Pine Bluff daily graphic., 1896-03-02
SOME INSIDE HISTORY
WALTER wElLMAN DlseoURsEs oN
 THE REGENT BOND ISSUE.

Why the Morgan Syndicate Did Not Got
 the Whole Lot-The President at Outs
 With Morgan-why Stewart Lost Good
 Sized Fortune.
 The recent loan, despite its impress siveness and popular features was un- scientific and clumsy. Any ono could bid whether he had gold or not. 1t IS pretty certain that millions were bid by persons who had scarcely gold dollar to their names. These were speculative bids. and they are of course to be trans ferred to banks or other institutions which have gold or the means of getting it. Tho result is that gold is practically at premium in New York and Boston. 1 It is a small premium, but just enough to tempt the eupidity of many men who have bid for bonds. If they find they must pay an eighth for gold at bank or broker's, but can get it without pre- mium at the subtreasury, where carriage expense may be avoided by simply car rying the stuff from the pay to the re- eeiving window, whore are they gong 1 to get it? Human nature is human ma ture, and no one has as yet discovered l that it is any less human among bankers, brokers and bond spectators than 1t IS among other people.
 In this connection l am able to give some secret history that is very interest ing. Some weeks ago the administra- tion wanted to place this loan with MT. Morgan and his syndicate under condi- tions that would protect the reserve Mir. Morgan was willing to undertake l the task, but ho declined to pay moro than 105 The administration offered him tho whole lot at 109, which was equal to 3 315 per cent interest. Mir. Nor gan persisted, despite pressure, ill ad- l herence to this figure, and then the president decided upon a public loan. The howls of certain newspapers and the speeches of senators in congress de- nouncing private loans had nothing whatever to do with tho presidents change from a private contract to public competitive loan. MT. Morgan's refusal to pay 109 determined that. It was some satisfaction to the president to force Morgan to come up with an ] offer, not alone of 109, but of nearly Ill, but he would be better satisfied had he assurances that the sale at III wero going to protect the reserve and make another loan unnecessary before the presidential election.
 Tho newspaper writers who prate of Pierpont Morgan as the favorite fnan cier of the administration do not know what they are talking about. President Morgan. If any flnancier may be regard ed as the fayorite of the administration 1t is John A. Stewart of the United States Trust company. After the presi- dent had rejected MT. Morgan's terms of 105 month ago MT. Stewart was asked to take hold and help make the public loan a success. He did so, and to his efforts and influence more than thoso of any other man is due the success of the recent loan.
 And yet MT. Stewart was outmaneu- vered by BIr. Morgan as a bidder for bends This was because MT Morgan had friend in the syndicate which Mir Stewart had organized for tho purpose of insuring the success of the issue. With this information ill hand, it was easy for Morgan to outbid Stewart. If MT. Stewart had been guided by the ad vice of a Washington banker, one of his friends, he would have beaten Nor gan. Last Wednesday morning this banker became satisfied Morgan was go- ing to bid nearly Ill, and he wired MT. Stewart to this effect, not once but thrice. Still Stewart refused to change his bid. At the last moment the Wash ington banker filled out bids for half million on his own account at III and a little under, and reached tho treasury at just five minutes of noon. His bids went in, he gets his bonds, and makes l $25, GOO or $50, 900 for his quiclness. Stewart lost the chance to make a mil lion or two.
 The Stewart bids for bonds, all at 110. CTS, were put in the hands of treas ury officials about 25 minutes before noon. The Morgan bid of no. 6S77 was put in five minutes later. Tho Stewart bids had not been opened when the Mor- gan bids came in, and the Stewart bids were not i'll tho hands of the treasury officials when the Morgan bids were fill ed out and sealed i'll the office of bank CT two blocks from the treasury build | ing. The difference between no. O76 and 10. 6877 represented the loss of chance to make fortune. But how silly and reckless the charge that there was colluson in the treasury. Walter We'll man in Chicago Times Herald
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