Telegram-herald., 1890-12-06

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nzzsf skes1k "a ats AatsesSsaE<. e@resx
.aa Gh@r@ss~r.
Sseel=l CesrssSa4aesesl
NEw 1oEx. Dec. A-So n&ry anA 40
eentFea1ctoFy storiss have beea cfrca-
L2tei and priatsi aboat Heary Wizard
dsfiAg tAe paaieky eondltioa of VAL
str~et thAs the general pubic, forming
IL cplnlcns IS it dos fron what Il hears
and reaas Ia the newspapers. must Do
greatly p0zzied "a co ths aAtscsdsnts
and characser of the man. Hs h4s been
= profninent, ofsea a leading. fnancler
IA kzr0pe and this country for six
teen Years, and mere tA4n half that
tame hss been = power ia ths monetary
saAFket Of America and Germany.
he was born IA tho I'd cathedral town
u Speyer ia 1883. the only s0n of a cish
judge who afterward became justice
u the supreme court II Bavaria One Of
his two sisters died early. and the other Is
the wife II general IN the German
army who not long since represented
ths Bavarian government II the court OF
Berlin His family u distinguished and
related 70 some OF the most influential
personages in the empire, where he en-
Joys the highest esteem and favor. lie was
carefully educated. having been grad
mated at the Gymnasium OF his native
city before IL. While studying Al tho
University OF Munich he became 40 dis
satisfied with the political oppression
fhis tendencies had from tho first been
deInocraticl prevailing ia Germany az
that time that he immigrated to the New
World. where some OF his more liberal
knsmen had preceded him Eighteen
when he arrived here, and bent on max
ing place for himself, he assumed the
name Of Vlllard-his own being Hilgard
lest be should bring discredit on his
family by non-success. He achieved sue
cess 50 much earlier than be had antici-
pated that he found the resumption OF
his patronyrnic extremely inconvenient
he has, therefore, kept the name OF his
adoption, making no secret of the fact
familiar 10 all his friends and most Of
his acquaintances.
In the west he showed strong bias
toward journalism. and speedily master
ing English became correspondent. one
after another. of the leading newspapers
OF the republic. His service was most
valuable. He formed intimacies with
the principal public questions and men
of the day. and exercised potent infu-
ence privately and publicly. On the
breaking out Of the war he joined the
army and furnished admirable accounts
of many of the most memorable occur
rences of the strife, and won wide repu-
tation thereby. At 30 he married Miss
Fanny Garrison, sole daughter Of Will
lam Lloyd Garrison, the apostle of eman-
cipation, and soon after went TO Europe,
where at intervals he has since spent
much of his time. He continued to write
for the daily and periodical press until
1878, when, as he was living at Weis-
baden, he interested himself in Ameri-
can securities, and so formed the ac-
quaintauce Of many prominent bankers
of Frankfort and Berlin. This led to
his return 70 the United States as their
agent, and to his protection of their in
terests IN certain defaulted bonds, also
TO his organization of the Oregon Rail-
way and Navigation company, by which
he and his intimates made a great deal
Of money. and which has paid dividends
from the start.
BY this time Qs79) he had gained
broad fame rs an able and brilliant
financier, aud his completion of the
Northern Pacific road and his admins
tration of its affairs gave him national
and transatlantic reputation He was
at the acme of his renown and pros
perity when, at the close of 1888. be lost
the bulk Of his fortune, estimated at
s., goo or s6,oO0.o 900, and resigned
the presidency Of the corporations he
had controlled. At this time be was
vigorously attacked by men who had
suffered by the decline of the securities
he had managed. But his friends have
always claimed that he acted in the
most honorable manner, that he sacri-
feed g. 900. 900 trying to protect his
friends, and that he was the heaviest loser
Of all by the downward course of the
market. Broken in health by his long
labors and hard struggle. be went abroad
with his family for rest and recuperatiOn,
and remained two years. The Germans
retained complete faith in his abilities
In spite Of his reverses, and evinced their
esteem and admiration for him in every
way possible. They bought more and
more largely Of the Northern Pacific SCI
curiEes. and when he came back to New
York he was again. through them. the
controller Of the road. He returned to
Wall street, and had more friends than
before.
Now nat the stocks known as the VII
lsrds-the Northern Pacific. the North
American. and the Edison General Elec-
| tric-have materially declined owing to
the reckless speculstions Of London, Vil-
lard has once more been assailed But
his admirers hold that ne is "a untsinted
~ ever By any Just reproach- de may
be too confident, too sanguIze. they say.
but ne has stood firmly by his friends:
be has nos disposed of his securities. he
has not acted double part Willard .
ret5rn to America. leaving bis family IN
Germany, Is due to the fact that ne be-
heves his presence here may do good
PAUL r. CLEVELAND.