The Somerset herald. [volume] (Somerset, Pa.) 1870-1936, 1885-04-08
money to be used in carrying out

tract: that is. where he said there
was a transaction Of that kind, and
1T questioned him about it, and he
said he had just been out and
bought 100000 bushels of oats, l
think II was. and there was quite q
large quantity more to be purchased
lin Chicago to be delivered. he told
me the date when it was to be de-
llivered. and that the contractor
hadn't the money to do it with, and
that he was doing it for a certain
amount, a stipulated amount. But
the contract was to other partle5,
and / said / did not see that there
was ANYTHING the matter with that
The man had contract from the
Government for quantity OF oats
and oats was an article that could
be purchased very easily on the CHI
cago market, and / said l didn't see
anything wrong in that, as we had
no contract. Then afterward | be-
gan to hear-and that wasn't long
before the failure-whispers around,
saving he had Government con-
tracts, and l questioned him about
it, and he had no such thing. he
said ne wouldn't do anything that
was going to injure me, or anything
/ requested him not to; and he SAID
he had no contracts anywhere. 1t
had been said he had city contracts,
and he as much as said to me he
was very well acquainted with city
Iofficials. and that made it easy for
him to get contracts from the city,
and / told him | didn't know there
was much difference between con-
tracts for New York City and those
made by the Government OF the
United States. so far as that is con-
cerned; and then he told me ne
had never had contract at all OF
anv kind with the Government OF
the United States, or with the City
of New York: that the way he did
was-and he gave me an instance
he says: "Now, here is man has
section of railroad" and / don't
know what road it was; it was a
road going through Pittsburg, 1
think, connected with the Reading
road. He said there was a man
had a section of road to build, and
he said that the man, if he could
have the money furnished for his
horses, and his tools, and his little
steam engine, and everything he
wanted there, ne could work to very
much better advantage on his con-
tract, and that the firm of Grant Il
Ward were TO let him have the mon-
ey to do that contract-let him
have money to get along with.
"Well," | said, "it doesn't seem 10
me that it is very good security; |
shouldn't regard that as very good
security for your money and mine;
a man who has taken q contract
and can't pay for horses and steam
engine, plows and picks, and SHOW
els, and so on, can't be very good
security for money" "0h, but" he
says, 1--WE keep the contract in our
possession, and the money is all
paid into our office" F" The road,
he said, held back 10 per cent until
the work was done, and they paid
the sub-contractor tor every sub-di-
vision. i don't know what length
of road that was that they paid for,
but they kept back 10 per cent. OF
the contract, and that is the way he
explained it; and | supposed he was
more of a business man than | was.
There was one occasion, which L
think must have been in 1888, when
we went out in the western part OF
Pennsylvania, in winter, and Fish
was along and a party of gentlemen,
and we had a special car. Ward
was with the party, but he wasn't
discussed that i know of at all.
Colonel Grant was along, and there
was Mr.. Fish and Ferdinand Ward
and James r. Smith, Mayor Edison
and J. Nelson Tappan, City Cham
berlain, and the Treasurer Of the
road, Dir. Spencer.
Odd Fish converse at all about
the business of Grant d Ward.
Al don't think he ever did. ]
made a remark, | recollect, to the
effect that Ward was a man of won
derful ability, wonderful business
capacity, or something ike that,
and Fish said he had never got
anything so good in his life before.
DID NOT DRAW PROFITS.
Q.-You didn't draw from the
firm of Grant and Ward the profits
you were led to suppose were made?
A.-No, | did not. l left them
there with the firm, and everything
/ had beside, and haven't got il
out. had some little items, but ]
don't know what amount, that were
purchased, some of them for me
with money of the firm that were
profits of the firm. They never
were purchased, but then they were
supposed to be, and l was charged
with the purchase of them.
| Q.-You drew, if / understand
correctly, from the firm at the rate
of $1,000 a month during the yeal
1888?
A.-Yes.
! Q.-And at the rate of $4,000 q
month during the year of 1884?
A.-Yes.
Q.-Up to the time of failure?
A.-Yes, sir.
| Q.-And that was the limit o
your drafts upon the firm?
A.-That was the limit of my
drafts.
Q.-As / understand it, General
Grant, everything you had was los
in the failure OF that firm p?
THE VANDERBILT LOAN.
A.-Everything l had in th,
world went. Ward came up her,
Sunday night before the failure anc
asked me TO 90 down with him tc
see Mr.. Newcombe to see if he could
get $4,000 from him: that he had
himself raised s230,0OO. and that il
he could raise si50,000 more il
would carry the Marine Bank
through; that We had 100000 in
the Marine Bank beside 81. 100000