Iowa County democrat. [volume] (Mineral Point, Wis.) 1877-1938, 1884-05-16
THE GRANT FAILURE.
An Interview with q. 8. Grant, Jr.,
Who Says Himself and brothers
Have Lost All They Had.
From the New York Herald.

Who Says Himself and brothers
Have Lost All They Had.
From the New York Herald
In response to a request for a state
ment, q. s. Grant, Jr., said to a Her
aid reporter:
1.-THE Grant family has lost its en-
tire fortune, the ruin is complete. Not
only have I and my father and two
brothers put every cent we possessed
into the firm of Grant & Ward, but
we invested large sums which we Dor
rowed from our friends, supposing
that everything was going along
splendidly and that we were amassing
a great fortune. I first put the S17,-
500 yearly income of my wife's for
tune into the concern and then l put
the principal in with it. My father
in-law loses $500, 900 which | borrow
ed from him.
"Iknew very little about the affairs
of the establishment. In fact, the ar
ticles of agreement of the firm provId-
ed that Mr.. Ward should draw all the
checks and transact all the business.
Mr.. Ward insisted that the business
management should be left solely TO
him. l had the greatest confidence
in him, and 1 consider him to be
very able man. When he first pro-
posed the partnership to me l knew
that he was making plenty of money.
and | said: oh, you don't want to
attach yourself to a slow coach like
me- He proposed the thing couple
of tir les before | agreed.
81 did not, nor did nay father or
brothers, have the faintest idea that
any hing was wrong. Up to the time
of the failure l believed that l was
worth 81, 100000. I held the banks
notes for upward of 81, 900, 600. Why,
/ have told my friends of our fortune
within few days. little dreaming of
the real state of Affairs.
THEN CAME THE CRASH.
Nv father came down to the Office on
the day of the failure, and, as he
walked across the floor toward me,
said: Father, everything is bursted,
and we cannot get cent out OF the
concern That was the very first in
timatien he had that there was the
slightest trouble. My brother Fred
had borrowed largely from his friends,
and my brother Jesse had some Dor
rowed money into the firm On the
day previous to the failure.
80 confident were we all that
Grant & Ward were making piles of
money that we invested everything
we could get. / only drew out money
against my own account, bat l kept
putting in almost as much, and the
only real funds which I retained were
about sufficient for our living expen-
SEES. None of us liked to keep dollar
out of the firm that was not absolute
ly needed, because we thought that
we were losing when we kept money
that might be earning very heavy
profit. Several times recently when
[ went to friends and asked them for
loans on the promise of enormous in
tercst they declared that such tran
saction would be usurious. l never
asked for these loans again.
ITO show you how little l know
about the affairs of the firm, | said
when the Marine bank failed that it
would simply prevent us for time
from giving certified checks. No one
ia our family had any idea that the
firm had everdrawn its accout. When
| secured loans upon the bonds which
had been given as collateral for loans
from our firm | did not know that
the bonds were being rehypothecated.
THOSE IMMENSE PROFITS.
"Of course it is quite apparent that
the immense profits credited to mem
bers of the firm were fictitious. | do
not care to go into the affair any
further Just at present, as the whole
matter will be cleared up, l suppose,
in the courts"
Mr.. Grant said that President Fish
was not in the Office of Grant q Ward
much, as his time was taken up at the
Marine bank He did not know to
what extent Mr.. Fish was cognlzant
of the firms affairs. As to the appar-
ent sale of one piece of property and
the purchase of another piece few
days ago, Mr.. Grant said:
II was paying the interest on a
mortgage held against Long Island
farm owned by friend. Finally the
mortgage was foreciosed, and l bought
the property. AS it brought me no
income l got rid of it for the property
in East Seventy-third street. This, in
turn, | traded for other property sew
eral DAYS ago, but l made the trade
through a third person, as q direct
swap hurts real estate.
Mr.. Grant said that his father had
transferred everything he owned IN
order to pay Mr.. Vanderbilt the $780,
600 which he had borrowed
for the firm before the bank failed.
ABLIND POOL INDEED.
''In fact" he added, there is little
or nothing more to be transferred by
us. We shall personally assume all
the debts which were contracted by
us personally for the firm. As to its
other debts, l feel no moral response
bility whatever, although, as mem
Der of the firm, [ am. of course, re-
sponsible. The statement of the bank
will show that we allow what we sup
pose were our profits and even the in
terest on our bonds to accumulate and
remain as invested capital. There are
what | drew fer my expenses, but
they were for profits which paid to
persons on their loans
So utterly ruined financially does
Mr.. Grant consider himself that he
declares that he was in doubt as to
what to do for his living in future.
Il have no plans as yet, he said,
"and T do not know whether | will be
able to stay in New York when this
thing is cleared up, for l may have to
enter into business elsewhere"
Mr.. Grant spoke with great frank
ness, and said that his family was
anxious to have the affairs of the
Marine Bank and Grant & Ward
made known IN detail. 1t was only
the knowledge that this would be
done in day or two that deferred
him from making a more detailed
statement.