Preble County Democrat. [volume] (Eaton, Ohio) 1857-1859, 1857-08-27

The Late DefaIcatiOm-Chase's
Connection with It-HiS Letter
to BreSIim, Recommending h
City Bank Of Cincinnati.
The proof is now complete that the
State lost nearly 500, 900 of its funds
through the instrumentality of Salmon
P. Chase. Breslin, the Treasurer, de-
posted nearly hat amount with the
City Bank of Cincinnati, upon the re-
commentator of Chase, and the deposit
was lost. The bank was in a bad con-
dition at the time Chase wrote to Bresliu
in its favor. Here are the documents
connected with it: EE-F
~ COLUMBUS, o., August 20. 1857.
To the Editors of the Ohio Statesman:
I notice in the Journal of last even
ing q card signed by Thomas Heaton
and E. NJ. Gregory, formerly officers of
the City Bank of Cincinnati, in which
they declare that if Governor Chase
gave a letter to Dir. Breslin, recommend
ing a deposit in that institution, that
they are not aware of it. Although
this is far from being a denial of the
1lCl, IL Ii 1hlShOCu CN1uChIlJ " ~ uSCO
as a "refutation," and as the charge was
originally made upon my authority, L
deem it not improper for me to assign
my reasons for making it.
Sometime last winter, Mr.. Breslin,
in conversation with myself regarding
the losses to the State by deposits with
banks, remarked that it was impossible
to withstand the opportunities Of bank
ers and politicians and further, aliud-
ing to the City Bank deposits, he pro-
duced a letter from Gorernor Salmon p.
Chase, recommending a deposit Of State
bonds IN tile City Bank Of Cincinnati,
'0hich letter, lie informed me, he ,cas
about to sho1o to the Finance G5mmi see.
[ urged him to make it a part of his
answer to the interrogatories of the
Committee. In reply, he said hecould
not, as Governor Chase, although, a
political opponent, aeas q personal friend.
and, .furthernaore, that Chase contfolzcd
seUerGL influential Republican newspapers,
among achich qcds tie State Journal, all
of which were then friendly to him; but
WHICH, if he made public Mr.. Chase's
letter, would all be down on him.
l will add that when Mr.. Taylor of
Mahoning, Chairman of the Finance
investigating Committee, was in this
city, a short time since, in attendance
as a witness before the Grand Jury of
franklin County, he acknowledged that
he was aware Of the existence of such a
letter. Respectfully, lr#
VI. S. V. PRENTISS!
Now read the following, which we
take from the Newark AdUcSfiser:
IT;tl,o,4 P,.4Io, EIo-c-a
we ask the public to read the following
passages from the report made to the
Legislature in january last, by the
Black Republican Committee appointed
to investigate the condition OF the State
finances: af
1.-The Committee are also satisfied
that large deposits were made in the
City Bank by Mr.. Breslin before the
opening of navigation in 1852, not only
from al inspection of the books of the
bank, but from the report of w. L.
johnson, who examined that institution
April 4, 1852. The report of Mr..
johnson was made to the Auditor of
the State, April ID, 1852, and was by
him communicated to the Senate the
Both day of the same month. x x x
From the statement of its assets, and
otherwise, in Mr.. Johnson's report of
April, 1852, the bank appears to have
becn hen az q rotten condition-a coudi-
ton that could not have been unknown
to the business men of Cincinnati, and
could not have escaped the observation
of a person Of ordinary Intelligence, seek
ing a safe depository of large mounts
Of money. X x x =
1.-The City Bank Of Cincinnati was
organized in May, 1915, by five persons,
the principal of whom was a broker:
was subsequently sold to a citizen of
Cincinnati and a New York Broker, and
was sold again in-1S5O-having thus in
five years three sets of owners With
this history, necessarily public, a sound
institution and public credit could not
be hoped for.
(Signed,) ar. ". TAYLOR,