Daily Iowa State Democrat. [volume] (Davenport, Iowa) 1856-1859, 1858-02-24
How Long shall Florence HtandP

How Long shall Florence HtandP
We announced yesterday that we
should inquire whether it were pru-
dent TO keep Florence wild cat above
water because Cook q Sargent had
the reputation Of being wealthy, and
We propose to examine that question
in . fair and candid manner. We
know we'll the influence and prestige
which reputation for wealth inyaria-
bly, confers, and there is nothing peo-
pie are 20 unwilling to believe as tuat
one whom they have accustomed to
regard ~ rich, is in reality, straitened
and broken. There is no doubt what
ever that Florence is kept aflost solely
BY the reputation for wealth which
Cook + Sargent have enjoyed. That
reputation fosters the hope that "in the
Spring" they will be able to redeem
their Florence in money or retire it
from circulation. So universal is the
opinion that Florence is an unmixed
cure, that we're it not for the expecta-
ton that it will soon be redeeme !,
there would not be ten men in the city
who would not advocate the immedi-
ate throwing Of it out. Talk to an apol-
ogist for Florence about the injury the
trash is doing our merchants at home
and their reputation abroad, and you
will at once be met with the assertion,
that "Florence will be retired in less
than thirty days" lfyou demand the
grounds on which that flattering hope
is based, you will find that its sole
foundation is a conviction that Cook a.
Sargent ought to redeem Florence, and
the belief that they intend to do their
duty. We once shared those hopes, and
relied on John Z. Cooks promises and
assertions, but We know now thatC e. S
could no more redeem their wildcat
than hold the waters Of the Mississippi
IN the hollow of their hands. We de-
clare now-and challenge them to
denial-we declare that Cook & Sar-
gent have not the means to make their
money good. and We have good reasons
for believing that three, four, five
months hence, they will be in the same
hopeless condition a. they are at pres
sut. We know that they have the ef-
frontery TO claim that they were retiring
Florence BY showing out Burrows &
Prettyman in its place, but that Of
course was secuted and laughed at.
Retiring Florence by substituting
Burrows l. Prettymsn is equivalent
70 retiring Florence by substituting
Florence, for Florence and Burrows
/ Prsttyman are substantially the
same thing. There is no more diff
ference between them than there
i between brandy and water and
water and brandy. That dodge Of
course is of no account, but the late
scheme for retiring Florence is deci-
dsdly suspicious. We allude to those
four months drafts, with which they
have recently been attempting to re-
deem sour local currency" The issu-
Ing Of those drafts reveal the condition
Of Cook + Sargent almost as plainly
- the mortgage on the splendid white
marble hank As the banking house
II the last piece Of property they would
b likely to cucumber, could they have
avoided it, 90 is the issuing OF these
four months drafts device for prop
ping up their credit, dictated by the
ksensst necessity. 1t is an admission
that they have no funds in New York
that they have no present means Of
raising funds; but it implies that they
HOPE to be able to raise some money
before four months roll round. We
hope 20 too, but We doubt it. Money
i easy in the East, and Sargent ha,
bssa in I'll the great cities on the sea.
board Tor more than q month, with the
bet securities he could command, try
ing to raise enough for the ordinary
purposes of exchange. How has h,
saeessdsdi Let . pile Of protested
,nstss answer. Cook h Sargent hav,
n thsss securities At the present time
1hey win have thrss nenths hsncs. AND
49, enenst saiss asasy now, vii
80 ~ - -, \ shsae Al
olAontae ~ sAinsel