vision. The way was studded with
elysian beauties and winsome views.
Floating islands displayed their varie-
gated charms, and rarest gems of sculp-
ture-art were liberally scattered about
the lawns and green bowers.

Thus, the art of the banker vanquish-
ed nature. The cost upward of a mil-
lion dollars was enormous, and the
taste exquisite. Though seemingly
wasteful, the employment of so main-
hundreds of persons, at a time when
France was crowded with living skele-
tons for want of bread, was perhaps
the most profitable financial " opera-
tion " (for others) which the great bro-
ker ever engaged in.



Wedding Gift of Rothschild to his
Niece.

THE fashionable world of London,
and indeed of all Europe, was, in 1853,
in a state *of the greatest ferment, on
account of the marriage of Miss Leo-
nora Rothschild, of London, daughter
of Baron Lionel de Rothschild of that
city, to her cousin, Baron Alphonso, of
Paris, son of Baron James Rothschild,
of the latter place. All the prepara-
tions were on a scale of magnificence
comporting with the position of the
wealthiest family in the world, and the



gifts from friends ranged all the way
from ten-cent pincushions, from Jewish
charity pupils who were made com-
fortable by the endowments of the
bride^ family, up to a set of jewels val-
ued at one hundred and fifty thousand
dollars or as much as an East India-
man loaded.

But strangest among all the gifts
was a fat, rather dirty, strong, plain
envelope with broken seal, and ad-
dressed to Madame la Baronne Al-
phonse de Rothschild. " What might
this contain, pray ? " said the brides-
maids, hustling each other excitedly.
Thereon hung a tale. This marriage
was the doing of Anselm de Roths-
child, who loved his fair young niece
Leonora, as though she had been his
daughter. He it was who repressed
the somewhat vagrant tendencies of
young Alphonse hankering after Pa-
risian sweets and forced him, by a
gentle pressure, to cany out the Roths-
child policy of intermarriage. So,
when the old man had carried his
point, there was a fluttering among the
little breasts of the fair daughters of
the kindred families, and a terrible
curiosity to know how " Uncle An-
selm " would testify his joy. Day after
day it leaked out that this uncle had
ordered that, and that that aunt in-
tended to give this but what Uncle
Anselm was to give no living soul could
divine. Even when the clay came, and
strong-backed porters arrived deeply
laden with the treasures of this world,
and the present-room was duly set out
with gorgeous gifts, no word came from
Baron Anselm, and a dreadful sus-
picion came over the minds of the fam-
ily that he was going to disgrace him-
self by giving nothing. At the very
last moment, when the old gentleman
had depreciated immensely in credit
with the female members of his family,
there was a cry that he was coming.
There was a strange mixture of twinkle
in his eye reminding one of the stories
told of his father and of quivering



510



COMMERCIAL AND BUSINESS ANECDOTES.



about the corners of his lips, as he ap-
proached his pet and kissed her.

" Here, Leonora," said the old baron,
" here is a letter for you." And he
handed her a fat envelope, and sidled
away.

" A letter, uncle ! for me ! "

" Yes," said the old man, with a stop-
page in the throat, " a letter good
advice." And he disappeared.

Of course there was a rush to open
the letter. It contained, bank bills for Jive
millions of dollars. This was the bank-
er's present.

A Banker's Love of Birds-Girard's

Little Songsters.

THE smallest means of adding to his
fortune were never neglected or over-
looked by Girard. To him nothing
was a trifle, if a penny could be made
by it. His breed of canary birds was
among the most choice and extensive
in the world, and he was careful to sell
them at the highest price. The fond-
ness of Girard for these little creatures
was remarkable; he had his favorites
among them, and doubtless enjoyed
many a happy moment under the in-
fluence of the music of their songs a
sweet and singular solace from the dis-
tractions of trade, and which seemed
to indicate, after all, a native trait of
tenderness lurking at the bottom of his
heart. True, he sold them, and they
contributed to gratify his superlative
passion in that way ; but it would be
ungenerous to suppose that he was not
susceptible to feelings of delight from
those winsome strains of melody which,
at the same time, naturally commanded
so high a price in the market.

Household Peculiarities of Girard.

THE private habits of Girard, and
his manner of living, partook of that
seclusion and simplicity which charac-
terized him through life. Without be-
ing ostentatious, he was remarkable in
his household arrangements for a neat-



ness that made up for lack of splendor,
and an appearance of comfort and utili-
ty which nothing could exceed.

His dwelling house, in winter, was
carpeted from the cellar kitchen to the
attic story. His furniture, though
plain, was substantial, and sometimes
bearing an impress of the opulence of
its owner. Thus, his drawing room
was furnished with ebony chairs and
sofa having crimson velvet seats, which
though sombre, were rich, and capable
of enduring for centuries. But the gen-
eral aspects of his rooms was that of
plain, simple, and uncostly character,
which one would expect in the man-
sion of a respectable citizen, who had
no reputation for wealth. His furni-
ture, like his dress, exhibited a perfect
contrast to the wealth of the man.

In his chamber there was nothing
either sumptuous or elegant; on the
table, he kept, unloaded, a brace of
splendid blunderbusses, of Ketland's
make, with brass barrels and steel bay-
onets they were of admirable work-
manship, but appeared never to have
been used. In one corner of his bed
chamber stood an old-fashioned small
mahogany desk and bookcase, in which
was contained his library of Voltaire's
works. The walls were ornamented
with colored prints, representing the
female negroes of St. Domingo, and in
one spot was a small print of his bank-
ing house, so situated that his first
glance, when he awoke, as he lay in
bed, must necessarily light upon it.

His meals occupied but a brief pe-
riod. To his breakfast he gave but a
few minutes, unless he had a guest, out
of whom he was extracting'information
essential to business and conducive to
profit. He generally dined about one ;
and though, when in robust health, a
good feeder, yet he never gratified his
appetite to the full extent. Supper, he
took none, except occasionally a biscuit
and a glass of water, previous to going
to bed. At a more advanced period
of his life, he varied his diet and mode



DOMESTIC RELATIONS OF MERCHANTS, BANKERS, ETC.



511



of living, so as to adapt them to his
impaired vigor and altered constitu-
tion ; and for the last seven or eight
years of his existence, he abstained al-
together from animal food, but dined
liberally on bean broth, and similar
vegetable and farinaceous preparations.
He was a water drinker, with the ex-
ception of claret and cider, of both of
which he was extremely fond.

With the society of children, Girard
was excessively gratified, and nothing
pleased him so much as to have some
little prattler waiting on him for he
always made it a point to keep them
employed on something useful. When
his nephews arrived from France, en-
gaging boys of twelve and fourteen, he
expressed much satisfaction, and seem-
ed ardently attached to them. But he
appeared afraid to indulge this feeling,
and hastily despatched them off to
school, lest he might contract a habit
toward them which would spoil them
in the end.

Gideon, the Jew Banker, Catechising-
his Child.

SAMPSON GIDEON, the great Jew
banker in London, and the founder
of the house of Eardley, was, like most
men whose minds are absorbed in
one engrossing pursuit, not very ad-
vanced in literary or religious knowl-
edge. He educated his children in
the Christian faith, but said he was too
old himself to change. Being desirous
to know the proficiency of his son in
his new creed, he asked, " Who made
you ? " to which the fitting reply was
given, viz., " God." He then asked,
" Who redeemed you ? " and to this
the Christian response was promptly
made. Not knowing what else to say,
he stammered out, " Who who who
gave you that hat?" when the boy,
with parrot-like precision, replied in
the third person of the Trinity. The
story was related with great unctioiJL
at that period, at the wealthy banker's
expense.



Groceries and Literature.

A GROCER who, naturally enough for
his trade, had retired on a " plum "
being the reverse of one making many,
since in this case many plums had made
one took a literary turn, in order to
amuse himself in his retirement. One
day, at table, some of his commercial
guests mentioned the town of Stockton-
upon-Tees. " Bless me," said the gro-
cer, " I never heard of that work before.
I should certainly like to read Stockton
upon Teas." Bent upon satisfying his
literary taste, he on the same day took
his way to the nearest bookseller, and
inquired for the work, handing him
the name of the book carefully written
thus: " Stockton upon Teas." "There
is no such book never heard of it,"
said the bookseller. Still further to
satisfy the grocer, he looked over his
catalogue. "No," said the man of
books, " no such work here, and I'm
sure you w^o'nt find it anywhere. There
is a city called ' Stockton-upon-T^s '
perhaps it is that you mean." The
man of ounces and pounds vamosed
a ray of light broke upon him the
first that had invaded his plodding
cranium since he stood behind the
counter weighing his codfish the
genus to which he himself belonged.

Business and Beauty.

THE deficien-cy in the practical part
of female education is a fact which has
been often but never too much de-
plored. The following notes of an
examination instituted by a mercan-
tile gentleman in search of a wife into
a young lady's knowledge of business
is testimony complete on this point.

Young lady examined : Has heard
of the monetary question ; should think
it was a warning. Knew what Stocks
were; regard them as the "highest"
necessity in a gentleman's dress. A
dividend was a sum in Long Division.
A bonus was a sort of pill. Scrip was



512



COMMERCIAL AND BUSINESS ANECDOTES.



a little bag something like a reticule.
Exchange was no robbery. Had read
about Consols they were ancient Ro-
mans; Julius Caesar was one, so was
Pompey. Supposed the Three Per
Cents must mean the Triumvirate. A
Bull was a horned animal, or an Irish
mistake. A Bear was a cross, disagree-
able person, like some people she could
name. An Exchequer Bill was an in-
strument with a hook. The Bullionists
were a religious sect. Was afraid the
Inconvertibles were very wicked people.
Gold was a metal ; knew nothing more
about it, except that it was the root of
all evil, and that railway cuttings and
branch banks come of the root.



Philanthropic Courage of Girard.

DURING the prevalence of the yellow
fever in Philadelphia, in 1793, the indi-
vidual who was seen with the badges
of mourning upon his arm was avoided
as the Upas tree, and almost every per-
son was involved in the fumes of cam-
phor or tobacco.

While this pestilence was raging at
its utmost height, an ^individual, of
low and square stature, was perceived
alighting from a coach which drew up
before a hospital where the most loath-
some victims of this disease had been
collected for the purpose of being at-
tended by medical aid. The man en-
tered this living sepulchre, and soon
returned bearing in his arms a form
that appeared to be suffering in the
last stages of the fever a being whose
countenance was suffused with that
saffron color which seemed to be the
certain harbinger of death. The body
was deposited in a coach, and the
carriage drove away. The man who
was thus seen performing this act was
Stephen Girard. It might be, and
indeed has been said, that having gone
through the seasoning process in a
tropical climate, he was proof against
the disease. But whether that was or
was not the case, it does not abate in



any measure the credit which is due in
thus exposing, at least, his life in behalf
of a fellow being. And it is a well-at-
tested fact, that during the prevalence
of the disease he continued a constant
attendant at the hospital, performing
all those offices which would seem revolt-
ing to the most humble menial.

Practical Eloquence of a Boston
Merchant.

WHILE a committee of Boston mer-
chants were collecting subscriptions in
aid of the Boston testimonial to the San
Francisco rescuers, a person was called
upon whose benevolence was not usu-
ally commensurate with his pecuniary
ability, and something of a " set-to "
was therefore not wholly unanticipated
by his visitors on the occasion in ques-
tion. He hesitated about subscribing,
averring that the testimonial should
come from persons engaged in com-
merce, and he himself was not in mer-
cantile pursuits. The member of the
committee, with great promptness and
justice, answered this quibble in the fol-
lowing terms : " Sir, your own family re-
cently crossed the ocean as passengers in
a ship. Had she met with a disaster, and
a friendly boat come to take off those on
board, and refused to save any persons
but the sailors, as society had adopted
the rule that each class of the community
must take care of its own members and
no others, what would have been your
feelings to have known that your
daughters were lost on account of their
father's advocating such distinctions
in cases of relief ? " This manly and
felicitous appeal was successful the
right sort of a response coming at once
from the gentleman's pocketbook.



Old-School Merchant's Offering- to his
Country: John Langrdon, of New
Hampshire.

WHEN the news of the fall of Ticon-
deroga reached New Hampshire, the
provincial legislature was in session at
Exeter. It was a period when the re-



DOMESTIC RELATIONS OF MERCHANTS, BANKERS, ETC. 513



sources of the patriots were almost
exhausted ; the public credit was
gone ; and the members of the assem-
bly were disheartened. John Langdon,
one of the noblest and most thorough-
bred merchants, was speaker of the -as-
sembly at the time. He rose in his place,
on the morning after the intelligence
was received, and addressed the house,
in mercantile brevity, to the following
effect : " My friends and fellow citizens
I have three thousand dollars in hard
money ; I will pledge my plate for
three thousand more. I have seventy
hogsheads of Tobago rum, which shall
be sold for the most it will bring.
These are at the service of the State.
If we succeed in defending our fire-
sides and homes, I may be remunera-
ted ; if we do not, the property would
be of no value to me." Laugdon was
an old-school merchant of the genuine
stamp.

Samuel Slatsr on Extravagance in
Living.

MR. SAMUEL SLATER'S habits of living
was often the topic of remark among
his townsmen. On a certain occasion,
this subject was made the staple of
quite an interesting conversation be-
tween himself and a few of his inti-
mate friends, when he was a little more
than fifty years of age, and estimated
to be worth half a million of dollars.
It was in the front room of the Bank,
where they were accustomed to meet
and discuss all sorts of things of inter-
est. At that time he lived in an old
wooden house which might have cost
two or three thousand dollars decent
and comfortable, it is true, and much
like the better sort of houses in the
village, excepting perhaps half a dozen.
He also owned a good horse and chaise,
the common pleasure vehicle at that
period in many parts of New England.
His friends told him it was not right
for a man of his property to live in
that style; that he ought to build a
better house and keep a coach.
33



Mr. Slater replied much in the fol-
lowing manner : " Gentlemen, I admit
that I am able to have a large and
costly house, rich furniture, and ser-
vants to take care of it ; that I am able
to have a coach, with a driver and foot-
man to attend me. And it is not that
I am miserly that I do not have them.
But it is a duty in me to set an exam-
ple of prudence to others, and especially
to my children. The world is too much
inclined to extravagance. If the style
you recommend is to be considered an
evidence of wealth, and I were on that
account to adopt it, others not able
might follow my example, in order to
be thought rich. In the end it might
prove their ruin, while prudent and
honest people would have to suffer for
it. And you know I have six boys. If
they live, and have families, each will
want to live in as much style as their
father. Now, if I am able to live as you
recommend, my property, when divided
in six parts, might not be sufficient to
support six such establishments ; be-
sides, business may not continue as
good as it is at present. I wish to
set a good example for my children.
If they do not follow it, the fault is
not mine."



Freaks of Wealthy Merchants.

THE wealth which now exists in
Amsterdam is said to fall much short
of what it was during the period of
Dutch commercial preeminence. It
is not long since strangers, in visiting
Amsterdam, were shown the spacious
house of a merchant, who, after lavish-
ing much on furniture and paintings,
actually caused the floor of one of his
apartments to be laid with Spanish
dollars, set on edge.

Whims equally ridiculous, for dispo-
sing of an overplus of wealth, appear
to have been far from uncommon in
former times in Holland. There is, in
Arnheim, an old, fantastical-looking
dwelling, the original owner of which



514



COMMERCIAL AND BUSINESS ANECDOTES.



was a Jew merchant, and he erected
the house out of pure revenge. His
coffers were so well replenished that he
was at a loss how to employ his super-
fluous cash. At last he hit upon a
fanciful expedient. He determined to
make a pavement before his residence
of large massive plates of silver, and to
surround it with an ornamental chain,
of the same costly material. Before
carrying this plan into effect, however,
it behooved him to obtain the sanction
of the authorities. These worthies,
however, void of sympathy, set their
faces against a proposition which
might have compelled them to increase
the strength of the town-guard. En-
raged at their non-compliance, Moses
determined to punish them. He ordered
his dwelling, situated in the principal
street, to be pulled down, and on its
site he erected the one now standing.
It is literally covered with diabolical
figures, amounting, it is said, to three
hundred and sixty-five, one for each
day in the year, to afford the city
worthies both abundance and variety.

Sportive Death of the French. Banker,
Dangre.

ON the evening before his death, M.
Dange, illustrious on the roll of French
bankers and millionnaires, received vis-
its of fashion in the most pompous
manner. His apartment was embel-
lished in the most luxurious style.
Seated on a sumptuous couch, and
dressed in a magnificent robe de cham-
Ire, which floated around him in folds
shining with the most curious embroi-
dery, and buttoned with a diamond of
rarest size and brilliancy, he talked of
quitting the world in the gayest man-
ner possible. But this was not the
effect even of French philosophy, but
rather of that characteristic apathy of
his nature, which had rendered him
dead to every touch of sensibility a
quality quite in keeping with the re-
quisites of an unscrupulous financier, as
he was. He made his nephew his ex-



clusive legatee, on condition of his pay-
ing five millions of livres in legacies a
condition which that favored mortal
very cheerfully complied with, and ap-
propriated to himself the comfortable
sum of eight millions, that being the re-
mainder of M. Dange's fortune.

That little Child in the Counting
Room.

THE counting room of a well-known
mercantile house in London was enter-
ed by a gentleman, just as some unfa-
vorable intelligence had been received.
The head of the firm, with his hard but
honest features, looked at once stern
and anxious. A small hand twitched his
coat lehmd ! He turned slowly around,
with a sullen and almost savage brow.
His eye fell upon the prettiest little hu-
man face that ever gleamed upon the
earth. But the child's merry laughter
was scarcely more delightful than the
bland and radiant smile that kindled
on the merchant's careworn cheek. His
aspect underwent such an instantaneous
and entire change, that he looked as if
he had changed his nature also. Had
a painter stamped his portrait on the
canvas at that happy moment, it would
have presented an exquisite illustration
of amenity and love. Few, however,
of his mercantile friends, would have
recognized in that portrait the man of
business. He was single and childless ;
but the fondest parent could not have
greeted his own offspring with a sweet-
er welcome than he gave to that little
child in the counting room.



Nicholas Long-worth's Bread.

ONE of Mr. Longworth's permanent
and quiet charities was the weekly dis-
tribution at his house, every Monday
morning, of three hundred to eight
hundred ten-cent loaves of bread to
whoever would apply for them. Once,
when flour was high, and the bakers
had reduced the size of their loaves,
Mr. Longworth thought he would be




THAT LITTTLE OH'LD IN THE COUNTING ROOM.



DOMESTIC RELATIONS OF MERCHANTS, BANKERS, ETC.



515



doing his beneficiaries a good turn by
having the loaves made partly of rye,
and thus considerably enlarging instead
of reducing their size. His " patrons,"
however, as soon as they found it out,
raised such a clamor, and called him so
many disparaging names, and annoyed
him so much with their threats and
complaints, that he was glad to order
a return to the pure wheat.

Religious Bearing of Judaism on Stock
Operations: the Pereires.

THE name of the Pereire brothers,
Jewish bankers in Paris, is well known.
A member of some large stock com-
pany, of which one brother is a chief
manager, fell into dispute with him
concerning some of the operations, and
being dissatisfied at the absorbing
share which M. Pereire took in the
management, as well as vexed at the
rough way in which he treated his
protestations, finally exclaimed, " Do
you mean to eat me up ? " " My reli-
gion, 1 ' answered the banker, " prohibits
me from doing that."

Out of Fashion.

A MERCHANT desired the most fash-
ionable tailor in Paris to make him a
coat in a particular way. " Sir," said
the tailor, " that shape has been out of
fashion these six months ; pray, do
have it of a proper cut." "I do not
care for the fashion," said the mer-
chant, " I will wear my coat in the way
that is most agreeable to me." The
tailor remonstrated, and begged in
vain ; but at last, unwilling to lose a
good customer, he said, "Well, sir, I
have only to entreat, as a return for ex-
ecuting your order, that you will keep
it a secret who is your tailor, or I shall
lose all my business.""

Retiring from Business: "Melting
Day."

ALMOST every man sets out in life
with the determination, when a certain



sum has been accumulated, to retire
from the cares of business and enjoy
for the balance of his days " otium cum
dignitate." Visions of sunny farms
and rural retreats are ever before him ;
but, unfortunately, few men have the
courage, when the required sum has
been obtained, to be contented to re-
tire. In the course of years, new tastes
have been acquired, and new wants
added to the humble catalogue with
which he commenced life. The rural
retreat has now become a suburban
residence, with coach, horses, stable,
&c., &c., and a few thousands more
have become necessary. So he goes
toiling on, his ambition widening and
extending as he pushes and urges his
way on to competence and fortune.
During all this time he forgets that he
is getting older that his capacity for
enjoyment is getting more contracted
every day that his tastes and habits
are becoming unalterably confirmed in
business life, so that when he does mus-
ter up the firmness to yield his place in
the business world to younger men, he
is about as unhappy a mortal as one
could wish to meet on a summer's day.
Here is a case in point :

A tallow chandler of London, after
many years' devotion to his calling,
accumulated a handsome fortune, and
retired to his villa ; but time hung so
heavily on his hands that he used to