The New Orleans bulletin. [volume] (New Orleans [La.]) 1874-1876, 1875-08-17
Interesting Statements Concerning the
Affairs of Duncan, Sherman e. Co.

The discovery has been made that larg
amount of the Indebtedness of Duncan
Sherman & Co. is accommodation paper in tn
form of drafts drawn on them by confden
tial clerk in their Office, accepted by them
and sold to various banks through note back
ers. OF this species, probably not less thai
$500, 900 is nov held in Providence, wher,
the family Of Mr.. Duncan has been long ant
hyorably known, aud the agent met will
little difficulty in disposing of it.
One bank in this city holds $50, COO Of thes,
seceptances, another $35, 900, and still another
$50, 900, besides smaller amounts in the hands
OF numerous persons One banker charac
serizes this issuance of accommodation papel
as the sharpest kind of sharp game, the i'm
preston of the acceptor being that it wa
drawn against merchandise and secured; but
Mr.. Duncan says the proceeding was entirely
straight, and more or less the practice OF the
house for twenty years.
Tho announcement is made that the letters
of credit for which the father of Mr.. Duncan
has become responsible, amount only to abou
530, 900.
A correspondent writing from Paris says:
Not half hour passes that do not hear Of
eases of distress arising from this failure.
Probably the majority of the cases are persons
10 whom the event will be real hardship, as
they have no reserve fund upon which to
rely.
widow who came to Europe few months
ago to reside here and educate her children,
deposited all her money with Duncan, Sher-
man & Co., and took their letters Of credit
She has not ten dollars in her possession, and
element and alarm are SO great that her
friends apprehend insanity
There are many teachers, students, and
others in exactly in the same condition, and
they are not only in Paris, but all over the
continent
AT least four Americans who heard of the
failure before the news reached the RoIhs-
childs agency, secured their money and have
retired from Paris to avoid trouble. One Of
the four was visited by the cashier Of the
agency, who demanded the return Of the
money, which was refused. A policeman
subsequently escorted the gentleman to the
American embassy, where Minister Wash
burne told the cashier he could not make the
arrest "You can only seize his baggage,
and advise you not to do that" The
cashier concluded he would wait, and apollo
gized and departed.
The Erening Post has called on Duncan,
Sherman Il Co. in regard to their aecommo.
dation paper, about which so much was said
this morning. A member of the firm in
formed the reporter that the bills were placed
in the market IN manner which appeared
perfectly legitimate to the firm, according to
the practice that prevails to-day with houses
of good extensive credit. The total amount
Of acceptance issued was estimated to be about
one million two hundred thousand dollars
OF this $3.50, 900 were held in Rhode Island,
and a considerable part of remainder in other
parts of New England.
In regard to the letters OF credit for which
Alexander Duncan had become responsible,
reported in Morning Journal to be but $40, 900,
il was said that the aggregate Indebtedness of
the firm would reach about $4,000, for
which Alexander Duncan had deposited about
$500, 000.-DiSpatch to C0orier-Journal.