The Indianapolis journal. [volume] (Indianapolis [Ind.]) 1867-1904, 1885-03-13
GEN. GRANTAND HIS FAMILY.
Their Rise from 0bscurity, Their Til
umphS, Misfortunes and Decline.
The Evils Wrought by Young Buck !" Under
the Influence of Ferdinand Ward-The
Generals Troubles in His Latter Days.
-Gath. = in Minneapolis Tribune.

Grants family one said to me as follows: "Grant
himself is an honest man with good intentions.
There are two points about his character often
criticised justly; first his acceptance of presents,
and next, his fondness for rich mems society.
In the former respect he is no worse than hosts
of the preachers of the gospel, who expect things
fully as much as they get them. Grants long
residence in Missouri, and in the midst of the
Dent family, which was Of cousinly Sort ac-
customed him to making and taking presents.
The army was school of donation Jim Casey,
who married another sister of Mrs. Grant, was
the greatest present maker in that army. There
was hardly an officer so poor that he did not get
"a basket of champagne from Jim. AS Grant
went on to celebrity and gratitude he found
everybody wanted to give him something. He
probably got the home advice to take it and never
looked gift horse in the mouth Some sent
him dogs, and some sent him hogs, some horses,
and some cows. AS for rich mems society, he
was very poor most of his life, while his parent
age was frugal and fond of money, and his wife's
father was also an ardent money seeker The
Dent family had some reasonable origin in the
State. of Maryland, and they regarded wealth as
the biggest sort of thing Grant had mastered
everything but riches, and toward the close OF
his presidential term rich men took possession of
him. They ruined him, as they generally do
man not brought up to their systems of larceny
and over.reaching which get the name Of fnan-
cial ability.
Grant had intended to take himself landed
place not far from Washington City and come
into town when he chose, and have the sweets OF
country life. Instead of that he was carried OFF
to New York and tempted into business They
were as anxious to make use of his fame as if he
had been some fallen woman fresh on the town.
Jay Gould endeavored to use him for bond
selling operations in Mexico and when
he found that Grants name at the head of a
company would not draw money Gould dropped
him. He was dropped by one after another of
the money-seekers, some OF whom made his son
: Buck believe that Buck was a great business
character. They let Buck have some money to
lure him along, and that is how Grant got the
idea that Buck was prodigy in business, and
where Ward got the idea that with Buck Grant
to begin with he might draw some of the money
which Gould and the rest had failed to do.
Buck Grant" said my gossip, was the one of
Grants boys who was not natural In his manner.
He went to Europe and came back snob. He
wore gloves and assumed all the business mans
GOODNESS. He chopped his English up London
fashion, respected persons, cut one man for not
being good enough or high enough, and cottoned
TO another whom he thought better or richer.
Little Ferdinand Ward just wound himself
around Buck and kept tightening the coil, and it
is going to be hard for a court of justice TO de-
termine just how much Buck knew of Wards
rascaiity."
have quoted some of these general converse
tions which you can hear in many quarters Of
New York. One person remarked that Buck
Grant, year or so before this failure, made a
desperate effort to borrow money from friends,
stating that he was embarrassed and that the
firm had lost, after making some money, etc
Some of these persons think that it was after the
discovery of the failure that all hands went to
work to draw investors into the blind pool.
Fred Grant has the best reputation of Grants
Anwv1 H. 70 hn kAN Lee ~
least disposition to go TO work. Buck married a
girl with very large fortune, considering what
the Grants had been. He married the daughter
of Joseph CHI Cha flee, who had accomplished
grants, selling Leadville mining stocks,
shaving warrants, etc. He had only one child,
whom he had endeavored to marry into bust
ness house. She was at one time supposed to be
New York financier. Suddenly she married
Buck Grant The Grant family assured the
Chaffees that they had got treasure in Buck.
That little marriage had considerable to do with
politics. 1t drew off from Blaine some of his
Chaffee following for awhile, and it took the loss
of half Of Chaffee's fortune to make him SEQ
Blaine in the old light again. SO identified had he
become with Grant. These marriages alter the
relations of men. was looking down from the
gallery of the Senate yesterday with Southern
reporter and said |: There goes Senator Beck;
Is he man of fine mindW
II don't think he has much of a mind said
almost everything the government did, but his
daughter married an officer in the marine corps,
and from that time to this Beck has been wild on
appropriations for q navy. The accident of his
marrying into fine Kentucky family put another-
colored glass on his eyes"
Jesse Grant, the youngest son of the General
rather agreeable fellow, tells his friends that
he is terribly anxious to get something to do,
but instead of taking off his jacket and going out
10 the plains and beginning life like his father,
who once applied to be an army teamster, he
wants some more speculations. He wants to
know about the Nicaragua canal and the Turk
ish railroad. and if he cannot get into these
terprises. Thus does gambling annihate
whole family as quickly as war brings it up.
Fred Grant has the honest countenance and
mind of his father He is brave fellow, but
he too has got wife and family, has given up
his commission under the delusion of riches,
and General Grant has to take care of the fam
lilies Of his children and, to some extent of his
brothers and sisters. Therefore, the money
Congress voted him on the 4th of March, while
it will prevent him from suffering, will still
leave him under burden. On every side are
the wrecks of his family who have forfeited their
all under the delusion that Buck was a business
genius.
Old Abel r. Corbin, who married Grants
maiden sister, left her a respectable amount of
money, the residuum of sharp practice for whole
lifetime and straiu1ng after money. Old Corbin
had been clerk of the Court of Claims and
brought on TO Washington by Tom Benton. He
wac cAPoScU Wy all tufcStlssdtiuS COutultCc6 long
before the war; and retired to the vicinity of
New York. His wife from whom he derived his
start and who was older than himself died and
he took matrimony in his eye as possible
raeans of wealth. At his age and with his sleek
ness and affected and really deep avarice no
woman of fortune would want to take him. But
there was sister of General Grant who had
never married. When Grant became the presi-
Dental quantity Corbin made the acquaintance
of this lady and married her. They had one
child, which did not live. At his death she was
the possessor of some money and considerable
news came to her that her nephew Buck was
prodigy of business.
Buck got all her funds and turned them over
TO Ferdinand Ward, and Mrs. Corbn now
woman perhaps of sixty, is literally poor She
nanced his son in going into business So poor
Grant not only has TO support these people, but
n, 70 A.