Clearfield Republican. [volume] (Clearfield, Pa.) 1851-1937, 1880-12-22
aBLACK FRLDA Y,


It was an awful day. The Cham
bersbufg Spirit in alluding to it in Q
historical sense, says:
The tinkling of wine glasses about
the dinner-table, the writers of gossip
the empty heads with loose tongues
the lovers Of galore, join with one ac
cord in a strain Of melody to "thC
conquering hero" Ulysses Grant.
Pensions are being provided for him
out of the money OF men whose fathers
gave it to them, new offices are TO be
created for his enjoyment, houses pub.
lic and private are thrown open and
he is bidden to enter perpetual guest
and even great Pennsylvania twin
sister of the Empire State through it
authorized manager and Deputy.COn.
troller, Don Cameron, has bowed be-
fore him and made show of tender,
ing him its best gift But all heart.
are not leaping with joy at the mention
OF the name OF Grant. There are
families in rags, drinking the dregs oI
poverty, who have no cause to rejoice
over "the silent man" when they re
member that terrible Friday in Sep.
tember, eleven years ago, day so aw,
iul in hurrying to ruin hundreds OF
honorable business men that il is re
corded in history as "Black Friday
1t was a day which, indeed, madc q
black blotch on more than one life
At that time 1t was the dangerous
policy of Secretary Boutwell, to adver
tise bis sales Of gold "a policy which
his predecessor refused TO adopt DO
cause he believed 1t to be neither wise
nor prudenD thereby giving official
notice toallspeculators of the time sales
would be made and the amount to be
disposed Of. Taking advantage oI
this Jay Gould, the greatest specnlator
the world has seen, united with Fisk
and Corbin in securing the aid ol
Grant to establish a "corner" in gold
Grant at an appropriate time in Sep.
tember, 1869, countermanded the or
der Of the Secretary for the sale Of
gold and LETT hundreds Of merchants
bankers and brokers, who had borrow
cd gold, in state Of despair and many
IN ruin. When Grant countermanded
the order for tho gold sale he hurried
to the secluded town of Washington
in this State, whore bo could not bt
readily reached by wire or mails and
remained there in comparative seolu
sion until Gould and his acoomplices
had added fortune upon fortune "a
their own gains and ruined hundreds
of merchants and honorable business
men. But If Gould got rich how did
Grant profit by it9 Corbin, Grant,
brotherin.law, told Fisk that Mrs
Grant and Horace Porter (the latter
person then member Of Grants
housebold) had each an interest OF
100000 in the huge gold speculation
and that Gould had sold Mrs. Grants
share at such figures as to net ber
about $4,000. The money-delivery
book of the Adams Express company
showed, on an examination by o Con
gressional Committee, that a package
OF money containing s25, 900 was for
warded from New York ami delivered
in September, 1869, TO Mrs. US.Grant
Corbin said this was Mrs Grants share
Of the gold "corner"l Here was "ths
great silent man" participating in thii
disgraceiul business and making tbC
wife be had sworn TO honor, a partner
in bis crime. Dom Platt says whor
Garfield one night called on the Pres
dent and learned IRON bis own lips th,
awful truth he went homo, after mid
night, "amazed and sick at heart
Might not q whole nation well stand
in amasement and suffer sickness oi
heart because of this1 But do We
shudder with horror when we recall
the dangers to which this man subject
ed our Repubhc2 Do we look with
alarm upon what his friends yet pro
pose 10 do for him2 Or do we join ia
the general applause to "the silen,
man" whose silence is more dangerous
than his speech and thus help him to
now position that he may add fresh
terrors TO the country which honored
himf