He was now on the road to wealth.  He had scores of trappers and hunters working for him in the great wilderness, and his agents were kept busy buying and shipping the skins to New York.  As soon as he was able to do so he purchased a ship, in which he sent his furs to London, occasionally making a voyage thither himself.  He manifested the greatest interest in the markets of the Old World, especially in those of Asia, and informed himself so accurately concerning them that he was always enabled to furnish his captains with instructions covering the most minute detail of their transactions in those markets; and it is said that he was never unsuccessful in his ventures there, except when his instructions were disobeyed.

In this again, as in the fur trade, we see him patiently acquiring knowledge of the eastern trade before venturing to engage in it.  His first step was always to fully comprehend his task, to examine it from every possible point of view, so that he should be prepared to encounter any sudden reverse, or ready to take advantage of good fortune.  Here lay the secret of his success—­that he never embarked in an enterprise until he had learned how to use it to advantage.

Under his skillful management his business grew rapidly; but he avoided speculation, and confined himself to legitimate commerce.  He was plain and simple in his habits, carrying this trait to an extreme long after economy had ceased to be necessary to him.  He worked hard, indulged in no pleasures except horseback exercise and the theater, of both which he was very fond.  It was only after he had amassed a large fortune that he ever left his business before the close of the day.  Then he would leave his counting-room at two in the afternoon, and, partaking of an early dinner, would pass the rest of the day in riding about the island.  So plain was his style of living that, before he became generally known as a wealthy man, a bank clerk once superciliously informed him that his indorsement of a note would not be sufficient, as it was not likely he would be able to pay it in case the bank should be forced to call upon him.

“Indeed,” said Mr. Astor, “how much do you suppose I am worth?”

The clerk named a moderate amount, at which the merchant smiled quietly.

“Would the indorsement of Mr. ——­, or Mr. ——­, be sufficient?” asked Mr. Astor, naming several well-known merchants who lived in great style.

“Entirely sufficient,” was the reply.  “Each one of them is known to be wealthy.”

“How much do you think each is worth?”

The clerk named large sums in connection with each of the gentlemen.

“Well, my friend,” said the merchant, “I am worth more than any of them.  I will not tell you how much I am worth, but it is more than any sum you have named.”

The clerk looked at him in surprise, and then said, bluntly, “Then you are a greater fool than I took you for, to work as hard as you do.”