New-York tribune. [volume] (New York [N.Y.]) 1866-1924, 1870-01-24
THE GOLD CONSPIRACY.

WASHINGTON, Jan, 23.-James rish' Jip "
jay Could arrived here Friday evening. ies'o'u"
they appeared before the COMMITTEE on nanS.e ~
Currency and gave testimony regarding the gou p"i1
:, "a, se,,o,nbor Mr. Gould was examined FIRST and
necpn,ed at least four hours in giving his evoence
Gould seemed TO be very retoent, ana the Noinnio0
soud get nothing out Of him except ny continuous
tops Mr. Fisk on the other hand began his story anu
went directly through with but little questioning
following is the substance OF bis storY'
In the first place. order TO get at the matter clearly
vou understand Mr. Gould, together with what heip
render him. is the manager Of the Rre Rahwaya large
corporation employing 17oo or 1890 men, ana tne earn
ngs OF which amount 70 between seventeen anu
millions OF dollars year Much or some part OF these
,arnpgs are dependent the state OF the country IL
h.s 400 miles Of railroad and seven lines Of steamers
and the crops Of the country stagnated that is II
the erop are held back and not moved forward our
receipts are diminished In ls66'676s with gold ranging
from i 10 l6 the United states had no trouble whatever
In shipping their crop Of grain TO Europe at profit The
market they have TO compete with 49, OF course lhe "cu
erranean and the Black Sea.
On tho 18th OF last June Gen. Grant was gong on 10
Boston 70 the Jubilee and was going over our line oil
boats by the way OF FAN River We made up our minds
Nj Gould and l. that should 90 over with hiln anu
zee whether could not learn what was 10 DO the Po!
81 the Administration for the coming Fan. Soid was
then selling at 1885, and knew that gold remained az
s or hereabouts crop could not be shipped AMOR
course II our crop could not be shipped, we lose the
freight on It, may well say II takes ono bushel OF
wheat 10 bring another bushel Of wheat omarRe that
H. OF two bushels OF wheat raised goes TO the farmer
aud other goes TO pay for transportation TO market
II was an important item therefore TO use every exer
ton 10 have our crop moved to market We left New
York to 20 70 Boston with Gen. Grant about o'clock,
and We gave him supper The conversation at supper
was OF course the amportant topic Of the finances
We talked, suppose, about three or four hours
ouestton-who were at that supper besides Mr. Could
Gen Grant, and yourselff
Why Billy Marston and others. 1t was an entirely in
formal thing. suppose there were some eight or nine
present. As this was the first interview We had with
him. we thought we would SIT down and have q square
talk with him. what his ideas on the subject
The first thing made up my mind to was that Grant
studying upen the finances, and was making up his
mind on the subject and that IL he studying into the
he would Of exert considerable amount
Of power The first thing which popped out was that he
was favor Of a resumption Of specie payments, and
lower price for gold. That the first thing which
struck across u.s. and 1t struck
us with q great deal of surprise. We went
into argument with him 10 show that
gold to 49, the large crop Of last year could
not go forward at all and would consume II, as
the home consumption would not take 1t all up 1t
struck across us like that and wewent into argument
convince him that something should be done TO arrange
TO get of this crop at high price remember one re-
mark Gen. Grant made, after We had talked about an
hour and half, THAT anyway, the bubble might as
well break time another much as to say that
the crash had to come it might as well come at one
time another. Our idea Of crash" is to have 1t all
milk and honey with us, and TO let the next
fellows stand the brunt Of the crash We
want to sell I"long," Iand let the next man
have all the furry. We want all the fun, and let the
next fellow have all the trouble In other words, we
want TO make tho money not TO lose - Bot Gen. Grant
didn't seem 10 reason it quite that way After we came
back from Boston, along July went down to Long
Branch There opportunity to talk there, but
during this time Mr. Gould had become acquainted with
Mr. Corbin, who married the Presidents sister. Mr.
Gould could dsabuse his mind He paid atten
tiOn than did, though am doing all the talking
lie could dsabuse his mind that this policy we were
pursuing was which going to bring us up with
round turn-to bring us exactly where it has
brought the destruction Of every mercantile inter
upon the American Continent that to-day there is
not man making dollar who is trading in anything
Our idea was whether could not stop the pur
suing OF this condition Of things We thought, II We
could make them understand It, they would readily fall
IN with our way OF thinking AS have said, we went
down Long Branch, but did not have any success in
getting an interview. We Mr. Boutwell, but we got
nothing satisfactory from him. When went to Long
Branch il seemed that Gen Grant was travelling for
pleasure, and did not to devote his time While there
10 business
think along 10 July he was going to Newport; we are
running two lines TO Boston-One by Fall River not call
Ing at Newport and the other via Newport, which
landed there ana left NewYork at 6 Mr. Gould, the
afternoon he going e to DOWN to the boat
the wharf at Cd went TO work and wrote letter he
told him that what had foreseen conversation
Eve OF six weeks previous was beginning to work. gold
selling at 1884; it was strong letter of three
pages, and he asked me 20 take 1t TO Gen.
Grant,and have a talk with him, and If l saw fit
10 say 10 Gen Grant If Government would not sell gold
tlta eoLe ~ atio
sake OF getting employment for 100 or 1900 men,
whom had for the purpose Of moving this crop,
whom had pay whether moved 1t OF not, If he
thought the policy advisable, we would go in and
put the gold market up 10 point where we could ship
this CROP and up trade here went down and had
long conversation iwith Gen. Grant on the
way TO Newport, and at that tlme when left
Cen Grant we decided that should come TO Newport
next Sunday aud in the interval he should telegraph for
Boutwell,, and either have Boutwell, come to Newport
have decision OF the matter so that we could tell
something about 10. IN other words, were TO have
conference the subject learned in the latter part
OF the week that he had heard from Mr. Boutwell,
and we did not 20 up Then got DC about the list of
August.
During this time Mr.. Gould had become acquainted, in
connection with the Paterson and Newark Road with
Mr. Catherwood, who married Mr.. Corlin's daughter
This Mr. CaherwOod Was put forward at an earlier date
this proper person for Assistant Treasurer at
HewYOrk. II seems they thought he was little TOO
the family, and as look at the matter DOw Mr.
Gould had made up his mind that the policy plain
to put gold, and that lie would in and deal In
gold not believing but that the Government would stand
stu until the crop moved of Thinking Catberwood
not just the man, they concluded 10 light Butter
field. They dropped Catherwood and substituted Butter
field and through Corbns influence he carried into
the Assistant Treasurership
1t seems at that timo MI Corbn had taken up the
theory that the crops shon be moved of at high prices