New-York daily tribune. [volume] (New-York [N.Y.]) 1842-1866, 1865-08-16
TIE Last EXPLOSION.

Morris Ketchum has for many years-per-
lhaps forty-been shrewd, observing, cautious,
thrifty private banker in our City. He has
grown gray in devotion to money-making, and
has been generally supposed quite successful.
No one who knows him has deemed him worth
less than 81 900, 900 any time these ten years;
and if we had been asked to name the private
banking houses of our City in the order Of their
wealth and stability respectively, we should
probably have placed Morris Ketchum & Co.
second on the list.
Suddenly, there is a crash There are fraud.
ulent Gold Certificates aaoat Some ono must
have forged them A good many 'smell Wool
en-" and there is a general serambling and peer.
ing to see who are and who are not stuck"
The younger Ketchum turns up missing; and
the father, summoned post haste to the City by
Telegram, arrived yesterday morning to learn
that his son has forged Gold Certificates aud
sold hypothetical stocks, and Overdrawn ac-
counts, and swindled right and left to the tune
of some Two Millions Of Dollars or more
nearly all of which he is presumed to have lost
in reckless, lucklesS Stock speculations; and
that Ketchum s. Co. have no choice but to stop
payment!
We trust that the first aspect Of the case Is
the worst. We hope to hear within week that
/, the house of Ketchum g. Co. has resumed pay
meat, and that its respected head can and shortly
will retire with enough to support him in
comfort for the rest of his mortal life.
But consider what blow this must be to one
of his years and his associations! We venture
to say that. if every dime he is worth had been
swept away by visitation Of God, he would
have regarded it as light affection compared
with that which he is actually called to endure
We would like from this text to preach q
short sermon to young persons on making haste
to be rich-on the passion for trade, and specu'
lation, and "big things in the way Of ventures
and operations: but it would do no good,
so we forbear. Bray fool in mortar and he
is only softer than he was before; and no one II
eyer admonished by others failures. We Ore
all SO shrewd, that we know Just how TO avoid
the rocks on which Others have been wrecked
and get rich out OF tho ruins OF thsir hopes ane
fortunes. .. .rsernA .eau0.2
We cannot feel that Mr.. Ketchum has beer
careless, There must be trust reposed some
rkers; and, il one cannot trust his own child
whom can he Z 2 His case is not like that Of the
Phoenix Bank, which viii have to be thoroughly
cleared up, o. It will seriously impair the credit
of hanks generally. II, under proper safe
guards. teller can embezzc ad libifum for foul
Years, until the aggregate of his stealings j;
about $500. 600. then we. bold that Banks are
not safe repositories Of the money Of. widows.
orphans, &C., and win have to be avoided by
those whose money is their chief resource. II
tho Phoenix don't 500 fit to elucidate this mat.
Ter, our other BANKS, in self-defsnse, must.
But the lesson forcibly taught by the finan.
cial explosions Of the present month ia one Of
General carefulness We do business far too
rscklessy in this country, Many are living OK
trsvagaptl- by the help Of credit to which they
are no. wise entitled. Two-thirds Of the CON-
munity are eager to incur debt, though you
could hardly do worse by most Of them than TO
credit them. The youth Just emerged from bis