The Washington bee., 1892-05-14
WARD OUT OF PRISON.
THE RECKLESS FlNANCiER IS RE-
LEASED FROM SING SING.

lie Ruined General Grant-IIe Has Sat-
fsfied the Law and Served SIX of a
Ten Years Sentence-Belief THAT He
Has Money Hidden for "A Rainy Day.
Ferdinand Ward, the reckless finan-
cer, who ruined General Grant and sent
him down into an unhappy grave, and
whose "Napoleonic" career as master
spirit of the brokerage firm of Grant &
| Ward and of the Marine Bank wrecked
the lives of many others, has served his
last day as convict in the State Prison
| and is now free man.
| When the doors of the prison shut be-
hind him in November, 1885, the SELL
tence of the court, ringing in his ears, was
Tor ten years, but by good behavior he
has shortened his term to six years and
| six months.
At the office of the prison he will be
| handed 5000 for work done in the print
ing room. If that should prove to be the
only money now possessed in the world
by this man, who once juggled with
hundreds of thousands, he will not go
forth totally unprepared Through his
enforced labor over the case he has be-
come an expert printer. A million dol
lars of the profits of Grant & Ward have
never been accounted for, however, and
it is possible that Ward has kept in hid
ing some of the ill-gotten wealth.
His confusing books baffled at the time
of the trial all efforts to discover where
the missing funds had gone to. Ward
borrowed money at high rates of interest
and paid these exorbitant rates out of
the last deposits in trust with the firm.
People trusted General Grants integrity,
but in truth Grant had only invested
$50, 900, and was not at all cognizant of
Wards suicidal conduct of the business.
President j. D. Fish, of the Marine bank,
was probably the only one acquainted
with the facts, for in order to create pres.
tige Ward executed imaginary contracts
for business and credited young Ulysses
Grant alone with $77O, ,424 profits I'D to |
August, 1888.
Of course, these profits existed simply |
upon paper When the Marine Bank |
had to meet, May 4, 1884, a check for
$500, 200, drawn by New York city, Ward |
was In sore straits; but he went to Gen.
aral Grant and by misrepresentation in.
duced that unfortunate partner to Sc.
cure loan of $3.50, 900 from w. H. Van.
derbilt. Unable to raise the rest of the
sum, the bank collapsed and so did the
firm, for Ward had been paying the bank
100 per cent profits on invested money.
giving at one time $12, 900 for the use of
100000 for ninety days Hypotheca.
lion, "kiting" renewals could not, how.
ever, continue forever.
The day after the failure Ward gave
all his property to q Mr.. Warner, declar.
ng that Warner was a customer and had
made over $1,O00,000 profit out of the
lrm. 1t was suspected then that Warner
md Ward understood one another. Ger.
ainly, during his trial, Ward was able ,
o pay $40 week for private board al
ludlow Street Jail.
Fish, who was censured for not seeing.
S president Of the bank, that the loans
o Grant & Ward were properly Sc.
ured, received a seven-year sentence.
ut was pardoned from Auburn several
ears ago. Ward is not an old man y
ven yet, being but Al, and having few 4
ray hairs.
Two years after his Imprisonment hi. >
life died. Ward pleaded piteously to T
permitted to gaze for the last time :
pom her face. His prayers could not be
ranted. An eight-year-old son still
yes and is attending school in Con.
ecticut, and thither Ward will 90 at
ice upon his release. Several other in.
ctments are hanging over him, but "
er feels that he will not be rearrested.