The Milan exchange. (Milan, Gibson County, Tenn.) 1874-1978, 1876-08-31
An AristOcratic SwindIer.

ago, says the New York Times, an
nounced that Mr.. Richard Banner Oak
ley, the founder of the Cooperative
Credit Bank, had been sentenced to five
years. penal servitude for frauds commit
ted in connection with that great finan-
cial spiders nest. Mr.. Banner Oakley
was in many respects a unique rogue,
and the history of his various schemes
for swindling the public would read like
a romance. Originally of good fami-
ly, he entered upon a financial career
with fair fortune. From an overpOw-
ering love of speculation be very soon
got stranded, and began to look about
him for a rich wife, and succeeded in
securing one in Shropshire. Being a
dashing, genial sort of an individual, he
made himself so popular in the chosen
home eff the typical stupid English
Squire that he was asked to contest the
representation of Shrewsbury in Parlia-
ment. He failed and had no money to
pay his bills, and it burst upon his wife's
father that the rich daughter had been
sacrificed to a needy adventurer. Oak
ley then went into a grand scheme for
building up fortune. He rented sew
eral large Scotch deer forests and
moors, furnished dogs, guns, ammuni-
ton, etc., all on credit, and sublet them
to parties Of Lancashire, London and
Birmingham tradesmen, who were proud
to talk about their ''moors in Scotland. -
For this they paid literally, and it
really looked as if the versatile Oakley
was at last on the broad road to riches.
Unfortunately the second year there
came a bighting disease among grouse,
and the whole scheme collapsed. Oak
ley went into the Bankruptcy Court for
the fourth time, and paid nothing. His
next speculation was the Cooperative
Credit Bank, and Carlyle's saying that
the world is mainly made up of fools
finds confirmation in the fact that he
was associated in the management of
the concern with some really honorable
men-soldiers and clergymen-whOse
good names lent the speculation an air
of responsibility. Besides, thousands
of people intrusted Oakley with their
savings, and for time the scheme
went on briskly. His system of s'bank.
ing'' simply consisted of people placing
their money in his hands without any
security beyond that of his promise to
pay Is per cent. on the deposit money
out of the enormous gains he professed
to make by specializing on the Stock
Exchange. The whole scheme was a
barefaced swindle, and it is wonderful
the number of people who were duped.
For time Mr.. Oakley, who, by the
bye, was canting, preaching, hypo-
critic, will have leasure to mature some
new benevolent scheme in the interests
of suffering humanity and-Richard
Banner Oakley.
The IimGS'S readers will recollect that
it was through the agency of Mr.. Oak
ley and a London advertising agent that
the notorious Keokuk and Kansas Rail
way scheme was tloated in the English
market. For weeks the English news
papers were flooded with flaming adver-
tisements showing the immense COM
mercial advantages to be derived from
the freight traffic on this railroad, which
was only fifteen miles in length. Mr..
Oakley also started financial newspa-
per, many thousands of copies of which,
containing glowing descriptions of this
railroad, were circulated all over Great
Britain gratuitously. An examination
of his books failed to show, even APP
proximately, how much the public sub
scribed to this bogus scheme, but the
sum must have footed up to very re-
spectacle one. When his "bank" was
seized the only available funds consist
ed of few shillings and number OF
the Keokuk and Kansas Railroad bonds
representing a sum of about 100000.
OF course they were utterly valueless,
and the thousands of people who were
duped have not, and never will, receive
penny of the money invested.