Cleveland morning leader. [volume] (Cleveland [Ohio]) 1854-1865, 1862-06-21

ruled it or no. / go home cOntented and
wide-awake.
! The Indiana Banker 1IRkes Statement.
DETROIT, May s. 1862.
EDITOR FREE Press: l notice in the
/ Free Press of Saturday last that Musco-
vado had been arrested for passing some
of the bank notes of the Manufacturers
Bank, of Hartford, Indiana, which we'll
executed peach-blossom wildcat stuff bears
my well-known autograph as banker. It
has been limited by some of our citizens
that probably was giving the wildcat
circulation in our city, and for my own
protection in the matter l wish briefly to
give to the public the rise and fall of the
aforesaid bank, its origin and its death.
In the fall Of 1858 made my debut in the
city Of Detroit, with one shirt in twelve
pieces, my boots dealing from the bottom,
and seedy hat on my Uranium, which was
emblematical of the defunct bank, it be-
ing somewhat caved in;' also a small
sized caTpet-bsg, which on account of
leanness and a trifing fault on the score
Of bulk, did not answer as collateral in the
eyes of the landlord at the Biddle House
for a nights lodging. Theresult was that
had to turn in for the night in hearse,n
which stood in a back-lot on Larned street,
and in the morning l made hearty meal
on some cold liver and dried apples, and
sailed forth through the city in pursuit of
employment or any Office that the good
people Of the city Of Detroit might bestow
upon me. For three long days played
Mr.. Micawber, hunting for something to
Hturn up" . 1s
At last found an old Ohio acquaintance
I had not seen for many years, who told
me he had amassed a fortune of seventy
thousand dollars, and that himself and
other parties in the city Of New York were
going into grand banking affair in the
State Of seive-like banking laws, knOwnon
our maps as the State of Indiana, and that
their bill was all ready for the signature
Of some one as banker, and then the Wild
cat was ready TO commando his -earnirar-
GUS meals upon the good people Of Indiana
and the United States generally, Hog
Island included. Like. the foolish bird
which was caught in the subtle fowler's
snare, at once obligated myself to sign
their bills and conduct the business as
cashier at good fat salary, with the ex-
press understanding that they should keep
me in coin and good bankable paper to re-
deem what of our notes would get in cir
culation, all of which was under written
contract On the first of March Lstarted
for Hartford to open up the Institution, and
on my arrival at that fried-meat village /
found on a close and careful invoice thatI
had a capital Of sixteen dollars forty cents
to commence banking on. All the bills l
had signed left with the owners of the
bank in the cities of New York and De-
troit, who were obligated to me not to is
sue dollar Of the funds until l had got a
sufficient battery erected at Hartford and
well supplied with sanitary stores, so that
1 would be fully prepared for the cam
paign. lH
For four long weary months I staid
there, waiting for supplies from the pro-
prietors Of the concern to enable me to do
business, but "nary red'' did they send
me; but in the meantime they gave the
notes an extravagant circulation from
Maine TO Utah, even at Bull Run. In fact
some of the notes were presented at the !
Bank of England for discount. How they
got them off or at what discount 1 know
not, for I never could get any satisfaction
out of the parties. They, one after an
other, got into trouble, and the senior
partner is now working out a three years
engagement in the lower house at the cap
ital of Ohio, and am told, he can make as
good saddle as any one in the house.
As for myself, have the satisfaction to
know that for the way and manner 1 was
duped into the concern I was placed on
guard duty at Cincinnati for thirty days
at the end of which time 1 was honorably
discharged by board of directors called
jurymen, and that taught me q lesson not to
handle the caudal extremity of the Wild
cat again. And know all men, white and
black, orthodox, or pagan, that 1 am not
the person who is dealing in this currency.
have none Of it about me- Neither do
in any way whatever have anything to do
with it, directly or indirectly. Neither do
I know who the parties are that are circu-
lating the stuff, but do encounter friend
once in a while who has been beat out of
one or three, and it is showed in my face
to mock me Of my misfortune. The bank
owes me near nine hundred dollars for val
liable services, to say nothing Of the forty
dollars that the landlord at Hartford owes
me for boarding NTH him. In view of the
charges that have been alleged to me, have
taken this mode to inform the public that
the bank is undoubtedly played out and l
have, in my own peculiar way, given the
origin, rise and fall, of the Manufacturer
Bank, Hartford, Indiana. Further depon-
eth saith not N. H. WILLIAMS,
Banker Defunct
P. s.-No counterfeits, l believe, have
made their appearance.