The New York herald. [volume] (New York [N.Y.]) 1840-1920, 1852-11-02


Blue Licks in Ken,ucky-the cliques and the means
by which he was nominated, and the purposes for
which they seized upon him, have been to us causes
sufficient for aiding in his defeat, the great end being
the expulsion from the government Of Seward and
his abolition traitors of the higher law.
We have nothing more now to submit The issue
is in the hands Of the people.
The Wall street Alleged Embszzle,ncnt-
Merchants and Clerks.
The lesson taught by the recent alleged embezzle-
ment case in Wall street, viii not be lost on the
mercantile community Of New York. To those
who are not engaged in business, it appears unac-
countable that large sum a. 500 900 could be
withdrawn from the bank deposits of q single firm,
without any suspicion of the fact occurring to the
minds of the principals The mode of doing business
Of the Msssrs. Brown, it will be said, must have
been very careless If no more adequate check exists
on the funds Of the concern.
Strange az such . charge may seem, when sp-
Piled to q banking house of The high standing Of
the Messrs Brown, it cannot be concealed that it
is founded on fact. It is clearly proved that at
the very moment when Mr.. Brown ordered his
cs,hier to make no further advances to Mr.. Com
stock, the latter indebted to the house in rum
not less than $4,000. It is assumed that Mr..
Brown was ignorant of the fact. This is the first
anomaly which this strange case presents. Thus,
even before the transactions between Bowen and
Comstock could be strictly characterized as unjus-
tifable, the former must either have falsi6ed his
balance sheet, or Mr.. Brown must have contented
himself with . very careless supervision Of his
cashiers accounts. In matters Of this nature, &c
NEST que le premier pas qui coate: when Bowen
had once succeeded in concealing Comstock's
existing indebtedness, it is quito natural that
he should have kept up the game; and the
Messrs. Brown ought to feel thankful that
they have escaped with the loss of mere
quarter Of million. Once betrayed into q
breach of trust, Bowen must necessarily have be-
come the subservient tool Of Comstock: his first
fault had placed him in the power of his tempter.
Accordingly we find him, in direct violation Of his
orders, continuing to lend snms of money to Com
stock from August, 1851, to September, 1852, until
the total sum due by the latter to the firm
than double the original debt which Bowen had in
geniously concealed. The mode by which these
loans were disguised was very simple. They were
not included in the debit side of the cashiers ba
lance sheet but the total addition was made to tally
with the credit side, rs though they had occupied
their proper place This is what is technically call
ed sforcipg balance Of course, if Mr.. Brown
had taken the trouble to make the addition Of
single line Of gures the omission would have been
detected; but the banker, it would seem, had full
confidence in the arithmetic Of his clerk, and find
ing the total agree, did not trouble himself about
the items The balance sheet having thus passed
the ordeal Of the principal it was necessary torecti
the omission in order to prevent its discovery by
the bookkeeper, and accordingly the missing item
was adroitly inserted in small figures between the
lines. Here, again, would imagine, the smallest
degree of vigilance the part Of those whose duty
it was to keep check on the cashier, might have
exposed the defalcation. Rows Of figures inserted
between the lines are not SO common in well
ordered balance sheet as to escape notice: it is
passing strange that no one remarked how FREE
quently they were to be found in Mr.. Browns, and
how invariably they referred to the account of one
whom Mr.. Browns orders ought to have rendered
an object Of suspicion In come cases, we are told
that, whether from apprehensions on this head, or
from calm reliance on the carelessness Of those
into whose hands the balance sheet passed, Mr..
Bowen did not take the trouble to insert the missing
figures, and balance was filed Of record, in which
the cashier certified and his employers tacitly ad
mitted tina. two and two did not make four, but
six. This, to most men, will seem an inexplicable
We may, perhaps, comprehend how
principals and clerks contented themselves with q
smile ut the slovenly manner in which Mr.. Bowen's
balance sheet was prepared, and did not suspect
any deeper motive for the want Of mercantile neat.
ness; but that an error, which any schoolboy might
have detected in an instant, should have escaped
The vigilance Of the whole establishment, is to US
p trfectly unaccountable.
For some reason or other-probably to allay the
fears Of Bowen-Comstock used oc occasionally to act
The farce Of refundipg a portion Of the money he
had borrowed Thus, on Saturday, he would hand
over $40, 900 to Bowen, and on Monday would re-
luirc fresh advance of $50 900 from his plant in
tIument This, again, is a fruitful subject Of in
JURY. HoT does it happen that no entry was
made by Bowen Of the suws Of money he thus re-
'eiyed from Comssock! Or, if they were regularly
,sk in tone Of natural severity, by what authori-
ty Mr.. Bowen continued to have transactions Of
his nature with Comstock, in defiance Of the ex-
press orders which had been issued the subject!
But all is mystery in this extraordinary case.
We stated that it would not be without fruit for
the mercantile community. 1t will teach them, we
rus that In the largest operations OF trading and
banking, the personal supervision o. the principals
to security. Who knows whether, at
the present m 1ment, many other houses are not in
exactly the same position as the Browns were some
weeks ago? Who shall say, while the wealthy
prince carelessly glances over the balance
sheet handed him by bis cashier, and hurries from
his counting house to Fifth avenue, what thoughts
agitating the troubled breast Of his subordnatel
For such men as the Messrs Brown we have no SYM
atby. Their careessness has produced its fruit they
deserve their punishment.
But there is another light in which the neglect and
,arelessneH Of merchant may be viewed. 1t i'll
becomes one whose daily prayer is that we may not
be led into temptation, to afford those under his au-
thority the most fearful opportunities Of crime.
The victim is scarcely less criminal than the perpe-
traitor, when the negligence Of the former has been