Connecticut western news., 1878-01-31
A SELF-MADE MAN.
From Poverty to WeRIth--FrOm Wealth to
 the Cell of a Prison.

the Cell of a Prison.
 This is the story of poor eang man He was born seventy years ago, in small village in the Pennsylvania Dutch county of Berks. His father was proprietor of { 8 small country store, and at ten years of age young Jacob Huntzinger got his start in life by an appointment to the responsible position of chore-boy in his fathers establishments. By industry, enterprise and encouragement he ad- vanced step by step until he was made partner, and his counsel in recent suit to which he was aparty related feelingly how the junior partner walked all the way to Philadelphia, distance of nearly 100 miles, to purchase goods for the store. Jacob early learned the value of money, and applied it so successfully that we presently find him keeping a store of his own, and dealing in every thing from needles and thread to cord l wood and railroad sills. At twenty he married. His wife brought with her a fortune of a few hundred dollars, which she eked out after marriage by keeping boarders, and by acting as milliner and l dressmaker for the village folk and the country side. With such partner, suc- cess in life was assured. Jacob and his wife were now capitalists in small way, and they presently went into real estate speculations, number of bequests, which amounted to $6, 400 in all, giving them material assistance. Jacob, how ever, d1d not neglect legitimate business for speculation. He kept up his store secured contracts for the sale of 10000 cords of wood year, which continued for several years /; operated steam flour mill for three or four years, and made considerable money. Tried running colliery for year, but confessed that he did not make much out of it. Sold out and took another colliery, from which, and store connected with it, he claims to have made $10,O00 in single year. | Operated three powder mills at once, and all the time was busily engaged in buying and selling lands, on which he made some very large profits, often net ting O,OOO, $15. 900, or $2O, in single transaction. His wife was equally fortunate, her first speculation, accord ing to his sworn statement, ill the suit above referred to, having cleared her $50, ,OOO. He then tried banking, and the Huntzinger Bank, of Pottsville, had world wide reputation. With $100,O00 capital, the bank had deposits to the amount of $1, ,277, ,661.58 It was SUD- posed to be well managed, and declared large dividends. A month after it de- clared 8 dividend of $IO,00O it sus- pended, creating, very naturally, wide spread sensation. Bad investments. loose way of doing business, and more careful looking after personal interests. than public obligations, reinforced by the general depression of the times, were the causes of failure. It was splendid bubble, which was slowly inflated to the bursting point, and when that point was reached it burst as suddenly and as ire coverab1y as other bubbles do. It is doubtful whether the 2,20O depositors will ever recover five per cent of their money.
 Public indignation against Jacob Huntzinger quickly rose to fever heat, as he refused to contribute cent of his private fortune toward making good its losses. It was finally decided that he should be subjected to trial at law, and several suits against him were begun, the only one that has yet been tried being 8 criminal prosecution brought against Jacob Huntzinger, President, and J. Albert Huntzinger (his son), Cashier, of the Miners Trust Company Bank, for conspiracy to defraud Thomas F. Kerns. The gist of the charge was that they had conspired to induce Kerns to deposit the court moneys in their bank, with intent to defraud him of the same. On the de- fendants application the case was re- moved to Reading, where it was con- tested by able counsel on both sides, fourteen weeks being spent in the trial. It resulted in verdict of guilty but a motion for new trial was immediately made, and formidable list of reasons filed. The court rendered its decision, denying the motion, and the defendants were called up for sentence. They re- ceived the full penalty of the law, two years imprisonment, $500 fine, restitu- tion of the money ($24, ,OOO), and the costs of prosecution, which amount to several thousand dollars. On their way to the jail the prisoners were followed by large crowd. An appeal has, how