The Sunday herald and weekly national intelligencer., 1891-08-30

oil Comuanv In manipulating the petroleum
market viii be tried in the September circuit
of the SUPREME Court of the Eighth Judicial
District of this State There are two suits in
which damages amounting to S,1OO are
claimed for breach of faith on the part Of
Joseph D. Gill, a New York broker, who
claimed 10 receive 'tips' from relative, who
is member of the executive board OF the
Standard Oil Trust and the facts as set forth
in the legal papers in the case would tend to
show that Gill either received such advance
information or that he was pretty lucky. The
plaintiffs are William H. Green, q railroad
man, and Joseph H. Metcalf merchant of
jamestown, n. Y. People in New York City,
Buffalo Pittsburg, and other places figure IN
the story as narrated in the law documents.
There is some mystery as to the identity OF
the officer OF the Standard Oil Trust who is
accused OF giving the "hps," but ex-Assem-
blyman Calkins, whose firm represents the
plaintiffs is confident that he knows the man
and viii summon him as witness on the
trial. At the offices of the Standard OH Com,
pany in this city it was denied tnat gill hau
confidential relations with any members OF
the concern or that 'ttips'' were or could be
given out ahead. Mr.. Daniel O'Day, general
manager of the National Transit Company,
characterized the charges as aDsuru, Wnen
asked about it.
Mr. Green's account OF the transactions can
not fail 10 interest spectators all over the
United States, and much of his narrative Is
already matter of record in the preliminary
proceedings which have been taken. Mr.
Green first met Broker Gill in Pittsburg,
where he was engaged in oil operations lie
next saw nim in Buffalo in November, 1887,
when Mr.. Gill had charge of laying the pipes
for the Introduction OF natural gas into thae
city. The company was composed in part OF
members of the Standard Oil Company, Mr.
O'Day being president of the company, and
when MI Gill said that he could obtain tips"
from a leading Standard Oil magnate, OF New
York City, Mr.. Green readily believed MIN.
Circumstances supported Mr.. Gill's claim
that he s.stood in' with the men who con-
trolled the market. The plaintiffs say they
gave Mr.. Gill various sums of money to invest
for them and that there is S3S, 100 due them,
partly for money loaned or invested and for
profits. The suits are for settlement
s'Mr Gill certainly had pretty good
pointers,'' said Mr.. Green in talking about the
case, 'ior in every instance the quotations
were within half cent or cent OF what Oil
stood at the times for which the pointers were
given. Some of these tips were .riven two or
three months ahead but they " ere always
verified when the time came. Mr. Gill said
the tips came from a relative who was mem
Der ofthe Standards executive board, and
who advised him when to buy or sell. l had
no reason to doubt that this was so. knew
that in 1882 he had made considerable money
i'll oil. n January, 1888, visited Buffalo and
met him there Oil was 95 or 95, and he told
me it would drop to rs cents which would be
the bottom price on the expected break.
Everybody was bulling oil. did not think it
safe, but Gill said oil might squirt little and
ret Ip to 81 or over butit would then drop.
Sure enough it went from SO cents up to 81. .O1
and then dropped to 70 cents, going up quarter
of cent. This was March 81 [ had told
a jamestown friend that the break would
occur, but he thought L was crazy. He got
caught for s., ,000.o
Gil next told Green that oil would go up to
80 cents and that he had better buy. He SO ad-
vised Pittsburg friend. Oil went up to S5
and Sc cents. In April when it was S6s GIL
said it would squirt to 80, but not over 81. He
advised TO sell on every squirt. 1t went up
to 905 and then dropped to 10, as Gill also
predicted. Green says he made money on
this operation, and that his Pittsburg friend
promised 500 for every advance or decline
Of points for which Green gave him a
pointer On June 10 Green says he met Gill
in Buffalo, near Donaldson's ucketshop.
Gill said he had message from his New York
friend that the market would stop at 12 in
stead of 20 cents, and advising that short oil
be closed out. Green bought at 72s The mar
ket dropped to 712. Gill next predicted an
advance I, 0 Sl.10 but advised selling at $l.0S
because the market would be Wild. This, he
said was from the New York magnate. The
.Pittsburg and jamestown men carried $4,000
barrels. Mr.. Green describes what happened
next
ssThe market went from ~ to ST. Then il
spurted then it broke and was so skittish thai
feared we would be wrecked. Oil was bang
ing around so. Gill advised holding. Mex
he said his New Yorker advised buying at 81
or SOL that the market would not break
cent under that. The market went to 964
broke recovered, and broke again. We coult
have sold for $4,000 profit, but Gill advised
hanging on for $4,000 profit. On October
10 when / went to dinner oil was 90 or "a
While ! was eating the market broke an(
swept everything away"
Mr.. Green says that he asked Gill for an ex
planation and this was what he got: Will,
these fluctuations were going on an arrange
ment was made by which the Standard an(
the producers agreed to shut off production
the latter 10 receive 100000 barrels Of oil OF
future delivery on November ] at go cents, o
whatever the market might be. Many drillers
producers, and others became uneasy, and Il
prevent them from opening up, the producer
ia the pool and the Standard people made VI
2.OO0,00 barrels for these people, each contrib
uting half This made 5000, 600 barrels whic
might be thrown on the market at almost an
time Mr.. Gill's New York magnate was at
Joint meeting of the Standard executive boar
and the producers in the deal, which was he'll
at the Fifth Avenue Hotel in this city. Nh
Gill said in explanation of the failure to motif
him that his relative was in the room, tn
door of which was locked, and that he coul
neither get out nor get word out Prior
the collapse Mr.. Green claims that he an
Landlord Cook, of the Fillmore House /
Buffalo, lent Mr.. Gill some 500, which wa
never repaid. According to Green he wa
got alone IN his losses, but Gill also wa