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from Part Two - Elder Dempster And Company
His Early Life
Alfred Lewis Jones was born in Picton Place, Carmarthen, on 24 February 1845, of what can best be described as respectable, middle-class Welsh parents. Alfred's father was Daniel Jones, a Currier or leather-worker by trade, and also the reputed owner of the Carmarthen newspaper The Welshman. His grandfather was Charles Jones, also a Currier, who at one time had been an alderman of Carmarthen, and his great-grandfather was John Lewis who had kept the Half Moon Hotel in Carmarthen at the beginning of the nineteenth century. Mary Jean Jones, Alfred's mother, was the eldest daughter of the Revd. Henry Williams, the Rector of Llanedi, and other near relatives included many clergy, a doctor, a wine merchant and a barrister. Thus it would not be true to state that Alfred Jones came from a very poor family although this has been suggested on many occasions. The truth of the matter is that as Daniel and Mary Jones had ten children it was unlikely that they could provide them with all the luxuries of life. At the same time there is no reason to suppose that Alfred or his brothers and sisters were ever short of necessities - especially as seven of these children died while very young.
When Alfred was three years old his father decided to move to Merseyside and from then on his home was to be in Liverpool. His own description of his childhood was that it was “happy and uneventful.” He could not remember “any amusing escapades or stirring adventures.” He was quite content to go to school, where he was looked on as a studious pupil. Having a good head for figures he excelled at arithmetic, and apart from this natural ability he was greatly helped by a fine constitution. Even during his schooldays Alfred possessed a keen ambition to do well, and he was usually to be found near the top of his class. Although he was said to have “preferred work to play,” his life also had its lighter side. He was very fond of swimming and keen on sailing, and he developed an interest in dogs which remained with him all his life.
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