Omaha daily bee., 1899-03-19

matter. The rise in values came and con
tinued beyond the expectation of those who
had predicted it. Keene added between
eight and nine millions to his fortune.
People looked at Keene in wonder. Here
was a man who had made fortune OF four
teen millions by speculation, who had cleared
nearly ten millions in Wall street in three
years. His fortune was without parallel for
the rapidity OF its accumulation He came
TO be looked upon as a sort Of financial wiz
ard. 1t was said that he could not lose.
Perhaps keene came to have a little of the
same feeling
| After his great success Keene branched
out in every direction lie lived in the
princey fashion agreeable to his nature. lie
gave away thousands and gave advice to his
friends on which they made thousands. lie
was fond of racing, so he bought stable
and became a leading figure in turf affairs.
At the same time he specuated In oil, wheat,
stocks, anything.
Fighting JAY Gould.
It was in 1855 that Keene, in vulgar par
lance bit off more than he could chew. lie
tried to corner the wheat market, an at
tempt that has been fatal stumbling block
to other able fnanciers. In this same year
his horse Foxhal won the Grand Prix in
Paris. 1t was an honor that Keene priced
dearly, and when 1t came he was engaged in
a struggle that involved practically his whole
fortune. Under the stimulus of rising prices
the western farmers rushed their wheat to
market faster than Keene with his millions
could absorb it, jay Gould had been watch
ing Keene's course with interest and saw the
vulnerable spot With Addison Cammack he
set out to bear the market on the interests
that Keene was concerned In. At the same
time the newspapers began denouncing the
- NNfe
partners in the combine became timid and
sold out The load was too heavy for the
Californian to carry alone and he went down
under It. Over seven millions Of his accu-
mutations were swept away. He tried des-
perately to recoup himself on what remained.
but could not do It, Men whom he had aided
before were willing to profit by his downfall.
and in the language OF the street he was
sold out" He had the modification of
seeing the shares that he was unable to hold
on to advance over 80 per cent within a few
months under the sltillful manipulation of
Gould and his associates.
After His Great Failure.
Keene was not overwhelmed by his mis-
fortune He set to work quietly to regain
what he had lost. For time he was heard
of but little. He was in Wall street and
was making progress, but he did not at !
tempt any Napoleonic maneuvers. still he
made money at a rate that could not be !
accounted otherwise than rapid. He paid
off all the obligations remaining from his
disastrous venture and gradually returned /.
to something like his old position in the I;
affairs of the street.
When the present period of commercial |
prosperity came unmlstakably into view last
fall, at the conclusion OF the war, Keene
recalled his experience Of twenty years ago |
and resolved to profit by It. He not :
guided by precedent. however, but by his
appreciation OF existing conditions. Heavy !
crops in the west had brought large earn
ings to the western railroads. Improved
financial conditions were certain to make |,
investments plentiful and to send prices up |
Heavy earnings were certain to make this |
advance strongly felt in the group Of rail- |
road shares known the granger stocks |
Accordingly Keene bought grangers and ad- |,
vised others to do the same. How much |
his operations will yield him is unknown, !,
for the end is not yet, but his fortune is !!
once more restored to the $40 OOO.O 900 mark /
and is not likely to fall below 1t again.
Keene is optimist but not an illusion /,
airy. His judgment has been ripened and !
matured by experience In the interview, in .
which he gave the public the benefit of his
opinions. he concluded
"A higher level of prices for our securities |
is inevitable. There are certainly many
stocks selling much below their intrinsic
and prospective value. There is abundant
money. Foreign and domestic business con-
ditions are the best in the history of the
country and these can only mean material
increases in the value of railroad and in
dustrial securities"
Keene holds the same opinion today that