The Helena independent. [volume] (Helena, Mont.) 1875-1943, 1893-02-24


RUFUS HATCH. Rufus Hatch camo
from sturdy stock. His parents were
farmers in the little village of Wells York
county. Me, where the family settled a
hundred years ago. The Hatch family
came from England 200 years ago. some
settling in Maine and others In Conneoti-
cnt. 1t was century later that Rufus an
cestors settled in Wells. Some of the
family went west, and their descendants
may be found in OHIO.
He died down on his luck, but in his
quarter century or more of life in tho
street he WAS up and down from top to
bottom of the ladder of feverish money
getting and money losing. Latterly he was
a member of the condemned little exchange
around the corner, but IN his day he was a
hieh-roller on the floor of the big exchange,
and when he went into it from his little
coal-hole exchange az the open board was
styled when il was housed in Broad street
cellar he marched in not because the stock
exchange wanted him, but because it could
not keep him out.
He had q capital training for successful
man. He was born on farm, and had
good firm underpinninR of physical health.
He struck out at the age of 10 from tho
modest Maine homestead. He tried clerk
ing it as grocery boy, got an offer Of
partnership in the store, and had he ac-
ceepted it might have settled down to an
income of $500 per year. But he declined
and went west naturally to Chicago.
He held the surveyors chain when the
route of one of the roads afterwards merged
into the Chicago q Northwestern was laid
out. In that way he got down to bedrock
in railroading and also saw the immense
possibilities of the west as grain growing
country. In Chicago he became one of the
boldest of the grain operators, but his
opinions of the market were formed at first
hand. He could take a lot of weather re-
ports few reports of acreage in seed and
form his own, and correct notions, too, of
the crop output. On this knowledge he
operated and won.
War knocked him out. The Crimean
war it WAS. for it ended short off when the
market expected it to keep up. Prices fell
and Rufus Hatch. as a member of the firm
of Armstrong Il Co.. was a bankrupt. He
did not clear off by the bankruptcy court
method. but assumed every penny of the
firms debts and paid every one in full,
with interest.
He came east with full knowledge Of
western affairs, and with Henry Keep
started in to bull Northwestern, and made
n fortune. The panicky times of 1863 found
MIR. Hatch vigorous bear, but he
waited too long, went short too far, and
failure met him in 1873 with balance of
nearly a million against him. But he was
a leader in speculation, and was soon up
again.
The Northern Pacific was then going on,
and 'booms' of every sort were rampant.
MIR. Hatch went ont to sac the land, struck
the Yellowstone park. was entrauced with
it's beauties and its possibilities, and set
about securing 1t. spur of the Northern
Pacific was to run into the park. and with
the exclusive rights granted, the park com
pany would practically have supplanted tho
United States in the ownership Of the park.
An opposition, headed by Senator Vest. of
Missouri, was started, and Rufus Hatch
was ousted from the park on the ground
that he wanted it really as an exclusive
grazing ground for his own herds in the
then booming cattle ranch trade.
1t was about this time in 1888 that he un-
dertook to reach British capital through
the British stomach. He went to England
and organized a party of exploiters inolud-
ing titled correspondents for the large Lon
don dailies. They came here prepared to
be feRsted, and were not disappointed
They got to the park, after visiting Mag
ara. Chicago. st. Paul and other cities en-
route had high old time, and wore rolling
crash of 1888 i'll Northern Pacific. and Ru-
fus Hatch was again ruined man. He
got the Engllshmen oil his hands as soon
rs he could, and they went home mystihed.
declaring this was great country. but
with very olenr idea of what had hap
pened.
That was the last failure, and from il
Rufus Hatch had not recovered. He went
out Of the stock exchange, out of the pro
duce exchange, and took n Inem be ship in
tho consolidated, which he held az death
He had two hobbies, music aud books.
Away back in his Chicago days he PLAYED
the organ in the Rockford church, and in
hls palmy days supplanted the whesxy in-
strument by $4,000 grand. In this city
lie was head of the music committee of
Christ church. He paid a good part OF
the bills and snjoyed the notoriety OF the
effort. When the Yellowstone trip was
made he took along concert singois, and
lately he found his greatest consolation in
ths very rioh musical alcove of his library.
Mr. Hatch haze a special facility FOR get
ting into lawsulis Gould never liked
him and frequently warned those il
deals and pools TO keep Hatch out, since
there would surely be trouble If he were
let III. In the amalgamation of the
American and Western Union Telegraph
there was Just such Il break.
Tho celebrated landauet suit with
Brewster " Go. IL standard in odd legal
The bill WAS for 81, 600 for re-
pairs to the many carriages which Mr..
latch maintained when he lived In that
fine park avenue house which kiehard B.
Connolly of Tweed ring fame had built
for himself, bub which MIR. Hatch pur-
chased for 100000 and spent nearly as
much moro IN adorning. In tho Brewster
bill Mr. Hatch found that gratuitIes to his
,oRohman Jenkins were included, and he
pl loeeeded to fight il.
For dozen years Mr.. Hatch had bsen n
vigorous wtlter, mostly Iii critiques upon
tho market, and the mention of water III
stocks was sure to start him of i'll pun.
gent talk on that tender point.
MIR. Hatoh's disposition for litigation led
20 his practical ostraoization in many
iuanoial lines. He was moi OF the modern