RAISE a hand if you have ever heard of Russell E. Gardner.

Okay, raise a hand if you have ever seen a Gardner. No, again? Such is often the legacy of the independent thinker.

When Russell Gardner left his native Tennessee in 1879, he was so broke that if steamboats were selling for 10 cents apiece the best he could have done was run up and down the bank yelling about how cheap they were. He arrived in St. Louis with less than one dollar to his name.