or man's occupancy. Millions of acres of plain and
woodland awaited development. There were cities to found and rivers to
bridge and roads to make and soil to till and gold to dig before America
could think of writing poetry or painting pictures. Think--it is only
three centuries since Jamestown was founded; only a century and a
quarter since we became a nation--a mere handbreadth of time when
compared with the long centuries of English or French or Italian
history. We have already said that for art historic background is
necessary; a background of achievement and tradition. Such a background
we are just achieving. Besides, during our first century, there were
such great deeds of conquest and development to be done that they
challenged our strongest men. Great fortunes were made, as a matter of
course, and Europe witnessed the unique spectacle of men, born in
poverty and obscurity, rising to be captains of the world. It is this
which has never ceased to shock the European sense of the fitness of
things--that the poor boy of yesterday may be the millionaire of
to-morrow and take his place with the greatest of the nation. It is the
story of a few such boys which will be told in this chapter.

First is the man who financed the Revolution and who to a large extent
made possible its successful termination--Robert Morris. Born in
Liverpool, England, in 1734, he came to this country with his father at
the age of thirteen, and a place was soon found for him in the
counting-house of Charles Willing, a wealthy merchant of Philadelphia.
By his diligence and activity, as well as unusual intelligence, he grew
in favor and confidence, until, upon the death of the elder Willing, he
was taken into partnership by the latter's son, and by the opening of
the Revolution, the firm of Willing & Morris was one of the largest and
most prosperous in Philadelphia.

Of English birth, and bound to England by the ties of business, Morris
was nevertheless opposed to the stamp-act and was one of those who, in
1765, signed an agreement to import nothing further from England until
the act was repealed. He was, however, opposed to independence, and, as
a member of the Continental Congress, voted on July 1, 1776, against the
Declaration. Three days later he declined to vote, but when the
Declaration was adopted, he signed it, and threw in his fortunes
unreservedly with his new country. His services were more than
valuable--they were indispensable. As a