The Ely miner. [volume] (Ely, Minn.) 1895-1986, 1930-11-28
Lower Wall Street in 1877

British posts and British guard meth
DDS TO escape from the city.
AT any rate he next appeared in
Philadelphia and there the most I'M
portant part of his career began. AL
though he was penniless, he still had
his native energy and his knowledge
of commerce and finance. So he i'm
mediately opened an office and began
to deal in bills of exchange and other
securities. By this time France had
come into the war on the side Of the
Americans and French money was
coming into the country. Philadelphia
was not only the capital of the newly
created United States but it became a
prosperous business and shipping CEN
ter. In its prosperity Solomon shared.
But this prosperity was not shared
by the infant government, for the finan-
cial policy of the Continental congress
had been a laundering one from the
start. By 1873 it was having serious
financial difficulties. By 17SO the sit
uatiOn was even more critical. BY
1871, with a treasury deficit of $1,000
600. it was desperate. 1t was desper-
ate because the Revolution seemed
near to collapse. On the first day of
the new year the entire Pennsylvania
line mutinied and started from Norris
town for Philadelphia to force con-
gress to relieve their distress. They
had not been paid for months, they
were in rags and they were half
starved. Two weeks later the New
Jersey line also revoted.
Congress managed to head off the
revolt and soon afterwards took steps
to salvage what seemed to be lost
cause. Robert Morris, whose financial
genius Washington had discovered
early and upon whom that leader had
leaned heavily in more than one crisis,
was called to lead congress out of the
financial morass. 1t was a formidable
task which faced Morris in his newly
created post of superintendent of
finance and a part of our admiration
for the men who faced the bullets and
bayonets of the British on the battle
field i'm the struggle for liberty should
his fight far from the firing line and
fought it with what must have seemed
overwhelming odds against him
He was "beset with a thousand diff
ficultieS and perils," writes Russell.
"He used up all his own credit; always
he was at the end of his resources,
often he was at the end of his wits.
Help from abroad came in fragments
and slowly. When it arrived it was in
the form of bills on Paris, chiefly on
the great French banking house of La
Couteulx and company. These reached
Morris (sOmetimes) from various
sources, and he must needs turn them
into current money before they could
be of use to him. In other words he
must sell these bills for what he could
get for them, gather up deprecated
state currency and try to keep GO
ing. His position was virtually
at the mercy of brokers and yet set
against them. The government and
go huckstering the governments bills
up and down the Coffee House. Brok-
ers were indispensable, but they were
reputed, probably not without reason,
to be cormorants; all except one"
That one was Haym Solomon. Nor
ris' unpublished Diary, upon which
Salomon's biographer draws heavily
for his information, is filled with ref
erences to his dealings with Solomon,
and all of them reflect the highest cred
Zone thing is made by the Diary as
plain as daylight" writes Russell.
"Haym Solomon is the pivot of the
whole business. He stands in the
breach; he keeps back the massed at
tacks that make for bankruptcy; ev-
erything depends upon him. 1t is
Haym Solomon this and Haym Salo-
mon that. On some days he makes six
or seven visits to consult with the SUI
perintendent. Forty times, according
to the testimony of the cashier (of the
Bank of North America, which Morris
established), between August /, 1882,
and the time Morris goes out of Office,
Haym Solomon comes to bat with his
timely check No matter where he
gets the money; he gets it and it is
this money that saves the day.
"He sells bills when no one else can
sell them. More than that; he sells
without gouging, without profit, even.
Other brokers continue to harass the
superintendent by underselling the
market and hampering the sale Of his
bills. He has no trouble from Solomon.
One other great service he per-
forms, though to this day no one has
noticed it, nor given the slightest cred
it for 1t. With a magnificent disre-
gard Of his own interests, he endorses
the paper of the broken-backed govern
ment. No one else will do this. The
governments credit has ebbed and
ebbed until it has sunk from sight.
Everybody knows it is gone; sagacious
men believe it will never return. Salo-
mon endorses its paper and its officers
paper. and its Allies paper, and makes
himself personally liable for all. We
have the evidence; no need for specu-
lation or surmise."