Sivut kuvina
PDF
ePub

Fisk-"Yes, some at thirty-seven. Mr. Corbin told me that Mrs. Grant had five hundred thousand dollars; that General Porter had five hundred thousand dollars, and that he had one million five hundred thousand dollars himself. This ran along about five weeks, until about the 15th of September. Gold about that time had kept settling until it got down to thirty-one, and Mr. Gould had got a pretty bag of it. I could see by the way that he was tearing up little pieces of paper-every man has his peculiarities, you know-(with a laugh, Gould smiles also) that he was pretty well up to the handle. He was all the time running to Corbin. He would slip in every morning and take a dose of Corbin, you know. (Fisk laughing and meaning to be very funny.) I came into the office one morning and he was telling what a great purchase this gold was. I said: 'Gould, if I had as much gold as you have got, and it stood at such a loss as I think it will stand, I should think you would invite all of your able-bodied friends in to help bear the yoke.' I had not said much about gold for some weeks to him. We had always speculated together. Although he seemed to have a very good thing, he did not want to let me in. It seems, although I did not know it until afterwards, that he had got in and did not care to talk about it. But I could see, instantly, that if we were going to do anything, we should all put our shoulders to the wheel. We were dropping off in our earnings, and I had made up my mind that gold was not to be put up. We all knew that there was only thirteen or fourteen millions of gold in New

York. We started that morning, through Heath & Co., to buy gold; and afterwards I said to Mr. Gould: 'Have you got any understanding with Corbin, or have you carried out any of those theories with Grant that we talked about last July?' 'Yes,' said he; 'there is no gold to come out of the Government.' We can put the gold up to forty-five, and I think we shall make money out of it, and we shall get our winter and fall transportation for our road. My idea is to go ahead. Upon that base I started in myself, without any understanding that I was to share in his loss or he in mine. I made up my mind, and got what I could carry. I found that I could get all I wanted. (Laughing.) Gold was then about thirty-six and a quarter. He (pointing to Gould) had gold enough to sink a ship. I guess that the day after I commenced I said to Mr. Gould: 'Now you give me a letter to Corbin, stating that I know all about this affair; that he has got the Treasury fixed; that Butterfield thought he could get the Treasury news first. I want to talk with him freely, so that we shall know exactly where we stand.' I got the letter, and talked with Corbin three hours. He told me that everything was all running nicely; that he had got this gold with Mr. Gould; that he had received a check for twenty-five thousand dollars, which he had forwarded to Washington; that everything looked bright, and he was confident we were doing a great national good, (laughing,) as well as assisting the road to its transportation; that he saw more money in the transaction than he had seen in all his life. He had all the arrangements that he had made

down here at his tongue's end. So I started back to our office. We have some telegraph wires there, and I thought I would be sure and get a good jag of it. This took us up to about the Monday or Tuesday before the 'black Friday'—about September 21st. I found after I left Corbin's office that I felt very like getting back there again and talking to Corbin. I was nervous and shaky all the time. This way, you know," said Fisk, getting up and shaking his knees, "but Corbin, when I got to him, said, 'You need give yourself no uneasiness;' but I felt that when I was talking to him I was a great deal better and stronger than when I was away from him. I saw him two or three times, in which he reassured me, and gave me a great deal more confidence. I think it was that night that Mr. Gould came down from his house to the office, about eight o'clock, and said: 'I want your special man-the man whom you send upon the most intricate business you have. I want him to take a letter to-night from Mr. Corbin to General Grant, at Washington, Penn.' I called Chapin, and he said to Chapin, 'I want you to-morrow morning at half-past six, to be at Corbin's house. He will give you a letter to General Grant, directed to Washington, Penn. I want you to take the train, to go by Pittsburg, and deliver this letter to Grant. See what he says. Go from there to the first telegraph station and telegraph me what the reply is; that is, if you can do it without communicating any secrets.' I was afraid he would sleep too long, and I said to my brother-in-law, 'Go to Mr. Chapin and see him aboard the train, so that when I come to the office

[ocr errors]

that it is all right.' Old Hamlet Corbin'

in the morning, I may know In the morning they were there. came down stairs at half-past six and delivered him a letter directed to General Grant. Chapin came out and got into a carriage, and drove to the Jersey Central Railroad. He travelled and never stopped until he delivered that letter to General Grant at Washington, Penn. When he arrived at the house in Washington, it was very early in the morning, about seven o'clock. He rang them up, and sent his card, 'William O. Chapin, from Mr. Corbin.' He then went into the parlor and very soon the General came down, opened and read the letter clear through and went out, evidently as if to show it to Mrs. Grant or some one else. He was gone about fifteen minutes, and when he came back said to Mr. Chapin 'All right,' and bid him good morning. Mr. Chapin drove to the next station, and we received a despatch, viz.: Delivered-all right.' That was all the des patch said. He wended his way back. It took us up to Thursday morning. I was around to see Corbin. He said that everything was A No. 1; that this letter had settled everything beyond a doubt; that the interests involved to the nation and otherwise had rendered everything safe. On Thursday afternoon I had been into Wall street. Mr. Gould and I drove to Belden's office and gave an order to Mr. Heath. When we arrived gold was thirty-six and five-eighths, and when we left the street that night gold was at forty-one. There was a great deal of excitement, and the evening papers had statements that the government

But

was interested, and that there was a sharp, quick corner in gold, and that the government would not sell. During this time Boutwell had come on and the 'bears' got up a dinner for him-one of those selfadmiration dinners. They told Boutwell that he was the greatest financier on the face of the earth, and if he would only tell them what he was going to do they would fish a big thing out of the sea. Boutwell kept a very close mouth. He did not know where he stood, and therefore not knowing where his position was he thought he had better keep still. I do not think that they got anything out of Mr. Boutwell. But now it seems that after this dinner there was a sort of flurry in the ranks, some not liking his declaration that in case he was cornered he would not sell. The other party stood it out, and at about four in the afternoon of Thursday, they started into cover and put the gold up to forty-one, together with what little help we gave them. Mr. Belden, who was then of the firm of William Belden-who had a brother-in-law of mine in partnership with him, and with whom we had more or less business-had seen so much for the last week, made up his mind that we had so much gold on hand that we exactly knew our position, or else we should not be caught in such a He said to me on position as we were then in. the evening before Friday: Now, if you have got all this gold and you want any assistance you had better let me come in and help.' Said I, 'If you want to come in we will give you a hand in.' 'I have not got time now,' he replied. I told him we could go to the

« EdellinenJatka »