Paul decides to not be just a shoe-shine boy and creates an honest lottery for those with low incomes. He must then battle gangs and swindlers. He then builds upon his success by learning how to communicate better and sell, beginning with neck-ties and soon leverages his way into owning a neck-tie business. Paul the Peddler, The Fortunes of a Young Street Merchant teaches many lessons...leverage, communication, honesty, hard-work, saving, optimizing opportunities... it is a great story for today today's youth. Horatio Alger, Jr. authored about seventy books. He was the son of a clergyman, graduated from Harvard. His stories are pure, inspiring and as endearing today as they were when first published.