Seattle daily post-intelligencer. [volume] (Seattle, W.T. [Wash.]) 1881-1888, 1882-04-25
the FAMOUS BLIND roeI.

The New York Times gives the history
of the famous blind pool in tho article
following:
The Willard syndicate or blind pool
received its seventh and closing install
ment of subscriptions yesterday. This
syndicate was long one of the D.rnleyi-
ties of Wall street. No conbination
was ever made which WAS better abI. To
gaurd its plans and purposes. Its secrets
were known to none except Nr. Henry
Willard. The pool was indeed blind,
one so far as the market was concerned
though astnte operators we're convinced
occasionally that certain movements
were traceable 10 Mr.. Willard and in the
interest, presumably. of his syndicate
But from such uncertain CONCLUSIONS
only Was there anything to bs known.
with the closing of the subscriptions
yesterday. however. it becomes possible
u make public the inside history of the
pool. Early III tie winter OF lsSO-sl
AIR. Willard, as President and founder
of the Oregon Railway and Navigation
company, conceived that the interests
OF that Company and of the Northern
racine would be promoted by establish
ing an identity of the controlling owner
snip OF both, aud that this might be- ac-
coinplished by forming new company
To acquire control by purchase of the
stock of each If the necessary means
could be obtained. His plan also con-
templated the construction of a system
OF branch lines subsidiary to the main
lines TO develop the business of the ad-
1caAnt country. Such a project, of
course. required secrecy. for if il were
known that anybody contemplated buy
ing up 50 large an amount of any par
tcllar stocks III open market the prlces
would have gone up beyond reach. lie
therefore we2t To work quietly with his
own means and credit III the months of
December, 1850. ana January. 1881. and
took large lines of the desired stocks
ont of the market. Having reached a
point where success seemed reasonably
certain. he called upon his friends. by
private circular. to furnish him $500
W, bat did not disclose the use he in
tended to make of this sum. The cir
cuiar Was sent to some fifty persons.
About one-third in number of these per
sons subscribed for the full amount be-
fore the circular reached the others.
Then there was a rush of subscribers
and some had to be cut down to give
the others a cnance, and the subscrip-
tons rose TO per cent. premium before
the subscribers knew what Use was made
OF their money. The subscriptions We're
paid Ill three inst .llments. runnin.
from February 10 to April 2, 1881, por-
ton of them falling due III very tight
money market, the subscribers, meAn-
while. getting nothing but Mir. Wizards
personal receipt for the money.
On the 2ith of June the subscribers
met by Mr. fillards invitation at his
Office and received information az to the
use he had made of the money, and
passed resolutions approving it In all
respects. MIR. Willard then; gave them
the option OF joining him in new sub
scriptlon for the further sum of $l2-
UJ,U3O, to pay for additional amounts
of Northern Pacific and Oregon Railway
and Navigation stock purchased or con-
tracted for by him, and this second sub
scription was likewise filled mp within
few days, the payments extending from
July /, 1881, to April l, 1882. The pay
ments were all made with remarkable
regularity, notwithstanding the depres-
sion which came over tho stock market
during the second half of last year. The
new company was organized inmedi-
ateiy after the rneeting of June "A, I'M
der the name of the Oregon Il Trans
continental Company. The opposition
at first shown by some of the Northern
Pacific stockholders to the proposed
union of interests has Disappeared. and
these, IL we'll AZ such stockholders wi
were neutral or Indifferent in the begin
ning, are now working in entire har-
mony with Mr.. Willard. Tho construc-
ton of the proposed branch lines to the
Northern Pacific and the Oregon Rail-
way d Navigation Company has been
vigorously prosecuted, about 10 miles
having been already completed and a
large amount Of work laid out for the
present End succeeding years.