uld sell off his
goods I would order him in and discharge him. In this way I reduced my
stock without having to buy but few new goods, and very soon had but two
men on the road. These two were Dr. Frank and Bert, who were both good
men, and perfectly reliable.

On the seventeenth of January, this same year--1884--I was married to
Miss Anna H. Emmert, of Chicago, (my present wife), having long since
been legally separated from my first, and she already married again.

My second wife had received a thorough business education, although but
eighteen years of age, and immediately began taking an interest in the
management of my office affairs; and from that time until the present
has been of incalculable help to me.

I had no knowledge whatever of book-keeping, while she was an expert;
and since my force of clerks, book-keepers and type-writers has run up
to between thirty and fifty, there has never been a time when she
couldn't more than acceptably fill any of their positions; and during
our last holiday trade in our busiest season she took the place and kept
up the work of three different employees during their temporary absence.
And this in addition to a general oversight of the entire force, which
she makes her regular line of duty.

The summer following our marriage my wife's health began failing. As I
had already become convinced that it was necessary that I should again
go on the road, I decided to buy a pair of horses and carriage and
travel with them, and let my wife accompany me. Our physician said
nothing could be more beneficial to her than such a campaign.

So after employing competent help to take charge of our office, we were
ready to start out. Soon after our decision to travel I traded a diamond
ring for a horse, harness and buggy, and not being able to buy a mate
to the animal in Chicago at a satisfactory price, we shipped our stock
of goods and horse and buggy to Grand Haven, Michigan, by boat. I also
bought a double harness in Chicago and shipped with the rig, and we
crossed on the same boat.

On our arrival there I began searching for another horse, and succeeded
in finding one to suit me, which I bought in less than ten minutes after
the owner showed him to me. I then had a pole fitted to my carriage, and
by noon of that day we were under full sail for Northern Michigan.

[Illustration: DECIDING A HORSE TRADE.--PAGE 606.]

The first excitement I furnished my wife on that trip occurred about an