St. Johnsbury Caledonian. [volume] (St. Johnsbury, Vt.) 1867-1919, 1878-08-09
The Tappan Affair.
SAD DEVELOPMENTS.

SAD DEVELOPMENTS.
A startling and sad chapter is added to
the great betrayal of trust by John G..
Tappan, treasurer of the Boston betting
company, by the development that Hem
ry +. Durant, president of the company
and founder of Wellesley college, has
apparently not only been knowing to,
but a sharer in the irregular methods by
which Tappan has ruined great bust
ness intIusted to his keeping. The SEN
satiOn of Wednesdays meeting of the
creditors was the presentation of the
secret agreement to this effect. This
tripartite compact is a complex dOcu-
ment. 1t would seem to make plain that
Tappan and Durant used the name of the
company for their own accommodation,
continued big dividends in 1877, know
ing the company to be insolvent through
Tappan's speculations, and indignant
creditors consider Mr.. Durant's friendly
advocacy of mild course toward Tap
pans sin as now explained by the fact
that he was I'm the ring" which seems
to have Iun the company too largely for
its own benefit. Mr.. Duraut, meantime,
is indignant at the publication of the
document, and makes long statement
i'll defense of his course. But the record
of the cOmpany's trusted managers as
so far revealed shows disregard of the
interest of its stockholders and of COM
mon honesty in the highest degree as
tonishing and disheartening.
Later reports from Boston seem to i'll
dictate that the bottom facts in the John
G. Tappan defalcation sensation have
not been reached, and the business men
and lawyers appear to be awaiting fur
ther development before determining
the precise responsibility and knowl-
edge of Henry F. Durant for the bust
ness methods of Defaulter Tappan. Fur
ther examination into the condition of
the ruined Boston betting company is
called for, and it seems likely that legal
steps will be now tardily taken against
Tappan under the new law made to fit
such cases. These things done, and the
public knowledge is likely to be def
mite enough to do exact justice to the
managers of the betting company which
disposed of goods to the amount of ST.
400, 900 i'll 1877 and is to-day bankrupt
Meantime the public is reading the ia
nous tripartite agreement, and the bril-
liant attack of Mr.. Durant on Mr.. Tap
pan. There can be no doubt of the fact
that there were provisions in the pub
lished agreement which its signers had
no moral right to make. How far Tap
pan drove Mr.. Durant into the indiscre-
ton of making this document is a mat
ter for individual decision on the proba-
bilities of the case.
The Springfield Republican-which
the reader must remember is inclined to
be very severe on any "orthodox" man
who has either slipped up, or against
whom there is any suspicion,- dis
courses:
MIR. Durant long ago got possession of
valuable patent rights, Indispensable to
the legitimate business of the Boston
betting company. Through this possess
sion he became chief owner in the New
York company, and able to dictate
terms to the Boston company, of which
he also became large stakeholder,
along with Mr.. Tappan, who had grad
ually absorbed the stock of other in
vestors. In this state of affairs what
more natural than that Mr.. Durant
should consider one company as his own
mich COW, and Mr.. Tappan consider the
other as has own ? They gave down their
milk freely in the rich pasturage of
l864-1S74, and were still in full flow
when Wellesley college began to be.
But the panic of 1873 came on, and
values began to shrink. Mr.. Durant had
been liberal in his gifts to his college,
and this liberality-for which he de-
serves great credit--was beginning to
embarrass his finances. First, then, we
may suppose, came advances of income
before it was fairly due,-the cows were
MIXED in advance of the regular hour.
Then, perhaps, came loans, little IT.
regular, but carefully attended to, and
met as they fell due. Then, upon the
news of sudden losses, the inflexible
Tappan saw his opportunity, and insist
ed upon hard terms-harder, probably,
than the public yet know. Between
that period and the final exposure of
Tappan, what took place can only be
surmised. But now that the courts have
taken up the matter, we shall be likely
to find out. The publication of Mr.. Du-
rants agreement by Tappan was no
dOnbt preliminary to defense on his
part which it may require all Mr.. Du
rants law, and most of his profits, to
dispose of.