The Pacific commercial advertiser. [volume] (Honolulu, Hawaiian Islands) 1856-1888, 1856-12-18

for the last TWO NSShS DS1OIS LIN uO1lC-1 &c Oll4CulG
70 comprehend how he, who was unknown in fnan-
cial circles a year or two ago, could have succeeded
in victimizing the note-shavers of Wall street, to TIE
amount of some halfa million of dollars. The mode
by which he did so, we will try to explain.
The first trace that we can find of Mr.. Huntington's
connection with financial matters dates back only so
far as 1852, when he and two or three other individ-
uals fell into the hands of the police of this city, for
the share which they had in getting up a fraudulent
shinplaster concern under the title of the "Anacostia
Bank, of Washington, D.. c." Indictments were
found against him and his accomplices on that occa-
sion, but they were never brought to trial, on account
as appears from an endorsement on the biu-of
some informality or incompleteness in the proof.
We next find him, shortly thereafter, having q
little box of an Office in Wall street, where ne Pur-
ported to carry on the business OF a bill broker III u
small retail style. This business consists IN acting
q sort of agent or 90 between for brokers on a large
scale-that is, he would go to a broker and find out
what he would sell certain notes for, and then he
would 90 to another broker and ascertain what he
would give for such notes, and then, if he found he
could realise any profit by the transaction, he would
buy from one and sell to the other. At this time he
boarded up town with his wife on a modest scale.
He agreed to pay $15 a week for their board, but
even this moderate sum he did not, it is said, find it
convenient to pay. He left that boarding house and
went to the Metropolitan Hotel, where he stayed for
some time but he did not here indulge i'll any of the
extravagancies into which he afterwards launched.
He subsequently went to the New York Hotel, where
it seems he commenced to be more liberal in his ex-
penditures. We afterwards find him occupying part
of a house in Fifteenth street, and recently owning
two or three houses in Twenty-second street.
Nothing is more strange in connection with Hunt
ington's career than the fact that he was so little
known in Wall street or in commercial circles. Our
reporter conversed to-day with some of the principal
brokers on the street few of them had dealings with
him., and most of them had never heard of him until
the time of his arrest. And yet he could raise half a
million of dollars among that confraternity on forged
notes, wherein the signatures did not even pretend to
be limitations.
The supposition is that it is only within the last
eighteen months that Huntington commenced to ope-
rate on forged paper. 1t may not be even so long.
He had an Office at No. 50 Wall street, and protested
to carry on the legitimate business OF a note broker.
As most of our readers are in blissful ignorance of the
business of nOte-shaving, we will briefly describe 1t.
Commercial firms, even though they may have large
capital, are constantly compelled to pay by notes on
time instead of cash. The accommodation given by
bankers is limited and when they decline to make
more advances on the notes of a firm, bill brokers are
resorted to. These charge more or less discount on
the bills, depending upon the credit OF the drawer,
and the length of time they may have to run before
they mature. The bills of houses in first rate stand
ing technically known as gilt edge paper) will be
discounted at the rate often or twelve per cent. per an
num, while on others, not so well known or trusted,
the brokers charge q discount of two or three per
cent. per month. 1t follows, therefore, that in times
of ordinary commercial prosperity, when bankrupt
cies are rare, these shavers make quite q handsome
profit by their operations. Huntington was engaged
in this capital business.
The profits of the trade, large as they must have
been, did not satisfy him, or were insufficient to ena-
BILE him to crafty his extravaganza taste for fine
houses, costly furniture, splendid e%quipages, fast
horses, and dashing women so he resolved to try his
hand on that branch of the profession which has con-
Quoted him to a cell in the Tombs. He went to work
systematically, and used, at first, a good deal OF eau
ton to evade detection. He was in the habit of going
to the Office of a broker in high standing and pur-
chasing from him notes of firms, sometimes to the
amount of sixty or eighty thousand dollars in 2 week.
For these ne always paid IN cert1ned checks. He was
an easy, distinguishing fellow-said the broker
had always a cigar in his mouth, and was perfectly
cool and RonchalGnt in his manner, so that he might
very well impose ON one but there was something
about him that I could not understand. I could not
comprehend why he should come and buy our notes,
as we did not divide the discount with him, and he
could make nothing by them. He afterwards found
out the secret of it. Huntington would buy these
notes, duplicate them, sell the notes again, and use
the duplicates as collateral security in raising money.
At first, however, he used only the genuine notes,
and, as they were always found to be correct, he
gradually gained the confidence of those with whom
he had dealings. When he had thus completely dis
armed them of all suspicion, he began to use the du-
plicates or forged notes. His plan was this-he
would go into a note brokers' say he wanted to bor-
row SAC, 900 for q month or so, for which he would
give his own note of hand and certain other bills of
such and such dates and amounts as collateral secu-
rity, and he would leave a memorandum of these
bills. If the broker wanted to satisfy himself that
all was right, he would send to the firms purporting
to be the drawers, and inquire whether they had out
the notes described. They would refer to their books,
ma that they lau issued SuC0 notes, anu cOISeQ ueHlIy
the broker, not doubling that those offered by Hunt
ington were the real ones, would advance the money
asked upon them. With the money thus raised
Huntington would make speculations, or would take
up other bills becoming due, or would use it for his
private purposes. And thus he went on from week
to week and from month to month.
Escaping so often undetected, he began to relax in
his exercise of caution. Instead of buying up genu-
inc notes and duplicating them, be would sometimes
60 into a brokers', ask to look at his paper, run his
eye over the amounts, dates and names Of drawers,
and would undertake, from memory alone, to dupli-
cate such as he thought best fitted for his purpose.
In this, however, he sometimes made q slip, for we
find that Mr.. Kane, q broker, with whom he had ex-
tensive dealings, detected him on two or three occa-
sions in offering notes which he discovered to be for
geries. Why this gentleman did not then hand over
the culprit into the hands of the law is a question
which he will have some difficulty in answering to
the satisfaction of the public. Another broker, hold
ing a note which he suspected to be q forgery, went
to the firm purperting to issue it, and although it
was but a clumsy imitation of the genuine note, the
party, without looking at it, and by merely referring
to the bill-book, declared it to be all right. Is it any
wonder that with such a loose way of doing business,
frauds would be perpetrated? The only wonder is
that they are not much more numerous.
The manner il which Huntington's operations
were brought to light was no less curious than the
operations themselves, and proved him, after all, to
be rather careless and clumsy for a successful practi-
f;o,o- Apoonr q M roal Of notes xrb;,L l. =