The Intermountain Catholic. (Salt Lake City [Utah] ;) 1899-1920, 1905-11-11
DEvLIN THE BANKER,
Death of the Man Who Kept Accounts
in His Head,

L
cage, from a stroke of apopleXy.
He had been at the hospital several
days. Mr.. Devlin suffered a total col
lapse last summer as a result of over
work, and, with his family, went TO
EuBpe. He was returning home at the
time of his death and was en- route to
Topeka
The deceased is said to have bestowed
handsome monetary gifts on the ST.
EHzaheths hospital of Chicago. He
leaves a widow, Mrs. Jennie Deylin, and
five children.
Devlin was Il typical Woodworking.
self--made American, 1t was one of
the boasts II his life that he never had
taken a vacation. AS a financier he
shaved at his desk from morning till
night AS a young man he worked all
the time His story is the rise from a
newsboy TO captain Of industry"
He was born in St. Louis fifty-twC'
years ago. Se was of poor Irish pa
rentage While in his infancy his fam
lily moved 10 La Sale. ILL.,, where the
boy attended the Christian Brothers
institute. He went to school a little.
but when "CharfE~H was 10 years old
his father died and he started out TO
look for work.
After a few odd jobs he became a.
clerk in coal mine. At the age of 16
he was made bookkeeper. He worked
at the mine during the day and studied
civil engineering during the night.
In two years more Devlin became
manager of the mine. In that capacity
ne became acquainted with the coal
men of the country, and when a syn
dictate came along and bought up the
80 i,a Ca1I
counties and laid out the town of
Spring Valley, he migrated to the new
territory and there the foundations of
his fortune We're laid. In 1885 he mar
ried Miss Mary A, Miller, daughter of
a farmer.
Devlin was elected the first mayor of
Spring Valley. He exploited the town
and brought the populat ton to 5000 in
five years. He interested w. S. Scott
OF Erie in the town, and Mr.. Scott and
others invested So, 100000 there. Later
Devlin resigned his position on account
of differences with his associates. He
turned southwark and built the town
of Toluca. The bank, the Spring Valley
National, failed last July for 100000
and is in the hands of receivers.
In 1889 Devlin was made manager of
the fuel properties of the Santa Fe
railroad system. After the Santa Fe
receivership ten years ago the railroad
leased its coal properties to him, and
his career as a coal maSnate was be-
gun. He went to Topeka at this time
at the age of - years.
At the time of the 1897 coal strike
Devlin' s~inf1uence was felt. He always
had been popular with his men, and
after he failed there was a movement
Kansas to take up q collection of $40
man to tide him over. During this
strike he Went to the miners and talked
to them 2nd induced them to sign a
contrac+ with him.
While the Kansas and Texas COM
pany and the Gould mining companies
were bringing negroes from Alabama
and the strikers were shooting at them,
the Devlin miners We're working bus
lily, and Devlin made money fast. After
this he spread out, purchasing other !
mines and buying up banks. After the I
settlement OF the strike, however he
suffered in the cut price war that fol-
lowed.
When Devlin collapsed last summer |
papers were beingAdrawn up at Kansas |
City to form q corporation to manage
the vast enterprises he had started. !
twas to be known as the Devlin Min !
ing, Mercantile and Manufacturing
company.
The First National bank of Topeka, |
which was the first to feel the crash, |
was controlled by0Devlin, and held his !
paper to the amount of of 100000. He
had bought this bank from Levi u.
Letter. The arrangements We're COM
pleted in twelve hours, and the price
was near S250,000
The bank was regarded as one of the
strongest institutions in the state. 1t
held deposits of $1.500,000. DeYlin turned
over 100000 in Illinois and Kansas real
estate. and $700,UJ0 in life insurance on
July 3. J. T. Bradley, national bank
examiner, was appointed receiver.
The news of this failure precipitated
d run on the Central National bank, of
which Deylin owned fifteen twenty
eighths of the stock, and 100000 was
Other runs were started on some of
the other Topeka banks, but no others
failed One phase of the situation was
the announcement of State Treasurer
Kelly of. Kansas that Deylin was one
Of his bondsmen, and the First Nation
al held S547, coo OF the state funds The
city of Topeka was also interested to
the extent of $4,000,
The Southwestern Fuel company of
Topeka was involyed to the extent of
S13S 900, and the Fourth National bank
Of st. Louis for 100000. Banks in
Spring Valley and Toluca. and two in
New York also were affected.
Then came trouble for the tw'enty-six
which Devlin controlled. |
Some of these were the Mount Carmel |
coal mines, the Marquette Third Vein |
mines, and the Devlin- Miller Coal COM |
pany on July Devlin filed petit !
ion in bankruptcy in Topeka, receivers |
were appointed. and he sailed to |
Europe, q broken down man.
Before he left this country he induced |
his old friend and adviser. Father |
Power of Spring Valley, to go with him. |
His mind was weak. and he was not |
able to keep up a conversation on bust |
ness matters. Added TO this he was.
subject to attacks of melancholy, but |
during the last month he had become |
stronger and his discussion of his af- |
fairs clearer. The one idea of getting |
back TO work and ''clAar'ng things up" |
had taken possession Of him.
To his friends 1t is a peculiar salts |
faction that his last days We're spent |
in the hospital he had befriended. In |
many ways, such as sending coal and
-four. and giving money for urgent |
needs, he showed his philanthropy. AS |
he possessed a flour mill IN Kansas, |
the Little Sisters Of the Poor and st. |
received every year car
load of flour from him.