The record-union., 1894-03-03

the Toronto Globe. In 1861 he entered the
branch of r. @. Dun q Co. Mercantile
Agency. He pushed the business and
adopted new modes of operation, sought
and opened up new fields, and quite out
grew his sphere. He was called here and
turned loose first in the city, afterwards
on the country, advancing the concern
and his own salary until he was made
sharer of the profits, with an income of
from 200 to 500, 900 year, and place
IN the firm legend for his name. He never
was partner, however, even when the
urn was known as Dun, Wiman " Co.,
but he was the manager and active head
Of the business.
other interests divided his attention
ana some OF them became brilliant
schemes. In Canada, where he still re-
talns his citizenship, he founded telegraph
lines. de became Director of the West
ern I mon Telegraph Company on small
holdings OF stock, on the strength of his
executive ability. Staten Island, in New
York harhor, he made his own. He
bought large tracts Of land there, pushed
building by others, and built a railroad
around the shores and taking in the
water front He interested Robert Gar
rett in the island as a terminus of the
Baltimore and Ohio Railroad. A bridge
was built, and the brilliant scheme par
italy failed with the loss of CARROTS
ferries in the vicinity of New York was
added to the accomplishments Of Wiman
with others capital. To make this ferry
pay in the beginning, Wiman laid out
bathing beaches on the island at the ter
minus of his railroad, together with base
ball grounds and place for open-air
shows. While things were booming Wi
man got out safely and the property was
divided.
Beside these he organized and is Presi-
dent of the Cyclone Pulverizing Com
pany, the Richmond County Heat. Light
and Power Company, the Staten Island
Electric Power Company, the Coal Econ
omizer Company, the Automatic Weigh
ing Machine Company, the NJ etallic Paint
Company, and of many others since gone
into other hands. He is not and never
was rich. All the property he ever had,
OF whatever sort, was bought largely on
credit, and mortgaged over and over
again to give him part in new enter
prises. lie stretched everything until
the strain came and broke him.
This man is alleged to have forged two
checks for $50. That is the charge in
the indictment that will close his career,
for he has said that he will plead guilty
to the charge. Nothing is said yet of
29,0l8 so Indebtedness to r. G. Dun &
Co., contracted by taking almost if not
quite criminal advantage of his connec-
ton with that concern. AS manager
he could sign checks, and he did
so, taking the cash for his own
schemes and unfortunately for those
that the crisis nipped in the bud. He
was driven from the Mercantile Agertcy
just year ago, and the interim has been
spent in trying to make up the dues to
the company. OF all his apparently
enormous properties he could not gather
enough together to settle. In March,
ftIr oil fO &,
Co., but they found it inadequate and he
made a general assignment without pref
erences. This was not known until
April 18th, and the publication of it was
a fatal blow to Wiman's hopes of recov-
cry.
a splendid struggle for survival fol-
lowed in which Wiman labored in many
ways. He became a reporter for the
EUeHlng Post, wrote a book entitled
Chances of success; Episodes and OBJ
servations in the Life of Busy Man."
and turned out hundreds Of articles for
news agencies, besides all the efforts at
systematizing his various properties and
securing renewed credit. All was in
vain. The criminal indictment that hung
over him as a menace in case OF a fail
ure to make good the losses OF Dun IL
Co. had to come. Wiman went into the
Tombs prison and lived in cell in Muir
derers' Row for four days before a rela-
tive by marriage could get bail accepted.
Meanwhile son lay sick unto death.
\ Yesterday Wiman was released, and his
trial will follow soon, his counsel advis-
ing a plea of not guilty.
Business men condemn this man more
unanimously than any other of the years
broken inanciers. And the reason is
found in the relationship such men as
Wiman bear to the financial world.
Taken together the cases touched
on in this letter would give
bad impression of business morals,
both in the disclosures of actual commits
sions and in the public verdict on them.
But to be considered along with this pic
ture are the innumerable cases of men
who not only are not caught at such
work, but who do not perform it at all.
Individual crimes Of whatever man, how
ever prominent, trusted and tried, can
not permanently injure credit. For, in
the first place, more work is done by
credit than by capital, and credit is at
least as indispensable as money. The
better and more worthy reason is that
most men in business can be trusted.
Bad men as well as good men can be
trusted implicitly. 1t would make an
interesting article to describe the men in
Wall street, who are vile in their lives,
but absolutely honest and truthful. 1t
may seem cynical but it is realistically
iustifiable to say that honesty and truth
fulness are the rule, for the reason that
they pay and their opposites do not pay.
A broker with bloated face, sensual
mouth, and bad future behind him."
disclosed the surest foundation of COM
mercial ethics, when he said to me one
day, of a certain irregular practice in the
board: "That WON'T work, and every
body in the street knows it won't"
The development of the uses of finan-
cial credit will do more to make men
moral than all the teachings of the
schools. Mcleod may be President of
the New England, but his day, like Jay
Gould's, went by when railroad wreck
ing was proved to be not the best policy.
And that the conservative roads and the
solid financial houses, which have not
gone under, have demonstrated long ago.