The Press., 1892-06-09

confiagration and loss of life in the oil re- gions of Pennsylvania on Sunday. A cloudburst flooded the regions, and about the same time an oil tank sprang aleak, and a passing engine set on fire the oil which was flowing over land and water. The resulting fire was series of terrible explosions as well as of blaze, as the fire spread from refineries and tanks through out the region. Hundreds of lives were lost, estimated at nearly half thousand. The destruction of property at Titusville and Oil City was immense. There will be much suffering among the surviving people of these cities and smaller places in the vicinity.
 THE Minneapolis convention this week overshadows all else. The country was surprised last Saturday by the resignation of MT. Blaine from the cabinet, an act at once construed as implying his consent to being regarded as 8 candidate for the nomination, therefore withdrawal of last February's letter of refusal to be so d close drawing of issues between the ad- herents of Harrison and Blaine as the two leading candidates, both claiming to have an assured majority. It is not likely that we shall get news from the convention aside from bare speculation before Friday morning, perhaps not until Friday even- ing, as it is not certain that ballot will be reached before Friday. It is likely that the first ballot will be square Har- rison-Blaine issue, with few scattering votes. l
 WILLIMANTIo has had no novel expe- rience in recently having $30,OOO trans ferred from the pockets of it's capitalists to the treasury Of bottomless western mine. It looks like swindle, it is true, but is not so very singular in this respect either. The stockholders were paid one dividend, to all appearances taken from the money they had just paid in for stock. The end came when sharp investigation disclosed the apparent worthlessness of the whole investment. We have seen something very like this before, and from | it up through the several grades of less transparent dishonesty and into those less unfortunate for investors. Lots of good New England capital recently went into, an improvement" organization, which sported the names of an ex-U. s. treasurer and an ex-governor of ,Massa- | chusetts as two of it's leading officers. r Were people mistaken in. supposing these to be endorsers of the integrity of tho company? ? Worst of all these concerns per suade respectable local residents into the movement, impressing these with con- tidence they impart to others and so get blame they do not deserve. An honest 1 clergyman in WiIlimantic was the chosen instrument there, and to-day his regret at his own financial loss is no doubt lesser than that he was made the innocent means of depicting the purses of others. There seems to be limit to the confidence we can put in presidents" and "treasurers' whose names have been heretofore hon. ored, and the limit is not so far off as we had supposed. It is fortunate that most of the money so invested is the surplus o1 business men, money upon which they chose to take risks, as not immediately needed in business or for support. These generally careful to distribute their 'teggs' in different lots, mean to let the increase in one place atone for the eggs broken ol added in another. Unfortunately, how. ever, all investors are not of this class The party of small patrimony, however has no business in the field of specula- tion. There are places of deposit where the returns are smaller but nearly abso lutely safe, and these alone should be chosen for investments, the loss of which would mean penury and pauperism to the losers. The coolest business man is lia
 ble to lose his head sometimes under the influence of glowing prospectus and af ter seeing seemingly like venture enrich some of his fellows, and his intentions are the best when he advises others who respect his judgment to join him in the | risk, which they cannot so we'll afford te take. One of the most level headed mer in our borough, who has visited Talla poosa and others places on the Atlantic and Pacific coast, where New England money was being used for booming, re gently remarked that in these travels ht had seen no better place for boom thar Stafford Springs. That if the money sen from Stafford had been used at home il buying up land and then advertising tn. town, inducing industries to locate here
 building short line of railroad to giv.
 us the advantages of being a point O
 competition fol freight, etc., that money
 would not go out of the sight of the in vestor, and would be more likely to com,
 back with accretions than is now the case and would build up town in which h, has an interest of sentiment as well as O
 money. The idea is worthy of considera tion. Why look west or south for chance, to risk money, when organized capita and united effort could make safe invest ments at home? The trouble is our mel having money to invest do not counse together. They are often sly in their in vestments. They do not. even ''squeal' over losses, because they prefer oblivion for these. But their gains, when the, have any, become known, and brighter the light that is alleady attracting tn, moths to their death.
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