The Montgomery advertiser., 1902-08-20
LITTLE SLIPS THAT MEAN RUIN
overtarning of an Ink Pot Wrecked
 Rich Engineering Firm.
New York Sun.

NeW Ofk sun.
 An ordinary penny postage stamp brought ruin to Hobart. the great Brit ish iron king" During the Whitworth period. when the big crisis in the iron trade occurred. he had agents in all parts of the world who kept him posted. Some times they telegraphed the news Tn cl- pher. but those in England were always instructed to write. At that time his prln- cipal agent. who was also his partner, was in Sheffield, and wrote him. from there, warning him to sell out of all iron interests for the time on account Of the Whitworth crisis
 Hobart had frequent fits of lrritabillty and he had been receiving lot or un- derstamped letters of no importance. on which he had to pay double postage. one morning m anger he gave orders that such letters were to he returned to the carriers. The very first updsrstamped letter received after this was from his partner. It was rejected as soon as 1t arrived
 Next day Hobart pledged himself for more iron deals than even his mighty credit was good for. The great drop In prices came two days later. and Hobart, once millionaire, was involved Tn hopeless bankruptcy, from which he never recovered. ,5 t.. Q '..->..-
 Geoffry Pask once prince of London's Stock Exchange, was famous for being most punctual. never arriving mlnute late though he walked to the city from his home every morning. One day he tore his trousers on a nail that e'as sticking out of d fence. That tear ruined him. Instead of going home he went into the nearest tailor's to get new pair or trousers. They had none he could wear. but they mended the tear for him and were so long about 1t that he was an hour late That very morning was the one of the Australian slump. which broke fourteen firms in almost as many min utcs; and though Pask could easily have saved himself had he been there to con trol his affairs. the delay at the tailors carried them beyond hope, and he ar rived to find himself beggar He com mitted suicide a week later.
 The mere moving of a hand ruined Coh- bett & Co.,. one of the largest and wealth. lest engineering firms ever known. They and a rival American firm rendered for the building of the great Kaura bridge for the Russian Government. Jacob Cop bett who was the head of the buslness. spent six months in the designing and contracting and had all his plans ready. His bid was accepted. and material was bought in enormous quantities. men en- gagged and engines built. A time limit had been set for the commencement and the finish. and Cobbett was perfecting his plant and making sure of the smallest details with all the formula spread out before him. when he stretched out his hand overturned an ink pot and drowned the most important paper in plack sea,
 Cohbett had poor memory. In feVer of anxiety he tried to construct his plans from stray notes. It was impossible, and he called to the Russian Government for more time. This was refused, and Russia repudiated the contract, on the ground of delay, as the agreement allowed. con bett could not get his work through in time and the American firm, who now advanced a cheaper tender with all plans prepared secured the contract. The loss drove Cobbett x Co. into bankruptcy and the great kaura bridge in Russia $ American built.
 Somewhat similar. but more romantic, tl, mt nf fnT0GtflllnpGG thAY wrecked the career of the great railway contractor Purbeck Jones. He had un- dertaken the contract to build the Nal war line in central India, and staked all he had. Security was necessary, now ever. and he was bound to deliver by May 9, 1891, sufficient quantity of ne- gotiablo bonds, etc. to cover loss by the railway syndicate. This sum amounted to over 1000 900 pounds, and even Pur- heck Jones found 1t hard to raise sucr a sum- but his credit obtained 1t for him. and he deposited his securities in great safa at his offices, preferring that to a safe deposit.
 It was not until the morning that the Indian mail went off that he arrived to dispa.ch the securities under special guard to India. When he arrived. to his utter dlsmay. he found he had left the keys of the safe behind. They were in his country place, and to get them III time to catch the mail was impossible. If he missed the mail, his time limit for the deposit would lapse. He sent to tn safe makers for expert workmen and or fered large rewards to them if they could break the safe open within two hours. They could not do it. and Purbe0k Jones was ruined for the syndicate refused an extension of time and the loss of the con tract made him hopelessly bankrupt. He died in an insane asylum last year.