Get-Rich-Quick Wallingford A Cheerful Account of the Rise and Fall of an American Business Buccaneer

"Get-Rich-Quick Wallingford" by George Randolph Chester is a story that follows J. Rufus Wallingford, a clever but not-quite-honest businessman, as he starts the "Universal Covered Carpet Tack Company" hoping to become super wealthy using smart, but questionable, marketing and inventions. It looks at the big ideas of wanting success, tricking people, and trying to get rich quick in America. The story begins when Wallingford and his friend Edward Lamb are walking outside a hotel and get splashed with mud from a cab. Wallingford’s fancy style and charm grab Lamb's attention right away, and it's easy to see he’s full of big ideas, even though he doesn't have much money at all. Wallingford tells Lamb about his amazing invention of covered carpet tacks, a simple item he thinks will make tons of money. Wallingford hires Lamb as his secretary and starts planning how to use the people around him, tempting them with dreams of becoming rich while hiding that he doesn't have much money himself. This creates a feeling of excitement as the story of wanting success, inventions, and the dangers of trying to get rich quick unfolds.