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Show f LAGIER ONCE , WAS A FAILURE He Then Got a Boost From a Relative and Grew to Be One of the! Wealthiest Men of the World How He Gained His Success. f ' f- "Don't waste time or energy -f on something in which ou can -f see no future. Any man is glv- en the eyesight to see tho future -f a mile away. Don't mistake that. You are the perfect judge of -- what is ahead. I have seen too -f f many proofs of this theory to believe otherwise. Watch your -- opportunity and then jump, 4- clothes nnd all." . Henry M. Flagler. i Henry M. Flagler was one of four remarkable figures destined to be beaten in tho forge of toll and poverty pov-erty and to go Into the fire of disaster dis-aster ere they could be welded into a union which concelvod and created creat-ed the Standard Oil company. He Is now reputed to be wortb ?300,000,-000. ?300,000,-000. Flagler, who, In addition to being a power In the oil industry of the company, com-pany, Is one of the greatest hotel keepers in the world, was born In a small village a few miles south of Rochester, N. Y. At tho first opportunity oppor-tunity he roamed west and located In Republic, Ohio, at which place he arrived ar-rived with a r franc piece representing repre-senting about a dollar in American money a nickel, and four pennies. To this day Flagler has the 5 franc piece. Pie went to work in a country store at $5 a month and board, some of which money he saved. He is himself him-self authority for the statement that he never earned more than $400 a year when working for some one else. Flagler moved to Bellevuo, where he entered the grain business. John D. Rockefeller was then a commission merchant In Cleveland. Flagler sent him many car loads of wheat, which Rockefeller sold in the capacity of agent. Flagler also took an Interest in a distillery, which gnvo him an outlet for considerable grain, but he had scruples against the business, bus-iness, which he finally abandoned with a bank account of $50,000. $100,000 Went Up in Salt. With tills small fortune Flagner went to Saginaw, where he attempted attempt-ed the manufacture of salt. At tho end of three years' time he had not only lost his $50,000, but had gone $50,000 In debt From his relatlves by marriage and a half brother he borrowed enough money at 10 per cent to pay his debts, after which he went to Cleveland, where he engaged en-gaged In the grain and produce commission com-mission business. The Rockefellers had started a small oil refinery at this time, and when it was apparent that their business was destined to grow, Stophen Hark-ne8s, Hark-ne8s, Flagler's father-in-law, invested $100,000 for him and he was taken into partnership In tho concern that haH since developed luto tho Standard Oil company. The story of Flagler's progress from this point on Is practically prac-tically the same as that of Rockefeller's Rocke-feller's on a smaller scale. Flagler made much of his fortune in the hotel business. Since his youth he had dreamed of some day owning a hotel. Ho realized on that dream j in far greater proportion than he had ever hoped. Today he owns 25 hotels ho-tels in Florida, and It is said he owns most of the state besides. For the convenience of his patrons he has built a railroad with a trackage of G00 miles, which serves only his hotels. |
