Rensselaer Standard, Volume 1, Number 9, Rensselaer, Jasper County, 16 August 1879 — How a Woman Made a Fortune [ARTICLE]

How a Woman Made a Fortune

The New York Times tells the following story of the life of a woman in that 'ln Elizabeth street, not far from Broone stands a dingy, old-fashioned house, managed by an Englishwoman upon the stereotpyed English lodging-house principle. This house is owned by, and has for years been the residence of a woman, whose career possesses some extraordinary features, who commenced with nothing and amassed a fortune of $1,000,000 by real estate operations, and at TO years of age is intending to finish her career in the world by writing a treatise on

religion and science. More than fifty years ago a young girl in an interior eountyln this State walked 30 miles to engage the vacant principalship of a village academy. Although not competent to pass an examination for the vacancy, the trustees were struck by the indomitable pluck of the young rustic, and kindly promised her the situation if she would prepare herself to pass an examination within the two months’ between the spring and fall terms. The girl went home, shut herself up in a little garret room, lived on bread and water, quarreled with her mother about the house work and applied herself night and day to arithmetic, geograpy and grammer. But when sturdy little Louisiana St John reported for examination, at the expiration of the two months, she answered every question triumphantly, and entered upon her duties as the principal of a village academy. For more than twenty years

Miss St. John pursued the career of a pedagogue, amassing money dollar by dollar, and investing her savings with circumspection, until she though herself financially strong enough to abandon the scbooima’am’s desk and remove to this city. At first, her operations in real estate were small ana tentative, the Englishwoman, then strong and active, acting as her agent. But successful accumulation engenders confidence, and the year 1873, memorable for its financial crisis, found the adventurous schoolma’am, operating on a large scale in Western land, St Louis city lots, etc., and exercising from her little parlor in Elizabeth street a potent influence on the market. Her habits are peculiar and methodical. Rising with the sun, she lays out the business of the day with mathematical precision before breatfast, and issues her instructions to her trusted lieutenants, giving minute directions as to the conduct of each enterprise, and holding each subordinate to a military accountability. Although 70 years old and suffering ing from dropsy, not six months ago this indomitable old lady journeyed unattended to St. Louis, and there, week after week, while the bridge across the river was in progress looked after the interest of a large property likely to be affected by that enterprise. Beset with sharpers and interested parties of all sorts, her woman’s insight rapidly sift out the false from the true, and protects her million alike from the speculative enterprises of the visionary and from the bubble companies of the professional financier. She will tell you, nevertheless, with a sigh, in a moment of confidence, that her whole life has been a failure, and her splendid fortune only a trouble to her for these many years; that she wonld give her million for a toddling little granddaughter, but in the absence of the granddaughter means to leave it to found an institution thatshallin some way benefit humanity.