THE VILLAGE TIMES

The First American Tycoon-by Richard Smalto

   Who was the first American tycoon? Many people familiar with the growth of the American continent say John Jacob Astor. That is incorrect. He was the first tycoon but he was not American. That honor goes to Cornelius Vanderbilt the illiterate boatman from Staten Island or the Commodore Mark Twain called a man without a soul.  Astor, a German furrier, bought and sold Manhattan real estate. Vanderbilt built ships and bought railroad cars that transported people all around the world. Vanderbilt was feared, he was envied, he was idolized. Poorly educated a man who could not spell his own name but knew how to make change before he died became the richest man in America.  

   Vanderbilt quit school when he was eleven and went to work when he was sixteen ferrying passengers between Staten Island and Manhattan in New York harbor. His mother not only taught him how to make change she taught him frugality and the value of hard work. By the end of the war of 1812 he had amassed a small fleet of ships and was ferrying passengers and freight between Boston and the Delaware Bay. Although Vanderbilt kept expanding his shipping business wealth did not buy him respectability. Uncouth and illiterate he shunned society.  At the age of 70 despising ostentation and living a simple life the shipping baron turned his attention to railroads. Integrating fragmented lines he made transportation cost effective. In 1871 before he died, he built a monument to his railroad empire. Among the top ten places visited in the world, it is called GRAND CENTRAL STATION.

(First published in the Village Times – April 2019, this article bears repeating.)

Eevee’s Story – by Phyllis Woolley

   Hello my peoples! It’s been a while since I have talked to you! I have been busy taking care of mom. She’s getting old, you know, and she isn’t accepting old age gracefully.  I am having to remind her to give me my treats. Thank goodness my kibble feeder puts out my meals or I would probably starve to death. The other day I did everything I knew of to get her to give me a treat. I sat by her chair and stared at her, then I slow blinked with both eyes. She said “No!”. Then I gave her a one eyed wink. She said, “All gone!”  I knew that was a lie because I could see the treat jar. Then I went into the bathroom and knocked the hand soap into the sink. She said, “No Eevee! I’m going to spank your butt!”  By that point, I was getting a little angry. So, I gave her one more chance. I tapped her arm gently and gave her my most loving look. “Eevee, it’s almost time for your lunch! You cannot have a treat!”  She had a cup of coffee sitting beside her, so I got in her lap and stood up. Then I put my dirty paw right in her coffee!! “Eevee Michelle”, she screamed! “I cannot believe you did that!” Before she could spank my butt, I ran under the bed where I would be safe. Sure hope that old age thing starts working before my lunch kibble comes out. Maybe she’ll forget!!

Fishbait – by Frank Howes

   My grandfather was fond of fishing with a cane pole. I grew up following him around to little ponds and creeks around Shoe Heel, North Carolina. One thing that I remember is that it was almost as much fun going after the fishbait as it was to actually catch fish. My grandfather used four different types of fishbait: crickets, worms, wasp grubs, and Catalpa worms. Each required a strenuous effort to procure them.

   We got the crickets by rolling over watermelons in my grandfather’s field. Underneath we found crickets along with the black widow spiders that fed on them. When my grandfather saw the black widow spiders, he would say “hold on a minute son,” and he would kill the black widow spiders with his thumb. Once they were dead, he would allow us to scramble after the crickets.

    We dug worms from the place where an old outhouse used to be. There are many things that consider a pile of s….. a good environment. Among them are politicians and fishing worms.

   We robbed wasp nests for their grubs. My grandfather would knock down a wasp nest with a cane pole. Then he would wait for the wasps to leave and pick up the nest. Inside where the juicy white grubs that fish love so much.

   Finally, there were the Catalpa worms. These were the least hazardous to acquire. You simply pulled down the branches on a Catalpa tree, and picked the worms off.

   Yes, it was an adventure acquiring fishbait. Almost as much fun as catching the fish!