Loudon free press. (Loudon, Tenn.) 1852-1855, 1853-04-02

Robert Ferdinando Prizes was placed at the ban
for "unlawfully and feloriously uttering an ac
countable receipt of goods, with intent to de-
fraud," and forging the like instrument. The
specific act of villany for which he stood indie.
ted was perpetrated upon the firm of Messrs
Colamann & Stolterfoht who had been reduced
to bankruptcy by the act, We may say, almost
without exageration, that the peasant in the
Ukraine and the backwoodsman of the States
will not escape without injury from the tendcn-
cy communicated to the grain market by the
other operations of the wretched man who was
convicted last week at the Old Bailey. 1t was
the commercial world was drawn to the strange
speculations then proceeding in corn. Wheat
was absolutely purchased at Amsterdam and
the Baltic, shipped and delivered in England,
and then straightway re-sold at heavy loss.
What could be the meaning of this cccentricity
in the markets. There were not wanting gO6c-
mOuctes to declare that the transaction was en-
tirely political one-that wheat was so bought
and sold in order to depress the market at
home, and so to afford something like solid
footing to the Protection orators who were per-
ambulating the country and frightening the
farmers out of their wits.
His n'odus operandi was simple as simplicity
itself. They entrusted him with -four for sale
which had been consigned to them by their cor
respondents in the United States. For this
purpose the bills of lading were delivered to
him, and he from time to time returned accounts
of sales which he had effected at such excellent
prices as to attract further consignments from
the warehouses and alienated it to third parties,
who claim to hold it as pledged by him. 1t
was from the money so obtained that from time
to time he made disbursements to his principals,
and contrived to keep their suspicious at rest,
or rather to prevent them from conceiving sus-
picion at all.
The partners had opened credits for Prizes
against bills of lading, and in 1852 they accept
ed his own drafts to a large amount against
wheat. Their advances were not to exceed 30s.
per quarter, Now, what Prizes did was this
He took the bills of lading from Messrs. Cola
mann & Co., and in a few days either paid
up the amount in cash, or ware-housekeeperS'
receipts for the grain.
These were the receipts by which the ware
house-hccPcro acknowledged TO hold for the
house tiie parcels Of wheat therein mentioned,
and which were received by them without ques-
ton as full security. Whenever bills fell due
Prizes met them, and the whole business appear
ed to be conducted with the most perfect regu-
larity 1t is now needless to add that this wheat
was also withdrawn from time to time by Prizes,
and that the warehouse-keeperS' receipts were
forgeries, for it was upon one of these that he
was convicted :he other day at the Central Grim
inal Court. Still, despite of their unbounded
confidence, the partners could not but feel sur
priSed at these anomalous transactions in grain,
and they questioned Prizes upon the subject
His answer was, that the Society of Hernnhun-
tiers, in Germany, had contracted with the Prus,
sian Government for the delivery of grain,
which was to be paid for at the price ruling in
Amsterdam at the date of delivery. If these
we're true, the object, then, was to "oull" the
Amsterdam market at and about the dates when
the deliveries were to be effected. In this man.
ner, although loses might be incurred in Lon
don, they would be more than covered by the
gains made in Amsterdam by starving the mar
ket at the epochs named. He stated, moreover,
that as he was merely acting on commission, the
policy or impolicy of the speculation mattered
not to him; and as far as the partners were con-
cerned, the grain was always worth sos. per
quarter So undoubtedly it was, but he had
withdrawn it from their power. They held
nothing in exchange for their advances but a
parcel of forged Acknowledgements. AS far as
the law of this case went, there appeared fortu-
natey to be no doubt about the matter. The
man who has spread ruin and misery SO widely
around him has been marked with ignominy and
transported for life.-London Times.