The morning news., 1894-06-17
The Conviction of Wiman.


It is evident that the jury in the case of
Erastus Wiman would have brought in a
verdict of mot guilty" if it had been pos
sible 10 do so without ignoring the evi-
deuce. The manner in which the foreman
rendered the veriict showed that the
sympathies of the jury were with him.
The charge against Mr.. Wiman was
that when he was the manager OF K. G.
Dun & Co he obtained large amount Of
money from the company by means of
forgeries. When this charge was made
1 puOlic two or three mon-hs ago there
were comparatively few who believed
ii. The very general impression was
/ that a mistake had been made and
that it would so appear at the trial. Mr..
/ Wlman held very high place in the con-
/ idence and esteem of business men of
| New York, and there was very marked
disinclination TO believe be had been
guilty of wrong-doing. he had written
much good advice to young men, and, be-
sides, he had been extremely active in
promoting enterprises of one kind and
another in and about New York city, and
these enterprises had brought him into
close business and social relations with
many prominent people.
There is no doubt that the charge
against Mr.. Wiman was clearly proven.
A letter 10 MIR. r. G. Dun was introduced,
in which he confessed his crooked prac-
tlces. There were circumstances. however,
that seemed to show that he had no in
tention to defraud any one. He was the
owner of q great deal of real estate
which he believed would soon rise in value
and that he would be able to replace the
money.
There seems to have been another mo-
tive which influenced him. 1t was
the belief that the great prosper
ity of r. G.. Dun & Co. was
largely owing to his efforts, and that,
therefore, he was entitled to a larger
share of the profits than he received.
The income of the company was very
small when he become the company's
manager, but it steadily increased
until it reached $500, 900 a, year, of which
amount Mr.. Wiman received between
$4,000 and $4,000 That income ought
to have satisfied him, and it probably
would had he not become involved in un-
profitable undertakings that called for
more money than he could command. 1t
is possible he made the company prosper
Gus, though evidence was introduced to
show that the prosperity, which he
claimed to be due to his business talents,
came naturally from the increased pros
perity of the country.
1t is possible that Mr.. Wiman is not as
honest as the public had been been led to
believe. Like many other men who have
maintained good regulations as long as
there was no temptation to be dishonest
and fallen when the temptation came,
Mr.. Wiman was thoroughly reputable
citizen until his financial obligations be-
gan to press upon him. Then he betrayed
the trust his employer had placed in him.
He was honest as long as it was easy to
be honest. When his honesty was put to
the test it was found that it was not of
sterling quality. He could advise others
to adhere to honest methods, but he
lacked sufficient moral stamina to adhere
to those methods himself
Mr.. Wiman's downfall presents les
son which young men can learn with
profit, The dishonest man may be tenn
porarily successful, but he can have no
self-respect, and the time is sure to come
when honest men will have no respect for
him.