The New York herald. [volume] (New York [N.Y.]) 1840-1920, 1850-02-02

pant, and all the uncurbed passions of mankind
seem TO be undermining the foundations Of society,
and that the general consummation will be total
destruction of existing human institutions. There
! is good deal to favor either of these opinions;
and If we were to take the fruma facie evidence
which we gather from passing events, we should
probably be compelled to adopt the opinion that
virtue is fast leaving the world and vice usurping
Its place. There some signs OF the times which
confirm this idea so strongly that they cannot be
overlooked. II is perfectly certain that, whatever
| philosophers may say to the contrary, this an
age of Iascaty and defalcauon. Both in England
and America, the great system of politics gam
bling machlne for getting hold of money. 1t seems
| impossible TO preserve any institutions whatever,
which have pecunlary existence, from corruption
| and overthrow. Sometimes the drift of avarice
finds for iselfa bold channel and capitalists and
men in authority club together, and nearly rum the
! nation. Such was the case with the great railway
speculatons recently carried on in England, under
the financial manage ment OF Hudson, the Railway
King Thousands and tens of thousands OF ho-
people, who had invested their all in railway
shares. under the false and cruel representations of
spectators, were left begears when the bubble
burst; and the man who, but the hour before, was
| the IDOL OF the government, the nation, and the
world turns out be the boldest swindler creation
has seen for a whole generation; and, in Casting
| up his accounts, he has only robbed the English
people Of about $3.50, 900, 600!
Another of those outrageous and atrocious
! breaches OF faith, we received intelligence OF the
other day, from England. The system of corrup.
ton In Great Britain has been carried to sue an
enormous extent, that 1t has invaded even the sa-
cred limits of savings banks, where the poor have
been led to suppose they could depose the fruit of
their hard earnings, and have of relief
Tor the calamltles Of life and iafrmiues of age 1t
| appears that MIR. Hsyworth, the manager of
the Rochdale Savings Bank, who for many years
! occupied very high position in society, and was
| regarded, like some of our holy Wall street men,
as worthy of all sorts of generation from all sorts
OF people-who was looked up TO by the rich as
pattern model man aud millionaire, and by the
poor as the guardian of their little fortunes-had
begun to carry on an enormous system of swndllng,
which, when discovered, turns out TO be, in the
aggregate, somewhere about half million of dol
lars. How many thousands of families have been
robbed-how many widows and orphans have had
their all stolen, by this atrocous swindler, can
hardly be estimated There are at this time In
England, not less, probably, than five or six hum
dred savings banks, which, in the aggregate, have
deposited in their safe keeping not less than
Sl5O,OOO,O00. In 1888, 40i0l4 depositors had
money in these savings banks. Undoubtedly, very
large number of these Institutions are insolvent
Ii the truth were known, II would probably turn
out that the chiet management of their affairs
was confined TO scouDdres, who, if the day of
reckoning should come, would turn out TO have
squandered the sacred deposites entrusted to their
care
AT one period the system of speculation was
carried on TO such enormous extent in the
United States, that hundreds of millions of dol
lars were robbed from the community, by stock
Jobbing and bank Specializing gamblers. In the
general explosion, most of these institutions went
down, and The whole nation reeled with the shock.
But gradually the banks repained their lost au-
thority, and now their hold upon the community is
almost great ever. We presume that a
thorough investigation into their affairs would
show that they rotten ever; and certainly,
from time 10 time, we have evidence enough Of
the fact, whenever the truth comes to light. Every
lew days the community Is shocked by the an-
nouncemen that some bank has either stopped
pay ment, or great defalcation has been detected
on the part Of some of Its officers; and il is well
known that most of these institutions are charter
ed and carried on solely for the bene tn OF few
capitalists, who suck up the substance of the labor
ing classes, and when they have robbed all they
can get, explode in smoke, and leave the poor the
deceived, the outraged aboring man, to suffer the
consequences. There are at present in this city
numbcrlsss establishments who are carrying on
AN enormous business upon capital which has been
robbed IRON the community, through the agency
of these swindling banks. Wall street itself, is
~. -. a.. &.
where they coDgregate TO devise ingenious ways
Of swindlIpg the community. We know that there
are honest in most institutions professions
and pursuits but we very much doubt whether
honesty be not the exception and vilany the rule.
The first glance OF General Taylor's admins
trauon, at the financial accounts Of its agents,
shows extensive d,falcatons and we cannot
learn that the proper officers are lifting one finger
to bring these s~inders to justice. Probably
there is no country IN the world where men can
rob one another with so much IMMUNITY as 10 This
enlightened, pious and republican nation. Here IT
is done system, under the protecting shield of
law, charters and corporations. In Mexico, men
rob one another because they can do it with some
hope Of escaping there being little law and less
gospel. But the curse among US lie, that the laws
ore 70 framed that money IA all-powerful in max
Ing them and in breaking them. II is not dlsrepu-
table here. even for distinguished bishops. ves,ry.
men, elders and saints. Of all sizes aud colors, to
become defsul,ers. Their position in the church
and in society, don't seem to be affected by the
bodest villany. II they fail in business, and be-
come bankrupis, they are sporting quite as magni.
6cent equpaees ever. They have as gay aud
brilliant assembleges in their salosns They con.
stuit chiefly III, codhsh nobility OF this netropo-
lis II certainly must be delicious reflection TO
ssch men, while they are slipping their hook. to
think that their trade smen's bills have never been
paid, and that hundreds of poor families have been
robbed Of the comforts and often Of the necessities
Of liie by their vlsny II we should be compelled
to strike the balance between the virtue aud the
vice a the present age, we should b. forced to
adept the opinion that, so Tar AZ the financial move
msnts are concerned, the devil is the great auto
crai, and has his own way.
TRIAL OF TIE DRURrs.-We give, in another