St. Paul daily globe., 1896-03-08

currency, have looked into some Of
the biggest swindles perpetrated by
dishonest persons, who have gotten
control of national banks, and the
matter which follows is, perhaps. the
nrst true statement given as to the
| great failures of (which 1t treats. It
| is made from notes for me by the re-
| ceivers OF the various banks at ths
| request OF the controller and 1t may
be relied upon as authentic.
HOW WARD STOLE MILLIONS
tlrst' take thej great swindIe per-
petrated through }the name of, Gan
Grant by the, firm Of Grant g. ward'
This is. perhaps, }the most notorious
pank failure of our history, II o.
Cured on thes6th day Of May. 1884. The
pank was known as the, Marine Ma
tlonal bank, 1t had a. capital stock
or 100000. On the, day it failed It had
depts amounting to more than 5000. :.
ooo' Inc Marine bank had been In ex-
istence for twenty years. but about the
tlfne Gen. Grant came. into 1t in 1890
II was reorganized. and the chief pro-
prletors OF the bank were then James
- f1sh, Ferdinand Ward, Gen. Grant
ana ulysses s. Grant Jr Grant put
$1oo'ooO into the bank. He got the
money, Ills said, from the sale Of the
mousse winch the citizens Of Philadal-
phla gave him after the war was over
as token of their love and esteem
Grant was then at the height Of his
fame. He had just returned from his
trip around the world, and was talked
OF as the third-term candidate for tha
presidency. James D. Fish had long
peen the president Of the bank. He
was then sixty years old, and he was
II is believed, to a large extent ,nno.
cent Of fraud. The arch f3end of tba
conspiracy was Ferdinand d. ward
VINO, at the time the bank was organ
lied, was still under thirty.
He got acquainted with Fish by 10
poslting IN MS bank, and alos through
MS marriage with a daughter Of one of
rlshs friends. 1t was Ward who
manipulated all the swindles. It was
iie VINO got Grant into the bank and
iiiaue MIN believe he could make
fortune In It. AS soon as the bank
was thoroughly organized Ward
Drought forward his celebrated scheme
VI government contracts which never
existed" He would pretend, for in
stance, that he had secured a con-
tract calling for 5000. 200. on which there
was sure profit of from 80 to so per
cent. He would take $1OO, 900 worth of
the STOCK for Grant & Ward and would
tnen orlng in Other capitalists to take
the balance. Fish thought the con-
tracts were genuine and he urged the
other parties. to go in. The money of
the capitalists was paid into the Ma
rlne pank, and Ward would give notes
on the bank, indofsed by Fish. bear
ing the legal rate of interest. and also
separate guarantee for a certain
amount Of profit within a certain time
When the notes became due he would
check against the account of Grant &,
ward, and he kept up this scheme Of
organizing compaHies until the banl.
failed. His Hansactions lasted for a
year and a half, and during this time
he received and reinvested. the enor-
nous amount of $5,O0O,OOO When the
banks affairs were wound up 1t was
round that Grant knew practically
nothing of the working of the institu-
tlon. He knew no more about the ac-
counts than Ward did about military
campaigns, and he was Immensely
tlckled at the large showing of profits
winch Ward placed to his credit. Gen.
sheridan said that, Grant used to poke
him in the sidest> and say: "You
thought I was good general, but you
never thought 1 could do this" When
the bank failed Grant gave up every
thing he had. Popular sentiment for q
time was against him, and he sank un-
der the. storm sandnwas attacked by a
mortal disease He then rallied and
wrote his memoirs, out Of which his
family have already realized more than
$500,00O. Fish was sent to the peni
tentiary for ten years, but was par
doned out after two years imprison-
ment by President Cleveland Ward
was also sent to prison for ten years.
but he is again atj,aarge, and is, am
told, still living. H.
THE FIDELISY NATIONAL.
One Of the bigg4t wheat corners of
history was Rans spulated through
national banS 1} burst. and both
wheat and bank sebck went sky high.
This was the FidIity National Bank
Of Cincinnati. 1t &ailed in 1887. The
arch fiend of tpis 8windle was a man
named Harper wiSo has since served
term in the pantbe tiary. who was
pardoned out. AID &ho IS now again