ou r pl ans accordingly We would put a ll of ou r

.
c a sh into the form o f deposits in the banks Ag a ins t .
these deposits we would write checks a nd get th e

banks to certify them The b a nks woul d h a ve to
.
tie up enough funds to take c ar e of these certifications .
Wi t h t he ce r tified checks as collater a l we would

bo r row greenb a cks a n d t hen with dr a w them
suddenly from circul a tion .
When our a r rangements we r e complete we wen t ,
onto the stock market a nd sold sh a res he a vily short .
People thought we were fools bec a use of all the ,
signs pointing to a big revival o f tr a de Soon t h e se .
cont ra cts of ou r s m a tured We held a council . .
We decided th at the time h a d come to explode our

bomb So a ll of a sudden w e c a lled upon t he b a nk s
.
33 9 THE B O O K O F D A NI EL DRE W
As soon a s he beg a n to communic a te with the
o t her banks his a l a rm inc r eased Because he fo u n d
, .
t h at their fun ds were being c a lled on in the s am e

w a y a s h is own $we we r e calling in the g r een b acks
fr om o u r ch ain o f b anks a ll to once$ Then he go t .
to wo r k in goo d e ar nest Because ou r fou r teen

.
millions $th r ough the wo r king of th a t la w of a

t wenty five pe r cent rese r ve $ meant a cont r acting
-
.
,
o f th e cu rr ency to fou r times th at amount or fift y ,
six millions in a ll besides the ce r tifications He

, .
called a h as ty council o f the o ffi ce r s of the b an k .
He o r de r ed them to make up my g r een backs into a

bund l e fo r me t o take o u t to th e ca rr i a g e which I
,
h ad brought along wi t h me fo r th at pu r pose I sta rted .
to th ank him but he seemed too busy to notice me

, .
Messenge r s we r e being sent out o n t he dou b l e q uic k -
to al l the b r oke r s who we r e custome r s o f the bank ,
no t ifying them they we r e to r et ur n thei r bo rr owings

t o the bank at once .
As each o f these b roke r s found his loan s being

sud denly c a lled by the ban ks he sent wo r d in tu r n
,
to his c l ien t s th at they must put up the m on ey

themselves t o carry thei r holdings of stock Because .
t he public in buying sh ares don t p a y fo r the m ’
out r igh t ; they only pay a ma r gin s a y of ten pe r cent

, .
The b r oker t herefore h a s to put up t he othe r ninety

, ,
pe r cent which he borrows from t he ban ks a n d

.
, ,
ch a rges his customers t he interest .
The cus t omers immediately sent b a ck wo r d t o

th e b r oke r s : We h aven t anywh e r es nea r the ’
cas h to pay fo r o u r stocks out r ig h t Bo rr ow from .
t h e ban ks even t h ough yo u h ave to pay ten pe r

,
”
cent interest
. .
“
B u t we can t get money a t ten pe r cent
’
.
,
a nswe r ed the b r oke r s .
“ ”
Then pay fifteen said the custome r s , .
”
B ut w e can t get it at fifteen came t h e answe r
’
, .
The r ates fo r money h ave gone up to 1 60 pe r

cent The r e s a ter r ib l e tigh tening No one was
.
’
.
l ooking fo r it We ve got to h ave the cas h o r we

.
’
,
”
can t ca rry you r stocks a moment longe r
’
.
“ ”
Then l et the stocks go came back the l ast ,
answe r ; th r ow them on t h e ma r ket and do i t ,
befo r e anybody else begins .
You can imagine when a t ho usan d people begin,
to se l l wh at a slump takes place The money

,
.
ma r ket i s the key to the stock ma r ket T h ey who .
cont r ol the money r ate cont r ol a l so the stock r ate .
S tocks began to tumble r ight an d left Many .
stop l oss o r de r s we r e uncove r ed P r ices sagged

-
.
point afte r point thi r ty po i nts in a ll And eve ry .
point meant o n e dollar in ou r pockets for eve ry share

we were dealing in .
People eve rywhere beg a n t o cu r se us The a i r .
roun d a bout us three men w a s fire and sulphur .
Men couldn t get money to c arry on th e i r business

’
.
Me r ch ant princes w h o h ad inhe r ited the busine ss

,
from their fathe r s thro ugh sever a l gene r ations l ost ,

i t now in a night This was the time of the ye ar
.
when o r dina r ily money would flow out to the South

a n d West to pay the fa r me r s fo r the c rops which
they h ad been wor king all s p r ing and summe r to
b r ing to h a r vest But now t hat money couldn t
.
’
flow an d so these farmers in a do z en states also

,
began to hurl t heir curses a t us Many o f them h a d .
been counting o n the money fr om thei r c rops to

pay o ff mo r tgages Some we r e d r iven fr om their
.
homes and their houses sold

, .
I n fa ct the curses got so l oud afte r a whi l e t h a t I

,
kin d o f got sc ar ed I h adn t thought the thing

.
’
w ould kick up such a rumpus It almost looked a s .
though ou r lives we r en t s a fe They might bu r n ’

.
down my house ove r my he a d o r stab me on a ,
st r eet co r ne r So I got out of the thing My sh ir t

. .
fits close but my skin fits close r I tol d Gould

,
.
and F isk th a t I w a sn t going to be with them in this

’
lock u p de a l any longe r

-
my life was too precious .
I f t hey chose to be dare devils a nd s t and out a g a inst

-
a who l e country r ising up in wr a th ag a inst t hem ,
t hey could do it But for my p a rt I w a s going t o

.
make my peace with my fellow men So I r eleased .
the money I was hoa r ding and was glad to be out ,
of the thin g at last .

picking at me an d my E r ie c r owd fo r a long t i me
back A l o t of the newspape r s anyhow we r e now
.
, ,
“
beginning to sna r l and snap at u s E r ie R asc a l
” “ ” “
it ies , N a t ion al I nfamy R ail r oad B urgla ry , ,
“
Dr ew a t the Head of a Pi r atica l Ho r de o f P l u n
”
de t e r s wh a t n o t $ O n e of them a Bill B ryant , ,
edi t or of the N ew Yo k P os t go t wh at h e dese r vedr , .
Tweed s Judge B a r na r d r ight fr o m the j udge s

’
, ,
’
“
bench called him the most noto r ious liar in th e
, ,
U nited St a tes And now this othe r fel l ow Bowles

.
, ,
w a s also to be take n down a peg o r two F o r B ow l es .
h ad come out with a pitchfo r k article against us ,
and ag a inst J i m my i n p a r ticu l a r Th i s time he .
went t oo fa r a nd we hit back Ji m my w a s the

, .
l ast one of us anyhow whom they ought to h ave

, ,
hit Because he stood in with Tweed and hi s c r owd

.
even more th an Gould o r I .
So one d ay soon a ft er this man Bowl es was down ,
in N ew York City attending a meeting of the N ew ,
E nglan d Society at t he F ift h Avenue Hotel He .
was standing in the hote l o fli c e There he w a s .
appro a ched by J ack M c Go w a n the deputy sheri ff , ,
an d anothe r O n e of them passed on beyon d

.
Bowles then turned seized hi m by the a r ms a n d

, , ,
beg a n to shove him tow ar ds t h e st r eet doo r whilst ,
the other held a p aper in his face a wa rr ant for h is ,
arrest O nce in the st r eet they pushed h i m into

.
,
a carri age wh i ch was in waiting an d d r ove r apidly ,
t o t he L udlow S t ree t J a il This w a s eight o clock .

’
at night B a il w a s fixed at fifty t hou san d d o ll a r s

.
.
Bowles h ad s o m any fr iends th at he c oul d p r ob ably

h ave r aised i t B u t a l l the detai l s h ad been a rr an ged
.
so thoroughly t h at n o w the sheri ff s o fli ce was c l osed ’
fo r the night ; an d so b ail cou l dn t be r eceived ’

.
Bowles as ked a fr ien d to ca rry the news o f hi s a rr est

to his wife who was in poo r health at t h e A lb emarle
,
Hote l an d a s ke d fo r w r iting mate r ia l s t o make

,
o u t the note ; but th i s was he ld b ack fo r a time .
Because the i dea was to punish him once fo r a l l ,
by some h o ur s i n s o lita ry confine m ent By ten .
o clock the news o f h is a r rest h ad got o u t an d t h e r e

’
w a s a l ot of his fri en ds g a the r ed at t h e j ai l such as ,
M r D an a M r Bon d an d Genera l A rt hur B u t the

.
,
. .
j aile r sai d he cou l dn t l et any o n e see t h e p r isoner

’
.
T h ey l ooked u p t h e s h e r i ff an d foun d h i m at a p a r ty
w hi c h w a s bein g g i ven at the house o f M r B r own .
,
on F i fth Aven u e to ce l eb r ate a Ta m many v i cto ry

, .
T h e she ri ff exc u sed hi mse l f fo r a m i n u te and gett i n g ,
ou t of sight didn t come back Bow l es s fr ien ds

,
’
.
’
went ove r to t h e she r i ff s house b u t t h ey c oul dn t

’
,
’
get anybody o u t o f be d So the p r isone r h ad to .
spend the night behin d the bars O f c our se in .

,
the morning his fr iends who h a d been u p a ll night ,
s u ch as Mr Du nn Cy r us W F ield and the others

.
, .
, ,
go t the b ail bond an d by eleven o clock he was free

,
’
.
B ut he h ad gone th rou gh an expe r ien ce which mus t

have ta ught a l esson to the pen an d in k fellows fa r - -
an d wide .
F isk was a fe l low who ca rr ied out his plan s wh en
he o nce ma d e up his mind to a th i ng didn t mind ’
th e expense He used to d r ive in the pa r k with his

.
lady l oves beh ind s i x ho r ses

-
, th r ee wh i te ones
on one side and th r ee black ones on the othe r He .
l i ked to ma ke a sp l u r ge He h ad a boat the P l y

.
,
m o u th Ro k th at u sed to r un down to S andy Hook

c , .
Jimmy put cana ry bi r d s a l l th ro ugh th e pa ssenge r

c a b ins . O n e day Vanderbilt was going d own o n th e
boat and took Jimmy to task fo r it .
“ ” “
Fi sk said h e th at is all very nice t ho se bi r d s
, , ,
that a r e warbling so beau t ifu lly B ut they have to .
”
be fe d eve ry last b ir d in those cages
, .
B ut Jimmy was a fellow wh o didn t c o unt t h e ’
cost of bird seed o r of anything else for th at matter

-
, .
When th e P ly mou th Ro k wa s finally t u r ned i nto an

c
excu r sion boat he would pa r ade t he decks dressed

,
in an Admiral s u niform He liked to swell a r ound

’
.
in his fine clothes and get the women t o ga z e at h im .
The w a y he ca r ried on with Josie Mansfield and

t hose othe r bad wome n was a cau t i o n I think it .
hu rt our Wall St r eet business B ec a use it drove .
away fr om us so m e people who might h ave gone

in with us o n our de a ls B ut it didn t do any good
.
’
to scold Ji m my he w a s t h a t set in h is w a y
, .
I t r ied i t I had a ta lk with him once o r twice

.
ab o ut his soul Because in ou r cl a ss meeting over

.
in my F ourth Avenue Ch urch soul saving used t o ,

-
be a subject we b r ought up a go o d deal Wednesd a y .

into sanctity and into pe r fect liberty fr om the p o we r
of bondage Befo r e the meeting came t o an en d
.
that night th e victo ry h ad been won

,
— sh e was
once mo r e fi r mly o n th e rock B u t th e p r actical .
si de o f th e gospe l messages i s not to be ove r looked ;

a nd I the r eupon took occa s i on when she h ad got ,
back onto the m ounta i n summ i t to tu r n her th oughts ,
to the blessedness of wo r king fo r the Maste r a nd o f

going fo r th i nto the v i neya r d an d gath e ri ng p r ecious
sheaves .
Th i s sta r ted me a l so I thought of those a r oun d

.
m e in b u s i ness li fe who we r e a s yet un r eache d

,
who h a d neve r yet expe ri enced regenerat i on an d

th e clean s i ng g i ft Th en and the r e I mad e a vow
.
,
w i th th e cloud of w i tnesses looki ng down upon me

fr om the battlements of b li ss th a t if g r ace shou l d ,
be given me fo r the tas k I would t ry to save at ,
l ea st one soul in t h e yea r th a t wa s th en befo r e me .
O n e d ay acco r d i ngly when I thought the o p p o r

, ,
t u n ity wa s fa vour a b le bec a use F i sk a nd I were

,
a lone in the o ffi ce I turned the ta lk t o more

,
serious things Without seeming to ma ke it refe r

.
to him I told of c a ses I h a d known where u n b e l ie v

, ,
i ng men h ad been mightily wrought upon bo r n

ag a i n a s it we r e in the twi n kling of a n eye a nd given ,
powe r ove r the Wo rl d the F lesh and the D evil , .
“
Beca use Whilst the lamp ho l ds out to b urn t he
, ,
”
vilest sinne r may r etu r n .
Jimmy listened F isk cou l d be se r ious now a n d

.
t hen even though people w h o di dn t know h im u se d

,
’
to s u ppose he was nothing b ut a boaste r and a make r

o f jokes .
“
N o U nc l e sai d he when I fi nished ; the r e
, , ,
”
i sn t any hope fo r Jim F isk
’
$He used t o call .
”
h im self Jim J ubilee J unio r $ That was when ,
h e was in one of hi s j oking mood s B ut h e di dn t ’

.
“
do it now $ I m a gone goose N o need of a .
’
.
fe l low b ul ldo z ing h im self Might a s well look the .
thing in the face I am too fon d of this wo r ld . .
I f I ve got to choose bet w een t he other world an d this

’
I take this S ome people are bo r n to be good .

,
o t he r peop l e a r e bo r n to be bad I was born to be .
bad As to t h e Wor l d the F lesh and the D evil

.
, ,
I m on good te r ms with al l th r ee I f God Almighty

’
.
i s going to damn u s men because we love th e women ,
then let him go ahea d a nd do it I m h a ving a .

’
goo d time now a n d if I h ave got to pay fo r it here ,
afte r w h y I suppose it s no more th an fa ir sh akes ;

, ,
’
an d I ll take wh at s coming to me As to the vain

’ ’
.
pomp and g l o ry o f th e world I h ave covetous d esi r es ,
of the same S o the r e yo u a r e . .
I t r ied to te ll h im that h e wa s not yet beyond t e

dem ption H e was despai r ing of h imself more than
.
was any use of He was still on th e mercy side of the

.
Ju dgment an d ca ses h ad been known whe r e an

,
eleventh ho ur r epentance was e ffi cacious I f he

-
.
sought p r aye r fully he would be given grace t o ,
mor tify those cor r upt a ff ections .

3 4 0 THE B OOK OF D A N I EL DRE W
He answered t h at he didn t w a nt them mo r tified’
.
H e said th a t though I might be o n e of t hose w h o

,
we r e born to be saved — fo r t heological mys t e r ies

were something he didn t know very much a bout
’
h e was sure th a t he himself w a s born to be d amned .
And th a t it wasn t any u s e for him to try to be any

’
thing else .
F o r a spell aft er my t a lk wi t h him I don t know

’
but wh a t Jimmy w a s a li tt le more sober t h a n usual

in his walk a nd convers at ion B u t i t didn t l a st .
’
long A morning or two l at er down he comes to

.
,
the o fli c e in h is gre a t b a rouche driven by a N egro ,
coach man ; and the r e o n th e se a t beside him was

th at Josie Mansfield S he was decor a ted a ll over
.
with t he rich stu ff s he h a d bough t her F or wh en .

,
buying things fo r women money spilled out of ,
F isk like corn out o f a broken s a ck I n fact Jimmy .

,
was almost as p r oud of he r fine dresses as h e w a s o f

his own clothes .
B efore she met me he used to b ra g Josie

‘
, ,
didn t h a ve any t hing but a bl a ck a nd white silk

’
- -
gown t o he r n a me And now look a t h er : I pay

.
the bills for he r t o go down to L ong Br a nch a n d drive

a long t he Avenue O h I t ell you U ncle wh en
.
, , ,
Jimmy F isk s ta r t s out t o do a thi ng h e does it up ,
”
brown $
I t got s o after a while that he w a s spending a l most
a s much time wi t h Josie a nd her s e t a s h e w a s with
u s in t he o ffi ce Why h e s e t her up in a house on
.
,
3 4 2 THE B O OK OF D AN I EL DRE W
gander can t ake c a re o f those geese he used to s ay , .
I t r avel on my sha pe U ncle ; and I don t ma ke ,

’
any bones of s a ying th at I li ke these scarlet women

they re app r oach able S ome p arts o f you r Bi b l e
’
.
suit me to a T I worship in the Synagogue o f the

.
”
L i be rt ines .
He wo r e his h air in fancy ways kiss curls ,
he used to cal l th em and had th e idea th at he w a s

the b u ck to ta ke a lady s fancy The way he wen t ’
.
on w a s something scanda l ous I t r ied my best .
“
They that yie l d themselves unto sin a r e the ser
“
vants o f sin s a id I S in shou l d not h ave domin
, .
ion over you Jimmy B ecause you a r e not un de r

, .
law but under g r ace It didn t do a speck of good

.
’
.
He might be se r ious whi l st I w a s talking But le t .
o n e of those Fr ench light heels co me t ri pping along -
h e d u p and aft e r he r in a ji ffy

’
.
He even boasted th at it was fo r the sake of helping

o ur business th at he r omped with those loose women
the w a y he did S uch ou t l a ndish t h ings a s h e used
.
to think up $ F or in st a nce t here w a s t h a t de a l ,
with t he new K noxville R ailroad then s t arting up ,
ou t Wes t F isk s a id
.
U ncle t here s no t h ing like knowing how to do

’
things Jus t see wh a t a fine combin at ion we ve

.
’
— —
got ou r clique he r e you me J ay and the , , ,
r est of o u r c r owd Because here t h rough ou r .

,
”
pa r tne r ship wi t h Big Bill $he meant Bill Tweed $ ,
we ve go t N ew York Ci ty unde r ou r th u m b ; w e
’
c ould even sen d a m an t o A br a h am s b o so m i f i t ’

,
s ui te d o ur p ur pose w i t h o u t ri sk of th e h an gm an , .
A nd n o w th r ough me we ve got t h e powe r th at

’
comes th r ough women $ O n e h a ir of a woman ,
U ncle will draw more th an a pai r of b a y stee r s

,
.
Why j ust now t h ough you fel l o w s d i d n t know it

, ,
’
,
I m getting a line on t h at K noxvil l e d ea l th at s li ke

’ ’
”
to tu r n us a fi ne penny .
”
How s th at ? I asked’
.
” “
Why sa i d h e you know th at c onnection o f
, ,
thei r s with the soft coal d i st r ict which h as been i n -

,
the ai r some ti m e I f th at goes th r oug h i t wo ul d

.
,
be the r ight thing to l oad up with some of t h e s h a r es

of t hat ro a d .
“ ”
We l l sa i d I i s i t go i ng th r o u gh
, ,
” “
T h e r e yo u ar e h e replied ; th at s j u s t whe r e
,
’
I m getting in my fi ne wo r k B ec au se the r e s a
’
.
’
yo u ng ch ap i n town a nephew o r something o r , ,
othe r o f one of the big men in th at r oad He knows

,
.
wh at s wh at i n th at r ail r oad and whethe r this li ne

’
into the soft coal district i s going th r oug h It s u p

-
.
’
”
to us to co r ksc r ew the news out of h i m .
“ ”
How can we do it ? I asked Money ? .
N o th at wou l d be ina r tistic It s women th at s

,
.
’ ’
the b a i t fo r the a ve ra ge m a n L e a ve it to me .
,
”
U ncle leave i t to me
,
.
S ome d ays late r in one of ou r councils togethe r , ,
F is k c a me in s pry a nd merry He told us he h ad

,
.
o t t he news at last
g .
News of what we asked .
Why news of th at soft coal connection w i th t h e

,
-
”
O hio R ive r I t s going t h r ough said he
’
,
. .
“ ”
A r e you sure ? I asked How d i d yo u g et .
th r ough my Jos i e
O h, .
Josie I sai d ; who s t h at ? ’
Why my Twenty thi r d St r eet c h a r me r No t

,
-
.
that she h e r self could h andle a l ad l i ke thi s Ho r ace

I guess his name was Ho r ace ; someth i ng li ke th at ,
anyhow Because fr om wh at I gathe r he was

.
, ,
quite a shy lad — one of you r mothe r s boys ‘ ’

.
’
Josie is too p l ump to take the fancy of that kind .
He needs the s l ende r a nd a rtful lass i f he s going ,

’
to be roped i n S o she got N ellie to unde r take the

.
job N ellie is the gi r l for an a r tisti c piece of wo r k

. .
S he s pl ayful enough
’
— afte r the i ce i s b r o k en
and can give a fellow a l u mp t io us t i me F i r st .
along though she h as a bashful way a bout he r

, ,
th at j ust t a kes wi t h a ce r t a in type of m an An d .
I guess t his Hor a ce was th a t type P u t N e l lie i n .
one of her n eggl e d e ege e gowns a n d t he l ights low a ll

t hrough the house sh e could win ove r S t Anthony, .
himself S he h as a w a y a bout her of b acking o ff

.
at th e s ta r t t h a t s very fe t ching B u t once sta r ted

,
’
.
,
U n cle s h e h a s go t the pre t tiest w a y o f s aying My ‘

, ,
nose i t ches when she wants mo r e kisses of any gi r l I

’
thin k I ever met And I ve met a lot O n Twenty.

’
.
t hi rd S t r eet they belong to t h e t r ibe of Amo rites And .

d ic k e r s i s t h at yo u and y our cl i q u e a r e the only
,
o nes th at k now i t .
“
We r e ho oked by a cow s a i d I wh en i t was
’
seen t h at t hi s d ea l i n stocks wasn t goi n g to tu r n out

’
“
wel l . Wh at d i d I te ll yo u J immy ? They th at
,
a r e in th e fles h cannot p l ease God Fo r to be ca r

.
n ally mi n d e d i s death ; b u t t o b e s p iri t u ally mi nd e d

i s li fe an d p ea ce .
XXX I V
I TTL E d i sapp oi nt m ents s u c h as t h e o ne ,
I h ave j ust w r ote a bou t a l ways c om e ,
i n the li fe o f a s p e c kil a tor I n a b ig .
h a r vest t h e r e a r e a l ways s om e wee d s A n d I h a d .
l ea r ne d by t hi s t im e to b ea r u p w h en t h e m a rk et
t ur ned a g a i nst me The very n i gh t wh en we fo u n d
.
,
th at ou r r ai lro a d s p e c kil a t io n i n the s o ft c o al fiel d -
was go i ng aga i nst u s I was wa lki ng i n my s i tt i n g

,
room at h ome my h ands be hi nd my b ac k h ummi n g

, ,
out lo u d th at comfo r t i ng hymn :

“
Fr om eve ry sto r my w i n d th at b lo ws
D an e k spo k e u p — I mean my gr an d son D an ,
Ch ambe r la i n I used to call h i m D an e k for

.
,
s h o rt.
“
Pop sa id he w h y in the wo rl d a r e yo u eve r
, ,
l asti ngly s i nging th at Fr om eve ry sto rm y w i n d

,
‘
th at b l ows ’
“
B eca u se it s t ru e D a n c k
’
s aid I
, It s
, ,
’
t ru e
The r e t h e r e on eag l e w i ngs we soa r
, ,
An d sense and si n molest no mo r e ,
And h eaven comes down o u r souls to

”
An d G l o ry c ro wns the me r cy seat .
347
I was happy a nyhow these days Because I
, ,
.
was a bou t to celeb r ate my golden wedd i ng I a nd .
my wife j ust two years before h a d been o u t to

, ,
Dr ewville t w o miles this side o f Carme l to t h e

, ,
go l den wedding o f my b r other To m and his wife ,
o n thei r fa rm I s a i d then if the L ord woul d s pa r e

.
,
me a n d my wife t o see the day we t o o wou l d cele ,
b r a t e w hen the time came O u r lives we r e spa r ed

,
. .
The fine b i g house on U nion S quare was j ust the

place t o h old a big celebration in And on a F riday .
night in M a rch the next ye a r I think i t was afte r

, , ,
the foundi n g o f my theological seminary the gre a t ,
even t c a me o ff .
I w a s sorry th a t it fell o n a F rid a y I think it .
brought so me b a d luck wi t h it F o r instance so me .

,
o f my neighbo urs who lived in the a r istoc r at i c section
a round U nion S quare and F ifth Avenue R obe r t

Go e l e t lived across S eventeenth S t r eet fr om me on ,
the upper co r ner didn t come They sent notes

’
.
o f r e gr e t This m a y no t h a ve been al t ogethe r o n

.
a ccount o f F rid a y s luck ei t her S ome o f the news

’
, .
p a pers a bout this time were beginning t o pi t ch i nto

me They we r e shameless i n t he things they said
. .
There w a s the N a ti n fo r inst a nce Just as I

o , .
was b e gm n in g t o m a ke prepar a tions fo r my

golden wedding a nd was s t rai ning t he t r a ces to
,
m a ke i t a social success that paper came down ,
on me like a thous a nd of brick S pe a king of .
t he oper at ions of me a nd my ring i n W a ll S t ree t i t ,

35 9 TH E B OOK OF D AN I EL DRE W
fi ne I was p a rticu larly ple a sed a t the n i ce w a y
.
my N ew Yor k Adv oca te d escri bed the a ffa i r And .
it d i dn t h ave to st r etch the t r uth eithe r The

’
, .
golden wed ding was celeb r ated at o u r r esidence in

the p r esence o f a brilli ant assembl a ge The very .
r a r e event w a s w elcomed wi t h the most hea r ty con

gr a tulations cos t ly p r esents we r e showered in fr om
,
dea r a nd in t i m a te fr iends and th r oughout the

,
s plen di d festivities I a nd my wife t he aged and ,
respectab l e cou p l e whose conj ugal days h ave been

so h appily bound in one for ha l f a centu ry were ,
the r eci pients of the most a ffectionate compliments .
No t only were the drawing r ooms of the mansion

brilli antly illumin a ted but also suspended fr om the
, ,
ceiling we r e beautiful wre a ths at t a ched t o the g l obes

, ,
the flowe r s indica t ing by letters thereon th at I ,
a nd Mrs D rew were m a rried in the ye a r 1 8 2 0 and

.
,
the attend a nce th a t night comprised many of the

rel a tives o f the honou r able l a dy a nd myself whom ,
a ll a ssembled to honour The toilets of t he l a dies

.
were exceedingly h a n dsome The r eception com .
m e n c e d shor t ly before ten o clock I a nd Mrs ’

. .
D rew the l att er a ttired in la ven der silk covered

,
with white poi nt lace a n d both looking very h a le

,
a n d ple a s a nt w a rmly rece i ved our friends who

, ,
we r e profuse in thei r earnest cong ra tulations R ev .
e re n d D r R idgew a y o f o u r S t P a u l s Ch urch on ’
,
. .
F o ur th Avenue on beh a lf o f his congreg a tion

, ,
presented in a feeling address a very a pprop r ia t e

g ift i n t h e s h ape of a gorgeous bas ket o f flowers ,
of solid si l ve r and go l d e m b l ematic o f t h e intrin sic

,
and so l id wo r th of the r eci p i ents wrought with ,
beautiful fo r ms and ado r ned with exquisite t r acery ,
symbols o f those natures visited by grace and ,
wrapped with t h e flowers and fruits o f domestic

and r eligious fidelity O n the bowl we r e the wo r ds :
.
GO L D E N WEDD I NG
“
encircled with lin den
leaves emblems of constancy the gift being ado r ned
, ,
with su i tab l e monograms The R eve r end M r . .
F oss said prayer which being concluded I and

, ,
M r s D rew ming l ed with o u r nume r ous guests and

.
proceeded t o pa r take o f an elegant repast A l to .
gethe r the event was one to be r emembe r ed w i th

,
pleasu r e .
B ut it wasn t over yet When th e s peech making

’
.
-
w a s th r oug h with I told th e people to go out in t o

,
th e dining r oom I hope you re as h ungry a s a ’
—
.
“
m e a t a xe every o n e o f yo u s a id I I want yo u , .
to put insi de all the pork an d potatoes you can ca r ry

” “ ”
away . I called it pork an d potatoes j ust to ,
su r p r ise them when they should get into the room

,
and see the spread o f eatables I h ad p r ovided fo r

th e occ a sion F o r it wasn t a ny of you r big boa st
.
“ ’
”
and sm a ll ro a st wi t h me th a t night The meats .
we r e a ll of t h e finest none o f your b ull beef on -
my table And I a s hos t o f the p ar ty spu rr ed up

.
, ,
thei r a ppe t i t es F or I was in such light spirits on

.
t h at o cca s ion I didn t c ar e how mu ch they a t e

’
, .
35 2 TH E B O OK O F DA N I E L DR EW
I d on want a nybody to be unde r my r oof this

’
t
” “
night said I who c a n t play a good kn i fe a nd
, ,
’
fo r k at meals S o set t o I a d ded in a ch ee ry

.
, ,
“
voice . Ge t you r nose in the mange r there B rothe r , ,
S o and s o ; let me see how much oats yo u c a n get

- -
outside of I h a ve always h ad a kn ack o f getting

.
peop l e in a good humou r .
I felt gl a d th at the thing w a s going o ff so fi ne .
J ust the d ay befo r e my fr iend B r other M c C l in t o c k

, , ,
h ad died I h ad been afraid th at th i s might cast

.
a gloom ove r th e a ffai r B ut I kept the people in .
good spiri t s by sh a king h ands and m ixing up w i th

them And everybody sai d when the hou r came to
.
,
go home th at they h a d h ad j ust a grand time

, .
The thing cost like sixty B ut it was worth t h e .
money B esides I was by thi s time i n a position

.
,
whe r e I could stand a big expense n o w and th en

wi t hout sweating Why during my E rie d ays .
, ,
there wa s one item of p r ofit a lone from the B u ffalo , ,
B r ad ford 8: Pittsb urg R ailroad deal which amounted ,
to a fine penny We picked u p th at litt l e branch

.
line for a song and then a s the E xecutive Committee

, ,
o f the E rie Ra ilroad rented it to th e E rie a t a sum

,
which brought us in a hundred a nd forty thousa nd

dollars a ye a r clean profit F o r a nother there w a s .
,
my deal with the L a ke E rie line o f ste a mers As .
head and front of E rie — I was not on l y its Treas

s ur e r then bu t also its M a naging D i r ecto r
,
— I
made the E r ie r oad hi r e th a t steamboat line fr om
XX X V
Y THIS time the boys down on the S treet

had got to supposing th at I was mo r e
o r less o f a back number
”
U nc l e D a niel they s a id is a tooth less old
, ,
dog He will growl but his bite doesn t amoun t

.
,
’
to much any more F rom now on h e s no good .

’
except to poke a round t he S t r eet his h ands behin d ,
his b a ck and look wise

, .
B ut I showed them th a t I wasn t dea d and d o ne ’
fo r j ust yet There w a s still some fire in my brain s

. .
I h a d mo r e tricks a nd dodges to show th em As .
Ma r sden fo r one found o u t B i lly Marsden h a d

, ,
.
been one of my a gents in E rie s p e c k il a t io n s He .
h ad m a de a nice sum of money fo r himself out of

those de a ls B u t I didn t in t end th at h e should
.
’
keep it He h a d m a de th a t money by h a nging on t o

.
my co a t t a ils s o to s pe a k F rom which it r e a lly

, .
belonged to me mo r e t h a n i t did to him S o I se t .
a bout to get it I got M a rsden to head a buying

.
movement in E rie I went in wi t h him in t he de a l

. .
We bought well nigh every sh a re t h a t w a s loose in

-
th e N ew York m a rket Then whilst M a rsden w a s .

,
still buying I all unbeknownst t o him began to

, , ,
3 54
THE B O OK OF D A NI EL DRE W 355
u n l oa d my h old i ngs at t h e n 1c e fi gur e the stoc k

was th en r eaching Ma r sden took my o ffe ri ngs
.
o f st o c k unt i l I h ad sad dl ed so muc h o f i t onto hi m

,
th at his m oney began to give o u t Then h e go t .
suspicious He began t o acc u se me of playing fa st

.
and loose w i th him .
”
D rew said he some one i s doing rn e di r t
, ,
.
You and I a r e n ow the only h o l ders of loose stock in

t h e market ; and still it s being o ffe r ed t o m e in la r ge
’
”
b locks You sn a ke in the grass I ll l ay th at i t s yo u
.
- - -
,
’ ’
.
I tried to tel l him th at i t wasn t ; th at h e w a s ’
b a r king up the wrong t r ee The stoc k w a s p r obably

.
coming from dist a nt sources of supply th at we h a dn t ’
reckoned o n I f h e w ould only keep on b uying

.
fo r a few days longer it would p r ob ably all be

,
ab so r be d an d the floating S u pply exh austed B ut .
he beca m e mo r e and m ore suspicio u s .
F i nally o ne d ay h e a rr anged a meet i ng w i th me

in my o ffi ce at an early hour He said i t migh t be .
a meeting th at w o u ld l ast some litt l e time and th at ,
the refo r e we m u st be free fro m inter r uption s I .
s u spected he was going to try some scheme on me .
S o I thought u p a trick t h a t would meet him h a lf

way I t old h im to come ; I d be gl a d to see him
.
’
and would be w i t h h im a s long as he wished .
O n the d ay appointed h e c a me e a rly to my B r o a d

,
S treet o fli c e We went i nto my private o ffi ce He

. .
turned a nd locked t he door I a sked him why h e .
locked th e door .
“
I ll te l l yo u wh y sai d h e and h e b e ga n to stam p
’
, ,
“
lik e a h o r se th at s got p i n wo r ms ; I m g o ing to
’
-
’
find o u t w h ethe r y o u h ave been p l ay i n g me squa r e

or not An d I m tak i ng t h is means to find o u t
.
’
.
J u st be for e coming over he r e I i ssued orde r s t o my ,
br okers t o g o onto the floo r o f the E xc h ange an d o ffe r

to b uy E ri e Now I m goi ng to keep yo u h ere
.
’
behind lo c k an d key fo r a w hile to see i f th e ma r ket ,
i s st i l l s u pp l ied w i t h E ri e w hen y o u r e o ut o f it ’
.
You d o n t st i r out of th i s r oom unt i l my b r oke r s

’
”
h ave h ad a ch ance t o see .
I ma d e beli eve to b e hu r t b y h is u nk i nd s u sp i c i ons .
I sa i d I di dn t want to leave the room o r i ss u e any

’
s e ll in g ord e r s to my b r o k e r s ; because I wasn t ’
doi ng any se l l i n g B ut i t h u r t me to th i n k th at
.
my o ld fri end an d pa r tne r h ad l o st faith in me .
” “
Dr ew said he you li e fa ste r th an a h o r se
, ,
ca n t r ot I t i sn t go i ng t o do yo u any good to be
’
.
s oft soa py That d oor isn t going t o b e un l ocked ’

-
.
”
t i l l I fer r et this th i ng out .
I sp o ke b ack He answe r ed me S oon w e got

. .
al l h et u p i n an a r gu m ent I ma de believe to send .
h om e my r ema r ks by pou nding o n the table F or .
I h ad s u specte d Ma r sden s scheme ; an d so befor e ’

,
h e came I had to l d o n e o f my clerks to place h imself

,
just outsi d e t h e do o r of my p r ivate o fli c e an d every ,
ti m e he heard me pound on the t a b le h e should ,
s end wo r d to my broke r s on the floo r of the E xchange
t o sell a tho u sand sha r es of E r ie .

Marsden o ff with only part payment o f his obliga
tions t o me And in doing so I h a d t o le t t he c a t
.
o u t o f th e bag B ut I h ad a good ch uck l e ove r the

.
success o f m y joke I a lways di d enjoy a joke

.
,
anyhow .
S peak i n g of jokes I th i n k one o f the best funs

,
I eve r h ad was when I got the best o f some of t h e

ch u r ch b reth r en A number o f t h e m h a d go t t o
.
coming to my house and talking Wall S t r eet talk .
They knew I w a s one o f the i nsi de ope r ato r s a nd ,
th at points fr om m e w e r e worth their w eight in go l d .
$ E verybody is kin t o a r ich man $ E ven some of .
th e p r ofessors out in my theolog i cal seminary i n

Ne w Jersey we r e getting the W a ll Street fever On .
their visits at my house whilst the talk o f a winter s

,
’
even i ng would be o n matte r s of faith and doctrine ,
the subject in so m e way o r oth er would get switched

o ff to mode r n life and to the doings of Wall S t r eet .
F i r st along I was ten der about h av i ng my b usiness

,
a ff a irs brought in t o o u r convers at ion B ut I soo n .
saw th at they were w illing if they h ad the chance , ,
to try a flier o r two in t he S t r eet .
So one t ime when a lot o f t h em were coming

p r e tty often a nd seeing th a t I w a s st a r t ing o u t j us t
,
t hen on a B e a ring down c a mpaign I a llowed my

-
,
ta lks wi t h them to turn sort o f gradu a l like t o p r esent -
day a ffai r s and to W a ll S treet Then I d s a y in

,
.
’
,
“
sort of a n o ff hand w ay I m willing to tell o n e o f
-
,
’
the sec r e t s of the S t r eet i f you ll keep i t d ar k An ’

.
u pwa r d move m ent is just now being eng i neered .
O f cou r se only those who are on th e inside know i t

,
.
The outside pub l ic thinks th at the ma r ket is going

the other w ay Those w h o are on the inside t a ke
.
a dvant a ge of this ignor a nce People who b uy n ow .
will be in on t he killing wh en th e b utch e ri ng time ,
ar rives Bro t he r s o a nd s o I h a ve given you this

.
- -
,
little t ip bec a use you a nd I h a ve known each o t her

,
”
so long B ut don t tel l a nybody e l se
.
’
$ Then a
d a y o r two l a ter when a nother o n e of the b r ethren
,
would be visiting me I d s ay to him th e same thing

,
’
.
And I was a good midwife at the b usiness being ,
b y natu r e patient a nd cool .
I n thi s w a y there set in a good sized buying move -
men t in those p ar ticu la r stocks th at I w a s selling

short Wa bash Quicksi l ver M ining S tock a n d
, ,
shares in the C a nton La nd Comp a ny o f B a l timore .
Because when yo u give a fellow a n inside tip on

,
t h e m a rket an d info r m him th at h e s not to tell ’
anothe r so u l h e s going to let at least th r ee or four

,
’
othe r s in on the secret Those three or fou r others .
tell their friend s a l so And the thing sp r eads like

, .
a fire in the w oods .
Well a short horse i s soon cu rr ied Wh en I

, .
h ad got the th ing fixed up I w ent and d umped onto ,
th e ma r ket some j ags of stock big enough t o bre a k

t h e price a few points That w a s enough t o sta r t
.
the fall Because these b r eth r e n we r e not ve ry

.
plentifully sto r ed with th i s wo r ld s good s Thei r ’

.
ma rgi ns w e r e soon exh au sted They we r e sold out . .
I cove r e d my sho r ts at a ni ce l ow figu r e .
I th i nk i t was o n e o f these fe ll ows fr om my theo

log i cal s emi na r y th at was meant in a l ittle skit
that appeared in th e pu b l ic prints about this time .
I give i t here beca use it shows th at a person shou ld

not go into Wa l l S t r eet d ic ke rin g s unless h e fi rst
knows the i ns an d outs
He wa s a l on g l an k count ryman
, ,
And h e stoppeth o n e o r tw o :
“
I m not a cq uaint i n these ye ere parts
’
And I m a looking fur D ani e l Dr ew

’
-
.
“
I m a st r anger i n the v i neya r d
’
,
An d my callin I p urs o o ’
At the I n s t it oo t at Madison
Th at was bui l t by D aniel D rew .
“
I m a st r ange r i n the v i neya r d
’
,
A n my a rt h ly wants are few ;

’ ’
B u t I want some points on them yer shea r es ,

”
An I m a l ookin fur D anie l Dr ew
’ ’
-
’
.
Aga i n I saw th a t labourer ,
Corner of Wall an d New ;

He wa s looking for a fe r ry boat -
,
And not fo r D aniel D rew .
U pon h i s back h e bore a sack ,
I nsc r ibed P r e ferred Q .
S om e Canton sc r i pt was i n h i s g ri p ,
A l itt l e Wa ba s h to o .
XXX V I
WAS s o busy these days the S abbath was ,
well nigh my only time o f rest Week d ays

-
.
-
were work days S ome t i mes I even worked

.
nights After the E xchange closed on B road S t reet

.
,
I used to go u p to the F ift h Avenue Hotel where ,
a dealer h ad opened a kind o f evening exch ange in

the basement below t he o ffi ce Ad mission w a s .
fifty cents S hares were bough t and sold t here from

.
seven o clock to nine When S unday came t here

’
.
,
fore I oft en got o u t of the ci ty for a d a y in the coun

,
t ry B ut I made i t a habit to go t o church even

.
,
when I was away from the ci ty I remembered .
t h at in my early life my backslidings h ad come about

when I h a d forgo tt en t o go t o mee t ing a n d w a s ,
b reaki ng the L ord s D ay S abbath desecra t ion h a s

’
.
been my bese tt ing s in a ll t hrough life a nyhow , .
Ti me a nd t i me ag a in I h ave h ad t o a s k t o be forgiven
for i t S o I now tried li ke every w at chful Chris
.
,
t i a n should to remember my we a kness and t o gu a rd

,
a gains t it .
I t was on o n e of those ou t i ngs in the country I ,
remember t h at I he a rd a sermon which made c o n

,
s id e r a b l e o f an i mpression on me It w a s a long .
6
3 2
TH E B OOK OF D ANI EL DRE W 6
3 3
a l i ne t h at I h ad nev e r h ea r d before Th e t i t l e o f .
“
th e se r mon was : T a king God in t o Pa r tne r s hi p
”
wi th Yo u i n You r B usiness As soon as th e .
preacher announced h is subjec t I pricked u p my ,
ears It w a s new Since t hen

. .
— and I m sorry ’
to say it — m a ny of t he sermons I ve l i stened to ’
h ave h a d a good deal of t his new a nd strange doc

t r ine in t hem A heaven here below A bette r
”
wor l d here and now a ll that sort of stu ff I a m
,
.
mi s s i ng more and more the good o l d ti me h a ll e l uj ah ,

-
mess age The preachers seem to be p r eaching

.
nowad a ys as though religion h ad to do with the

t hings of this worl d whereas in th e good o l d d ays
, , ,
th i s very sin of worldliness w a s wh at we were warned

a gai ns t I don t know b ut wh a t my semin a ry for
.
’
t he tr a i ni ng of p r eachers founded wi t h my own ,
money is ta ki ng to some of these new fangled i deas

,
-
.
Well as I started to say this se r mon was about

, ,
T a ki ng God in t o Partnershi p wi t h You It was

a brand new thought to me I w a s struck wi t h it
-
. .
As I walked home t h a t d ay from the church to the

hote l where I was stopping I talked about the ser ,
mon with a frien d who w a s wi t h me .
“ ” “
D o y o u think s a i d I th at the r e is anything
, ,
”
i n wh at t h e preacher told us this morning .
“ ” “
Why yes s ai d he ; I think there s a great de a l
, ,
’
in i t I thin k the L ord woul d li ke t o be a companion

.
in o u r business li fe as well a s in our home and church

”
life .
6
3 4 TH E B OOK O F DA N I EL DRE W
An d
d o yo u thin k he would really bless a man
”
wh o took hi m i nto p a rtnershi p wi t h hi m ? I asked .
Because I wanted to be sure o f my groun d before I

took any step i n the matte r .
“ “
Yes s ai d he ; I think t h a t the man who fo l
,
lowe d the teachings o f th a t se r mon would be

”
blessed i n the long run .
That made u p my mi nd I went to my room i n .
the h ote l an d the n an d there deci ded that I wou l d

,
give the message of that S un day morn i n g a try .
Not that I h ave eve r been a man to j ump at c o n

c l u s io n s B ut the sermon of the morning h ad come
.
to me j ust at a ti me when I w a s c a lculating i n my

min d whethe r or not to go into a certain Wal l S t r eet
s
p ec k il a t io n .
As I have wrote somewheres in these p a pe r s when ,
I went in with Gould a nd F isk in the movement to

l ock u p g r eenbacks I s a w th at they we r e working fo r
,
a decline i n prices I fell o u t wi t h them B u t they

. .
had gone on wi t h t heir pl a n An d I h ad been w o n .
dering whether it wouldn t be a goo d plan since ’
they we r e working o n the short side o f the marke t ,
fo r me a lso to put out a line of shorts By being .
independent I might clean up even mo r e money

,
th a n if I h ad stood in wi t h them ; because then I d ’
have h a d to divide my profi t s by three whilst now ,
I coul d pocket a ll my profits I was tu r ning t h e .
thing over in my mind one way a nd the othe r withou t ,
being able to come to a decision And n o w suddenly .

, ,
3 6 6 TH E B OOK OF D A N I EL DRE W
j ust as good t o the schoo l bec a use a ll they wanted w a s
,
t he ye a rly income a nyhow B ut the Truste e s were

, .
after me to pay over the full a mount in order as they , ,
said to make the t hing sure And t hey kept r e m ind

, .
ing me a lso tha t I had s a id I w a s going to swel l the

, ,
endowment t o h a lf a million So there on my .

,
ben ded knees in t h a t room I made a coven ant wi t h ,
the L ord I would take hi m in t o p a rtnershi p wi t h

.
me i n t hi s business dicker th a t I w a s a bout to go i nto ;

an d if he prospered me I vowed t h a t I d pay over
, ,
’
in full a nd wi t hou t going back on it this ti me

all t he gift s I h a d t h us fa r made in t he form of agree
ments t o p ay .
When the S unday w a s over I c a me b a ck to the ,
city wi t h a gl a d he a r t I wen t down to Wall S treet

.
the next morning feel i ng a young m a n once more .
Without w a i t ing for any t hing or a nybody I wen t ,
onto t he m a rket and began my opera t ions I h a d .
le a rned in my a ssoci at ions wi t h Gould a nd F is k t h a t

E rie w a s t he s t ock t hey were pl a nning to cen t re t heir
Be a r oper at ions on Besides I knew of a l a rge
.
,
issue of E rie s t ock 23 millions whi ch t hey

h a d secre t ly pu t t hrough a bou t t hree mon t hs before .
S o I g a ve orders t o my brokers t o sell th at s t ock

he a vily shor t .
I di dn t fin d a ny di ffi cul ty in getting my o ffers

’
ta ken I n fac t t hese o ffers o f mine were sn at ched

.
,
u p so q uick on t he floor of the E xch a nge th at if I d ’
been a lit t le more c a utious I might h a ve s us pecte d

THE B OOK OF D A N I EL DRE W 6
3 7
so mething Because and I found it o u t l ater it

.
, ,
was no othe r than Gould an d F isk the m selves w h o

h ad turned tail and instead of Bea r s had s ud denly
become B ulls They had changed their t actics
.
withou t giving me notice .
O u r lock U p of greenb acks with pu r pose to tighten

-
,
t he money market and produce a fall in securities ,
h a d been so successful th at gre at pressure h ad bee n

b rought to bear on t he S ecretary of the T r easury
at Washi ngton to put b ack i nto circul ation some of
the currency that ha d been called in by hi m i n p r e
a r a t io n for our country s resumption of s pecie
’
p
payments F irst along S ecretary Mc c ulloch hadn t
.
’
listened to these appe a ls He thought they were .
cries of some s t ock market s p e c k il a t o rs who had got

-
themselves i n a tight hole B ut when the leadi ng .
bus i ness men o f the country began to urge it he ,
fi nally yielded and h ad reissued some four million s

of money F isk an d Gould seeing th at the author
.
,
ties i n Washington h ad begun to turn against them

and were now siding in wi t h t he business i nte r ests
of the country h a d taken it as a wa r ning They
,
.
suddenly turned from their B e a r c a mp a ign and n o w ,
were B ulls .
U nluckily I di dn t know o f t his I was a n o u t

’
, .
sider now To s p e c kil a t e a s a n outsi der is li ke t ry

.
,
i ng to d rive bl a ck pigs i n the d a rk S o I kep t on .
selling E rie short j ust when Gould a n d F isk h a d

t urned an d we r e buying E rie fo r a rise I lea r ned .
3 6 8 THE B OOK O F DA N I EL DRE W
l a ter th at t hey h a d m a de this sudden t urn i n t h e i r
tac t ics pa r tly in o r de r to sq ueeze me Because t hey .
—
had been all fire d mad when I deserted them i n t he
camp a ign of locking up green b a cks Jimmy a t .
” “ “
the t ime h a d c a lled me F rai d Ca t D anny ’
” “
Cold F eet
-
, Turn T a il and such li ke B ut I
-
,
-
.
hadn t cared I w a s determined to look out for

’
.
numbe r o n e no matter what names h e called me

, .
The long and t he s h or t of it is by and by my con ,
t r ac t s t o d elive r seventy thousan d sh a res of E rie

matured ; and I wasn t able Gould and F is k h ad ’
.
bough t u p the entire floa t ing supply of E r ie a n d ,
n o w I couldn t buy it for love or money E r ie shot

’
.
up suddenly from 3 5 to 4 7 a rise o f 1 2 pe r cent ,

.
almost i n an hour .
This w a s o n a S aturd a y A week fr om th at ti me .
a steamer would be in from E ngland bri ng i ng a

la r ge consig n ment o f E rie S t ock w hich E nglish
i nves t ors we r e shipping over B ut th at woul d be t o o .
late my con t r a c t s would m at ure by the follow

i ng Wed nesd a y I w a s in a b ad fix The o t he r boys
. .
w h o h a d been caught along with me in t his co r ner

held a meeting I was t here It w a s voted to go t o
. .
the cou rt s and get an inj unction res tr ai ning the cor
n ere rs from demanding the stock .
I was glad I h a d bee n presen t a t t his mee t ing I t .
put info r m a tion into my h ands w hich I might b e

able to ma ke u s e of S o t he nex t mo r ning a l t ho u gh
.
,
i t was o n a S und a y I went to F isk at his o ffice i n the

,
37 9 TH E B O OK OF D A NI EL D R E W
S o I wal k ed into hi s o ffi ce and went stra i g h t to the
gist o f the matter I told F isk I w a s in a fix Those
. .
delive r ies of E rie stoc k that I h ad cont r acted t o

make — unluc kily I w a s unable to meet them .
I asked hi m t o hel p me out by n o t pressi ng me fo r

the s t ock j us t o n the tick o f the minute but to give ,
me a few more d ays .
He repl i ed in w hat I thought w a s a very unfeeling

manne r He s a i d that he w asn t running a b e n e v
.
’
olent i nstitution ; this Wall St reet business a s h e ,
unde r stood it was n t a d istri bution of Christmas

,
’
c a ndy or a Ch ar itable Relief Society I f I w a s .
squee z ed I must make the best of it .
“ ”
L ook h appy U ncle he ad ded ; look happy
, , .
O f course w e shall be under t he necessity of t a king

,
nearly all o f your earthly possessions B ut t here .
are othe r things in life besi des mon ey Grin a nd .
bear it I n fa ct I understand yo u h a ve been

.
,
‘
Bearing it $ And he r oared with l a ugh t er at h is
’
joke He leaned his big blonde bul k back in h is

.
,
ch a ir F isk w a s by t his t i me a s fa t a s a bu t cher s ’
dog a nd seeme d to enjoy t he t hing i mmensely .
B u t I wouldn t give up A ri ch person is li ke

’
.
a m a n up a tree liable to come down so m uch fa ste r

,
’
t h an he wen t u p I was afraid of becoming a poor

.
man once more S o now I p r essed my case home t o

.
F is k every w ay I knew I s a id th at to let me o ff .
didn t mean th at he d have to le t the r es t o f t he Be a rs

’ ’
o ff w h o were also c a ught in this corner I n fa c t .

,
h e woul d ma k e so muc h out of t h em t h at he cou ld

a ffo r d t o b e easy o n me My case I t r ied t o show .
,
hi m w a s di ffe r ent fro m the othe r s He an d I h a d

, .
been friends toge t he r a long t i me S u r ely i t woul dn t .

’
do to let any unpleasantness come between us now

He h a d all the m o ney he wanted any h ow ; and it ,
would be Ch r istianity i n him to l et me o ff I .
r em i nded hi m h ow the B ible says t h at w e oug h t

to be tenderly a ffectioned one to anothe r B ut he .
di d n t soften
’
.
“
Call Gould in said I I know J ay will have
, .
”
some heart even if you h aven t
, F i r st a l ong Jimmy ’
.
wouldn t do it By an d by he consente d He went

’
. .
i nto another room while J ay came i n I told hi m .
pretty much the s a me thing th at I h ad to l d Jimmy .
I didn t get any s atisfaction

’
.
F ina l ly they s aid they were t ir ed of discussing

the thing at th at t i me ; i f I wanted to I could come ,
a r ound again that nig h t at ten o clock S o I left ’

. .
I was there at ten o clock that nigh t good an d ’
p r ompt B ut I d i dn t get in to see them as soon as

.
’
I h ad expected They seemed to h ave a p r ess of

.
business on h a n d Thoug h t hey h a d t old me to

.
come at ten it was eleven o clock before I fi nally

,
’
w a s ad mit t ed from the a n t eroom into t h e o ffi c e

whe r e they were I started right in . .
“ “
S ee here boys s a id I
, I m not asking y o u
,
.
’
t o l ose any money yourselves All I wan t is fo r .
you to give that p r in t ing press anot h e r tu r n Print .

a few mor e convert i ble bon d s They won t co s t .
’
o u any money ; the E rie R ail r oad can easily a ffo r d

y
it You h ave the power to i ssue mo r e bonds i f yo u
.
want to I f you a r e caught at it I will buy the b o nds

.
,
fr om you i n cas h O r I ll b uy t h e bonds o f yo u

.
,
’
with t he understanding that I am not t o pay for

”
them un l ess they catch you at it ‘
B ut J i mmy all of a sudden seemed to become

ful l of p r ic k les in h is conscien ce .
”
Why U ncle h e r epl i e d and he p r etended to
, , ,
“
b e very se ri ous and so l emn as a hig h o ffi ce r o f the
,
E ri e R ail ro ad Co r poration I am swo r n to ho nou r ,
guard a n d defen d her i n t e r ests F a r be it fr o m me .

,
even at the sacred call o f frien d shi p to p r ove r ec r eant ,
to my solemn obligation They w h o pass t o the .
”
h a r ming and despoiling o f the E r ie R ailroad ,
“
an d he placed his fat hand ove r h is h eart must ,
”
pass fi r st ove r my dead body .
J ay grinned wh i le Ji mmy was go i ng throug h al l

th at s t u ff B u t I di dn t I di dn t see any joke i n i t
.
’
.
’
.
I tol d them th a t I w oul d pay as h ig h as 3 pe r cent .
for t he loan of thi rty o r fo rty thousand s h a r es fo r

fift een days I sai d : Yo u can call o n me an d I ll
.
,
’
wri t e my ch eck fo r a plump h un d r ed thousand

doll a rs I f t h at isn t a reasonable profit fo r you w h at
.
’
,
”
is P B u t t hey refused t o listen .
Then I ch a nged my t a ctics I sai d how I h adn t .

’
come t here merely a s a beggar ; t hat I h a d it in my

power to do a favou r to them a s well as to as k one .
able piece o f news I h ad given t h em And now .
,
“
s ai d I I h ave done my part Are you go i ng to do
,
.
you r s ?
“
Couldn t think of i t s ai d J ay
’
Dr ew we ve , .
,
’
got you just wh ere we want you You l l h ave to .

’
p o ny u p
“
Boys sa id I don t you d ri ve m e t oo fa r o r
, ,
’
I ll fight b ack I know a whole lot ab o ut you

’
. .
You know during t h e wh o l e o f o ur O t h e r fights I

objected to ever gi ving my a ffi davit B ut I swea r .
I wi ll do you all the ha r m I can if you d on t h e l p ,

’
me i n this time of my great need S o hel p me .
Heaven $ if you don t let me out of t h is corne r I ll

’ ’
go befo r e t he courts and make an a ffi d av i t telling all

”
about ou r ol d de a ls and show yo u up , .
“
I t s a h a r d winter sai d F isk when one wol f
’
,
’
eats a nother And yo u woul d have to give away

.
on you r self t o o Yo u were wi t h us h and and g l ove

, .
, .
I n fa ct you were in i t before we commenced

,
.
“ ” “
I t don t m a ke a ny di fferen ce sai d I
’
Im , .
’
willing to make a clean b r east of the whole thing .
I will hew to the line let t he chi ps fa ll where they ,
wi ll F or I am despe r ate I f you put th at E rie

. .
stock u p I am a r uined m a n
,
“ ”
D an D rew s a id Ji mmy yo u a re t he l a st man
, ,
in t he wo r ld to whine over any posi t ion in which you

”
may find you r self i n E rie .
I didn t a nswer b a ck I didn t s e e any use of

’
.
’
d r agging out t h e ta l k It was a lready one o clock .

’
.
I n fact t h ey t h emse l ves we r e p l a i n l y s ho wi n g me

,
t h at they wanted t h e inte r view b ro u g ht to an end .
I ro se t o my feet I t oo k my h at I said j ust t h is :

. .
”
Gentlemen I wi l l bid you good night
, .
J ay g r i nned so wide it was almost a laugh

a bout as nea r a laugh I guess as th at graveya r d , ,
fa ce of h is could get As to Jimmy he bus t out in

.
,
a ro a r I di dn t take any notice I left th em an d

’
. .
passed o ut .
It s a so rry colt th at will kick its own d a m I

’
.
felt all t h e mo r e so r e a t th e unfeeling way in which

G o ul d an d F is k we r e t r eating me in this matte r ,
beca u se I had been their foster parent so to s peak ,

.
Wh en they came into Wall S t r eet a s yea r lings I ,
h ad taken them u p h ad showed them how to make

m o ney And n o w fo r them to tu r n on me in my
.
,
old age an d st r i p me in this way w a s an unth an kful ,
t h ing t o do It was li ke a ma r e of mine once th at

.
,
o t a stone in he r foot It was h urting her and was

g .
,
like t o lame he r for life S o I got o ff an d started .

,
t o hel p her As I was bending over the hoof and

.
t rying t o dig the stone out she reached down and bit ,
me in the seat I remember i t made me very sore

.
t oward s her this ung r ateful act of hers S o in the .
present case I felt I h a d never seen a more u n gra t e

.
ful pai r of men th an Ji m F is k and J ay Gould .
B ut it was no ti me to nurse feelings Things h ad .
t o be done and very q uick too The S a bb a th D a y

, , .
w a s already at an end $I was ver y sorry t h a t

. I had
been forced to desecrate the d ay As I was going .
h ome th at night fr om F is k s o ffi ce I felt myself a ’
guilty and h ell deserving sinne r and h ave as ked

-
,
s ince to be forgiven for b r eaking th at L o r d s ’
d ay $ .
After a sho r t sleep I got u p th e next mo r ning an d

,
s e t to wo r k I was in r e a lly a tighte r fix th an I h a d

.
b een the d a y befo r e Because since I h ad give n

.
,
away o n my partners i n the Bea r crowd they were ,
down on me And it h adn t helped me any with

.
’
F is k and Gould either I was now between t w o

, .
fi res so to s peak I w a s sorry I h a d told those two

,
.
men anyt h ing at a l l of ou r plans T h ey h ad pre .
tended that they didn t care be a ns for the inform a’
tion Just th e s ame they used it Befo r e w e coul d

. .
get o u t ou r inj unction they u p a n d went t o J udge,
B a r n a r d before he was out of bed and got an inj u n c

tion against us I n w a r it s always an advant a ge
.
’
to attack fi r st I n the case of l a wsuits to get o u t

.
,
an inj unction first is p a rticul a rly helpful ; it pu t s

the par ty th at comes o u t next with an injunction in ,
the light of mere qui bblers an d obstructionists ;

an d they don t h ave a st a nding with eithe r court o r
’
j ury .
Now it w a s a case of fight it out to a finish We .
t ried t o ge t F isk and Gould ousted from their o ffi ce ,
and t h e E rie Ra ilro a d placed i nto t he hands of a

receiv er I went befo r e the court as I h ad tol d
.
,
them I would and tried to hurt them by making

,
37 8 TH E BOOK OF D A N I EL DRE W
to do something I wen t onto the marke t a nd t ri ed
.
to buy E ri e I o ffere d any pr i ce It w a s an awful

. .
fix Al l the oth e r B ears were li kewise t ry i ng to

.
b uy The p r ice went up li ke sixty B etween

. .
Mon day and Wednesday the p r ice j u mped fr om 4 7

to 5 7 And I co u l d n t get i t even at th at figu r e
.
’
.
I f t hat steame r fr om E ngland woul d only co m e $

B ut she co u ldn t possibly a rr ive unti l t h e thing would
’
be ove r By T h ur sday afte r noon ou r buy i ng h ad

.
fo r ced t h e stock up to 62 This w a s at tw o o c l ock .

’
.
At a q ua r te r t o three t he stock wo u l d h ave to be

delivered I t hough t I wa s a goner
. .
Just th en a st r ange thing happened Quee r .
figures were seen coming i n t o B r oad S t r eet

tailors fr om uptown boot make r s small cig ar ,
-
,
dealers and t he li ke E ach o f them had one o r more

, .
ten sh a re cer t ificates o f E ri e in hi s inside pocket

-
,
which he now o ffe r ed for sale The thing wa s soon .
explained S ome time befo r e an issue of E rie

.
,
stock h a d been pu t ou t in ten sha r e ce r tifica t es -

.
N o t hing bu t s t ock prin t ed in t en sh a r e ce r tifica t es -
is sent the oce a n to L ondon I t h ad been .
calcul a ted by F isk a nd Gould the r efore th at t h i s , ,
par t icula r issue h a d been bough t by E nglish in ve s

to r s and was s a fe a cross t he wa t er They h ad ta ken
, .
account o f all t h e res t of the supply on t he marke t ,
excep t thi s t en share issue N ow W e le a rned an d

-
.
,
it wa s a j oyful surprise t hat a good number of th ese

,
ten sh ar e certificates h ad been q uietly bought up a t

-
th e time by sma ll b uye r s on t h is s i de —cle r ks ,
bar bers shoe dea l e r s and s o fo r th ; an d now were

, ,
being dragged out o f thei r ho ar ding p laces by th e

h igh prices w e we r e o ffering .
This h elp a ppea r ed none t o o soon I g r abbed at .
every ten sha r e certificate th a t w a s o ffe r ed Jimmy

-
.
a nd his black faced partner saw my move Th ey

-
.
trie d to h ead me off by themselves snatching up

these new o ffe r s so I couldn t get them I t w a s a n
’
.
exciti ng time o n the fl o o r of th e E xch ange They .
did succeed in a bsorbing much o f what wa s o ffered .
I worked like a house a fire F ive m i nutes before .
closing t ime I got my shorts cove r ed B ut it had .
been at a n awful cost This sq uee z e in E r ie cost me

.
well nigh a mil lio n dollars in g o o d h a r d m oney

-
, .
B ut the loss did m e some good I t taught me .
once for a l l not to take up with n ew and st r ange

doct r ines S ome t i me later I met th e man w h o
.
h ad been with me in th a t ch urch se r v i ce up in th e

count ry I sa id t o hi m
.
“
D o you r e m em b e r th at new fangled notion th a t -
was brought o u t in the se r mon we heard some weeks

ago abou t t a king Go d in t o p a rtnershi p wi t h yo u i n
,
you r b usiness
He said y e s h e remembered i t very clea r
, , .
“ ” “ ”
Well said I the r e s nothing to it
, ,
’
.
X XX VI I
WAS sor ry at the t i me i t h appened t h at I

h ad b r oken with F isk and Gould When .
o u are in w i th an ins i de c l iq ue o f operators

y ,
you h ave the pick o f th e basket so t o speak Those

, .
o n th e outside ta ke w h at s left B ut I now see that

’
.
even to h ave st a yed i n with my o l d crowd wouldn t ’
h ave h elped fo r very long B ecause some th ing w a s

.
soon to h appen w hich would h ave smashe d up ou r

r ing a nyhow
, .
I t came on a S aturd a y in J a nuary I remem .
ber it because th e next d ay w a s S und a y An d I

,
.
thought h o w awful i t must be fo r Jimmy to be

h urled into E t erni ty o n t h at d a y with no time t o ,
s a y h is pr a yers a nd mind hi s soul We h a d fini s hed

.
b r ea kfa st t h at morning in my house in U n io n S q u a re ;

s
I w a s jus t abou t ge tt in g through w i t h morning

devo t ion s A co a ch drove u p t o t he door wi t h gre a t
.
s tyle There w a s a d a rkey co a chm a n t ogged o u t

.
,
like a mili t i a m a n at Gener a l Tr a ining ; th e horses

we r e a ll shiny wi t h h ar ness of br a ss a nd s t eel You d .
’
h ave t hought i t w a s some king payin g a roy a l visi t .
“
I n fa c t it w a s Prince E rie
,
.Jimmy now cam e
up the steps lively as a cricket and into t h e house
,
.
3 8 0
I d turn the thing over in my mi nd a nd would let
’
him know late r .
“ ”
S o l ong s a id he Thi nk i t ove r q u i ck
, . .
And he sta r ted to leave .
“
Goin g so soon s a id I S tay and v i sit a spell
. .
” “
N o said h e ; I ve got a b usy day ah ea d o f me
,
’
.
That N ed S tokes is putting me to an eve r la sting lot

of t r ouble B ut I ll trounce him yet yo u see i f I
.
’
, ,
”
don t ’
.
I tried to shame him out of ma king such a big

fuss ove r so little a thing a s a love sc r ap .
” “
B ut U ncle said he , it isn t a li t tle thing
, ,
’
.
Th at rat h a s come between me and my Jos i e .
Before he ca me along I h a d thi ngs my own w a y ove r

at her house I wa s the one w h o set he r up i n t h a t
.
house Befo r e she knew me she didn t have a decent

.
’
gown to h e r back ye s owed m o ney fo r h er r ent $ ,
There s no en d to th e c a sh I ve spent on th a t wom a n

’ ’
.
And for her to turn me down fo r th at young p o p in

jay is mo r e th a n I c a n s ta nd I f he w a s even o f som e .
account o n the S t r eet I wouldn t blame h er so much

,
’
.
B ut for her to t a ke up wi t h a little two b y four l ike - -
him put me out o f her house t o give him room

no self r espec t ing m a n could put up with i t And
-
.
I ll smash him for i t if I h a ve to keep at i t from n o w

’
t ill the cows come home I f Tweed w a s only b a ck .
in popul a r fa vour a s he w a s a little while a go I could ,

‘
get a couple of men from h is gang of D ead Ra b bi t s ’
t o help me with the job He went on to say how h e

THE B O OK OF D A NI EL DR E W 8
3 3
h a d been g ett i ng even w i th hi s Joseph i ne by buy i ng

h e r se r vants o ut o f h e r emp l oy as fast as sh e cou l d
hire them ; an d he sa i d h e h a d o th e r aces u p his
“
s l eeve wh ic h he h adn t p l ayed yet ’
I l l show th em .
’
”
a thing o r two befo r e I get t h r ough with this thing
,
.
” “
Have a ca r e J immy said I ; th o se l ight h ee l ed
, ,
-
women a r e bad people to deal w i th They r e devil s ’ ’
daughters eve ry last one of them

, .
“ ”
I guess I m fin ding i t o u t he rep l ied
’
There
, .
isn t any faithfu l ness in a car load of them What

’
-
.
do you thin k ? S he s suing me now fo r libel ’

.
Just at th i s m i nute I ve go t to get ove r to the York

’
ville Cou r t and fig h t it o u t B u t U ncle there s .

, ,
’
a s goo d fi sh i n t h e sea as eve r wa s ca ugh t You r .
Jim J ubilee J r isn t down and out j ust yet I m

, .
,
’
.
’
a s b u c k s o me as eve r Why a s soon a s I get r id o f

.
,
th at pai r of r ascals at th e Yorkville Co ur t to d ay -

,
I ve got an a ppointmen t wi t h a wo m an and her

’
d augh t er down at a hotel on B roadway Moth e r s .
do well not to h ang onto thei r d aughte r s too long .
D ead fish and daughters are b a d th i ngs to keep .
Glasses and l asses a r e bri tt le wea r U ncle h e , ,
called out a s h e wa s going through the door ; a n d

,
”
t h e fine r t hey a r e the more bri tt le
, By b y Th at .
-
.
w a s th e la st time I eve r s a w Jimmy alive Who d ’

.
have t hought that a man a s gay a s t h at w a s going

to h is dea t h ? Afte r h e d got t hrough with the ses
’
sion of the Yo r kville Police Cour t Jimmy went down ,
to the G r a nd C ent r a l Hotel o n Broadway He .

8
3 4 TH E B O O K O F DA N I E L D RE W
was going in a t the north entrance to m e et th e wom a n

and h er d a ughter t h a t he h a d s poken about J us t .
as h e go t inside th e doo r and was going u p th e sho r t

stairs to the parlour floor S tokes at th e t o p met him ,
and shot him wi t h a r evolve r I t hit him in th e .
belly S tokes th rew th e r evolver under a lounge

.
in o n e of th e p a rlou r s leading o ff fr om t he h all ,
and tried t o get a w a y B ut h e was caught and taken

.
,
to jail F is k sank whe r e h e stood and h ardly spoke

.
,
after that He w a s taken into one of the parlours

.
of the hotel He died the next mo r ning about ten

.
o clock
’
.
I t was a sad S unday for a ll o f us The th i ng h ad .
come so sud den Jimmy was the livest one in all

.
our crowd Al t hough I d h a d some di ff erences wi t h

.
’
hi m a li t tle wh ile before still I h ad n t a llowed t h at

,
’
to sour me against him He w a s o n e t h a t you .
couldn t s ta y m a d at for any leng t h o f time He h ad

’
.
a way o f ma king up wi t h you th a t you j ust coul d n t ,

’
resi s t And now that he w a s gone i t seemed a s

.
,
though the king pin h a d b een knocked o u t o f o u r

W a ll S t reet cliq ue I n fa ct Jimmy h imself h a d
.
,
seemed t o know how important he was He used .
to sl a p me o n the back h ard enough to ma ke my

“
teeth r a tt le a nd s a y : , U ncle you a nd J a y could n t ,
’
”
get along without Jim F isk and you know i t $ ,
I guess the others in our o l d crowd seemed t o feel

the loss j ust the way I di d Aft er J immy wa s d e a d .
J ay went down to the r oom in the hotel wh e r e h e lay ,

3 8 6 TH E B O OK OF D A N I EL DRE W
T h e pa pe r s o f cou r se h a d a whole lot to say w h e n
, ,
Fi sk wa s k il led and o u r c r owd th us b r oken u p .
T h e N ew Yo k Times the m o r ning afte r his death

r , ,
ca m e ou t i n a n edito ri al like th i s
We sh a ll p r obab ly b e th o u ght ve ry eccentri c

i f we su gg est a r eflect i on whic h must have occu rr ed
t o m any minds yeste r day — namely th a t th e o l d ,
fashioned theo ry $as some people ca l l i t$ about gu i lt

b ri nging w i th I t its ow n pun i sh m ent r eceives a sta r t
,
li ng illust r at i on I n the events of the past yea r The r e .
a r e not a few persons i n the world who thin k that

we a r e t o o m uch advanced i n k nowle d ge t o b e li eve
th at there i s a ny pe r s o n in th e unive r se g r eate r tha n
th at which we create ou r se l ves or which is tangible
,
enough to be touched ; and that a ll h u ma n ci r c u m

stances a re th e r esu l t of accident o r ch a nce Yet .
th e events o f the past yea r might well distu r b th e

conclusions o f t h ese philosophe r s The men o f .
wh om Fi sk w a s one seemed to be so s t ron g th at

noth i ng cou l d shake them They had wea l th a nd
.
power unlimi t ed ; they altered l a ws to sui t t h em

selves ; leaders o f society bowed down befo r e them .
The world h a d nothing more to o ffe r them B ut t o .
the a s t onish ment o f all men a nd as i t we r e i n a

,
moment the whi r lwind descends u pon them and

, ,
they a re swep t a way Thei r we a lth is gone ; their

.
names are become a b y word ; some of them ar e vag a

-
bonds on the fa ce o f t he earth ; o thers perish i n the ,
bitter l a nguage of Swift like poisoned ra t s in a hole

,
.
We s a y again t ha t i t is a n am a zin spec t acle and

g “
tho u gh some may continue to a ssert I t i s a l l c h a n c e
,
, ,
“ ”
a n d to c ry out , The r e i s no God the r e a r e othe r s
,
3 7
who will be i ncl i ned to ta k e a di ffe r ent v i ew of i t ,
and to go back to the simpl e r faith o f ea rli e r yea r s

th at somehow or othe r explain it h ow we will the , ,
sin of every man find s him o u t and the divine laws ,
are just in execu t ion whether we choose to a c k n ow l

,
e dge t heir existence o r not .
T h at editor bothered h is head more than the r e

was any use of to prove th at there s a God I
,
’
.
could have told him withou t his trying to fin d it out

,
i n suc h r ound about fashion I n my own life I ve .

,
’
experienced the guidings of Providence i n a way

too clear to be mis t aken — th a t is up to the time ,
when bad luck set in for me And even now when .

,
it isn t so well wi t h me a s i t used to be I try to trust

’
e ven where I c a n t see

’
F rom every stormy wind th at blows ,
F rom every swelling tide of woes ,
There is a c a lm a sure ret reat

, ,
Tis found beneath the mercy se a t

’
.
E ven in these later days of my life I h ave be en ,
sn atched out o f ruin sometimes by such close sh aves

th at I have h ad t o fa ll down on t o my marrow bones -
in t h a nkfulness Why I h ave come home at night

.
,
some t imes s o t uckered and down in th e mou t h I v ,

’
“
said the firs t thing on ge tt ing in t o t he house : We re
,
’
ruined D a n c k we re ruined $ I t s sure pop this

, ,
’ ’
t ime and I h a ve gone to bed wi t h my boo t s on

P ,
a n d wi t hout stopping t o undress I h a ve been th at ,

3 8 8 TH E B O OK OF D AN I EL DRE W
down hearted B ut in the morning o n getting u p
-
.
, ,
I d say :
’
Go out D a n c k and get the pa pe r We ll look

, , .
’
o u r fa te in the face .
And when he h ad b r ough t i t in and I had l ooked ,
ove r t h e stock q uotations I d h ave t o exclaim ,

’
“
We r e saved D a n c k we re saved afte r all $ Th at
’
, ,
’
”
fal l of tw o points does i t $
The way to keep your r elig i on i s not to be all th e

time a rg uing a bout God b ut just believe him I , .
don t see why just because N ed S tokes put th at

’
,
bullet into F is k s belly t h a t it proves anything one

’
way o r the othe r about religion A nd yet th e .

,
papers made it a big c a rd against u s They came .
o u t li ke this
I n eve ry bad m a n s l i fe there comes a moment

’
when the machinery of wrong h e h a s so laboriously

contrived seems to be going wrong ; when o n e aft er
another o f h is elabor a te combinations fails ; when the
building o f dishones ty o r cunning wi t h a ll it s ,
apparent completeness and splendour seems break ,
ing to pieces over his he a d He sees th a t i t is n O t .
man th at 1s defeating hi m It 18 some mysterious .
and higher Power .
These conspira t or s are now rounded u p The .
vas t we a l t h they h a d a ccumul at ed mel t ed a way like

the snow o f spring E ven their very n a mes bec a me
.
a proverb for r a scality S urely the young men .
w h o h ave been d azzled an d debauched by c a reers

o f fl a un t ing vice a nd open and gig a ntic fraud will ,
i ng as the U nited States and cautious people might
,
well a r gue th at if other companies were no t so p ro fl i

gate as the E rie Company there w a s nothing in ,
the natu r e of Ame r ican i nstitu t ions t o prevent them

fr om becoming so I ndeed the pictu r es d r awn by
.
,
N ew Yo r kers o f their L egisla t ure their Judici a ry , ,
and the mercantile doc t rines a nd p r ac t ices o f thei r

citizens were enough t o sober the most sangui ne
,
speculato r Wh atever the tru t h of these asse r tions

.
,
they could h a rdly be cont r adic t ed s o long as o n e o f

the chief enterp r ises o f the coun try involving mil ,
lions o f money w a s no t o r iously unde r t he man age

,
ment of a set o f swindlers befriended by a sus pecte d

,
legislature and a more th an suspected j u dici a ry .
Th at B r itish sheet seemed to h ave the i dea th at I

an d my c r owd should have se r ved in W a ll St r eet fo r
the good of the country $ That would be a p r e t ty
w a y to get along in a s t ock ma r ket deal $ I f a fellow
-
in a stock market dicker stopped to think fi r st h o w

-
i t was going to a ffect the coun t ry a t large he would ,
have his han ds so tied he wouldn t be a ble to move ’

.
The trouble wi t h editors is they see only the down ,
town side o f a man s life They don t see t he home

’
.
’
a nd religious side o f him I t woul d be a g r eat de a l

.
better if news p a pe r s would p a y a tten t ion to t h at

pa r t o f a man s life t h at is open a n d above the sur
’
face S tr aight trees c a n h ave crooked root s

. .
XXXV I I I
H O U GH far beyond the S c ri pture limits

by this time and lonesome because o f
,
Jimmy s deat h I w a s still able t o fin d

’
my way aroun d i n W a ll Street smart and h an dy

as J ay Gould himself ha d to allow F o r it was about .
this ti me th at I gave h im and Hen S mith t h a t sq uee z e

in E r ie which they won t forge t for some ti me
’
.
I s a w by my r eadi ng of t h e tape and from t h e

,
r eports t h a t came t o me around the S treet t h at J ay ,
and Henry were selling E rie fo r future delivery .
I calculated t h at they were overdoing t h e thing .
Bec a use at t h is ti me o u t of t h e seven hund r ed and

,
eig h ty t h ousan d sh ares of t h e capital stock of t h e

r oad fully seven hundred thousand shares were
,
held abroad S o with the help o f a Ge r man b anke r

.
, ,
I got control of the floating su pply of the stock here

i n the N ew York ma r ket Then I waited . .
Soon t he time to make their deliveries came a round .
The short o p e ra t o rs S m it h and Gould among the res t

, ,
w ere un able t o get the stock Then I set about

. .
I h a d a good holt on them I lo a ned th em the .
stock B ut it w as at a rate which milked them fine

.
a s a n t h ing
y .
“ ’
I ve k nown t h ose two boys said I to my broke r , ,
a good long time I guess we won t ch a r ge them

.
’
3 pe r cent a d ay . We will j.us t make it one and a h a l f .
They wil l give down fr ee r then and mo r e th an t h at , , ,
t h ey wil l feel bette r .
I t wasn t pity in me so much as good bus i ness

’
po l icy to set the rate a t o n e and a h alf i nstead o f

,
th r ee B ecause those two men J ay an d Hen we r e

.
, ,
so powe r ful th at if I d squee z ed them too t i ght

,
’
they might h ave gone into litigation a nd made it

h a r d fo r me to collect anything E ven as it was .
,
a cent and a h alf a day means a r a t e o f 600 per cent .
a yea r ; and th at s a decen t enough p r ofit fo r any

’
body And they had to pay i t I had t hose fellows

. .
by t h e scrooch o f the neck The way t hey squiggled .
to get loose made me ch uckle all over $I always .
did h ave a knack anyhow o f seeing the fun of the

, ,
thing $ An d j us t n o w they were squirmy enough

. .
B ut I he l d o n tight I n fac t I m a de th em squiggle

.
,
still mo r e ; fo r I wasn t th rough with this de a l yet

’
.
Afte r I d got the s t ock a ll lo a ned out I waited un t il

’
the moment was ri pe Then going down to th e .

,
S t r eet one mo r ning I issued orders to my broke r s :

,
Call in now al l of th a t stock th a t h a s been loaned

”
out .
I knew that so unlooked fo r a move would make -
a b i g how $ i n the S t r eet And in o r der no t to be .

,
peste r ed by the yells a nd cries of the operators

when they s u dden ly found themse l ves caugh t I ,
394 THE BOOK OF D A N I EL DRE W
L et s fo r get some of t he late unpleas antnesses
’
re —we ’
”
a bout even no w I reckon and sta r t ove r agai n
, , .
I was so r t of tickled at t he i dea o f g etting back into

partnershi p with him Gould had a way of making .
a success o f the th i ngs he went into I knew h im fo r .
a good mouse r one that neve r misses S o I sai d

, .
I d go in with him We agreed t o buy E rie s t ock

’
.
and hold it fo r a ri se .
The thin g went a l ong for a while smooth as a pa n ,
o f mil k The p r ice of t he stoc k got u p t o 5 6 That

. .
was hi gh wate r mark compa r ed w it h what E rie

-
h ad been se l ling fo r a little while befo r e With .
th at level r eached a lo t of sha r es came dumping ,
onto t he ma r ke t I n order t o keep t he price up I

.
,
h ad to take them I didn t know at the time t h a t it

.
’
was Gould who w a s unlo a ding on me I trus t ed .
the man I t oo k a ll the sha r es that were o ffered

.
,
and locked them u p i n my safe .
It was a bout this time that Gould came ove r

to my o ffice and p a id me anothe r v i s i t He sai d .
th a t t he ma r ket in E rie from wha t he h a d no t iced ,
in reading the tape seemed t o be soft ening most ,
unexpectedly $J ay h ad so innocent a w a y of s a y
.
i ng it th at I now believed he w a s as much worried

,
a s I ove r the sag in E rie $ .
Tell yo u D an wha t I sus pect sai d he

, , Mos t , .
l i ke as n o t the S tree t h a s go t onto ou r E r ie move a nd

h a s begun t o figh t u s We must th r ow t hem o ff .
th e s cent Wh a t do you s a y to going in on a side

.
T HE B O OK OF D A N I EL DRE W 3 95
p l ay i n No r t h weste r n fo r a wh i l e as a k i nd of
‘ ’
”
b l ind for o u r E r ie movements ?
The i dea sort o f took h old o f me I kn ew t h at .
w a s get t ing rich h a nd ove r fist and so felt I

J ay ,
could trust his j udgment Besi des he put up some

.
,
good a rgu ments He showed h ow the pr i ce o f North

.
western stock w a s w ay above wh at it ought to be

’
.
“ ” “
You remember D an s ai d he h ow not ve ry
, , ,
long ago th a t fa rmer o u t in W i scons i n gave a thou

s a n d sh ares o f Northwestern stock fo r a sh angh a i
‘ ’
rooster ; and now it s selling cle a n up at 7 5 It s

’
.
’
a r idiculous price We can go in sell the market

.
,
short at th at figure a nd pl a y fo r at least a ten po i nt

,
-
”
d rop i n the next th r ee w eeks .
I s a i d I guessed it was s a fe to go short of No r th

”
western ; and th a t it might tickle the boys to speck
ilate for a s pell in something new S o I sent word .
to my b r okers a n d they put out a line of shorts i n

“ ”
N o r wes t to t he extent of twen ty thous and s h ares
’
.
” “
I ought then to h ave watched th a t Nor west ’
deal mo r e closely than I di d Because as I foun d .

,
out afterwards at the very time th a t Gould was

,
getting me to go short o f it h e w a s engineering a,
pool t o B ull th at s a me i dentical stock F or a repo r t .
w a s around th at V a nderbilt w a s a fter th e road i n

order to ge t a wes t ern connec t ion t h r ough to Chic a go ,
a nd J a y w a s giving out to th a t B ull clique o f h i s th at

it was t herefore a good t ime to operate fo r a rise
, , .
I didn t know these fa c t s I w a s so b usy watching

’
.
our camp a ign in E r ie a nd t rying to suppor t t he,
market there t h at I didn t p a y hardly a ny at tention

,
’
“
to Nor west ’
U n t il one d a y
.
— ir was F riday I ,
might h ave known some t hing w a s going to go wrong

“
as I w a s watching the t icker Nor west j u mpe d ,
’
up from 8 3 to 95 in a single hour Then it bounde d up .
to par d r opped back to 90 and fi n a lly went to 1 05

, , .
E ven then I didn t reali z e h o w tig h t the co r ne r

’
was I ought to h ave covered my sho r ts without

.
a moment s del a y ’
— cu t short you r losses an d let
your profits run is the rule Bu t I st ood to lose so
,
.
much at t h e 1 05 figure that I dec i ded to wait an d,
hope for l ower levels S o I kept up a good show

.
o f s pirits Th at S at urd a y a ft ernoon some o n e s a i d

.
“
to me i n a teasing way : U ncle N or t hwestern is
, ,
”
rising .
“ ”
R ising ? I r eplied Why it s r iz $
.
,
’
B ut though I m a de believe I w a sn t scared I w a s ’
as une a sy a s a to a d o n a h o t shovel .
Hen S mith w a s a lso a Bear wi t h me in this Nor t h

we s tern movement He w a s short even more sh a res
.
th an I He knew o f some doings in the E rie Ra il

.
ro a d Comp a ny in t he l a s t few months th at would

look b a d for Gould if t hey c a me ou t S O he wen t t o .
the president of the E rie Ra ilroad a n d go t him t o

obt a in a w a rr a nt fo r Gould s a rrest We c a lcul a ted ’
.
t h a t if Gould could be put behin d t he bars it woul d ,
ta ke from t he S t reet t he m a n w h o w a s suppor t ing

”
t he Northwestern m a rket a n d s o cause i t to d r op
“
, .
they fell due and such like would be p u t o u t The n
, , .
I though t of repudiating the cont r acts my brokers

h ad made in my name I figured th at my brokers .
were mo r e able to carry these losses t h a n I w a s in

my p r esent cond i tion But the t r ouble here w a s
.
,
I myself was fi n a ncially inte r ested in the very firm

o f b rokers th at h a d d o ne t h e work F or when I .
came b ack in t o the S t r eet after my w ar with Van ,
d e rb il t and my few month s o f r eti r ement I h ad ,
become a speci al p artne r i n t h e br oke r age hous e

o f K enyon Cox 86 C o by pay i ng th r ee h und r ed
,
.
,
thous a nd do l l ar s into the business S o if I fel l .

,
down on t h em now I wou l d r eally be falling down

,
on myself .
The S atu r day came t o an end wit h out any result .
T h e next d ay S und a y was a h a r d o ne At t h e price

, , .
at which the stock then stood I would l ose over t w o ,
million doll ar s ; and I could see no way ou t It w a s .
a long dark d a y When the E xch ange opened

,
.
Mond a y morning I t r ied Gould a gain but wi t hout

, ,
any success I made up my mind I d h ave to s t and

.
’
a loss a nd set a bout to m a ke i t as sm a ll a s possi ble

, .
I borrowed a p a r t o f t he twen ty thousand sh a res I

was short I a lso got hold of some converti ble
.
bonds which could be turned in t o s t ock I n this .
w a y I made a set tl ement It w a s a t about 1 2 5 . .
The di fference be t ween $ 8 3 an d $ 1 2 5 was the ,
a mo u nt of my loss on every sh are $ And there were

twenty t housand of those sha r es $ My loss w a s ove r
THE B O OK OF D A N I EL D R E W 3 99
t hr ee q ua r te r s o f a million dol l ars T h e p r ice o f

- .
t h e stock t h en sank to 75 B ut th i s didn t do me.

’
any goo d I ha d been chiselled o u t of my good

.
money It didn t make any di fference to me then

.
’
i f the stock s an k to nothing .
Yo u don t get much sympa t hy i n Wall S t reet when

’
you stu b your toe All I could hear w a s snickers

.
,
wherever I wen t About th is time also t he news

.
, ,
pa pers let loose o n me ag a in O n e o f them ca me .
out like this
We ca nnot a ff ect to h ave any sympathy w i t h

th ese men a n d lea st of all with D rew H e h a s
, .
been o n e of t he curses o f t he market for years pa st .
I f h e h a s now received such a blo w as will r esult in

hi s being driven from the S treet a l t ogeth er no o n e ,
wi l l be sorry fo r him .
D a niel D rew does not ca re a fi g what people

th in k a bout him o r wh a t t h e newspa pers say He
, .
ho l ds t h e honest people o f the world t o be a p a ck of

fools an d you might a s well try to scratch the b a ck
,
of a r h inoceros with a pin a s t o scratch h is min d

i f he h a s o n e by preaching a bout mor a ls When .
h e h a s been unusu a lly lucky in h is tr a de of fleecing

o t her men h e se tt les a ccoun t s wi th h is conscience
,
by subscri bing tow a rds a new ch a pel or a t t en ding

a pr a yer meeting — a s a sh a rper he is undeni a bly
a S U C CE S S .
Th e mud thrower w h o wro t e th at s a id one t rue

-
t h ing th a t I m n o t fid ge t y a s t o wh a t people t hin k of

,
’
4 00 THE B O OK OF D A N I EL D R E W
me It was the loss of t he m o ney that h urt Gould
. .
wa s the pe r son I fel t sore a gain st When h e w a s .
“
getting me to go into that N orthweste r n dicker h e ,
wa s nice a s anything That s the w ay w i th a .

’
t r eache r ou s man — to come u p to me holding a

kni fe behin d his back smile i n my face till he got
:
close u p and t h en dig me in the guts $

,
Goul d an d his c r owd tried to give o u t th at V a n

“ ”
d e r b il t w a s i n w i th t h em in th e N o r thwestern
deal B u t the C ommodore came out w i th a plump
.
’
Taint so
The r ecent co r ner in Nor thweste r n h a s ca used

some con side r a b l e exci t ement i n Wal l S treet and ,
has called fo r th much comme n t fr o m the press My .
n a me h a s been associ a ted wi t h othe r s i n connec ,
tion with th e s peculations and g r oss inj us t ice h a s

,
been done me the r eby I beg leave the r efo r e to s a y

.
, , ,
once for all th at I h ave n o t h ad eithe r direc t ly

, ,
or indirectly the slightest connection w i th or inter

,
est in the matte r I h a ve h a d b ut one b usiness

.
tr a nsaction w ith M r Gould in my life I n July

. .
,
1 8 68 I sold h im a l o t o f stock for which h e pai d me

, , ,
a nd the p r ivilege of a c a ll for a fu r the r l o t which ,
h e also sett l ed S i nce then I h ave h a d no t hing to

.
do wi t h him in any w a y wh at eve r ; no r do I mean

ever to h ave except it be to d efen d myself I h a ve
, .
,
besides a lways advised a ll my friend s t o h ave noth

,
ing to do with him in a ny business transac t ion I .
c a me t o this conclusion after taking particular notice

of his co u ntenance .
C VA N D E R B I L T . .
Th ey gathered a t once th at a B ull movement i n
”
O sh kosh stock w a s unde r way As always h appens
.
in such cases they told th ei r fr iends A buying

,
.
m o vement st a rted in When they st a rted to buy

.
I started to se l l I unloaded on th em at a good

.
”
figure a lot of O sh kosh th at I was h olding at th at
“
time and th a t I h a d fea r ed I would n t be a ble

,
’
to get r i d of They did n t l a ugh at me after th a t

.
’
.
They s a w now h ow i t fee l s to be pa r ted fr o m g oo d

m one y .
XXX I X
RE P O RT E R came to me one a fte r n oo n i n

my o fli c e w hi ch w a s n ow in White ly and
,
N ei l son s at E xch ange Place He sai d

’
,
.
the E r ie R a ilr oa d wa s going to sue me fo r the sev en

m illion do ll a r s I ca rr ied with me when I scooted
“ ”
fr om Van de r bil t to Fo rt Taylo r in Je r sey City .
The news sca r ed me .
“ ”
S u e me ? I said What can the C ompany
.
s u e me for ? Why I h aven t been in t h at concern

,
’
fo r fou r yea r s $ I finished up the r e as t r ea surer ,
and sq ua r ed up al l the acco u nts befo r e I left I .
don t see why they want to sue me

’
.
“
Mr D r ew th ey a r e a bout t o sue y o u fo r one
.
,
h u nd r ed thousand sh a r es o f stock wh ich y o u issued ,
”
they clai m i l l egitimate l y
, .
“ ”
Wel l n ow $ I a n swe r ed
, I don t see wh at th ey .
’
wan t t o do it for I c r edi t ed the Com pany wi t h

.
the proceeds o f th e sa l es a nd un less it had the ,
money at the time it would have b ust ; for th e fact is ,
the road wa s just dead b r oke I t s q ueer th at they .

’
sho uld pitch u pon me .
I made be l ieve th at I wasn t bothe r ed by the news ’

.
Just the sa m e it wo rr ied me considera ble L aw

, .
4 03
suits a r e expens i ve things no matte r wh i ch way ,
th ey turn out ; a nd then t o o even afte r the cost of, ,
th e suit I mig h t lose in t h e end

, .
This suit by the E r ie C ompany alone would n o t

h ave been so b ad B u t my o w n flesh and blood
.
now began to get at me When my son in law d ied .

- -
,
he h ad made me one of the t ru stees of the p r ope r ty

w hi c h h e l eft to h i s ch il d r en I h ad c ont ri ved after
.
a spell to become t h e so l e t ru stee of th i s p r ope r ty .
B u t now my grandch i ld r en we r e gett ing i nto a com

p l aining state o f mind They s a id I had n t invested
.
’
the money a s the terms of the deed of trust req ui r ed

, .
Th ey didn t stop to thin k that by u s 1n g the money

’
in my Wall S treet s p e c k il a t io n s I stood the chance ,
of ma king a lot more th an j ust the scrawny 6 pe r

cent you get wh en yo u put money away i n a per
.
manent investment I tried to explain thi s to them

.
,
but th ey wouldn t listen Th ey beg a n lawsui t s

’
.
against me in t he open cou r ts By a nd b y th e .
S upreme Cour t dismissed me from my posi t ion a s

trustee of my own gra n d c h il d re n s prope r ty an d ’
put a nother person in my pl a c e This got noised .
a bro a d in t h e S t ree t a nd h urt me a good de a l in my

,
“
Wall S t reet d ic ke rin gs People s a i d : His fl esh .
”
a n d blood don t run a ny risk wi t h U ncle Da n l
’ ’
.
O n t he t o p of my o t her t roub les c a me t he Panic

of 73 S t ocks slum ped righ t a nd left D ividend s
’
. .
fell o ff on a ll my inves t men t s Now it wa s h ard .
fo r me some t imes to get money fo r my liv i ng

4 06 THE B OOK OF D A N I EL D R E W
down on th at fi rm a nd leave i t to it s fate ; an d th a t
t herefo r e they we r e not go i ng t o be caugh t n a pping .
S o they b r ought fo r eclosu r e p r oceedings again st

it a nd th e fi r m went to the wall Th e b r oke ra ge
,
.
house of K enyon Cox 8: C o wa s tied up with oth e r

,
.
big houses in Wall S t r eet S o when th i s firm fell

.
,
it sent other houses tumbl i ng hea d long Th us th e .
p a nic started in o nce m or e an d this time in goo d

,
e ar nest Th e country was j ust th en l ike a pa tient

.
t rying to r ecove r fro m a h a rd feve r an d now h a d ,
su ffe r ed a rela pse D octors say th at a r elapse is

.
worse th an th e fi r st sickness because t h e c o n s t it u

,
tion doesn t h a ve the st r ength th a t it h ad at fi r st

’
.
Anyhow th at seemed to be the ca se with th e count ry

,
.
The men of means who h ad got unde r the m a r ket

befo r e and h a d been supporting i t got discou r aged ,
wh en this second c r ash c a me a nd gave u p trying ,

.
House afte r ho u se tumb l ed E ach t u mble l eft th e

.
houses next to i t weaker S oon a panic set in which

.
spread all ove r the country .
As the p a nic incre a sed I felt a s though I h a d

,
kicked ove r a bee hive Th e w a y curses came b uzz

-
.
ing aroun d my e a rs now w a s a c a u t ion They lai d .
the whole t hing a t my door s a id th at thous a nd s

of merch a n t s a n d farmers a nd people generally wh o
were being ruined in this Panic of 7 3 a n d th e poor ’
,
people who su ffered so in the win t e r th at followed ,
would lay th eir woes to me fo r all time to com e .
’
B e c ause I at a c r itical time in th e country s fi r st
,
9
r ecove ry h ad given th at r ecove ry a set b ack an d s o

,
-
s ta r ted the fever r aging worse th an befo r e .
B ut they said those things th r ough ignorance .
They didn t re a liz e th e position I h a d been in th a t s

’
,
’
a l l Wh en my neigh bour s house is a b urning I

.
’
-
,
haven t time to help h im

’
I m looking to my own ’
r oof When I st a rted in on th a t scheme to get

.
my p r ope r ty out of my own name and so b r ought ,
a bout th e fa ilure of K enyon Cox 8 : C o a nd those

, .
,
oth e r failures th a t followed I was in a tight fix, .
A broken shi p h a s to get to l a n d somehow People .
“
said : D an D rew i s willing to b urn a house down ,
in order to roa st a few eggs Th ey didn t stop to

.
’
thin k that wh e n a m a n i s st a rving h e ll do mos t ,

’
any t hi ng fo r food .
Afte r the down fall of the brokerage house in which

I h ad been general p a rtner I ha d to sc ra tch a round
,
good a n d lively to keep from going under I h a d .
put my house on U nion S q uare o u t o f my own name .
N ow I got it b a ck a n d pl a ced a mo r tgage o n it A .
mortg age on hi s house is a bad thing for a W a ll

S treet ope r ato r beca use the news le a ks out a nd h urts
,
his credit in t he S tree t li ke O l d S a mbo B ut I h a d .
to do it Also I told t he t r ustees of Dr e w Theo

.
,
logic a l S emin a ry t hat I couldn t p a y a ny longer tha t

’
a yea r interes t on the endowment I d ’
p r omi sed $I wished then that I h a d h a nded ove r

.
the full q u ar ter million when I h a d h a d i t $

-
.
By and by I s a w I d h ave to do something in

’
order to get cash My c r editors we r e nagg i ng me
.
on every side When a t r ee is fa llen eve ry man

.
,
goes at it w ith hi s hatchet S o a ft er the P a n i c of .

,
’
73 wa s fina l ly ove r I set to wo,r k The market .
by th is time ha d got set t led Money w a s coming into.
the S treet once more so th a t there seemed a chance

,
t o get some of it I planned a dicker which if suc

.
,
c e s s fu l would b r ing me in a fine penny

, I g a thered .
a roun d me a few men I went in to sell s t ocks fo r

.
”
a fal l I put out a l ar ge n umber of Ca lls i n
.
“
W a bash O f l at e years I had been doing q u i te a
.
“ ” “
business anyhow in Puts a n d C a lls because
, , ,
you can turn over your c a pit a l more q uickly in th a t

way th a n by buying a nd selling s t ocks out r ight .
I figured now th at if I could put out a big enoug h

line of shorts I would know how to bring a bout
,
a slump in p r ices at the right time Thi s wa s .
my p l an : I wou l d sel l stocks fo r a decline Then .
I d co r ne r t he gold ma r ket a nd th us b r ing to pa ss

’
the very decline in v a lues t hat I w a s hoping fo r

seeing t h at when money i s high s t ocks go low , .
” “
I r emembered F isk a nd Gould a nd Bl a ck F rid a y , .
There w a s Belden for in st a nce Billy Belden

,
.
had made some money in th a t fo r me r gold s p e c kil a

tion by i ssuing t hose orders to F isk which allowed
F isk to go ah e a d and m a ke big con t racts in the
gold m a rke t in Belden s n a me and so esca pe a ny
’
legal li a bili ty a g a in st himself when set t ling u p time -
s hould come I calculated now th a t w i t h the more

.
be able to meet th em Wh en the day at last arrived .
I didn t feel that I wanted to go down to Wall S tree t

’
an d look that mob of angry b r oke r s in t he eye and ,
h ave them shake thei r fi sts in my face S o I stayed .
home an d sent wo r d down that I was sick B ut

, .
this didn t help matte r s so very much beca use my

’
c r editors in the S treet c o mplained th at if I was

really in ea r nest to take ca r e of my cont r acts I wou l d ,
h ave a ppointed some b r o k e r to r ep r esent me while ,
I wa s away sick .
“ ”
L umbago is a good disease to tell people you ve ’
go t when y o u don t want to go down to the ma r ket

,
’
.
Because it s a dise a se th at is serious enough to keep

’
you home and yet will le t you be u p a n d around the

,
house if there i s any t hing you wa nt to a ttend to .
About noon th a t d a y I sent a telegr a m down to ,
D ickinson 86 C o from my home telling h ow I wa s

.
, ,
t o o we a k to c o me down to the S treet and a ski ng ,
t hem t o no t ify R obinson Ch ance 8 1 C o my regul ar , .

,
” “
brokers t o ta ke care of my Calls
,
Thi s tele .
gr a m didn t help a s much a s I h a d hoped I n fa ct

’
.
,
it go t me in still deeper My brokers refused t o .
” “
ta ke t he responsi bili ty o f ta king care of my Calls
wi t hout a wri tt en a nd signed order from me in my ,
ow n h a n dwri t ing And the S tree t s a i d I ha d

.
e mployed this r ound a bou t w a y o f notifying my

brokers in order to l ay down on t hose brokers a n d
,
repudi a te my contracts when t he time shoul d

a rrive F ur t hermore th e S tree t now got no t ice
.
,
THE B O OK OF D ANI EL DRE W 4 1 1
th at my clique to co r ne r g o ld an d dep r ess va l ues

h ad b een b r oken S o the price o f gold now came
.
t u mbling headlong .
The next d a y before t he opening of business I

, ,
h ad to go down t o B ro a d S t ree t a nd meet my

contr a cts The b r eak of the gold r ing brought a
.
good deal of h appiness to merchants whose busi ,
ness had s u ffe r ed by t he tightness of money which

”
my mani pu l ati o ns in t h e Go l d R oo m h ad made .
B ut it h a dn t b r ought any happiness t o m e I n

’
.
fact the who l e a ffa ir instead of help i ng m e as I

, ,
h ad hoped it would hu r t me conside r able I t r ied

, .
to give out t h at I h adn t been mixed u p in it B ut ’

.
s o me of t he p a pers c a me o u t the next day and

cha r ged me with it point bl a nk in s pite of anythi ng -
,
I could s ay F o r instance o n e o f them c a me out

.
,
l ike this
It appea r s t h at D aniel D rew is at t h e bottom
of the p r esent attempt to force u p the p r ice o f gold .
We should h ave though t that D anie l D rew might ,
at his age h ave devoted what remains o f his mind

,
to some bet t er pu r pose Two or three weeks a go .
t he rumou r t h at he w a s eng a ged in t his mischievous

work w a s widely circul a ted a nd we sen t a repor t er
to him to m a ke I nquiries o n the subjec t Wh a t he .
said on t h at occ a s i on w a s a s follows :

“
My boy I ve re a lly no in t eres t in t his thing
,
’
.
S ome folks s a y I m t he le a der o f t he pool bu t I

’
h aven t anything t o do wi t h it I a lmost never h a ve

’
.
a ny gold an d a t t he present t ime don t o w n a dollar

,
’
4 1 2 TH E B O OK O F D A N I EL DRE W
of it It s a l l folly ; why won t they let me a lone
.
’ ’
?
I m trying to run along ple a santly wi t h everybody

’
in the S t reet ; but I can t F irst the Bulls ch ar ge

’
.
me wi t h being a B ear a nd then the B ears s ay I m

,
’
a B ull They shouldn t I m only trying t o make

.
’
.
’
a few dol lar s in a quie t e a sy way and would like to

, ,
d o it without being bothered He r e s my brokers ’

. .
They ll tel l you I haven t anything to do wi t h t he

’ ’
thing as k em I won t keep them from telling

’ ’
”
the truth They know a ll about me
. .
The r e a r e two things which this anci ent per

son ought to know wi t hout our telling him O n e .
is t h at i t is ve ry wrong to t ell lies ; t he othe r th a t it ,
is a very scandalous piece of work to deli berately

try to pa ra lyze t he tr a de of t he country It a ppe a rs .
from o u r money ar t icle t his morning that t he people

” “
who h a ve been in wi t h D aniel Dr ew in this
s cheme are likely to burn their fingers We hope .
t hey will At such a t ime as t his when the s pring

.
,
trade is opening under favour a ble circumst a nces ,
an e ffor t to cre a te a gold panic is a bout a s vile an

ac t a s it would be to se t fire to a house The vener .
able D aniel will come to a very bad end if he goes on

in t his way much longer .
B ut I was glad to see th a t I h a d been a ble t o ge t

at le a st o n e o f t he p a pers to pu t some credi t in th at
report of sicknes s which I d sen t down from my ’
house Bec a use a ft er I go t b a ck t o t he S t ree t the

.
, ,
N ew Yor k S u n came o u t wi t h t his edi t orial :
U ncle
D aniel D rew wen t down in t o W a ll S t reet
yesterday mo r ning in a co a ch His fa ce w a s worn .
4 4
1 TH E B OO K O F D A N I EL DRE W
stocks as fine as anything ; on ly I couldn t get enough ’
men of means to go in partne r ship w i th me People .
shut their do or s against a setti ng sun With the .
b r eaking up now of my go ld c li q ue I was b r o u ght

pretty low .
I trie d to keep my financi al conditi o ns secret .
Bec a use when once a heifer is sic k and l aying down

, ,
t he hounds wil l get afte r he r and make he r all t he

sicke r As l ong as yo u ho l d y o u r head up your
.
,
rivals are scared o f you an d l et you a l one The

,
.
moment t hey see yo u s i c k ening t h ey pounce o n y o u

,
like crows around a dead cow I t r ied to keep i t .
dark that my property was me l t i ng away B ut the .
r eporters got wind of i t $I t s wel l nigh i mpossible

.
’
-
t o keep a ny t hi ng from those boys nowadays When

$ .
the go ssi p which is going on a bout yo u in t he S t reet

gets into the public sheets you re in a b a d c a se
,
’
.
Th a t very p a per which h ad put some credit in the

r epor t of my sickness was ve ry unfeeling when t he
,
gold s p e c kil a t io n finally busted up I t s aid : .
Yes t erd a y Mr D a niel D rew ze t a t 8 2 kin dly

.
, .
,
took h is p at ri a rch a l h a nd from t he throat of tr a de ,
gold declined in price and gener a l business r esumed

,
t he indic a tions o f activi ty which i t h a s recen t ly

given D e a con Da niel must oft en h a ve he a rd
.
wicked works o f this kind denounced o n S und a y ;

perh a ps he h a s even lift ed up his voice a g a ins t
t hem himself We hope he will now t ry t o pr a e
.
t ice wh a t he preaches He at least kept his b usiness

.
THE B O OK OF D A N I EL D R E W 4 1 5
engage m ents yeste r day whic h was m or e t h an ,
many peop l e expected L et hi m now t ry to tu r n in

.
an honest penny w i thout stri kin g a b lo w at the t r a d e

o f the whole count ry .
An d one of the othe r p apers said
We shall hope th a t there is no t r ut h i n the r epo r t

”
t hat the recen t rail r oad w a r is li kely t o b r eak out
“
again I t caused q ui t e enough damage wh i le it

.
lasted and it is doubtfu l w hethe r even the stock

,
gamblers could have g a ined anything by it The .
trade of the count ry i s not i n a condition j ust at

p r esent t o warrant any deliberate attempt to distu r b
it The gol d clique in t his ci ty h as fo r the p r esent
.
been b r oken up and it is whispered about t h at the

,
pious o l d D aniel D rew h a s been b r ough t to almost

complete r uin Thus one by one t he K ings of the
.
“
, ,
”
S tr eet tumble down Whose tu r n will i t be next
.
I t was not as yet true that this K ing of t he S t r eet

h ad tumbled F or I still kept on my legs B ut I
. .
w a s getting more shaky all the t ime The Wabash“

.
dea l tu r ned o u t an almigh ty los s costing me a plu m p ,
h a lf million The S t ree t plucked me fe at her by

-
.
feathe r Pre tty soon D aniel D rew was decl ar ed a

.
b a n k r upt .
Y B ANK R U PTCY r eally came about
because o f t h e pros perity of the coun try .
D u r ing the d ays o f t he Civil War when ,
things looke d da r k I could tu r n a fine penny Three

, .
d a ys a ft er F ort S umter was fired o n s t ocks fell ,
twenty per cent And in Mc C l el l a n s campaign

.
’
when those right and left wings of his were about

to surround R ichmond a ll to once a fine slump ,
in values set in Wha t was the re a son

.
? Why ,
we fin anciers had got advance information that

M c C l e ll a n w a s going to fall back and t h a t Abe ,
was about to c all fo r more men I made .
money on i t I have always felt more a t home in

.
depressing values t han in boos t ing t hem I guess .
I am a Be a r by na t u r e so t o spe a k having a lways

, ,
been sor t o f conse r v at ive and cautious like in my -
make u p D uring t hose d ays o f my prosperity

-
.
,
my o ffi ce wi t h D r Gro esbeck 8 1 C o a t 1 5

. .
,
Willi am S treet w a s t he B e a r he a dqu a r t ers for the

,
whole S t reet I n t hese four litt le rooms snug a nd

.
,
co zy most of the B e a r c a mp a igns in W a ll S tree t

,
started I n the front r o om were half a dozen clerks

.
behind a r a iling wri t ing checks t o p a y for s t ocks

, ,
4 1 6
even in my Theologic a l S emin a ry t he r e a re notion s ,
b eing taught which are di fferent from the o l d ti me -
teachings Preache r s a re now talking so ever

.
lastingly abou t this earth I h ave done my best .
to get them to stick to the gospel a nd not allow

world liness to get into the teachings of the church .
S till these new a n d st r ange doct r ines a re spre a ding

,
more and more The good o l d preachers h a ve gone

.
to glo ry I a m still found in my pew on the L ord s

.
’
d ay B ut I m free to s ay th at I don t enjoy it any

.
’ ’
wheres nea r so much as I used to .
When I went into b ankru ptcy I let every t hing ,
go made a tho r ough job of it I thought I might .
as wel l go the whole hog so to s pe a k The schedule

, .
of b a n krupt cy which I made out showed t his The .
following is all the p r operty which I h ad in my hands

at t he time :
Watch an d Chain
S e a lskin Co a t
We a ring App a rel
Bi ble Hymn books etc
, ,
.
Th a t se a lskin co at w a s a cos t ly thing which I ,
wouldn t h a ve h a d if I d h a d t o buy i t myself Bu t

’ ’
.
R obinson c a me down from Mon t re a l one d a y wi t h

three fur co at s one for himself one fo r me a nd one
, , ,
for Jimmy F is k I remember we h a d a merry time

.
i n the o ffi ce when he m a de the present a tions Bec a use .
all three of us had been in some way o r o ther in , ,

TH E B OOK OF D A N I EL D R E W 4 1
9
the c ir cus bus i ness S o we p r etended afte r we h ad

.
,
got the fu r coats on that we were all Bea r s Ji mmy

,
.
went cavort i ng a r oun d the r oom on all fou r s so ,
com i cal you d have hurt you r self l aughing I h a ve

’
.
missed Ji mmy a good de a l since he was taken aw a y .
He was as lively a s a louse .
B esides the se a lski n coat there w a sn t anything

,
’
i n my b an k r uptcy schedule a s anybody c a n see , ,
which showed much p r operty left in my h a n ds .
The hymn book was va l u a ble to me but i t was n t ,

’
t o anybody else . I n fa ct my creditors said the

,
b an kr uptcy was so complete tha t they dou bted i ts

genuineness ; and they sta r ted to h a ve me examined
by C o mmissione r s i n o r de r to get thei r clutches onto
,
s ome of the rail r oad stoc k and other p r operty whi ch
I ha d put out o f my own name This examin at i on .
p ut me t o a l ot of inconvenience I h ad never .
kept books Dr ove r s don t keep books a nyhow

.
’
,
, .
The way we d r ove r s used to do when two o r th r ee ,
of us wou l d go into a pa r tne r ship was to put what ,
money each of us h a d into o n e big w a d whi ch one ,
of the pa r tne r s woul d hold Any money p a i d .
o u t woul d be taken from t he w a d Any money .
we made would be put into the w a d Then when .

,
the p a r t ne r ship was dissolved a ll we would need t o ,
do would be to count the money in the wad and

divide it up even S o when the Commissione r s in
.
B ank r up t cy got after me to show C heckbooks ledge r s , ,
a n d s o on
, I did n t h av e a ny to show I h ad k ep t
’
.
2
my a c co u nts i n my head T h ey d id n t l ik e th at.
’
.
They s a i d i t was only an excuse wh i c h it w a sn t ’

.
They p u s h e d m e so h ard th at by and by I h a d to

do s o m et hi n g to get ri d of them So I made out .
th a t I w a s s i c k I took to my bed E ven at my

. .
beds i de t h ey kept pestering me wi th q uest i ons .
O n e d ay I m a de out th at I was t o o feeb l e and the ,
doctor said to t h em th at t h e exa m ination wou l d

h ave to wa i t ove r for a d ay wh i le I r ecovered my ,
stre n gth T h at gave me the ch ance I w a s looking

.
fo r
. Afte r t h ey were out of the house I up and
d r esse d and took the train w i tho u t l etting anybody
, ,
kn ow whe r e I w a s going B ut this didn t he l p .

’
fo r ve ry l ong The Commissi o ne r s foun d I h ad

.
g one U
p to Putnam County Th ey follo w ed m e .
there to B r ewste r s and sa i d t h at t h e examin a tion

,
’
must go o n I h ad to consent They put me unde r

. .
the d r a g an d h a r row e d me bot h ways B ut I ti r ed

,
.
th e m out By a n d by th ey l eft w i t h out h aving got

.
,
h old of any t hing .
I h ad h ad s o much t r oub l e i n gett i n g out o f Ne w

York an d back to my n a tive co u nty th at now I , ,
was the r e I decided to st a y Afte r so many ye ar s

,
.
in the city t h e hills r ound abo u t B r ewste r s a nd

,
’
Ca r mel looked good to me S o I settled down t o .
live the r est of my life in the country .
B ut after a few months Putnam Coun ty w a sn t ,

’
so a tt r active There were a numbe r of fa r mers u p

.
there whom I d dealt wi t h bac k i n my drover d ay s

’
.
we left t he mansion a t U nion S qu a re Th a t m a n .
sion h a d now been sold at a uc t ion So I went to .
the Ho ffm a n House where I could be close to the ,
Stock and Gold Ticke r s I w a s t a lking there wi t h .
a Mr K night o n e evening soon a ft er I got back

.
,
.
“
Yo u me a n to s a y th at you h ave come b a ck to
”
go into a ctive ope ra tions once more ? he asked .
” “
Ye s I a nswered ; the boys think I m played
,
’
o ut B ut I ll give them many a twist and turn ye t

.
’
.
I spoke big then B ut I h ave found it harder to .
get b a ck in t o ac t ive a ff a irs th an I looked fo r Who .
c a res fo r o l d ca tt le ? B rokers now are shy o f me .
Whenever the m a rket begins t o turn a gainst me ,
I m u p a nd sold o u t Besides I don t seem to get

’
.
,
’
ove r a loss a s e a sy as I used to O n e d a y I was so .
down in the mouth at a ba d turn in the ma r ket ,
th a t I took more t h a n I guess I ough t t o Bec a use .

,
some time a fter I found myself in a room in the

,
S t urtevant House in bed A couple of my old friends

, .
c a lled o n me there They h a d a bo tt le or t wo brough t

.
u p into the room and o ffered t o tre a t me B u t,

.
I didn t w a n t t hem t o see me taking a nything S o

’
.
I shook my he a d No They co a xed Then they ,

. .
looked at e a ch o t her a s much a s to s a y I t s t ime ,

’
”
we were going By and by t hey went a w a y B ut
. .
they left t he bo t tle behind I felt that this was very .
good o f t hem Bec a use I felt the need j us t t hen

.
of something to cheer me up a nd I w a sn t feeling ,

’
r ich enough t o buy it myself .

2
It w a s lonesome work living a t a hote l So I , .
h ave got my son to move down from B r ewste r s ’
and hi r e a h ouse o n E ast F o rty second S treet to -

,
m a ke a home for me I h a ve h a d him put a s t ock

.
ticke r in the basement of t he house This s aves .
me the trouble of going down to the financi a l

distric t every d ay Bec a use there a re ti mes now
.
when I feel so feeble th a t I c a n t go out of th e house ’

.
An d yet I don t j ust want to give u p s p e c k il a t in g

’
.
You never c a n t ell when you are going to m a ke the

l ucky hit Give up a nd j ust then you might h a ve
.
,
been o n the eve of a turn in your luck t h a t woul d

h a ve b r ough t yo u b a ck a ll the money you h ad los t ,
a nd a lot more besides .
B ut the turn in my luck seems a l mighty slow in

coming To s p e c k il a t e in W a ll Street when you a re
.
no longer a n insider is li ke buying cows by candle

,
light I don t know a s I can keep the thing u p much

.
’
l onger The other night I had a bad s pell kin d of

.
an epileptic att a ck the doctor called it And he s aid

, .
,
at my age it s likely to come o n again at any time

’
.
I man a ge to get to church still I t a ke part the best .
I c a n in the L ord s Day services The preaching isn t

’
.
-
’
li ke wh a t it used t o be S t ill I try t o keep up he a rt

.
, .
F rom every s t o r my wi nd th a t blows ,
F rom every
TH E E ND

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T EE

A caut i on to the r eader i s necessa ry Fr om th e .

fact t h at these pape r s a r e put i n t h e ﬁ r st pe r son

th at t hey we r e left by M r Dr ew i n ﬁ ni shed fo r m .

and t h at my tas k as edi t or h ad been me r ely to

T his view wo u l d be the mo r e nat ur a l because o f ,

the following a r tic l e $I quote it in part $ whi ch ,

The a rticle goes o n to state th at the diary woul d be

F rom t his one migh t infe r that th e p ape r s

D r ew i n th e conn ected form i n whi ch t hey he r e a r e

A s a m atte r of fa ct the mate r ial o ut o f which this

jumbled and helte r s k elte r form im a gi na bl e E ven

whe r e I h ave h ad t h e clea r wo r ds o f M r Dr ew to .

guide me I h ave h ad t o E ng li s h i t fo r t h e easy

comp r ehen s i on o f the r eade r For as the p a ges .

themselves state schools we r e n o t plentiful i n ou r

ru r al d i stricts a hun d red years ag o ; a n d an e duca

w a s also litt l e valued in c om pari son with p r actical

ing his g r a m ma r an d s pe lli ng t h e r efo r e so as to

make fo r easy read i ng m u c h of th e t ang an d indi

Dr ew possessed to a n u ncom mo n deg r ee h a s ,

u ndou bted ly been s acriﬁced I n o r de r to whip the

life story h e r e reco r ded into something ap proaching

t hi ng from the sta r t .

I n fact my sh a r e i n t h e prepa r at i on o f thi s vol

ume h a s h ad to be so l ar ge even wri t ing with m y

own h a n d pa r ts which were need ed in o r der t o su p

ﬁ rst p e rson thro ugh ou t p rov i d e d it c o uld be a c co m

p an e i d by a for ewo r d of exp la nat i on I n hi storical .

drama th e poet i c fo r m is su fﬁc i ent notice to the

reade r t h at t h e s peeches a re not sten ogr aphic re

a re tru e to hi sto ry I n the p re sen t c a s e I h ave

sough t to convey the s a me not i ﬁcati o n b y m eans of

work p i eced as this h as been ou t o f s c r aps a nd fr a g

t h a t these wi ll be found to conce r n m atte r s of unes

work a s a whole I pledged myse l f to a bsolute a d h e r

ence to the o r igina l s .

The eve n ts na rr ated constitute a sti rr i ng and im

men t o f n av i gation on the H udson R ive r brought ,

recen t ly t o the fr ont by th e tri centenni al celeb r ation ; -

t he E rie R ai lr oad and i t s vici ssitu des ; ear l y days i n

s pirit wh ich t o day i n a ll of the churches is ch angi ng

rapidly for th e b ette r ; the Tweed R ing i n New York

v a lue S ome o f the fa c t s and viewpoints here given

h a ve n o t to my knowledge fo u nd thei r w a y else

where i nto p r int .

T i i y N ighbo hood Hous

O rigi n f t h W a ll St reet Term

Ast o r S eek s a n I n t e rvi ew

L ife a t t h e B ulls He a d Ta vern

Commodo re Va n d erbilt Lose s a S t ea mbo at

B u ildi n g of Ch urc h e s Ca lifo rn i a P a rk er

to be Wh at I r emembe r I ll put down

Wh at I d on t r eme m be r I won t put d own

O r else I ll p u t it d own cautious like so you ll know

it i sn t r eal gospel but only a so r t of think s o F o r

afte r going on eighty yea r s a fe ll ow gets a l ittl e m i te

r usty as to some of the goo d s p acke d away i n his

di d n t jot it d own wo r d for wor d The r efo r e it s

on ly the g i st of it th at you get he r e in t h ese p ape r s .

Anyhow I neve r was much at write r wo r k J ay -

was the boy fo r th at I m ean J ason Gould $He

called him by th at n ame too $ I n ou r doing s,