The Democratic advocate. [volume] (Westminster, Md.) 1865-1972, 1905-05-06
The Milwaulee pefalcation.


From Philadelphia PA Ledger. April a.
The theft Of nearly a million aud half Of
dollars in Milwaukee from one Of the strong
est banks in the West. by the president Of the
bank, is an instance Of breach Of trust which
becomes more sensational and depiorable
from the fact that the Feereant president was
one of the best known business meu IN hts
part of the country: that he had been init
mately connected with many OF the larger
enterprises Of his city; was closely associated
with the social aud public life Of Milwaukee,
and, finally, had been president Of the Amer
eau Bankers Association, a most admirable
aud conservative bay, representative OF bust
ness honor, safety and progress.
Notwithstanding his intimate relation with
trusted forces in business life and his associa.
ton with all the influences which tend to bold
a man upright. he fell. Human nature is
likely 10 fall and fail at any time and in amy
position. and we must expect these lapses
from time TO time. Bigeiows case II II stood
alone or merely represented an alteration OF
an individual would be Of slight significance,
were there act feeling among the public al
large that the wild craze OF speculation which
possessed this siaid. wealthy and trusted man,
who was not long ago discoursing before the
American Bankers Association ON the ethics
of banking and business, is TO a certain sense
symptomalie Of widespread pervasive. al-
most universal aud almost uncomfortable de-
sire to gamble on the stock market.
Only lately We had some elergymen 10 Della
ware who were tried and dismissed from their
fellow clergymen for stock speculation. Young
lawyers in good practice complain that. though
they should be perfectly successful IN their
business, and get all the profitable cases to
which their physical and mental strength
would permit them to give their time. yet
they would not make money ''as il is made by
successful men today Young business men
who are doing well admit it. but make moan
that they will ''never be able TO buy automo-
biles or yachts at this pace physicians aud
even, we fear. college professors and other
instructors of youth are caught IN the swiriing
frenzy and hasten TO take a flyer in Lake
Superior or something not so good The tre
mendous piling up Of huge fortunes by dis
honest means has been terribly corruptlug
force in this country. The winning OF great
fortune honestly is not an evil, but the wild
prodigality of the rich, their lavish scale OF
expenditure, the vulgar Haunting of money
and the mere things which money buys have
lured the whole country into the race to meet
the exaggerated scale OF expenditure in daily
life.
The Bigelow story is familiar and typical.
He entertained extravagantly; never seemed
l1iilh oi tue Suot VI MS Aathii1f
and especially his sons, were badly trained, as
bows must be under similar influences, and
''worthless spendthrifts Bigelow had pri
vate property worth from $500, 900 to $500,
600 aud large salary from his position in a
strong and prosperous financial institution, but
he had to have more money" aud plunged
into the mad vortex Of the wheat pit. Lavish
expenditure, greed for money, gambling. and
then theft-ihat is the story. In New York
We have the spectacle of the trustees of one
of the richest and greatest life insurance So
cieties openly admitting that they or one of
them used the money of the policy holders
to wiring an extra private profit from the
society which they we're pledged to safeguard
and build up, and, more astonishing, declar-
ing that it was perfectly legitimate.
These are the significant and ominous signs
ofthe present time. Desperate gamblers have
always infested every country and civilization,
but as a rnle they were class apart. If our
conservative forces are to be perverted by the
mania, where shall we look