The Indianapolis journal. [volume] (Indianapolis [Ind.]) 1867-1904, 1898-11-28
The Plunger Should Have 10000 Head
on His Big Ranches, but Not
10000 Can BE Found.
CREDITORS NEATLY TRlCKED
REPORT THAT HE WAS ON HIS WAY
TO MEXICO ONLY A BLIND.
Message Received from New York
Saying the Daring specuIator
Has Sailed for Spain.


ABILENE Kan, Nov. 27-The failure Of
Grant Gillett, the cattle king, proves more
serious on investigation. A commission man
from Kansas City, conservative and expert
enced in the cattle business, who has been
in Woodbine three days looking after his
own interests, says there is probably $2,OOO,-
OOo worth of paper outstanding as result
of the transactions of Gillett his relatives
and friends. This paper will mature at diff
ferent times from now on for six months
Part of it is past due, and nearly $4,000 OF
it was made in the last few weeks
Gillett should have at least 60000 cattle to
meet his obligations, but commission men
here do not believe he has more than 1900.
This means loss of not less than 81 600 600,
principally to Kansas City Dealers Denver
and st. Joseph commission men hold con-
siderable of Gillett's paper, but the bulk of
it went through the hands of Kansas City
firms and was sold by them to Eastern In
vestors.
1t will be some time before order is
brought out Of chaos at Woodbine and the
exact state of losses fully known 1t has
been found that in all of the pastures where
Gillett had big punches of cattle he mixed
his brands, and now the man who holds a
mortgage on a certain lot of cattle of a cer-
tain brand is unable to tell whether all of
his cattle are in the pasture or whether. Gill
lett mortgaged him twice as many cslAtse-
he really owned of that brand. Some of the
commission men here believe that Gillett
mixed the cattle this way deliberately to
hinder investigation and give him time to
get away. Three instances of suspicious
work by Gillett came up at Woodbine.
The Gillespie Company of Kansas City,
holds mortgage of 900 on cattle and feed
at Woodbine. The company filed an attach
ment suit against all the property real and
personal, owned by Gillett in the county.
The mortgage covered 10000 bushels of corn.
100000 tons Of cane and 100 tons of millet
on Gilletts ranch. When the sheriff went
there to-day to levy he found $50 bushels OF
corn and two small stacks of millet. Actual
ly, there is not enough food on the Wood
bine farm of 1900 acres to keep the 5000
cattle alive there for a week, and commits
SION men are trying to get the Gillespie
Company to allow the $50 bushels of corn
to be fed to the cattle, which are standing
around in big punches lowing for food.
In nearly every instance where commis-
sion men advanced money to GilIett to buy
cattle this fall they also advanced with il
money enough to feed the cattle through
the winter. Here will be big loss What
cattle there are now are not ready to mar-M
ket and must be carried through the wiA-~
ter.
The Holmes Live Stock Company. OF
Kansas City, holds one of Gilletts mort
cages on a bunch of $50 cattle at Wood
bine. The firm prepared to SIP theso cattle
to Kansas City, when Charles r. Hollinger
produced another first mortgage on the
same bunch Of cattle of the same brand
Ait
given two months ahead of the one now
held by the Holmes company.
The Bohart Commission Company. Of st.
Joseph and Keeler & -Jeke of Denver, both
have first mortgages on the same bunch
of cattle. The big holders are the George
r. Barse Commission Company, EImore 6s
Cooper, Thomas Trowers' Sons Holders OF
small amounts Of the paper are Vaile &s
Gates, Evans Snvder-Buel COMPANY
George Holmes Live Stock Company and
the Crider Company The commission men
here seem to favor the appointment OF one
receiver for all the property owned by Gill;
lett and to allow the receiver to work out
the affairs without invoking the interfer-
ence of the court
Gillett owned stock in the Gillespie Com
pany. Among the papers Of Gillett out-
standing is $3O0,000 the proceeds of the big
deal in Oregon cattle made by Gfllett q
Few months ago. Gillett borrowed this
amount from firms in Kansas City and
bought 1000 head in Oregon, which he
shipped to Kansas and mixed up with his
herds at different places. 1t is feared that
these cattle have been mortgaged two or
three times. The $4,000 In chattel mortgages
in Gilletts name on the books of the Regis
ter of Deeds of this county do not begin
to represent the chattel mortgages he made
which are yet in force. He had relatives
and friends who executed chattels for him
regularly; for instance, a brother-in-law.
who executed mortgages for S1s6O0O and his
father-in-law, who executed mortgages to
the amount of $4,000.
Gietts methods of operation were novel.
Gillett would buy cattle in big punches, as
many as 5000 in bunch, with borrowed
money secured by a mortgage on the cattle,
and would ship them to his Woodhsne, Kan.
ranch and sell them in small lots to feed
ers, taking their notes. When these notes
were paid he would settle with the comnis-
sion men from whom he borrowed Tho
commission men would receive from GiIlett
and 10 per cent. for their loans They
would sell the paper to bankers and othaSs
all over the East and West at 5 and per
cent interest. the commission men making
and per cent interest on their loans. IL
was these enormous profits which made the
commission men eager for Gillett's paper.
They were suspicious, 1t is said, OF his
methods but the profits were so large they
took the risks, each hoping to get from un-
der before the crash came, if one did come
A good deal Of Gillett's paper Is past dueg
much more Of 1t falls due soon. II the In