St. Paul daily globe. [volume] (Saint Paul, Minn.) 1884-1896, 1891-11-08
BANKRUPT SUICIDES.
Berlin AStOunded and Shaken
by a Financial Earth
quake.
The Ruined Bankers, Father
and Son, Consult, Shoot
and Die.
Princes and AriStOepatS Are
Involved for Enormous
Amounts.
Emperor William Aroused to
Adopt Drastic Repressive
Measures.

ing institution OF Frlediander u SOM
merfeld. The usual scenes of excite
ment among depositOrs anxious to Sc
cure their money, and among those
holding the notes and drafts of the in
stitution, occurred around the Offices Of
the firm and the effect upon the cred
itors may be imagined when it was an
nounced that the leading partner in the
concern, together with his son, had
committed suicide. The failure is as
ISOLATED with the recent suspension of
the bankers, HIrschfeld 81 Wolff.
The fact that Friedlander & Sommer-
field were financially embarrassed, and
that they would find difficulty in meet
ing their obligations, was known to
some of the operators on the bOurse
here early in the day. Large forced
sales were made. and this action was
vaguely attributed to local financial
troubles. These sales caused general
and heavy fall in prices, but the bust
ness of the day was over before the
tragic incidents closing the career of the
bankers became generally known. As
the facts i'll the case developed it APP
peared that father and sOn met in their
Office in the bank early this morning,
and discussed the crisis in their affairs.
Concluded TO Die.
After talking over the matter pro and
con, they concluded that, as they were
hopelessly embarrassed, they would die.
1t is understood that this resolution to
take their own lives was i'll a great
measure due TO the fact that their ar
rest was impending as Felix SOmmerfeld
the son. had become involved in specu-
lationS which were more than likely to
lead to his arrest on criminal charge.
Having arrived at the decision that
death was preferable to arrest and dis
grace. both father and son shot them
selves in the head, using revODvers.
When the clerks in the Office, alarmed
at the reports of the pistols, ran to the
private eff e, they found father and son
still alive. They were conveyed to the
hospital in dying condition.
The firm has been in existence for a
long time. and held a good position in
the financial world. 1t had earned a
solid reputation as steady going house.
Its customers, who belonged chiefly to
the middle class, were scattered through
out the empire. Since the HirSchfeld
d Wolff failure many of the principal
clients of Friedlander 81 SOmmerfeld,
who had become alarmed regarding the
stability of private banking houses,
made heavy Withdrawals of deposits.
Herr SOmmerfeld tried to meet the diff
Guilty by attempting to realize on his in
vestments. These, however, were
locked up in industrial and other
stocks which were not readily marketa-
bic, and eventually it was found impos-
Sibie for the firm to meet Its engage
ments.
DeposItOrS' Infuriated.
The intensity of the excitement
caused 10y the failure was such that it
was cause for cOngratulatiOn that the
fact of the suicides was not known until
after the close OF business, rs it gives
the public time to reflect before allow
ing themselves to be overcome by panic.
The best informed members of the
bourse say that they do not expect that
the failure will precipitate period of
general disaster, though it is certain to
greatly increase the alarm among the
investing classes. This evening large
crowd assembled in front of the bank
and threatened to carry the building by
storm and recover their securities. The
police mad great difficulty in restrain
ing the mob from carrying their threats
into execution. The many artisans are
Infatuated at the loss of their deposits.
Friedlander, the senior and surviving
partner, is staying at MentOne. A tele
gram has been sent summoning him to
return to Berlin.
The inquiry into the affairs of Hirsch-
field Il Wolff realizes the worst antici-
pations. The firm had been in business
for siXty-four years, and had as its chief
COMMENCEMENT Herr Wolff, who occu-
pied several other positions of trust.
1 10
lived life of oStentatious wealth, his
household expenses running to 100000
marks year. He did little in the spec
ulative lines until recent years, when
his private eXtrayaganeeS and losses at
the gaming table led to his embarrasS-
ment. He tried to rec0up his losses
through dealings on the Paris and Ber-
lin bourses. AS a matter of fact the
firm had been insOlvent since 1878.
For number of years Wolff has been
living by selling and pawning the Sc
curities of depositOrS, working in con-
nection with the banker, Joseph Leip-
siger. 1t is asserted that Wolff, with
all the facts being known to LeipSiger,
fOated spurious drafts through Leip-
Siger and pawned securities of deposit
tors amounting to $780, 900 marks. Leip-
siger finally went TO the wall, and his
failure fastened the downfall of Hirsch-
field IL Wolff.
AristOcrats Lose Heavily.
Among the numerous aristOcratic
creditors of the firm are Prince Henry
of Prussia, who loses 100000 marks;
Prince Gunther of Schleswig- Holstein,
brother of the empress or Germany,
whose loss also amounts 100000 marks,
and Count Luttichon, promi-
nent leader in German society,
who is out 100000 marks. Other
members OF the aristOcracy who are Sc
verely hit are Count Zedlitz Treschler,
Count BredOw Reichstager Goldschmidt
and Count Eulenburg, of the imperial
household, and Count Lehndorf, chief
of the imperial stables, A large num-
Der of industrial companies lose their
deposits.
Wolff is confined in prison. He says
he is unable to make any estimate of his
liabilities. He has number of heavy
gambling debts. Wolff was president
of the Resource club, an organization
composed of wealthy parvenus and
financIerS who are addicted to reckless
playing. 1t is recorded that upon the
eve of the failure of the firm Wolff re-
fused to pick up couple OF thousand
marks in bills which he had accident
ally dropped at the gambling table. He
left the money on the floor for the
walters.
The emperor designs to cleanse high
a. wall Iov.- cn0iafu ~,