The Wheeling daily intelligencer. [volume] (Wheeling, W. Va.) 1865-1903, 1884-05-03
WHEELING, ". VA MAY 8. 1884.


Up to tho time .! his failure-in tho Ian.
guage OF Wall street his "refuHal'to honor
his privileees"-James Il. Keene WAS an
envied man. For tho past eighteen months
some OF his fellow spectators have known
or suspected that he was on thodown grade
with a rush, but tho world still knew him
rs a very Monte Cristo in tho money maj.
kct.
Many a plodding brakeman, earning a
comfortable living putting by something
for q rainy day, has looked with envy on
the brilliant career Of the Buccessful milk
peddler OF San Fianeigco. The newspa.
pers were full Of Jim" Keene and his ex.
p.olts, how he darted like q meteor across
the continent, gathering increasing SPLEEN
dor IS he went, until he CONT upon New
York in q blazs Of glory. BY turns no had
been bull and bear in BonaIz, stocks, In
the grain market, in the stock market, in
the oil market. Always gambling he
sometimes lost, but less than six years
ago It is believed that he was worth nine
millions clear and had nearly three mil
lions OF hard cash locked up in his brok.
er's office waiting for a chance 10 make n
dash.
lie had q palace in New York, villa at
Newport, bought pictures, Gu. u successful
figure on the turi-had everything in lie
that a man Of tho wtrld Is supposed to re-
quire for his happiness. In n prudent mo
meut he had settled on his wife Il &C mtort'
able fortune, and now the WHOLE thing il
sid to have been swept away by opera
lions which startled and frightened the
street. In the phrase Of men Of his class
he is CLEANED out"
II Keene il utterly broken he ia not &c
well of as the laborer who works fol
days wages, ia accustomed to practice email
economies and find sweet contentment in
his lot. II he has saved Nottingham il
to say, il he pays rs far as he can-Keene
is now facing the problem which con
fronts every man without capital who has
to support q family.
1t is not long since Willard gave up the
financial ghost, and we heard the most
pitiful tales Of his poverty. Some good
friends were even talking Of passing around
the hat TO relieve his utter ex-millionaire
destitu!ion. But Mr.. Willard has not ap'
piled anywhere for the sweet privilege Of
carrying the unpoetic hod or cracking the
brittle stone for the peoples highway.
Neither has he thrown himself on the
poor rates. He still lives in his New York
palace, erected 10 ut-Vanderbilt Wander.
bilt. Nothing is changed. This summer
he goes to Europe for his health. iii
shall so please him he will make the toul
OF the world in search Of health. This il
not the pinching poverty that the ordi
nary poor understand.
When o great capitalist or bold specu'
lator goes down with a crash that generally
mcans that Le cannot meet his engage
ments; that ho is short Of money for debt
paying purposes; that he has lost some o
his fortune and more OF other peoples, and
no wants a chance to get his second wind.
Keene is not ~beggered, though he ha.
helped to beggar other men, to keep up the
price Of food with no benefit 10 the pro
ducer and to knock it down with grea'
loss 10 the farmer.
Men OF Keene's class form a miscellane'
GUS element. They are blood-suckers liv'
ing on the labor, the credulity, the thrift
and tho helplessness Of their mora scrupu'
lous count1ymen. How to extirpate then
is On unsolved problem.