The sun. [volume] (New York [N.Y.]) 1833-1916, 1913-11-14
Downfall Of Old Banking House
Does Not Affect Other
Concerns.
yOT \ RIPPLE IN NJ RkET
Closing Attributed to "Dry Rot"
sympathy for Harry
Il. HOllinS.

te-day without causing n ripple In the
stock market or the financial community.
The liabilities are between $4.000.000 and
IS 600 900 Free assets OF $4,000 are
Known How much the assets that are
pledged as collateral for loans amount to
the receiver does not know.
Though the firm was a member Of the
Stock Exchange. not another Stock Ex-
change house was affected. Prices on the
exchange showed no effect except to make
Gains on the announcement Of the suspen-
sion.
The reason for this unconcern was that
for several years the failed bankers had
done practically no Stock Exchange busi-
ness They were promoters outside Of the
Exchange.
Business Has Declined.
Business with the Holins firm. in it's
heyday a very mine OF wealth had stead
ily declined in late years. 1t had just
evaporated. The closing was the result
Of causes coldly summarized in the COM
mon expression OF Wall Street as dry
,ot"
II was the sentimental side of the fall
ure that interested Wall Street Harry b.
Hollins. head Of the firm. now nearly so
ears old, for over thirty years widely
known and popular in Wall Street close
friend OF the late J. P. Morgan. OF the
Vanderbilt family. OF Eugene Zimmerman
Of Cincinnati and prominent in New York
society. received the sympathy and regret
of Wall Street men In his misfortune
ti,,,A
fortunes of the firm were high Money
Vas made. and plenty Of it. Harry Hol-
ms was the Vanderbilt broker He was
active for the late ]. r. Morgan. besides
peing one Of his intimate friends. He was
ono of the few members of the Corsar
Club. that small body Of intimates OF the
ate Mr. Morgan who gathered on the
Corsair and elsewhere.
Harry Hollins Is said to be the man
NJ. Morgan had in mind when he told the
pujo committee last year that ne had lent
100000 TO a friend he trusted without
security.
Many SOusht Jobs There.
Scions OF wealthy families entering
financial life strove to get into the hoi-
ms house and for managers clerks. even
there was star or hope.
Times changed in later years. 1t was
General Wall Street gossip that in 1907
ne firm had to be assisted by one of its
: friends. generally supposed to be w.
IL Vanderbilt.
The Mexican ventures OF II. b. HOllins
& Co may have figured in dragging down
the firm. though representative saia
vestertiay that they had not. The latest
Mexican ventures were in the Mexican
rude oil and Asphaltic Products Com
,any and the United states Asphalt Cor
roration controlled by the IIolins Arm.
but in which they acted largely as SELL
.ng agents.
The Hollins failure illustrates to what
thin hope the Wilson Administration
pinned its faith in the Chinese loan ne
-otiations of the present year
When the American group, containing
r. Morgan d Co, Kuhn. Loeb & Co.
the First National Bank and the National
lily Bank, refused last April to continue
'onger in the Five Power loan agreement
as the result Of the reputation by Presi-
dent Wilson of the Knox dollar diplo-
macy" policy, II. b. Hollins co. sur
prised the financial community by COM
:ny forward with an offer to lend China
all she wanted without guarantee from
his Government.
Morgan to the Rescue.
One Of the heaviest troubles OF the
Hollns firm was with the Cincinnati
Hamilton and Dayton Railroad. The Arm
was hard pressed with the property on
~ hands, whose financing had aroused
widespread denunciation. j. j. Morgan
'ane to the rescue by hnding a puyer
for the property in the Erie
=, II. Hartman a director and large
s'ol kholder in Erie. fought the transac-
Ion 1t was rescinded. the Morgan firm
'aklng the C. H. & D., carrying It through
-eceivershp and until the comparatively
recent sale to the Baltimore and Ohio.
Nj. Hollins resigned some Of his di-
rectorates yesterday. among them that on
he board OF the Equitable Trust Com
psny.
The retirement OF Rafael r. Gown from
u H. Hollins Co, on September 6. 1t
vas considered In some quarters. may have
zen partly responsible for the failure.
NJ GOWN took with him good many
~, ~ the Mexican ventures in oil with which
me name of the Arm had been connected.
Bernard ]. Burke, Brton n. Busch and
Walter Kutzleb are members of the Arm.
80 talk of resumption was heard yes
'erday A. Leo Everett was appointed
eceyer by Judge Hough In the United
States District Court The petitioning
editors presented claims for 1861 in de-
posts They were c. W. Sweet. SI7
i,roadway; II. u. Long. sos West 1llth
street. and James +. Newcomb, 35 Broad :
Ndy, W. K, Vanderbilt and J. r. Morgan
20 are said to be creditors.
beekman, Menken Il Grscom, counsel
'". H. u. Iiollins & Co. said that the
'nlure was due 10 withdrawal OF large
o"posits, reducing the firms working cap
''' which Is invested in securities not
'eadly salable.
Tileston Wells OF I.eXow. MacKelar
Wells, attorney for the receiver. said
Na' the banks. naturally the largest cred
'prs were we'll secured with collateral