Savannah morning news. [volume] (Savannah) 1868-1887, 1886-11-15
HENRY Willard.
His Reappearance in Wall Street
and What He is Doing.

tain IN the drama OF w all street was
rung down on the panic OF 1884, Henry
Willard stood In the arena of finance q
monetary gladiator, ruined in fortune
and broken in body. HIS power had been
sensibly lessened in the preceding year.
He is no longer at the head of great cor
porations; his name is no longer tower
OF financial strength. Two years have
passed, and now the scene is an Office far
up in one of the great business palaces
which are the wonder of New York, the
n Odern Nlneveh oil more than AssYrian
wealth and splendor. 1t is insone OF the
upper stories Of the great Mills building
that Henry Willard sits waiting for the
curtain 10 rise on another act in the bust
y IS play which shall not end
| in disaster. He is already busy with his
ambitious plans. He is understood to
| have the support of powerful syndicate
| OF Berlin bankers, and there are not
few who predict that he will regain all his
! former prestige. In 1854 he was a farm
| hand, In 1880 ne was worth S., 600. 900. He
| has had an interesting career. He is now
| about 80 years of ave. He was graduated
! In 1853 from the University of Munich,
| Bavaria, after having passed through the
elementary school of Zweibrucken. the
small German town where he was born
| he had previous to taking his university
! course spent year in a French school at
| PfalsbOurg, in Lorraine. He suddenly
| left Munich, induced his father to give
| him a certain sum Of money, and
then hurried to America, design
on farm in Illinois, whittier
his relatives had gone the previous year.
| He landed in New York in 1850, and daz-
| Zled by the financial opportunities of the
| metropolis, he attempted that short cut
| to wealth which lures so many thousands
| to ruin, which seems primrose path to
| happiness but is as full of pitfalls and
manning traps az those which protected
| LOUIS Xi. from sinister approach. Young
| Willard met with misfortune, and dis
! pjrted by his reverses set out for Belle
| vile, st. Clair county, H.. where he re-
manned several years assisting his uncle
| in the care OF farm. In the winter
evenings he wrote articles for the
| German newspapers Of the old cOun-
try and also OF St. Louis. He was
soon able 10 command remuneration for
his contributions to the st. Louis paper,
aid this was really the turning point in
his career. The press made him the
power that he subsequently became. lie
| soon settled in st. Louis and increased
mis- knowledge of English. He wrote
putis of Western cities for the Eastern
| newspapers. Ia 1858 he reported the
Lincoln Douglas campaign for the New
| I'ih AliuuuS anu tue dtIdlu. IN 1901
he became war correspondent for the
| New York Herald. At the first attack on
Charleston he was on board of Com
modOre DupOnps flagship, and as
the only Northern journalist present
won some reputation by his account of
the engagement. He came North on
leave OF absence, and made The acquaint-
ance OF that old Roman Of the abolition
movement, William LLOYD Garrison. who
| DVitpd him n his homo in Rnatnp
young Willard. whose sympathes were
all with the North, met the daughter OF
| the great agitatOr, Fanny Garrison. q
b autiful and accomplished girl, for
| whom he conceived warm attachment.
| and whom few years later ne married
Amid all his reverses Of fortune Mr.. Viii
lard has had the consultations OF a charm
ing family, devoted wife ana interesting
children.
Henry Wizards real name, | hear, is
Heinrich Hilgard, and he Is SAID to have
changed 1t for several reasons, oRe OF
which is that, like Carl Schurz, and so
many other Germans who have come to
this country. he had been compromised
by political intrigurs in GERMANY and
wished to conceal his identity in case
he should at any time return 10 Germany.
II e is tall, well proportional but of some
what portly build, and dark complex
Toned save stern gray eye. HIS manners
show that he has the German phlegm in a
strange union with American nervous.
ness. He is often abrupt to rudeness and
is particularly ungrat eful to the press, to
which ne owes his prominence. Yet he is
considered In the nam man OF kindly
impulses, and IN Wall street his
manners are agreeable. He looks
like general. Force OF character
is plainly stamped on his
broad face and his head is that Of a man
of exceptional intelligence. He IS "a born
leader, natural organizer. As corre-
spondent at Washington after the war he
was not success In the journalistic
sense; he had no particular bent as
newspaper man and he was not good
writer. But be was a natural tiuancief,
and while in Washington he made the
acquaintance OF men OF wealth, VINO aided
him in his campaign for fortune. He
secured for syndicate the pOss ssion of
the Oregon Railway and Navigation Com
pany. lie in time acquired control OF the
Northern Pacific. Then he organized a
corporation which was TO do DOthing but
huld railroads ard lease them 10 the
Northern Pacific road. This was called the
Oregon IranscOntnental COMPANY. II
was also 10 do the banking for the North
ern Pacific and negotiate the sale Of It's
bonds. whereby IL made large sums in
commissions. AT the height OF bis power
Willard was President OF the Northern
Pacific, Oregon Transcontinental, Oregon
Railway and Navigation, aud Oregon I'm
provement Companies. lie and his friends
some years ago were heavily loaded win
Northern Pacific securities. IL was their
plan 20 drive the golden spike IN tnat
road az certain date boom the stock
AID bonds aud unload on the public. But
wall street became suspicious. There
WAS TOO much iufOre, too much iuukct-
ing. champagne and hubbub. Moreover.
tn drlit 0i TIE ma iket from 1881 was down
ward. Their inability 10 UNLOAD caus q
them 10 lose credit; they found o. difficult
10 secure loans. and Nj Willard in 1888.
deemed a. advisable 30 resign as presi.
dent az the Oregon IrAnseOruuHntal aud
the Oregon Navigation C0mprny. whore.
uuun 10 one DAY thrss t.prHb ADD tuo
northern Pacific Hdyanc d 3 tO lO per cont.
Huicn must have toeu RaIIinf io tls man
wB0 bad borne 'Ie brunt uf ile d tlt ADD
n0w found Nall street eAuluug iu Als