Thursday, October 20, 2011

Opening paragraphs...........

    Normally a blunt, outspoken man, given to great bouts of
uninhibited conversations with friends and associates, A. P.
Giannini seldom talked at any length about his childhood on
the California frontier.  On those few occasions when he did,
however, he claimed that it had been one of the most decisive
experiences in his life.  "San Jose had a population of about
fourteen thousand," he said toward the end of his life.  "It
was located in the Santa Clara Valley about fifty miles from
San Francisco.  Back in the days of the gold rush, it had been
a pretty rough town.  But then things settled down and
families began moving in to buy land on which to farm.....I
didn't care for farming, but it is sincere, honest work which
is the best recipe for happiness I know."

Felice A. Bonadio, A. P. Giannini: Banker of America

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