Page:Life of Isaiah V Williamson.djvu/58

40 ." The anthracite coal business was then in its infancy. With his quick, nervous temperament, he clearly comprehended the possibilities of the future development of the city as a manufacturing and mercantile center. He was constantly thinking of its future, of which he was always as enthusiastic as his nature would permit.

At that time there were also many young men who, like Isaiah Williamson, were at the beginning of business careers that later gave them prominence. There was the shrewd and diligent John Grigg, whose small book business later developed into the large affairs of Grigg, Elliott & Co., and finally into the publishing house of J. B. Lippincott Company. Joseph H. Seal, a farmer's boy (whose experiences paralleled Williamson's), had then begun in a small way as a drygoods merchant; he made his fortune in a few years, and retired in 1838, leaving a large part of his money in commercial enterprises as a special partner, which was the good practice of sixty years ago.

He came into contact with the active young men of this time, such as John Welsh, Joseph