The Portland daily press. [volume] (Portland, Me.) 1862-1921, 1871-04-25
DAILY PRESS
TUESDAY, APRIL rs, 1871.
A Tale of Speculation.
PORTLAND

Events have just occurred In England
which throw light on some things hitherto
mysterious connected with the Inflated Gal
way line of steamers, and ON some equally
dafk proceedings associated with the notori-
GUS mouse OF Overend, Gurney & Co. They
iiAewiSe Illustrate with melancholy force the
ease with which fortune gained by the hard
iaoor Oh lifetime may be scattered to the
winds through yielding to single speculative
temptation.
In 1877 Mr.. Thomas Howard began busI-
ness as cotton-spinner at Hyde, In Ches-
hire. By forty years of resolute toll he amass-
ed fortune of about million and half of
dollars; and now, at the age of eighty, he
finds himself thrown almost penniless upon
line of steamers; but the ruin-spreadirg house
OF Overend & Quincy is also mixed up with
it. Seldom in the annals CT mercantile bis
tary do we find so mournful case. 1t de-
serves to be put on record as a standing eau
ton against rash speculation. The story Is
enveioped in the London newspapers with an
intricate mass Of evidence and technical de-
tail, but, stripped of this, it may be briefly re-
nearseo as follows: Mr.. j. Orrel Lever, once
Member OF Parliament for Galway, went to
see Mr.. Howard one day in 1859, and told
him that there was chance, by mailing a
certain purchase, to clear some &25,OOO in
single month. The transaction consisted In
buying eight steamships, which could be had
dirt-cheap, and sold almost instantly at a
large profit. Mr.. Levers own account OF this
prospect, as given In Court the other day, was
to the ensuing effect:
"First, that the ships might be wanted to
carry the Australian mails, via Panama, a
scheme which was at that time being advoca-
ted with every prospect of success by the
Australian Government; second, that, failing
the Panama matter, the ships, or several Of
them, would positively be wanted for the
Galway line; and, third, that another scheme
was on foot for running steamers bv way of
Lisbon to the Brazils, to carry the Portuguese
mails. and it was hoped this project would af-
ford another opportunity for disposing Of, at
any rate, some OF the ships"
Mr.. Howard, in an evil moment, snapped at
the gilded bait, and the consequence was his
utter ruin and bankruptcy. He became re-
sponsible in the first place, for S253,000 pur-
chase money. For this sum he gave bills
which were discounted by Messrs Overend,
Gurney & Co., who charged very high eom-
mission. ION the same day that the bills
were given, Mr.. Howard executed the mort
gage OF the ships to the two gentlemen who
were represented to him to be capitalists, but
whoI afterwards turned out to be young
clerks in the employ OF Overend, Gurney &
Co. Thus the London bonkers got possession
OF both bills and ships; and when Howard
subsequently, as they evidently anticipated,
became unable to take up his acceptances,
they sent straightway to Hyde, and the poor
gentleman's property was entirely swept
away. The curious part of the business Is
that Overend & Gurney prove to have had an
interest in the eight ships from the time they
were built, and that Mr.. Lever on his late ex-
animation declared that Weir, the tnen man
ager Of the Galway line was bribed by Over
end & Gurney to six" him with the ships.
As the slang current among ourselves would
have it, the matter was "put-upjob" from
the begnn: ing; Mr.. Lever, however, protesting
TO have been victim, and not conspirator.
Another extraordinary feature in the csss
consists in the fact, as attested in the proceed
ings incident to Mr.. Howard's bankruptcy,
that at the time of the sale neither MIR. How
ard nor Mr.. Lever, nor any legal adviser for
those gentlemen, once took the precadtion to
look at the ships registers Or to have the
ships valued. Here was person noted for
half a century as a clear-headed business
man, man who had risen from nothing by
slow, cautious industry, risking his whole for
tune in an enterprise of whose merits he lit
orally knew nothing. A more remarkable
instance of delusion in an individual of thor
oughly sound mind can hardly be conceived,
and it is hard to believe that Mr.. Howard was
not lured into so false position by the strong
representations of others, who professed to be
at once friendly and fully informed. He and
Mr.. Lever were partners, it appears, although
| Howard was solely responsible in the fatal
transaction described. This is explained by
the fact of Levers being Member of Parlia-
meut, and that "prohibitory existed" that
the ships might be employed TO carry the
mails between Galway and America. A pri-
vate memorandum, however, was drawn, by
which Lever secured his share. The specta'
Gle of an octogenarian, who has been the
architect of his own hard-won fortune, thus
reduced to beggary, is truly pitiable, and be-
| sides awakening profound indignation against
| the rascally trick by which the mischief was
| accomplished, the case furnishes an exempla-
| ry warning against basty and i'll advised spec
| ulation.-N. Y. Times