Dakota farmers' leader. (Canton, S.D.) 1890-19??, 1912-09-13
The COrreCtOr of DeStinieS
Being Tales of Randolph Mason as Related by
His Private Secretary, Courtland Parks
Bv Melville DAVIDSON Post
by Edward J. Clods


One Of the most disastrous bank fail
ures in the history of the middle west
was that of the Patton National Bank
Of st. Louis. It took down with 1T al
most every one of It's correspondents
the Exeter Trust company especial
ly, and Blackwell's bank, one OF the
Oldest in the Mississippi valley. Its
New York correspondent. the Amster-
hof National. e n west q half-million
dollars In gold that returned to
its money vaults. The bank was closed
by the national bank examiner on a
Saturday afternoon. a few minutes be-
fore three o'clock
was in the Stock Exchange on
Wall street the next Monday. follow
ing the fluctuations OF some st. Louis
securities which the Patton Nation
al had been instrumental in placing
in New York. 1t was an ugly morning
for anything west Of the Ohio. l came
out Of the Stock Exchange at two
o'clock Disguised with securities. The
Astors were the longest-headed hnan-
ciers after all. The earth alone was
secure.
AS l went down the steps into the
street, an old man came out from one
Of the exits Of the gallery to the ex-
change and spoke to me. "Is his Mr..
Courtlandt Parks?" he said. re-
piled that it was. and hurried on up
the crowded street. I was not In q
very pleasant mood, and he was evil
IDENTIFY a provincial out to see the
horned and hoofed beasts of which he
had read in his weekly newspapers.
He followed me, however. and when
I reached the crossing on Broadway
he was at my elbow.
I spoke to him then, a bit impatient
H. May I inquire" l said. who it
is that honors me with so close an
attendance?"
The old man hesitated a little. Il
am jeremiah Patton" he replied, the
president Of the Patton National Bank
of st. Louis. l want to see Randolph
Mason"
/ turned squarely upon him, with
no effort 70 conceal my amazement.
He was a tall old man with close
cropped gray hair, mild brown eyes
and a kindly mouth. His face was
wan and ~colorless. and n OF his
legs dragged a little when he walked.
l could not stop there on that crowd
ed corner to converse, even with a
Magus, although l should not have
been more disturbed had l met one
of these tabled wise men.
1 took him with me to Randolph Ma
sons house. l wished to hear his
story, to learn the details Of the fail
ure. The newspapers were not a lit
tie puzzled over it,; the bank had
seemed prosperous, without a shadow
upon 1t, up to the day it was closed by
order Of the comptroller of the cur
rency. Banks do not commonly drop.
some fine morning, suddenly into ruin;
whisperings go, usually, before de-
struction.
l was a bit doubtful Of the identity
Of the tall old man until 1 saw him
b~are-headed, without his great coat,
in a chair by the fire. Then l instant
ly recognized him from the newspaper
cuts, which represented him seated
by a table; but he was more impress
sive, stronger in this pose. His fore
head was broad, his head big and we'll
covered with thick gray hair; but; the
face, as I have said, was gaunt, the
eyeptts and cheek-bones showing the
first ravages of disaster.
His story, told to, Randolph Mason
In q voice that broke now and then
and was pieced out with desolate ges-
lures. presented, a situation, In my
opinion. beyond human agencies to
correct. The matter had proceeded
too far. Events, arising in orderly, in
Internal sequence, had entirely over
whelmed him. It was a CASE Of a pa
tent brought, as a last resort, to the
specialist after the death rattle had
started In his throat.
Jeremiah Patton was seventy-1ve
years old. He had made a fortune as
. Wholesale merchant, and had retired
from active business late in life, with
the west for fair dealing and highest
integrity. He had no family, his wife
having been dead fox twenty years.
It had appeared to him that by estab-
fishing a bank, he could usefully EN-.
ploy his wealth, so he had erected a
modern office building on a good cor
ner, and founded the Patton Savings
bank, of which he was president and
almost the exclusive owner. His OBJ
ject was to encourage a spirit of thrift
among the middle class of the city,
and his method was to allow his de-
positors every cent that their deposits
earned, less the fixed charges Of the
bank. His own capital yielded a suf-
1cient income for his needs.
The bank quickly sprang into prom
inence. Its deposits were enormous.
Its president found himself under a
heavy burden Of care and responsible
ity in the investment of these large
sums SO they would yield a substantial
profit y
About this time, Belmont Lane, b
American president of the Russian
Oil company, came to st. Louis to &C
quire, If possible, the producing ter
ritory of Missouri, and to establish
banking relations. Lane was a man
Of courtly address, imposing pres
ence and charming personality. He
very soon was on intimate terms with
Jeremiah Patton, and he suggested a
consolidation of several smaller banks
with that Of Patton, and the founding
of . national bank, This plan was car
Rod ont and the Patton National Bank