The Cambria freeman. [volume] (Ebensburg, Pa.) 1867-1938, 1873-10-10
The Big Burst B,s6GJe-IT,c North
eTH Pacific Fraud.
PHILADELPHIA, Sept. 80.

Could full, true and particular history |
be given of Jay Cookies bubble-blowing |
during the last four years, in connection |
with the Northern Pacific, it would fur I
nish one of the most curious episodes in |
commercial annals. We shall first have /
the lobbying at Washington, the dinners |
to members of Congress and representa- |
tives of the press, with not impossibly
other more substantial inducements to the /
more important members of the company;
preliminaries all tending up to the land
grant from Congress. The procuring that !
land grant, Il territory as big as Belgium,
was no easy task, "A deal of manipula- !
tion with tender conscienced Congressman
it demanded, but notwithstanding a bitter
opposition to the last on the part of few, I
who perhaps struck for higher wages, it
was found impossible to make successful
stand against the great Administration
banker. So the bill passed Congress, but
the President was said to hesitate. Strong
representations were reported to have
been made to him against the grant and /
great pressure" put upon him to prevent
his assent to it, but the President who
hesitatcs is lost. The potent persuaSiOns
of Financial Agent Cooke prevailed and
won the battle. And now let the victims
of the swindle contrast the line of conduct
pursued in this matter by Washington's
successor and by the Emperor Of Germa-
ny. When the passing Of the Northern
Pacific began to be disseminated through
out the Fatherland, His Majesty's govern
ment dispatched to this country commits
sion composed of gentlemen eminently
qualified to arrive at sound Judgment in
reference to the scheme. They went to
the alleged paradise beyond Duluth, and
with the proverbial pains taking accuracy
of their race, set to work to examine into
the real facts of the case. The result was
Cooke & Co.'S advertisementS-iu which
they gave the most powerful reasons why
the project could not be a success. and
they prevented thousands of poor Ger
mans from being ruined.
President Grant could have done the
same thing much more easily, but he pre-
ferred the less Troublesome course of sign
ing his consent to the bill, and the men
and women ruined to-day by the failure of
Jay Cook & Co. may consider themselves
as not a little indebted to the President of
the United States for had he done his
duty, the eXtravagant scheme Of Jay Cooke
could never have been attempted.
But still further difficulties had to be
encountered. There rs a certain ncwspa-
per published in London called the Times.
1t has its faults, but n want of good faith
in commercial matters has never been re
garded as one of them. Indeed, it may
fairly be said that it is not worth the while
of the Times to be dishonest. for it sells
and has weight by its reputation for com
mercial proOIty. Now the Times has a
correspondent at Philadelphia, and IL the
summer Of 1870 that gentleman began to
occasion the great and good Mr.. Jay Cooke
who is a pillar of the Episcopal Church.
and would die rather than offend heaven
by inserting q Sunday advertisement
deal of trouble. This inconvenicnt person
would persist III declaring that the para
disc through which the Northern Pacific
was about to run was howIing wilderness,
that the principal crop was the ice crop.
and that the predatory tribes of Indians
who lnfest the country were likely to prove
exceedingly incOnvenient neighbOrs. Now,
inasmuch as the investing British public
reads its Times, and believes in it these
shameful allegations had to he stopped
and even this was accomplished. Money
couldn't and didn't do it. 1t was yery
cleverly managed in different way. it
was stated as positive fact to a gentle
man of uninpeachablc integrity. whose
high character was well known to the
managers of the great London journal,
that these statements on the part of the
Philadelphia correspondent were mere per
sonal spite. Reasons were alleged why
this should be so. 1t was asserted that he
was closely connected with great rival
interest, and that in throwing dirt on the
splendid enterprise of Jay Cooke & Co,
he was merely serving the enemy's turn.
Unfortunately, the gentleman alluded to
was induced to believe these statements
and reported his belief in them to those
who controlled the paper, and the crrel
exposures of the Philadelphia correspond
ent-who had written some admirably pun
gent and logical letters on the subject
ceased to appear in the columns of the
leading London journal. Thus was the
biggest lion muzzlcd
1t was probably, too, with tho design of
carrying out the Northern Pacific project
that this gigantic speculator was induced
about the same time to establish his Lon
don house. This institution was intended
10 take the town by storm. 1t started
with prodigiOus ''splurre''
When some five years ago those croroeo,,s
offices were erected at the most Command
ing point IN Lombard street, each CITY man
rs he hurried passed them wondered s.yvI,o
the devil can afford to take them ?'' Rut
what could not that firm afford who hold
hlte House and Capitol in the hollow of
thelr hanqs? Who could squeeze a land
grant as Dig as Belgium out of the one, and
induce the other, for no shadow of reason
to throw over the true and tried bonsa Of
DarlnS, those merchant princes. worthy of
that lofty title, SO long connected with +ba
puolc nnance of this country and so thor
Oughiy respected by all its best mercantile
,lleh-in IaVor OF the rIcketty Ohio adyen
turer the bubble thrown up by the war.
et' let the victims of Jay Cooke remen-
e5 ger thaU TO give further proof of his con-
hdence, to show still more how mucb he
thonght tho public-the people whom he
is supposed to protect-might stake their
interest IN the house of Jay Cooke &, CO
Grant did not scruple 20 give them the
only really valuable financial agency of the
United States; not only so, but with that
ena TO take it out of the first house in the
World: Can he or his friends be surprised
thtns th1n, people ask, What did he get for
thlS Is all this extraordinary fay0ritism
pure gratitude to a man for matinc, ~ III
fortune out of a war loan ? And was tbe
Peremptory refusal to entertain the postaI
proposal of the Northern Pacific = few
weeks ago, an exhibition of gratitude n In