The Portland daily press., 1878-08-12
Toledo Bladel
An Enemy Of His Race.
Matthew Thompson of PoolesviiIe-Hsw
He Crushed Mr. Hay and Insisted ON
Getting His Money Rack.

He Crushed mr. Hay and Insisted ON
Getting His Money Rack.
Some thirty years ago young man named
Thompson, Matthew, left his ancestral home
in Vermont and settled in the wilderness on
the Wabash river, where now stands the
pleasant village of Poolesville. Young
Thompson was Of good New England
stock, and would have made his way
anywhere. Had he stayed in Vermont he
would have covered the bare rocks of that State
W ith soil, and would have grown, not bananas.
for there are limits to even Vermonter, but
corn and rye and potatoes, and whatever may
be grown in the Vermont climate. But he
preferred home in ths West. and he came
with his fortune carefully done up in BAN
danna handkerchief.
Young Thompson commenced as school
teacher, studying law the while with great
assiduity and relish. Then he bought come
land, clearing a part of il, and in due time
opened an office, took to himself wife and
settled down. Now be it known Mr.. Thomp-
son was an exceedingly close attender to busi-
ness. He did not rick his money vainly upon
the speed of wicked horse, nor did he toss
cards in the back end of the sinful grocery, as
was the custom Of many Poolesvillans who
passed for respectable. He was ignorant of the
mysteries Of poker-brag, we understand they
played then-and whisky had never deiiled his
throat. The haunts of the ungodly were not
his, but his days were spent in labor and his
nights in rest and SO he lived and waxed rich.
as any man will, who does just as he did.
r., D.
Thompson, being one of the wealthiest me- n In
the place, took stock in it, as he had in the
Poolesvile and Jericho railroad, and the
Poolesville and Joppa pike, t',ae woolen-mill.
the foundry, and all other Enterprises that had
| made Poolesyille whsl il was. For Mr..
Thompson was rather enterprlsing than other
wise, and Very liberal man. His only faults
In the eyes of his neighbors were he wouldn't
drink' ne wouldn't bet on quarter races, and
MS fale was set like flint against card-playing
for money. He was q Puritan. But despite
.neSe blemisheS an other wiss EXCELLENT char
acter he was considered the best man for Presi-
dent OF a bank, and as the position suited him
he bought up all the stock for himself and his
son Charles, whom he made cashier, and run it
all himself.
1t was very useful institution, that bank.
Mr.. thompson put into it all his money and
toI. ~ w MS neignpors ana Dougnt and sold,
gold and broken-bank money, and sold ex-
change on New York and did everything be-
longing to legitimate banking business, and
but Tor concatenation of circumstances would
have gone down to his grave honored ami re-
spected
In 1868 Poolesyille was struck as we'll as all
other towns with the famous rise in all kinds
OF property. Men in Poolesville got rich sud-
denly. Gold ran mp to 300. Farmer Jones,
some years before, had borrowed $1,000 of Mr..
n h;,f
When Jones borrowed this money it took a
mighty good horse to bring $50, but now TIA
government wanted all the horses, and was
printing money by the ton to pay for them, and
the 500 horse of four years ago was low worth
$500. Farmer Jones simply sold .shree horses
and third, and came in and ter. ..ered 81 600 to
Mr. Thompson and he took "a He wasn't en-
uteiy certain that he oEght not to have had
goid' Ior that was what he lent, bnt he couldn't
help himself and he took greenbacks. The
trouble win Thompson was that the 81 900 he
received was only worth one-third of the 81 900
ne lent. 1t was the creditor class that was
walklng the floor then.
a, of course. under the stimulating influence of
t-ls Hood OF money real estate was mounting
up, as was horses. In 1870, it was in February,
Mr.. Absalom Hay, who represented half
aozen ts. insurance companies in Poolesville, got
bitten with the prevailing mania. He had all
the tastes OF the other Poolesvillans, and de-
sired to get rich. He had never accumulated
any money himself, but his wife had inherited
rom her mother, the Widow Cleary, house
worth In the old time something like 81 900,
out now cheap at S4 900. Mr.. Hay felt 1t nee
essary to buy field adjoining the village, Of
Seth Hindleman, who wanted to 60 to Califor-
MA, which he could get for $4,000, one-fourth
down and the balance in two annual payments.
As property was at the time it was a decided
bargain. There were twelve acres in the field,
and they would cut up seven lots to the acre.
These lots would go like hot.cakes at $1,000
each. Twelve sevens, eighty-four-SS4 900 for
ha In Va
particular to give the formula, for it will be
quite new to our Toledo readers). And he
walked into Mr. Thompson's bank and wanted
"a 900, the security being his wife's house.
Mr.. Thompson sent out and examined the
title, found it all right, the papers were made
out and he paid over $4 600 in good money, put
the mortgage In his safe ana went home to his
frugal dinner. He didn't ask Mr.. Hay what
ne wanted to do with his money--it was none
of his business.
Mr.: Hay surveyed, the property, cut it up
into lots and they did sell as he anticipated.
Flndlng himself growing very rlch he bought
carriage, for he felt that Mrs. II. should en-
JOY as he did, and commenced rather free
sort OF life. He used up, in his improved style
OF living, all the money he had received as
down payments on his lots, instead of paying
OH the mortgage on his wife's house, which
hard, grasping and calculating man would
have DONE
There came a crash in 1873, as will be re-
membered. The parties to whom Mr.. Hay had
and when he asked them for principal they
laughed him to scorn. AS they hadn't built
any houses on them they were all bought on
speculaton) they permitted them to go back on
his hands. And as by this time the land that
he had paid 81 900 an acre for was dear at 500,
he was in pitiful plight,
And right here is where Mr.. Thompsou-the
grinding, exacting Thompson-appeared in the
appalling role OF Merciess Fiend. When
Mr.. hay ceased to pay interest on his loan,
Mr. thompson foreclosed and sold the house
on which it was secured! Mr.. Hay was out
ragged. Here was Mercless Extortioner self
ing him out of, home earned by the sweat Of
his wife's mother! Here was a Shylock insist
ing upon the payment of money borrowed
when the money was worth only fifty cents on
the dollar True, the house. which was mort
gagged for $1,000, only sold for Sl,50O, and
Thompson lost the difference, but he was
grasper for all that. II was taking advantage
Of him, Mr. Hay said He had been led into
a speculation
''What did know OF your speculatons?"
demanded Thompson. 81 lent you money
you-but what is the use of talking"
Mr. Hay considers Mr.. Thompson an enemy
to humanity, human spider, an optopus, a
vampire. and everything else that is grasping
Poolesville. They have all joined the National
party, and they resolve that property Is rob-
berry, that banks are extortion mills, and the
grinders therein deserve ropes and short SHIFT.
And he demands an unlimited issue OF green
backs to the end that the price OF his lots-as
they won't sell they are stu in his name-may
go up to the point that he can still realize
something on them.
Mr.. Hay has moved into humble home,
and Mrs. Hay does plain sewing, while Mr..
Hay is saving the country-between drinks.
He has sent to Toledo for the talented Rev.