Evening public ledger. [volume] (Philadelphia [Pa.]) 1914-1942, 1922-05-04

lssw *. osvsrnsr Passlssn an6 othsr
Distinguishes Men Were cau0he
owlndlino osmss Nun In cyelse.
The shrswdsst cannst gs. a
4 eapo che onaro
By GEORGE NOx MCCAIN

get their jolts the same a. the ordinary citt.
zen and the man on the street.
Governor Pattison was not the only victim.
=, ysmerai .Ssmss, benjamin y Tracy. Of New xsrs.
In the episode whose hindsight had the ad.
vantage OF his foresight. 3S9&
The man who hooked them and made
them oftcers in his mining company also
II left alone it Ia not improbable that this
man, Cradle BY name. would have an.
nounced scheme to extract platinum from
old ress and brown bottles.
Taken all In all, the promoter who en- !.
sineered the scheme managed TO- assemble the
most prominent array Of victims this city
ever saw. D7H = ~
1t all happened back in 1907 .es.
INVESTMENT swindles run in cycles.
The last year has seen recrudescence Of
nest t. sSs tsc hSsTs:s nS swnds Of ALL
1t has witnessed the smash and the ac.
companying disaster Of about twenty nine
OF these concerns within three months.
Five OF then, belong to Philadelphia.
Nn,y one OF the guilty so.called bank.
When convicted last week he collapsed
firm. ~
The present era marks the third cycle in
Twenty-Five years Of such investment
They all run true to form. in bunches,
ABOUT every eight or ten years.
E,RANC1s CRADLE insusurat.d hi. pr..
4 Wallingford cycle just twenty 1--WE years
ago: he was Western product.
and cotton swindles in which the notorious
storey Cotton Company was tho star,
The aftermath Of the third cycle is nov
being reaped In the burst bubbles Of bucket.
snops, with their accompaniment Of de.
suicides.
There are a few Of CRADLES dupes still
living aged men and women.
Of those who figured officially IN the Phil.
adsiphia end Of his game ali are dead, I
EhABLE was a sort Of jcweled serpent
~ In the financial Eden Of Philadelphia
quarter OF century ago--in 1907.
lie charmed the innocents. He persuad ded
!nem TO bite into his apples Of golden prom.
lips. w '.'-'
moter that he even seduced Cashier Ouinian
O. the great Chemical National Bank OF
thank him for the opportunity. ''
Al. which proves that IL given the bait and
the promoter the largest bankers are liable
ENOR ten years prior to 1907 Cradle had
i been engaged in Aoatinr stocL. md
bonds in doubtful Western cnternrises. Hs
decided to come East and selected Phila.
oe,pnia as one Of his centers Of operation,
Philadelphians ultimately subscribed the
largest amounts to his schemes.
Connecticut furnished the longest list ~
small investors. 's VI
a large number Of these were school.
teachers' e ministers and small professional
1t was the old familiar game gold signs.
mahogany furniture and Oriental rugs we're
the bait for the suckers then as now,
Gra6le had this popularity. though: :: He
ADVERTISED that he did not want money.
he was anxious. however. to secure good
in exchange for his stocks and bonds.
=, Inc gudgeons thought he was the biggest
thing that had ever come down the troil.
because Of this feature Of his dealings.
They followed him like sheep to the
A MONG the varied and spectacular in.
"A vestments into which hundreds OF thou.
sands of dollars Of Philadelphia cash were
poured were some of CRADLES mining claims
In the Black Hills.
That is so-called mining claims. ..
He established half a dozen town sites
along projected Western railroad lines. He
ran free excursions to them from Chicago
anu Oln0n0.
He organized mining. companies among
9ther tnings; Soo one OF which was capitalized
Out Of this s., ,ooo, 900 Mr.. Cradle re.
ceivcd 81 500, 900 in payment for certain
claims. 1t was way he had. =
lie merged smelling company and
mining company with capital stock Of
Sc, 600, ,00O
Cradle took as his share Of the consolida.
tion 81, 800, 900. which left 81 ,2OO, 900 in
the treasury for his dupes.
LIE STARTED to build smelter and in.
IL augurated other dreamy and extensive
He had more business than ten men could
look after.
II was at this time that he got the Phila.
delphia crowd interested In his company,
with these prominent Phladclphians in
volved:
President. Ex-Governor Robert r. Patti.
son, president Security Trust Company ::
treasurer. Thomas Bradley, director Security
Trust Company; secretary. George A.
Fletcher, merchant and director Union Trust
Directors - Philip $. Hortz. director
Southwark National Bank: David Jones,
iron manufacturer; w. b. Kelley. invest.
Bsns Bssdev C. sorrs s. MdSetHT %:tdS:r NJ D Thomas
Pattison and j. Wesley Supplee.
Other officers were Joseph +. Crater. mer.
chant and director First National Bank
Easton. Pa: Congressman Ben. Butter.
worth. Washington. D. c.: J. Edward Mas.
tin. banker, New York. and others. '"'
1t was q glorious array OF influential
"cOmc -ons.'
Even John II. Searles, then executive bead
of the Sugar Trust. bit hard and often,
TT WAS a sad awakening that this dis.
L tinguished company of financial gudgeons
had in the end.
tury ago of the Gibboney .Yucatan fasco NJ
last year without Its tragic and fatal endin,
The Cradle balloon blew up with a bans'
Then followed the usual meeting Of the vie.
tins to discuss revenge or rehabilitation
The usual committee Of investigator was
appointed.
Cradle was kicked out. and all sales ~