The Washington herald., 1912-07-17
DAN sULLY RUNS
BOARDING HOUSE
Former Cotton King" Presides
Over Summer Hotel in
Rhode Island.
ONCE WORTH .s,doo,ooo,
NOW THIRTY DOLLARS
Year Ago He Sued John Hays Ham.
mond for Million Dollars
in Courts Here.

'Dan'' Sully. former cotton king or
New York. who little over year ago
startled Washington by entering suit
against John Hays Hammond. the inti-
mate friend Of President Taft. for over
9, ,ooo.o damages which he alleged he
sustained by Mr.. Hammond not carrying
out a certain agreement and contract IN
connection with the placing on the mar
ket of a newly patented cotton press. Ii
now running a boarding house.
Only q few years ago Sully was perched
on the dizziest heights Of audacious
speculation and cleaned up 100000 in a
few months. lost 1t In q few minutes
and vanished from the limelight. only
to make bis appearance here In wash
ington, where he attracted general at
tention by reason of his ultra~fashion-
able attire and his gorgeous silk neck
ties and his appearance In the law
courts.
SulIy's boarding house Is at Watch
Hill, r. l.. and the ex-cotton king. who
yet keeps a suite Of rooms in fashion
able apartment house in this city ana
an Office in an uptown ONCE building. Is
really running the boarding house him-
self He isn't Just pretending to-sittins
aloof somewhere in lonely majesty. lend
ing his name and prestige 10 the under
taking, dazzling boarders with tales or
past grandeur.
superintends Job.
No. The erstwhiIe czar Of the cotton
market not only supertntends everything
in the higher departments of the Job. but
he turns to and takes a hand often In
other matters most people In his place
would delegate to others.
Mr. Suly pointed to the sea. whose
waves were roaring over the steep water
front Of Watch HILL
"Oyer there to the left" he said. is
Block Island. To the right Is Montauk
Point. Straight ahead the nearest land
is the coast OF Spain. That breeze comes
direct from there.
The house. by the way. In fne sum
mer residence, built by Mr.. Sully himself
a wear or two before his downfall on
the cotton exchange, and named Kenneth
Ridge, after a son who died. II stands
on an eminence, the highest Is Watch
Hill Before the owners financial down.
fall the house witnessed festivities which,
IL houses can mediate, must lead II TO
startling contrast
Six years ago. for instance. Mr.. Sully
gave a dinner and ball at Kenneth Ridge
to Admiral Robley d. Evans ana
party of his officers.
They danced In this room" he told
the reporter. leading him into a spacious
apartment. Now. the boarders I have
use It for a sun parlor
'T went into the boarding house busi-
ness .on account OF more business
troubles" Mr.. suny explained. when he
and the reportst again settled them
selves to enjoy the sea air on the yer
anda Last fall I went to England to
see about some business matters there.
Intended TO spend the winter either
there or out West or in the Southern
States.
Plans Miscarry.
But the plans that I had made did
not turn out well and I decided TO spend
the winter right here in Watch Hill. 1t
was the first time that I or my family
had ever stayed here in the cold weather.
But. when I built the house. l put steam
heat into II. so we were very COM
Portable. And right there the idea struck
me, not only to run this place as a board
ing house. but as an all-the-year-round
boarding house"
Are you doing anything besides rum
ming your boarding house, asked the
reporter.
Nothing whatever" answered the eI-
cotton king.
Yet this Is the man who. an obscure
Providence cotton broker. suddenly ap-
wall SIIttl anu Dcbdh oBoioh-
ing in cotton in accordance with "sys-
tenn that seemed TO be infallible.
Once Worth S3,OOO,OOO.
The DAN Sully who now takes people
through his house and quotes prices on
rooms to them was once worth 5000, 900.
He lost nearly s2ooo.ooo OF It in two min
ptes According to him, he announced
bis voluntary suspension to the superin-
tendent of the cotton exchange at 1:45
o'clock on the afternoon of that fatal
March IS. 1t was not read on the floor
OF the exchange until 2:02 O'Clock.
That delay OF two minutes cost me
s., ,165, co.," Sully said once, in telling the
story. IF II had been read at or before
o'clock I might have come out all
right"
AS it was, when the smoke cleared
from the field where he had met disa ster,
his liabilities totaled up to something
like S3,000.0oo At the time Dan" Sully
said to a reporter:
Three weeks ago I was worth 5000
90. Now I'm not worth S3o.'