The Washington herald., 1907-09-06

New York, Sept. 5-The important
grain and stock brokerage house OF Wat
son IS Co. "A Broad street. made an
assignment to-day to W. Frank Newell.
the manager Of the New York Office.
/ Neither the assignee nor his attorneys,
/ Shiland. Shoemaker d Hedges. OF 90
/ Pine street. would make any estimate OF
/ the amount Of the assets or liabilities.
/ both saying that they had insufficient
I time for the preparation Of even rough
/ compilation. In well-informed banking
circles however, It was said the liablli-
ties are large, and this belief is strength
ened by the fact that the firm did, a
( larger business than any other that has
suspended in the past year. It was es-
/ timaied that the liabilities might aggrs-
gate S5.G0o,O00. The assets are known 10
be large, and a statement from repre-
/ Isentatives Of the firm TO the effect that it
would be able TO pay I'm full was credited
IN substantial banking quarters.
| Watson & CO. was known as a H'H
/ house for the reason, principally. that
both the firm and It's customers were f.
nanclers Of the HH stocks CGredt
/ Northern and Northern Pacinc) and thar
the firms largest clientele was In the
Northwest The shrinkage in the marke;
value Of these stocks, Attorney Shoe
maker said. was the principal cause OF
/ the failure
/ The members Of the firm are Louis T.
Watson. Henry p. Watson, Herschen Y.
Jones. and Charles Z. Andrews. Louis T.
Watson lives at F2i Fifth avenue. this
city; the others IN Milwaukee, and ia the
latter city members Of the firm were en-
gagged IN business as grain brokers before
/ the firm began business In this city. The
stock exchange membership was acquired
and the New York office opened in jan
uary, 1850.
"CaIamity" Jones Nn Expert.
Herscheu V. Jones, one Of the partners,
I is well known as one Of the most promi-
/ uent crop experts in the country. "Calam-
/ ity'' Jones he has been dubbed by specu-
lators whose market commitments were
at variance with his predictions He was
4 formerly publisher of the Commercial
West, a publication devoted 20 the grain
interests, and the accuracy Of his esti-
mates Of the crop yields brought him into
/ friendly relations with James J. HiH
who thought well of him asa crop expert
/ This relationship gave rise 20 story to-
day that one of Mr. HHrs sons had an
account with the house. Mr.. Hill denied
this report emphatically.
The firm had offices in Duluth. Hot
/ Springs. Minneapolis and Winnipeg, and
a branch on Fifth avenue. this city
IN addition to the Stock Exchange
membership. il was a member OF the Pro
duce Exchange. Cotton Exchange, and
Coffee Exchange In this city. Chicago
Stock Exchange. Chicago Board or Trade.
and Minneapolis Chamber Of Commerce.
It did "a very large business in grain
and stocks for Northwestern customers,
and was accounted one OF the most i'm
portant Of the wire houses of this city.
/ The FIRMS resources at the beginning
. OF the year We're very large In weather
Ing the March panic and the subsequent
| sagging weeks, IL was said the firm was
/ obliged 20 dispose Of the greater part of
its holdings of the Hill stocks AT sacri-
flee, and undoubtedly lost also from the
failure of customers to keep up margins.
for many of its customers in the North
west specUlated heavily in the Hill shares.
Resources Badly Strained.
The resources were undoubtedly badly
strained IN the spring decline. Subse-
quently, however, Watson & Co. took
very active position on the bull side of the
wheat market. II. V. Jones was one OF
the first crop experts to predict a short
age in the wheat crop, and he followed
the initial prediction by others much
more emphatic In the wheat-market
! speculation which led TO dollar wheat in
July, the house was reputed to hold for
itself and customers quite as much wheat
as any other Eastern concern. Those
who had reason to fear the solvency of
the house earlier in the year considered
that the profits from wheat providing
they were converted into cash, would
make coed much of the loss in the Hin
shares.
Attorney shoemaker Sdiu IO-Qdy lndt
the firm sustained no losses whatever from
its operations in the wheat market. but
that profits had been gained for all its
customers who dealt in grain. The prin-
cipaI losses. be said. accrued from the
slump in the high-priCed stocks Great
Northern, Northern Pacific and others
The failure was not even precipitated
by this weeks decline in wheat
ProRt-takers Cause Trouble.
Another report of the firm said that the
immediate reason for the failure was the
iusistence of large customers Of the firm.
many Of them men with large profits
In wheat. on closing out their accounts
I aud securing their profits. 4 canvass
of the assets OF the firm, it was said
showed that it would be unable to pay
all customers large and small alike. and
it was deemed advisable TO assign in
order that ali might 5e treated on the
same basis. This representative inferred
that the firm had for months had a
: long waiting list. Many customers who
made paper profits through it by taking
the short side Of the market had been
compelled to wait in the hope that the
frm might retrieve its fortunes. As in