The sun. [volume] (New York [N.Y.]) 1833-1916, 1905-07-13
Tho Tarnishcd Spoon.

No man now on earth has stated the
CHEEKY philosophy of the life that Is
worth living, the obligations OF common
humanity, the graces and generosities
that are needed to gild sordid world,
more frequently and unctuously than
the benevolent old underwater upon
whose deeds the hundred eyes Of the Dis
trict Attorneys office are now supposed
to be converging. His precepts are
benedictions; for examples:
Keep In touch egth the young. Join In theH
games. be feature D the dance. romp the fastest
and turn the quickest in the Virginia reel or the
country dance, 60 UP TO the old college and light
your pipe and sing college songs. take your children
to the ,heater and howl with ,hem at the roaring
farce and laugh with them at the comedy and cry
with them at the tragedy; be their conhdan' In
their love AFFAIRS and, II they are not equal to H.
white their love letters, and never stop writing
some for yourself Thus will the twentieth century.
with its cleaner purposes. Its higher endeavors
and It's rmi,ess opportunities. welcome US older
fellows as the youngest and most vigorous OF those
Who are TO solve Its problems and make lsrecord."
Throughout the whole life Of the ex-
oellent DR.. DEPEw he seems to have
practised what he preached. He GER
tainly kept in touch with the young MIR.
HYDE. He has danced with the dancers
and romped with the rompers and sung
with the singers and smoked with the
smokers and howled his way with the
howlers into the cleaner purposes and
limitless opportunities OF the twentieth
century And when his fellow townsmen
in Peekskill, about dozen years ago,
perpetuated his virtues and his bland
and benign physiognomy in a splen-
did edition of gold or silver gilt souvenir
spoons, with variations in the way OF
orange spoons, paper knives and bon
bon ladies', they published to the world
this estimate of his moral greatness:
-CHAuNcEY NJ DEpEw-his life and character
are without a parallel In this generation: the value
OF his thoughtful mind, the wisdom OF his sense
the beauty OF his speech are the pride of the nation
and to every boy in Americas common schools
and to every young man In Americas colleges
are an Inspiration to vie with other to approach
the acme OF his PROJECTIONS.
Peekskii, birthplace OF CHAuNcEr ". DErEw,
6enQa IOTtn us souvenir Soho 'o"a sho' sAs
designer and slversmith have gracefully wrought
In silver and gold correct and exquisite likeness
of her ilustrous SON."
The illustrious son and acme Of Peeks-
killian perfection testified as follows
before the State Superintendent OF In
surance regarding the loan by himself
and the other members of the Equitable's
executive committe to the Depew I'm
provement Company of Buffalo:
IL have been. l think. unusually successful in
my practise In pulling clients out OF financial dit
nculty aud administering their estates when they
put them In my hands. as several OF them have
done, and now have properties TO the amount OF
Q good many millions OF dollars OF several people
who leave their properties entirely In my hands.
TO be administered see Mt and In all such things
have made money for my clients, But whenever
I take thing for myself demonstrate that when
aavyer is his own client he has fool for client"
At the time of the transaction between
the Equitable and the Depew Improve
ment Company Mr. DEPEw was special
counsel for the protection of the Equi-
tables interests at an annual retainer Of
$4,000. The Equitable was his client
He was administering the estate Of the
Equitable's policyholders. The Depew
Improvement Company, named for him,
and In which he held large stock inter-
est, got into financial difficulties in 1901.
The Insurance Dep lrtment had APP
praised its proper, Y at sl5O,oo0, The
Depew company applied the Equitable
for loan of 81 0,00C. Mr. DEPEw's
testimony continues:
% You voted In favor OF this loan In the exec
utive committed A. l think l did but want
to say that didn't advise the loan, and was not
consulted about 1t at all.
%. ! suppose you are aware that In 1901 there
was an apprasemcnt made by the Insurance De-
partrnent Of that property. and their appraisal
was Sl5ooOo, a. No. didn't know about that
Didn't write letter
%. You wrote a letter TO the Insurance Depart
ment asking US to reappraise' A. Yes: but that
was because the manager asked me to write the
letter. on the ground Chat the appraisers did not
understand the business and that tho appraisal
was ridiculously below the real value"
The reappraisal thus procured by Mr.
DEPEw wa 1893, $50. The loan $780,
100 to t q D pew Improvement Company
was mad, Mr.. DEPEw vo ing for the
loan as member of the executive COM
mittee of the Equitable directors, At
the same time, as a promoter of the land
development scheme Of the Depew I'm
: provemen Company, he contracted to
guarantee the Equitable against the loss
Of the money loaned to the Depew I'm
provement Company, The Depew COM
pany failed. the Equitables mortgage
was foreclosed, and the property on
which s25o,oOo had been loaned fetched
$4,000. With the accrued interest the
loss to the policyholders whose interests
Mr.. DEPEw has been paid $50, 900 a year
for sixteen years to protect was about
$225,OOo.
But there remained his contract or
guarantee u save the Equitable from
loss. Concerning this feature Of the
transaction his own testimony is some-
what vague:
7 will say right here that when the guarantors