The age-herald., 1898-01-04
"Reminiscences Of
 Famous Black Friday.

Gould and associates bought gold in New
 York at sl.41k to $1 4s5s. They bought s20,- oeo,oOO that day, yet the whole amount of gold in the city, outside of the sub-treasury, did not exceed s25OOO.oOo.
 Unanticipated as Black Friday was to the general public, the scheme had been long
 maturing. Some gold brokers were on the alert. Among these was the late Gen. 2.
 c. Deas, of Mobile, then removed to New
 York. He Was with his family at the West Virginia White Sulphur Springs, left suddenly and in time to draw in his opera tions before the shock came
 Gould and associates laid plot to cor
 ner gold, working it up through the spring and summer months. The pivotal point
 was to stop the sale of gold by the treas-
 ury That decisive matter once settled, all else could be easily accomplished. Grant president. Boutwell, was sec retary of the treasury. Both had been greatly shaken up by the testimony in the government case against Mcdonald, Joyce, Mckee ct al., which ended in jury as- signing those three men to the penitentiary lOi tiOOhcuntSS III SOfeTnuieul TeftHueS OIl whisky. Babcock, the presidents confiden- tial secretary, was proven to have gotten a $500 bill in box of cigars and the presi- dent had accepted a pair of trotters, gold mounted harness and vehicle worth $5,O0O, from men on a moderate salary. Credit Mobilier was on the tapis, and Garfield was on trial before the public eye and before congress in connection with it. The at mosphere was surcharged with experiment. al politics.
 How could Grant and Boutwell, be fixed? At this juncture Van Dyck, assistant secre- tary of the treasury resigned. Gould de- voted his attention to the part of selecting his successor An old gentleman, Abel K. Corbin, who had married Mrs. Grants sis ter, agreed to help Gould in finding the right man. Corbin's son-in-law Gather wood, was offered the place, but indig- nantly refused, having "smelt the mouse" Gen. Daniel Butterfield accepted, and his appointment proved profitable to him be- cause agreeable to the conspirators.
 Among the preliminaries, Corbin bought gold to the amount of s500,000 in Mrs. Grants name; Gould sold it for $2l,OO0 profit Corbin sent $25,OOO by check to Mrs. Grant At a meeting in the White House, where Gould and Corbin were present, President Grant said: "Boutwell gave an
 order to sell gold. I heard of it, and coun- termanded the order" (See Twenty-Eight Years In Wall Street. by Henry Clews, p. 1SL)
 | In June, 1873, Gilmore had jubilee in Boston You take Fall River steamer at New York; about D. m. and reach Boston, all the way by water, to breakfast next morning. The conspirators prepared boat for Gen. Grant. They employed number of highly educated and instructive takers to take passage. Those men were to be casually introduced to Gen. Grant, and were to dilate upon the conditions of trade and | the importance to that trade of the govern | ment retiring from dealing in gold or sell | ing gold They pointed to cargoeS Of h. l dian, Egyptian and Russian wheat, on the sea then, that would compete with Amer can wheat unless the treasury stood hands off the gold market In addition to the hired talking company, splendid dinner, champagne and costly wines flowing, was spread on board. The takers and the wine went merrily together, the president list ened most intently. Jay Gould was there making observations of effects upon the president. (See Gould's testimony before congress committee on Garfield). Gould said that while some of the takers argued for selling gold, others were ready to con- tradict them! Gould says the president asked for his opinion. He gave it, that if the government sold gold "it would produce great distress and almost lead to civil war"
 Finally the conspirators got Gen. Grant up to Little Washington, in Pennsylvania, to visit an old friend. The place was miles away from telegraph office. Black Fri day, Sept. 24, 1873, came while Gen. Grant was at Little Washington, unable to order Boutwell, to sell gold.
 That day men walked Wall street rich in the morning and poor in the afternoon. Men walked the streets crying and calling for money. Mr. John J. Walton, of Ma rengo, cotton planter, who was there accidentally, was offered $3 day for $l cash, in large sums.
 Cotton fell rapidly. No revival has taken place. Gould made millions. His conspir acy begun as soon as the act of Feb 12, 1873, dropping the silver dollar from the American coinage took effect.
 JOHN w. DUBOSE. G<s,s satx-