St. Paul daily globe., 1894-07-15

From the number of trembling visit
ors Ives received while in Ludlow
street jail it was inferred that in break
ing the eighth commandment he had
committed no solecism in Wall street.
Like Ferdinand Ward, lie forebore the
mention of other persons concerned in
forwarding illegal transactions. Not
even to save himself did he "squeap-
"a bit of Spartan conduct which was
heartily appreciated i'll certain quar-
ters"-comments a New York news
paper. Had he not also involuntarily
violated the eleventh provision (''Thou
shalt not get found oul''), perhaps Ives
might have now been reckoned the
greatest financier of the century, if not
of several centuries.
AS it was, the career of Henry S. Ives
was rapid, brief and bewldering i'll its
recklessness. Little is known of Henry
5. Ives eally life. He was born in
Litch field, Conn.,, and was the son of
David w. Ives, who enjoyed the friend
ship of Horace Greeley TO such an eX-
tent that the great editor obtained him a
place in the New York custom house.
Henry learned quickly what there was
to be learned in the common school in
his native place, and went 10 New York
| III his eighteenth year. He obtained
employment ia abe publishing house of
| Harper IL Brothers, as office boy, with
many menial duties. He was thin and
| angular. with mop of tow hair and Il
| bad complexion. Hehad pair of gray
| eyes, which were weak. and, therefore,
| had little sharpness i'll their expression.
| He had no friends and little education.
| After he haa been with the Harpers a
year and half he had changed much
| for the better in appearance; he became
..citilied,'' as his Connecticut playmateS
would have said.
1t is said that he was discharged from
| this position for hypOthecating postage
| stamps. He soon got place with an
advertising agency at salary of S6 a
week, S4 more than he had received of
the Harpers. His slight figure, smooth
face, made severe by pair of specta-
cleS, and his modesty of apparel. indi-
! eating the student of theology rather
/ than the daring gambler, first became
familiar to men in Wall street in 1882.
He was then clerk i'll the Office of
| Charles II. Wing. He was assigned to
| the work of going over railroad reports
| aud tabulating the earnings for the in
| formation of customers Of the firm. He
| proved that lie had mind of surprising
L
| familiar with the railroad business in
many of its details. He lived frugally
and speculated III the smallest way. but
with Judgment that brought success.
| Mr.. Wing noticed that young Ives was
| fond of listening to the conversation of
| customers. He reprimanded him in
| vain. After few months in Wings
office, he astounded that gentleman one
day by proposing a partnership. MIR.
| Wing declined the offer, and told the
| clerk that he had got on too fast for a
$40 place and had better go elsewhere.
Young Ives found desk i'll another
office. and soon made his first sensa-
tional move. The Western Union had
just bought up small telegraph COM
| pany, but, as the law forbade its COM
plete absorption, few shares were left
upon the market. Ives bought up all of
these shares quietly. Then he went
| around to dozen brokers and entered
into a contract with each separately to
furnish him with SO many shares of
this same stock on a certain day.
When that day came the brok.
erS went into the market and
tried TO buy the stock. They
were astonisheu to find that all the
shares had been bought by Ives. Under
their contract they must furnish the
stock to Ives. So they would have to
buy it from him at whatever figure he
chose to ask. They stormed and rayed,
but he was calm. smiling and ineXora-
bic. They appealed 10 the board OF
governors. 1t was clear that the tram
saction was fraud, and yet the situa-
ton was difficult. At last the board
arbitrarily declared the contracts in
valid, and checkmated the nineteen-
year-old schemer.
This was one of his first reverscs. In
unluck speculations he before long lost
most of his capital of $4,000, savings
and winnings. Hiring desk in the Of
flee of George w. Ballou 81 Co., ne un-
dertook TO carry OH stock and bond
brokerage business. He sent for his
former fellow clerk III the advertising
agency, Woodruff, and paio him salary
Of SIS month as assistant Ives con-
ducied his business uuder the name of
Henry S. Ives & Co., but he had 10
partner until he went into business
with Thomas b. and William B. Meeker.
under the firm hamc Of Meeker, Ives &
Co. That was about May = 1884. He
had been put out of Ballou's Office for
selling bonds in Ballous name. on
which Ballou lost heavily. Both of tile