“At least you will give me your name?”
“Oh, you’re quite welcome to that. My name is John Holmes. Now you must excuse me. Good morning.”
But the failure of the interview did not prevent the —— from having a big story about the great gold mystery next morning. It was a highly embellished yarn told with all the emphasis of double leads and a “scare head.” “The Gold Bugs Discovered” was the black line at the head of the article on the first page, and a two-column picture of “the mysterious wagon loaded with five tons of gold” was a prominent feature of the story. The plain wooden box which the men were struggling to put into the rear of the wagonwas reproduced as graphically as possible. There was a picture also of the modest dwelling and stable entrance in East Seventeenth Street, but the reporter’s interview with Driver John Holmes was not faithfully described. And the —— newspaper praised itself fulsomely for having been “the first to discover the true though only partial solution of the great gold mystery which was paralyzing the financial world.”
The next day the same journal established a fresh surveillance not only over Strong & Co.’s banking house but over the Assay Office and the East Seventeenth Street stable. But the heavy covered wagon and the powerful chestnut horses were seen no more either in East Seventeenth Street, at Strong & Co.’s, or at the Assay Office. The enormous deposits of gold continued, however, at regular intervals. Several wagons carried loads of bullion to or from the Assay Office nearly every day, and the watchers were unable to identify the ones which brought the big gold deposits.
The mystery grew deeper than ever. It baffled newspapers and financiers alike. It became an important factor in the banking houses of London and in the continental bourses. The governors of the Bank of England discussed it with only less interest than the Clearing House Committee of the New York banks. Meantime, stocks continued to be bought andsold. The great selling movement of early March gradually ceased. It was estimated that the supporters of the market had been compelled to expend at least $75,000,000 during the first half of the month in order to maintain prices at the prevailing high level. The market did sag a little sometimes, but there was never anything like a break. The conservative fears of a collapse began to subside. A power strong enough to accomplish what had already been done, it was argued, could maintain the present condition of the market without the expenditure of another dollar. It had only to borrow money on the securities it had already accumulated in order to keep control of the market as long as it liked. Furthermore, money was plenty and cheap. That it was new money was proved by the fact that gold coin was coming rapidly into circulation in the Eastern States. Gold was being sent to the mints faster than it could be coined. The export of a few millions in bullion occasionally, seemed to have no effect upon the mysterious supply.
The people who complained were those having money to invest. Those who had sold at a good profit stocks and bonds which they had held for a long time as investments had no right to grumble. But those who wished to invest their savings had a more genuine grievance. Three months before theymight have bought safe properties at thirty per cent below present figures. Then their money would have earned six or seven per cent. Now it would scarcely yield four, with the prospect of a substantial shrinkage of the principal as soon as conditions changed, as change they must, in almost everybody’s opinion.
Even though the danger of disaster seemed to have diminished, the conviction was strong in the minds of sound financiers that the financial status was still unhealthy, inasmuch as it was not controlled by natural laws. The financial fate of America for the moment was in the keeping of a single despotic will. As long as this remained true there was no safety. It was useless apparently to complain or rebel.
This feature of the situation was not much discussed in public, but it was the subject of many long private conferences among financial leaders in New York. It was to them an octopus which threatened the very life of trade. Private attempts to learn something about the identity, resources, and intentions of the unknown dictator had all failed, and yet it was felt that some information on these points was essential to genuine business prosperity. This necessity was so great in the estimation of the presidents of the principal banks that they finally resolved upon a bold but straightforward course for solving some of their doubts. They decided to ask the master of these new golden millions, through his only known agent, for certain assurances regarding his future plans.
The matter took shape in this way: The secretary of the treasury was asked to come to New York and attend a conference of the members of the Clearing House Committee of the New York banks and two or three private bankers of New York and Philadelphia. He agreed to come. Then a polite request was sent to Messrs. Strong & Co., inviting them to send a representative to the same meeting.
Fifteen men sat in the big leather chairs in the directors’ room of a Wall Street bank at noon on the 21st of March, in response to the above call. John Wharton, the junior partner of a house but little known in the financial world a few weeks before, looked somewhat out of place among the grave and dignified masters of finance who represented as well as any equal number of men could the monetary interests of the nation. But it might have been noticed that the young man was greeted with as much respect and cordiality by every one present as was the almost white-haired secretary of the treasury himself.
No time was wasted in ceremony or purposeless talk. Wharton had been a bit late. When he had been made acquainted with such of the company as he did not know, and two or three others had comein, the chairman of the Clearing House Committee briefly stated the object of the meeting.
“We find ourselves confronted,” he said, “by a peculiar condition of monetary affairs and of the circulating medium. We have had for the past few weeks industrial depression and widespread commercial disaster throughout the country, coupled with a buoyant stock market and a rapidly increasing supply of money. This unnatural situation has come about by means quite unprecedented in our financial history. It is a situation so important in all its bearings upon the material welfare of the whole country that it demands our most earnest consideration. The Clearing House Committee of the New York banks believes it is imperative to prepare some general policy for meeting the crisis which the present anomalous condition threatens. So we have invited you, Mr. Secretary, and you, gentlemen, to meet us here for an informal consultation. We thank you for coming and we hope you will contribute freely of your advice and knowledge. May we hear from you first, Mr. Secretary?”
There had been hardly a hint in the chairman’s brief remarks of the real object of the meeting, but that was scarcely to be expected. Every one waited with interest for what the secretary of the treasury might say. Drawing a memorandum slip from his pocket, that gentleman responded:
“I quite agree with your chairman that the financial phenomena which now absorb the attention of the entire country demand of the managers and students of our monetary system the most careful examination. I thank you for the privilege of meeting you for that purpose. No facts or figures need be quoted to prove the depression which has ruled for months in industrial and commercial circles. With that side of the question we are powerless to deal directly. We must confine ourselves more exclusively to the financial phase of the subject. There we have a strange paradox. You know what has taken place in the stock market. The increase in the quoted market value of bonds and shares listed in the New York Stock Exchange since the middle of December amounts to fully $2,000,000,000. The changes in the circulating medium have been even more surprising. There has been deposited in the government Assay Office in this city for smelting into standard bullion during the past three months no less a sum than $211,000,000. This, as you all know, is something altogether unprecedented. I think I am justified in saying at a private meeting called for this purpose that nearly $200,000,000 of this gold was deposited by a single firm. The work of the mints is just as significant. The amount of gold offered for coinage under the Free Coinage Act during the same periodhas exceeded $170,000,000. Three months ago the amount of gold in actual circulation in the country was $474,000,000; now it has risen, or it will as soon as the mints have finished the task imposed, to $644,000,000. This means an increase in the total circulating medium of fully ten per cent, or nearly three dollars per capita.
“No such radical change can be made in the currency without seriously disturbing the conditions of trade. I admit that the country is to be congratulated upon the enormous addition suddenly made to its wealth, but it has come too rapidly. There is such a thing as too much gold, just as we have found that there can be too much silver. It cannot be assimilated at such a rate. Values outside of the stock market are showing signs of disturbance. A plethora of money, whether in gold or any other form, must invariably bring enhancement of prices. We have seen it in the stock market; we are beginning to see it in other lines. When it begins to affect standard commodities—the necessaries of life—we shall have a serious state of affairs. The people are hard pushed already. Times are very bad in the ordinary sense. None of this new money is going into the pockets of the masses. It will be no less than a calamity, therefore, if the cost of living is suddenly and unnaturally increased at such a moment.
“Pardon me for dwelling upon what may be regarded as the philanthropic side of the question, but in my opinion it is the most important side. To return to the chairman’s suggestion, I agree that the uncertainty of the present situation is its most demoralizing feature. We do not know whence comes this sudden flood of gold; we are ignorant of what still lies at its source. Naturally we are inclined to believe it must be almost exhausted, because no such treasure was ever known to exist in single hands before. But in my opinion it would be very hasty to come to that conclusion. The hand that can pour so vast a sum into the channels of commerce in three short months is not likely to have exhausted its resources. But the great desideratum now is stability and confidence. These can come only of knowledge. A power as great as we know this to be can afford to give us that knowledge, unless its designs are evil. Nay, more, I affirm it solemnly, it is a humane and patriotic duty upon us to remove if possible the unnecessary incubus of uncertainty which is killing trade. This is a matter in which the government is unfortunately powerless to assist. But I do not believe that the man or men in possession of a treasure apparently greater than any ever before in individual control will turn it into an instrument of evil and oppression.”
There was no mistaking the bearing and object of the secretary’s remarks, although he had made no personal application of them. The representative of Strong & Co. seemed to be a bit uncomfortable when the custodian of the national Treasury had finished, but he did not attempt to break the somewhat embarrassing pause which followed. The silence was allowed to continue but a moment or two. The president of one of the largest down-town banks, a man of genial, energetic, offhand manner, set forth the real object of the meeting in a few terse, pointed sentences.
“I think, gentlemen,” he began briskly, in tones of easy good fellowship, “that we should come to the point at once and deal with it frankly and openly. I have no doubt we all share the sentiments which the secretary of the treasury has expressed. Most of us will agree that he has not exaggerated the importance of securing at least a partial solution of the prevailing gold mystery. We have invited here the only man, as far as we know, who has the key to that mystery. We have no intention of asking him to betray confidences or to disclose professional secrets. We have done an unprecedented thing in asking him to come here under such peculiar circumstances. I trust he will credit us with purity of motive. What we desire is simply this—that he will lay before his principal the viewswhich the secretary of the treasury has expressed, and which I assume we all share, and that he will ask him if he will not give us some assurance which will enable us to manage the vast financial interests intrusted to us on a sound basis. Our request is an unusual one, unjustified, perhaps, according to ordinary business ethics, and one which our unknown friend has a perfect right to refuse. But we base it on something broader than the sordid motives of trade, and I hope it will be received in the spirit in which it is sent. I hope we may hear from Mr. Wharton.”
Every one turned to the youngest man present, and the chairman cordially indorsed the invitation just given. John Wharton addressed the assembled magnates of finance rather diffidently. Each one of them was his senior by many years. Most of them were men of world-wide reputation. He had never been placed in a position which made so severe a test of his tact and discretion. But he was quite equal to the situation. He had little to say, and he said it to the point, and with evident sincerity.
“I will not pretend, gentlemen,” he responded, “that the firm of Strong & Co. did not surmise the probable object of this conference. Your request shall be faithfully transmitted to those for whom we have been acting in the important transactions of thelast three months. I am here to give you the strongest assurance which words of mine can convey of the absolute good faith and purity of motive back of those transactions.”
The young man spoke with such emphasis and evident candor that his words carried conviction even to these hard-headed and naturally suspicious men of affairs. They interrupted him with hearty applause and exclamations of satisfaction.
“I am authorized to say further,” he went on, “that any suggestions or requests which you may make, far from being resented, will be received with the utmost respect and with a sincere desire to conserve the best welfare of the country.”
Again the men who were listening now with eager interest interrupted the young speaker with applause.
“These general assurances are about all that I am able to give you at this time. Upon three points I am compelled to be reticent—the source of this gold, its total amount, and the identity of its owner or owners. Regarding the first and second, I am as ignorant as you are. Your request for information about further additions to the bullion supply—for that is what the question amounts to—I, personally, do not consider unreasonable. I will deliver it at once to my principals and you shall have the answer promptly.”
“How soon will it probably be ready?” asked the chairman.
“I know of no reason why you should not have it to-morrow.”
“Why should we not discuss it at a quiet dinner at the Waldorf to-morrow night?” suggested the chairman.
“I must return to Washington by the midnight train to-night, unfortunately,” observed the secretary of the treasury. “Let me say right here that I accept Mr. Wharton’s assurances in the fullest sense. What he has already said has relieved me of a great anxiety, and I want to express to him my hearty thanks for the commendable spirit which he and those he represents show in a matter of vital importance to the nation.” The words were uttered with a warm sincerity which manifestly voiced the spirit of all in the room.
“We all join unreservedly in that sentiment,” was the cordial indorsement of the chairman.
“If haste is important,” Wharton interrupted, “there is no reason why I should not be able to communicate the reply to you this evening.”
“Just the thing,” responded two or three. “Let us have the dinner to-night. If the answer is ready, well and good. If not, we can meet again to-morrow.” And so it was arranged.
The party met again at seven o’ clock that evening in one of the finest private dining-rooms of the most sumptuous of modern hotels. It was not the serious gathering of the morning. Millionaires and other magnates are much like other men. Finance was the one subject tabooed while the dinner was before them, Wharton was rather surprised to find that no delicate attempts to sound his secret knowledge were made by any one. Beyond asking him if he had received a reply to the morning request, no word was said about the matter which most concerned all present until the dinner was finished and the last waiter had closed the door behind him. Then, while the fumes of the best tobacco began to fill the air, the general conversation flagged, and the company turned expectantly toward the head of the table where sat the chairman of the bank committee with the secretary of the treasury at his right and John Wharton at his left.
“There are to be no formalities, gentlemen,” remarked the president pleasantly. “We are all anxious to hear Mr. Wharton’s message, and I will ask him to present it to us, if he is willing, without further delay.”
“Gentlemen, I am glad to bring you a response which I hope will be satisfactory,” responded Wharton. “As it is a matter of considerable importance, I have brought it in writing, and with your permission I will read it to you.”
There was silent assent, and Wharton read as follows:
“We have received the request preferred by you through Mr. Wharton, and also his report of the views expressed at this morning’s conference. We are in heartiest accord with all that was said at that meeting. We affirm again what Mr. Wharton there said in our behalf—that it is our sincere desire to promote in every way in our power the best welfare of the financial, commercial, and industrial world. We recognize completely the vital importance of coöperation to that end, and we accept thankfully the implied offer which the sentiments expressed this morning convey.
“Three months ago the country seemed to be on the verge of great financial and other economic disasters. It appeared to us to be a wise thing to ward off the blow by using a large quantity of gold then in our hands to support the general market for stocks and bonds. It also seemed desirable in our judgment to encourage trade by adding liberally to the current supply of ready money. A free purchase of securities was the only feasible way to accomplish this end. The result has been a very substantial rise in prices. We realize as keenly as anybody can do that a return of public confidence is still essential to a sound and healthy improvement of general trade. We cannot supply that lack. It is more in your power to do so thanin ours. We have no doubt you will gladly undertake this duty, provided you are convinced of the honesty of our intentions in pending transactions, and of our ability to execute any policy we may adopt.
“There are difficulties in the way of proving our good faith and demonstrating the further strength of our resources, but we hope they are not insuperable. The greatest obstacle lies in the fact that, for personal and other good reasons, we wish to escape the notoriety that attaches to great wealth. This makes it necessary to conceal also the source of that wealth and its exact amount. Reserving these points, we are ready to coöperate heartily in the best policy the situation may demand. It seems to us advisable, for the present at least, to continue the support of the market on about the existing basis. We shall be glad to receive your advice upon this point. To demonstrate our ability to maintain prices, we will deposit at the government Assay Office within the coming week additional gold to the value of one hundred millions of dollars. We note especially the warning of the secretary of the treasury against the dangers of a too rapid increase in the circulating medium. We shall endeavor to avoid doing serious mischief in that way, and we crave your advice upon that point also.
“Finally, as a partial evidence that we have notundertaken to manipulate the stock market for any speculative or other sordid end, we have authorized Messrs. Strong & Co. to place in the hands of any three men you shall name, stocks and bonds amounting in market value to $100,000,000, to be retained in their charge for one year. We reserve only the right to substitute for the securities deposited at any time others of equal market value.
“If, after considering this statement of our position and intentions, the situation appears to you to warrant it, we shall be glad if you will make known in such a manner as seems best your confidence in the present stability of values and the prospect of future improvement in trade conditions.”
When Wharton finished reading there was absolute silence. All had listened with closest attention from the first word. Curiosity changed to amazement as the statement proceeded. When the full significance of the announcement and the offer it contained dawned upon these men of large affairs, they were apparently overwhelmed by emotions quite strange to them in business dealings. Surprise naturally awoke suspicions. A dominant consideration of the public welfare in great financial operations was uncommon, to say the least. They looked for other motives. They did not know how to take this utterance of a financial power, far greater than any they supposedexisted. Such was the train of thought reflected in almost every one of the usually impenetrable faces before any one ventured to speak.
At length the secretary of the treasury broke the silence in tones of quiet emphasis.
“Gentlemen,” he said, “I think we should accept this statement literally and in good faith. It indicates the existence of capital under single control amounting to at least $300,000,000. It is a sum so vast that temptation to increase it by illegitimate or unworthy means seems to me to disappear. It is too great a treasure to further excite human ambition and greed, unless in the mind of an Alexander or a Cæsar. I do not believe we are dealing with such a character as either of these. Although we have been told just enough to arouse a very natural curiosity, I think we should respect the reticence which withholds the rest. We can all understand and appreciate the motive for seeking to escape the notoriety which is one of the penalties of great wealth in this country. I hope we shall act in sympathy with the suggestions made in the paper which Mr. Wharton has read.”
The spirit in which the secretary of the treasury received the message seemed to be that of all present after a few minutes. Many questions were asked, bearing chiefly upon the $100,000,000 in reserve of which mention had been made. Most of the bankerspresent, or the institutions which they represented, were money-lenders, and they regarded the great fund thus disclosed as a serious menace to the money market. Wharton gave personal assurances that this gold should not be used to manipulate rates or work demoralization in any way. It was only in case of abnormal and unhealthy conditions arising, such as serious stringency, that it would be used at all in that field.
Various phases of the situation were talked over in an informal way until midnight had long passed. Then it was decided to meet again for the consideration of the means to be employed for strengthening public confidence, and relieving the general suspense. It was eventually decided to accept the offer of a trusteeship for $100,000,000 in securities, and three banks were named for the purpose. The public effort to strengthen faith in the financial situation took the form of a circular to the national banks issued by the Clearing House Committee and indorsed by the bankers who had attended the private conference. Nothing was made known in this circular about the source and nature of the assurances given to the committee. Their guarantee of the soundness of the situation, coupled with the great deposit of gold which was announced, was quite sufficient to change completely the tone of the market. Copies of thecircular were given to the press, and it was published broadcast. The pressure to sell on the Stock Exchange diminished, and the market gave promise of soon becoming natural and self-supporting.
Theprivate mail of the president of Harvard College contained one morning, the latter part of April, 1895, a letter which was ever afterwards preserved as the most important document in the archives of the great university. Its appearance before it was opened gave no indication of its importance. It was enclosed in a plain, square, white envelope, postmarked “New York,” and in addition to the address it was marked “Personal” in bold letters, heavily underlined.
As the president opened it and took out the single sheet of note-paper within, another slip fell upon the table, blank side uppermost. The shape and the perforated edge around two sides of the slip suggested a check, and the president carelessly turned it over before looking at the note. It was a check, and when he caught sight of the figures in one corner the serene dignity of the eminentsavantwas betrayed into an exclamation that made him seem for the moment quite like other men. He readjusted his spectacles in genuine agitation and stared at the check for somemoments before he recovered his self-possession sufficiently to read the letter. This was the epistle:
Strong & Co., Bankers and Brokers,New Street, New York.New York, April 23, 1895.My Dear Sir:By direction of one of our clients I send you herewith my personal check for five million dollars ($5,000,000) payable to your personal order. This money you are at liberty to devote to the general uses of Harvard University, in such a manner as you and your associates, the Fellows and Overseers, shall deem most advantageous. The donor desires to remain entirely unknown in connection with the gift. His only suggestion regarding its use is that one million dollars more or less shall be devoted to the equipment or support of the astronomical observatories which the university has established in South America.I remain, Sir,Your obedient servant,John Wharton.P.S.—I shall esteem it a personal favor if you will confine all information regarding my connection with the matter to as limited a circle as possible.—J. W.
Strong & Co., Bankers and Brokers,New Street, New York.
New York, April 23, 1895.
My Dear Sir:
By direction of one of our clients I send you herewith my personal check for five million dollars ($5,000,000) payable to your personal order. This money you are at liberty to devote to the general uses of Harvard University, in such a manner as you and your associates, the Fellows and Overseers, shall deem most advantageous. The donor desires to remain entirely unknown in connection with the gift. His only suggestion regarding its use is that one million dollars more or less shall be devoted to the equipment or support of the astronomical observatories which the university has established in South America.
I remain, Sir,Your obedient servant,John Wharton.
P.S.—I shall esteem it a personal favor if you will confine all information regarding my connection with the matter to as limited a circle as possible.—J. W.
That was all—just a curt, matter-of-fact business communication. It could not be a hoax, for the check was certified by the Chemical National Bank. It needed but the president’s name on the back to make it worth the five millions in cash which it called for. The more he thought about it the nearer the president’s mind approached to a condition of excitement. He got up and took a turn around the room. His secretary came in just then, but stopped in amazement on discovering evidences of an agitation which he had never detected before in his chief.
“Is there anything the matter, sir?” he asked anxiously.
“Nothing at all,” responded the head of America’s greatest university, with a partial return to his usual placid manner. “I am glad you came in. I wish you would call a special meeting of the Fellows, to be held here at four o’clock this afternoon. Send special messengers and telegrams and say that the business will be of the utmost importance.”
The secretary’s apprehensions increased, but he hastened to obey instructions. The next day the papers announced the magnificent gift to Harvard and tried in vain to gratify the universal curiosity about the unknown donor.
If there was any envy of Harvard’s good fortune at New Haven, it was dissipated two or three days later when Yale rejoiced in the receipt of a mysterious gift of the same magnificent proportions. In the case of Yale, however, the endowment was coupled with a condition or request which excited much surprise and made no end of talk. The mysterious donor asked that half of the five millions should be set apart as a fund to be used under the direction of the YaleScientific School in practical investigation of the subject of aërial navigation. This was a trust which the university accepted with a good deal of misgiving. When the matter was considered by the trustees there was even some opposition to the acceptance of this portion of the donation on such terms.
“Must we set our professors to building flying machines, and compel them to risk their necks in balloons?” exclaimed one of the older members of the board in some asperity, and with small measure of gratitude to the giver of such a fund. “For my part, I hope the university will not go to the absurd extreme of turning our scientific school into a Darius Green workshop to gratify a generous but whimsical millionaire.”
But the old gentleman was in a small minority, and he was quite silenced by the remarks of a younger and more progressive member, whose investigations in practical science had made him famous. Besides, who ever heard of a gift of $2,500,000 being refused by an educational institution, no matter how hard the conditions?
“I do not regard this gift as either absurd or whimsical,” said the man of science and sense, with much emphasis. “On the contrary, I welcome it with enthusiasm as a practical pledge of the next and greatest triumph of civilization. Aërial navigation is theone branch of practical science in which America is not keeping pace with the foremost investigators. France and Germany and even Russia have obtained better results than we have. The reason, of course, is that there are military incentives in Europe which do not exist here. But I firmly believe that this gift will enable us to gain the same mastery of the paths of the winds that we have already won over the land and the sea. No gift to the cause of physical science could be more valuable and more timely than this. I hope it will be accepted with the sincerest expression of our gratitude.”
And so it was. National curiosity was again aroused to highest pitch. Nor was it allowed to subside, for within a month fresh benefactions, all anonymous and all dealing with large sums, were announced. Chicago’s fund for a memorial of the Columbian Fair received a round million. New York rejoiced in the news that Samuel J. Tilden’s thwarted attempt to provide a magnificent free library for his fellow-citizens was to succeed after all. Three millions had come from somewhere—the trustees would not say where—to be used in carrying out the plans of the dead statesman on the same scale that he had wisely designed.
Wellesley and Vassar became involved in the same delightful mystery. Woman’s curiosity in her chiefseats of learning was put under the strain of accepting without question gifts of $2,000,000 to each institution from an unknown hand. The test or the temptation was safely borne, for no hint of even the manner in which the princely fortunes were bestowed ever reached an outsider’s ear. There were no restrictions accompanying these gifts, beyond a request in each case that they should be devoted mainly to those branches of training and study which best fitted woman for the domestic circle. Inasmuch as this suggestion was construed to admit of almost any interpretation in the field of “the higher education of woman,” it was felt to be no restriction at all. Who dared assert that a knowledge of Greek, a familiarity with the latest mysteries of astronomy, and a training in the higher mathematics did not deserve important places in the equipment of woman for the domestic circle of 1895? When it was proposed in the governing boards of the two colleges that the departments of physical training, English literature, music, and the culinary art should benefit in greater proportion than certain others under the new funds, the makers of the suggestion were frowned upon with some scorn. It was undoubtedly the intention of their unknown benefactor, so declared the more advanced spirits in the great cause of “the emancipation of woman,” that his money should be used in providing that broadculture which alone would make the woman of the twentieth century the highest development of her sex. She should have the same advantages, the same training as her brothers. In no other way could she become “best fitted for the domestic circle.”
No such impetus was ever given the cause of education in America as it received in the spring of 1895 from this great series of contributions. The subject became a matter of world-wide wonder and discussion. It did not seem possible that such treasure could come all from one source, and yet no such epidemic of generosity among millionaires had ever been heard of. There were not half a dozen men in the country who could make presents of $5,000,000 checks. Speculation, and there was plenty of it, was in vain, however. The secret was well kept by all its possessors, and beyond a few hints that the eccentric distributor of millions was a New Yorker, who kept a balance of at least $5,000,000 in cash always on hand at the Chemical Bank, nothing transpired.
In the rapid life of the American metropolis curiosity over this subject was soon overshadowed by a new wonder. The city’s most grievous public problem, thebête noireof a decade, was suddenly solved. Vainly had private enterprise and public commissions sought to provide the congested city a satisfactory system of rapid transit. The growth ofthe town had been checked, its prosperity had been restricted, and infinite personal discomfort had been suffered by its citizens, because of the peculiar difficulties of the situation. In a city long and narrow, densely populated, and surrounded on three sides by water, the quick arteries of passenger travel must go below the surface or into the air. Everybody who has traveled on the London underground railroad will admit that the tunnel system is to be avoided at any reasonable expense. But everybody else who has walked beneath the elevated tracks in New York, or lodged near the line, will say that railways in the public streets are an almost intolerable nuisance.
The only system satisfactory in itself which had been proposed in New York was a great four-track viaduct line, running, not through the streets, but upon its own location cut through the center of the blocks from end to end of the city. But the plan could not be considered for a moment. The expense was prohibitive. It would cost $100,000,000 for right of way and construction, to say nothing of equipment. The revenue from such a road would not pay interest on such an enormous sum, and private capital would not undertake the enterprise. Some people had urged the project upon the city as a municipal undertaking. Perhaps in an ideal community such a suggestion might be valuable, but not in a cityruled by Tammany Hall or any other political party.
So the question was at a deadlock, and the evils of the situation had become well-nigh intolerable, when the mayor of New York received one day in June a letter from the now well-known firm of Strong & Co., containing an amazing proposition. They were prepared to organize a corporation, and guarantee the construction of such a viaduct road as had been proposed, provided the city would consent to certain conditions. The road would be built with the proceeds of an issue of $100,000,000 in bonds, which Strong & Co. offered to subscribe in full. These bonds should bear interest—and here was the amazing feature of the proposition—at the rate of one per cent per annum. No one could doubt that the proposed road would easily earn the necessary $1,000,000 per year for payment of interest on bonds which the proposition called for, and it would surely yield a substantial sum for dividends on stock in addition.
The principal conditions imposed by Messrs. Strong & Co. in making their extraordinary offer was that the motive power used on the road should be electricity, or some other element than steam, and that a uniform rate of fare of five cents within the city limits should never be exceeded. It was further insisted that the charter should provide that the city should not take over the road by purchase or otherwisewithout the consent of two thirds of the bond-holders, and that capital stock should be issued only upon payment of its face value in cash into the company’s treasury, the total amount of such stock never to exceed $20,000,000, except by consent of the bond-holders. Messrs. Strong & Co. further suggested that dividends upon stock should be limited to ten per cent. When earnings exceeded the sum necessary for the payment of a ten per cent dividend, fares should be reduced below the current rate. If the mayor and his advisers approved of the plan as outlined they were invited to join in the name of the city with Messrs. Strong & Co. and others in petitioning the General Assembly at Albany for the necessary legislation.
The mayor read slowly the letter in which the plan was set forth in much greater detail than above outlined. When he had finished he looked out of the window upon the trees in the City Hall Park and whistled softly. He allowed his mind to dwell for a few moments upon the significance of what was contained in the plain epistle he held in his hand. Its meaning for the metropolis of the western world, over which he presided, was beyond his mental grasp at first. The one great peril which threatened to dwarf its prosperity and stunt its growth had been removed at a single stroke. It was too good to be true, andthe mayor read the long letter from beginning to end a second time. The proposition was clear and specific, and the potent signature left no doubt of its genuineness. The mayor would have lost no time in sharing the good news with his friends and with the city itself; but a postscript contained a request that the matter should be regarded as confidential until there had been a personal exchange of views upon the subject. Messrs. Strong & Co. expressed a desire for a private consultation at any time the mayor might appoint. So the private secretary of His Honor was dispatched at once to New Street, to say that the mayor was quite ready to place his entire day, if desired, at the disposal of the firm.
Mr. John Wharton returned with the secretary to the City Hall, and for more than three hours he was closeted alone with the chief magistrate. When his visitor had gone the mayor dictated to his stenographer a statement for the press. He outlined the proposition of Strong & Co., who, he said, were acting on behalf of a syndicate which preferred to conceal its identity. Of its ability to carry out its proposal, the mayor declared he had received abundant assurance. The offer was not in his estimation, the mayor explained, in any ordinary sense a business proposition. It took rank instead as the greatest private or public benefaction of modern times. Itwas a boon which would change the whole future history of the metropolis and of the Empire State. It was an inestimable gift, and he called upon the city to join him in unmeasured gratitude to the unknown donors. Regarding the practical execution of the scheme, the mayor said:
“I have not hesitated to assure Messrs. Strong & Co., informally, that they may count upon the city’s grateful and unanimous acceptance of this munificent proposal, with all the public-spirited conditions which are attached. Although approval by the state legislature is necessary, I feel that an appeal to the governor to summon a special session for the purpose is not called for. Any material opposition to a plan so magnificent and patriotic is not conceivable. There appears, therefore, to be no good reason why the great preliminary work which such an enterprise involves should not proceed at once. Actual construction can then begin immediately after the necessary legislation has been provided next winter.”
There was a sensation in the morning newspaper offices when the mayor’s proclamation was received, and an army of reporters searched the city for more information about the latest wonder of wealth and philanthropy. The next morning all New York wondered, and so did the world at large. And the only people who did not join in the generalrejoicing were the owners of the Manhattan Elevated Railroad. They saw in the announcement, beneath the black-typed headlines in all the newspapers, the doom of their great monopoly, the sudden birth of a power greater than theirs. How could they cope with it, how could they compel the city’s inhabitants to tolerate any longer their makeshift devices for postponing rather than solving a vital problem? They were helpless before this new monetary force, just as the people had been helpless before the selfish tyranny of the railroad company’s short-sightedness. Political power the Manhattan Company’s managers had, both in the municipal councils and at Albany, but of what use to exert it in face of such a proposition as this? No politician of any party would dare to put a straw in the way of its execution.
It is sometimes safe to defy an indifferent majority, but he is a fool who throws himself before the Juggernaut of roused and unanimous public opinion. The owners of the Manhattan Elevated Road were not fools in all things; so the first effect of the mayor’s news was a sharp decline in the price of their shares. The danger was, however, a distant one for them. By no possibility could so vast an undertaking be completed under five years, and within that time conditions would probably so change that there wouldbe traffic enough to yield a reasonable profit to both systems. New bridges both to Long Island and New Jersey, to say nothing of tunnels, were also under way. These would furnish partial relief to the congestion, while they would bring fresh traffic to the short distance service, which would become an important part of the elevated railroad system. Competition in what may be termed the trunk-line business need not, therefore, be disastrous to existing rapid transit lines. It would rather come as a relief, just as the street-car lines found the opening of the elevated roads to be twenty years before.
But the public paid little attention to the first discomforture of the elevated railroad magnates. Rather they rejoiced in it, especially as the erstwhile masters of the situation soon began to manifest a more conciliatory attitude toward their suffering patrons. A new principle seemed to have been discovered in the offices of the octopus corporation. Grievances that were easy of correction were remedied. Public opinion was worth catering to when you needed it. Arrogant defiance on one side, and exasperated endurance and hearty hatred on the other, was a condition of things which must not be allowed to continue, when the sufferers and haters would soon be in a position to take full revenge. So a very strange but becoming humility softened the attitude of NewYork’s purveyors of so-called rapid transit. They endeavored to convince the people that really they were doing the best they could. And so unresentful is the average New Yorker, that after a few smiles at the hypocrisy of it all, he accepted the new facilities now supplied, and was appeased.
Public curiosity found little to feed on in its search after the secret of the new monster rapid transit fund. The newspapers interviewed every reputed millionaire in the city. All expressed entire ignorance of the scheme and its authors. It was plain, several newspapers declared, that no man or set of men could accumulate such a treasure without the world’s having some knowledge of their wealth. Some of those who denied having any information on the subject must, therefore, be lying. And forthwith a large portion of the press fell to speculating as to who the mysterious Crœsus might be. For several days, everybody in the office of Strong & Co. was besieged with inquiries, not only from newspaper men, but from all manner of people. The annoyance became so wearisome that the firm drew up a statement which they sent to the newspapers, setting forth with some emphasis the fact that they were not at liberty to furnish any information about either the rapid transit scheme itself or its promoters. The plans were still crude. As fast as they were perfected they would be submitted to the authorities forapproval, and would be given to the public. Meantime, they reserved the right to refuse to answer any inquiry bearing upon the subject.
After a few days, public interest became less keen. The quest seemed hopeless. Two or three multi-millionaires, whose names had been used with persistent freedom by certain journals, in spite of their denials, sent such emphatic contradictions of the stories which credited them with generosity, that the mystery was, by nearly all, abandoned as unfathomable.
When the matter had ceased to occupy the first place in public attention, nearly a month after the mayor’s original announcement, the following article appeared one morning, in double-headed type, on the first page of theSun:
“The series of financial mysteries which has astonished the world during the past few months can reasonably be ascribed, in the absence of definite knowledge, to no more than a single source. Since early in December the mints and the bullion market have been glutted with gold. A flood of the precious metal has been poured into the Assay Office in this city at the rate of $50,000,000 a month. Prices in the stock market, in the face of most unfavorable conditions, have been forced to an abnormally high level by the rising tide of yellow treasure. The supply of actual money in the country has been increased during the last six months by almost, if not quite, $300,000,000.
“Various educational and other worthy institutions have been enriched within a few weeks by anonymous gifts amounting, at a safe estimate, to the vast sum of $22,000,000. There is good authority for saying that in one or two instances the checks received by the beneficiaries have come from the same banking house in this city which is credited with handling the bulk of the vast deposits of gold at the Assay Office. It is a reasonable inference that all these great benefactions have come from the same treasury. There are not more than half a dozen private fortunes in America large enough to afford charitable disbursements upon such a scale. The owners of these fortunes have denied all knowledge of the great donations. There is no good reason for doubting their word upon this point.
“Messrs. Strong & Co. are the only persons who are known in connection with this mysterious wealth. They refuse all information about the origin and extent of the fabulous riches which they are distributing broadcast, or about the identity of their principals. They are, of course, thoroughly within their legal rights in declining to take the public into their confidence. But the matter has become one of tremendous public concern. The stability of trade, the money value of every description of vested interests, in fact, the industrial, commercial, and financial welfare of the country, all are directly involved in the rapid manipulation of such vast sums. While admitting that this modern Midas has used his power most beneficently thus far, it should be pointed out that the possibilities of evil are enormous. In simple self-protection, therefore, the public is justified in seeking by all honorable means to learn what portends from the same source.
“Taking into consideration all the circumstances, the conclusion is forced upon any reasonable mind that it is virgin treasure which is dazzling the world. In other words, it is an outpouring of gold from nature’s storehouse, and not from any of man’s reservoirs, that we are witnessing. Thus far we are in utter ignorance of the location of the new El Dorado. That it is a region of almost inconceivable richness has been amply demonstrated. Nothing in the history of the Californian or Australian gold-fields will compare with it. The secret has been so well kept that it is impossible that it can be in the possession of many persons. It is a fair inference, therefore, that the deposit is within an extremely small area, and that the precious metal abounds there in an almost pure state. But in what quantities? Is the supply inexhaustible? The earth’s yield of gold is usually estimated in ounces. We now have it supplied by the ton.
“The question of an oversupply of gold may become a serious, even an appalling one. The problem threatens soon to become vital. The mystery cannot remain a mystery much longer. Civilization may in self-defense soon demand its solution. In the meantime, a single hint may be offered. Early in November last, the steamshipRichmondreturned from a mysterious trip, several weeks in length, under private charter. She brought back a cargo, said to consist of ores and other minerals from South America. Was there any connection between her cargo and the sudden distribution of gold which began in this market a month after her arrival?”
Late in the afternoon of the day this article appeared in theSun, the head of one of the most prominent law firms in New York entered the office of that paper, and was soon closeted with the publisher. The two men were friends, and they chatted for a few moments on indifferent topics. Then said the lawyer seriously:
“Now to business, for I have come on an extraordinary errand. I remember a few years ago that some of your quarrelsome contemporaries accused theSun, among other things, of being for sale. You replied to the insinuation in a short editorial which said, Yes, theSunwas for sale, and the price was $5,000,000. What I want to know is, whether that offer still holds good.”
“No, the price has gone up,” was the smiling reply.
“What is it now?”
“Ten millions.”
“Are you prepared to turn the property over at that figure?”
“Oh, yes—for spot cash,” still smiling.
“Will certified checks do?” and the lawyer took several checks from a wallet, and laid them on the desk in front of the other.
“See here, B——, what does this mean?” exclaimed the publisher, glancing from the drafts to his friend, while all signs of levity disappeared.
“Precisely what I have been saying. I am ready to close the bargain at the figures you have mentioned.”
“Who are you acting for?”
“That is the one thing I cannot tell you. Does it make any difference? If so, I can assure you that there is no political or other game back of the transaction. There is no intention to make any change whatever in the conduct of the paper, if our offer is accepted. But it must be accepted at once or it will be withdrawn. What do you say?”
“Of course, I must consult Mr. Dana and the other owners. I believe, however, it will be accepted.”
“Can you give me a final answer to-morrow?”
“I think so. Will you come in in the morning and talk the matter over with the directors? We can meet here at noon.”
“Yes, I will be here,” said the lawyer, picking up his checks and rising to go. “By the way, would it be fair under the circumstances for me to ask a single favor?”
“Certainly—anything in my power.”
“It is only that you will delay any investigation of the gold mystery until this matter is settled.”
“Oh, now I see which way the wind blows. We’ll talk of that to-morrow.”
Londonhas been treated to so many surprises in United States finance, that the events of the first six months of 1895 were at first received as merely fresh proof of the rule that it is the unexpected which always happens in American monetary affairs. The New York stock market is placed by most Londoners in the “city” in the same category with French politics. The safest prophecy in either field can be made by studying the situation with the greatest care, and then by forecasting in exactly the opposite direction to the dictates of one’s judgment. A booming stock market and cheap money in the face of industrial depression and commercial disaster were regarded with wonder and amazement by the Solons of Capel Court and Throgmorton Street. They could not account for the paradox, and they finally gave up trying.
London had been among the first to unload its American stocks during what was believed to be a temporary rise in the early winter. Now in midsummer following she was disgusted and even indignant whenshe read quotations many points higher than the low prices at which she had closed her losing speculations. None of the rules of finance would fit the situation. All the laws of trade seemed defied. But London now was merely a spectator. She possessed none of the abnormally high-priced securities. She was quite sincere in saying she didn’t want any at prevailing quotations. She was more inclined to be tempted by new enterprises, industrials, railroads, and the like, which looked cheap. But all “Americans” were still under the ban. London had suffered too much in the past five years to forget, and London memories are longer than those of her transatlantic cousins.
Gold had been flowing eastward in a steady stream for six months, and Europe could not understand how America could endure the drain. Nearly $50,000,000 in bullion, it was calculated, had been received by the Bank of England and the Bank of France from New York, and practically none had gone in the opposite direction. Two years before, when the same thing happened on a somewhat smaller scale, America had suffered a veritable panic. Silver and its advocates had been held solely responsible for this panic, but it had not alone been America’s attempt to resist the world’s decree of monetary dethronement against the white metal which had driven away gold and brought domestic disaster.But the usual penalties of national loss of gold were entirely absent now, and European financiers were more than puzzled by it.
The hoarding of gold in European war-chests was still going on. The Old Lady of Threadneedle Street found herself unable to retain in her coffers any large proportion of the extraordinary European supply. Paris and Berlin and St. Petersburg added to their enormous stores at every opportunity. The sinews of war were being accumulated with the utmost greediness, for everybody felt that the day was not far distant when a mighty tragedy of nations was again to darken the pages of history. So keenly did all the governments of Europe watch every feature of the situation, that it was not surprising that Russia should be credited with the intention to take advantage of the plethora of money in America by attempting to float a loan in that country. Nor was Russia the only government that was considering schemes for tempting away Yankee gold. Even bankrupt Italy hoped to offer inducements which might yield her the use of some portion of this New World wealth.
In August, 1895, therefore, the financial war which often precedes the drawing of the sword had reached an advanced and acute stage. The situation was peculiarly menacing to Great Britain. Lord Beaconsfield once said to a friend who asked him, during a serious foreign crisis, what were England’s chances of success in the event of war:
“The key to that situation is in Threadneedle Street.”
The wisdom of the saying was never more appreciated than now. Disaster had followed disaster in financial, in commercial, and in industrial circles for five years. Losses which would have brought any but the richest nation in the world to the verge of ruin had been sustained one after another, until it seemed that not even English pluck could stand up against more such blows. Not only had foreign and colonial ventures swallowed up millions, but home institutions, paying the penalty of recklessness or dishonesty, had fallen and involved many thousand private fortunes in the wreck. American tariffs and foreign competition had seriously cut down British trade. Labor wars, the most disastrous in history, had impoverished the working classes. And still Great Britain was solvent, undiscouraged, proudly maintaining her position in the van of the nations of the earth.
England’s only danger lay in too great self-confidence. She did not deceive herself as to the nature of the peril which menaced her. For nearly two years it had been plainly apparent. Ever since thedual alliance between France and Russia had been ratified, it had been clear to close observers that Great Britain had as much if not more to fear from this new league than had the central continental powers. French hatred of her insular neighbors had been fanned from the first by an Anglophobe press. Diplomatic maneuvers and the movements of Franco-Russian fleets had been almost openly hostile to English interests. The wonder was that real hostilities had been so long delayed.
The secret of the delay was in the financial condition of the nations. Both France and Russia had for years been acting strictly upon the line of policy suggested in Lord Beaconsfield’s remark. To put it in more direct language,Gold is the arbiter of war. It was belief in this principle which had impelled France to wage a relentless tariff and trade war against Italy for five years. It was this which had led Russia to cram her treasuries with gold far above her peaceful needs. For the last two years both nations, the one by a customs campaign and the other by financial operations, had been striving to weaken the monetary resources of Germany and Austria. Opinion was divided as to the immediate object of this policy. If England was to be the first victim of the dual hatred of the allies, then if possible the Triple Alliance must be so weakened that it would not voluntarily interfere in the quarrel with Great Britain. At all events, Italy had been impoverished and Germany and Austria had suffered considerably from the hostile policy of their opposite neighbors.
In attacking the financial position of England, the French and Russian bankers had not accomplished much. Financial England is never at the mercy of foreign bankers. Bad management, colonial losses, South American ventures, great domestic frauds, may spread distress throughout the country, but Great Britain never had cause to fear the plots of the political financiers of Paris, Berlin, Vienna, and St. Petersburg. The manipulations and scheming of the past few months had had no other effect in London than to accentuate somewhat the uneasiness over the prevailing hard times. The Bank of England had been reorganized in respect to some of its methods, by reason of public criticisms a few months before, and it was now stronger than ever. There was reason for believing that it had not been idle in the great scramble for gold in which all Europe was engaged. Its resources were, of course, unknown, for such information was guarded as a deep financial and state secret.
The government was coöperating energetically in the efforts to strengthen still more the monetary position of the country. At the same time naval construction was being pushed forward on a scale that betokened the very presence of war. And yet in the midst of the oppressive conviction of impending conflict, there was no word in the courts and parliaments of Europe save of peace. Guns were bought, ships were built, armies were equipped, practice maneuvers were executed, nations were impoverished, all for the preservation of peace. But the limit had been passed at last. War was cheaper than peace. So war it was to be, in everybody’s opinion. The absence of specific cause made no difference. It could be developed in a hundred ways at a few hours’ notice. There was at least the hope of a general disarmament and the real peace of recuperation after the cataclysm was over. Many people who believed in the inevitability of the long-threatened struggle were inclined to look upon the situation in the cold light of this philosophy.
About the middle of August, France began an energetic series of diplomatic protests against the continued occupation of Egypt by Great Britain. It was instantly surmised that this was the signal of the approaching crisis. Russia joined in the dissent, and the tone of the objections sent to the Court of St. James was distinctly aggressive. Europe made up its mind that there was to be an autumn campaign. It was the design of the aggressors apparently to makethe contest short and sharp. The approach of winter, which would greatly interfere with military operations on the Continent, might be an added influence to induce Germany and Austria to keep hands off until France and Russia had an opportunity to overthrow the naval supremacy of Great Britain. The issue of a conflict between England on the one hand and France and Russia on the other, would, of course, be decided principally upon the sea. The situation became extremely critical. Great Britain, avoiding the responsibility for provoking hostilities, took advantage at first of diplomatic red tape. Delay was sought, and the diplomatic agents of the protesting governments developed impatience. They showed signs of becoming peremptory in their demands, and there was vague talk of an ultimatum from France to England.
War was in the very air when an event happened. It was a very ordinary event, and apparently as far removed as possible from any influence upon the question of peace or war in Europe. It was merely the arrival late in the afternoon of Monday, the 2d of September, of a fine ship flying the American flag in the harbor of Southampton. She was apparently a steamship of about 3,000 tons. She was of yacht design, and her beautiful lines were the admiration at once of all nautical eyes. The only peculiaritiesabout her at first glance were that her single smoke-stack, rising slender and tall amidships, was quite out of proportion to the size of the ship, and that the vessel floated so high out of the water that her ballast must have been of the lightest. Only half a dozen persons besides her crew were visible when the ship came to anchor just below the new American Line dock. Two or three small boats, attracted by curiosity, put off to view the newcomer as soon as she stopped.Mysterywas the name they read upon her stern.
The boats made a slow circuit of the beautiful ship, and the boatmen were exchanging comments upon her graceful lines when an unusual sound of rushing water came from on board. The noise came from forward, aft, and amidships all at once. The sound was a strange one, but the men in the boats paid little attention to it at first. They were admiring the nautical beauty of the big ship’s overhanging stern, and expressing surprise at the size of her twin propellers just below the surface. One of the self-appointed critics had observed that she must have an extraordinary draught when loaded, for the gauge showed more than twenty feet with apparently only light ballast on board. Suddenly the man started up in great excitement, stared at the rudder post, rubbed his eyes and looked again.
“I say, boys, she’s sinking!” he exclaimed. “It was twenty feet a minute ago and now it’s twenty-one, and going deeper.”
The men in the other boat looked, too. Yes, the smooth water in which the ship lay was certainly climbing quite rapidly inch by inch up her steel sides. The men in both boats seized their oars and pulled rapidly alongside the vessel. No one was visible at the rail above. There was no commotion on board, but the men in the boats now recognized the strange sounds within the ship as the noise of water rushing into the hold. They rowed up opposite the bridge and shouted lustily. Their hail was not answered at first, but presently a naval cap, heavy with gold lace, appeared over the canvas shield at the end of the bridge, and the wearer inquired lazily:
“Well, what’s the matter below there?”
“Your ship is foundering; you’ll sink in a few minutes if you don’t stop the leak,” was the reply, shouted back with great excitement.
“Oh, I guess not,” was the still indifferent response.
“I tell you it’s so. You’ve settled two feet in five minutes. You can’t save her now. You’d better get your boats out or you’ll get wet. There’s no time to lose,” and the boatmen began to push off apprehensively.
“How much water is there here?” asked the officer on the bridge, in the same tone he would have inquired what was the population of Southampton.
“About six and a half fathoms.”
“Oh, well, that will keep my feet dry. Guess we’ll let her sink,” and the gold lace cap disappeared.
The men in the boats were dumfounded. They pushed off at a safe distance, and then sat at their oars waiting for the catastrophe. The noise of in-rushing water continued, though not so distinctly, for some minutes longer, and the steamship settled steadily to a lower level. She was fully four feet deeper in the water than when the boatmen rowed out to her. They were now able to look over her low rail, and they saw half a dozen of the crew putting things to rights about the decks as unconcernedly as though the ship was safely at her dock. The rush of water was no longer heard. One of the boatmen hailed a friend in the other dory:
“I say, Ben, I believe she’s stopped filling. What kind of a craft is she? Some of her compartments must be full, and the others are keeping her afloat.”
“She beats me. Mind her smoke-stack, Jim. It’s no bigger nor a ferryboat’s, and not a whiff of smoke or steam has she shown since she came in.”
Just then the ship lowered one of her small boats, and a couple of sailors rowed ashore a man in citizen’s clothes, who carried a package of papers. He was Captain Penniman of the private yachtMystery, on a roving commission from New York, he told the official on duty at the custom-house as he handed in the ship’s papers.
“But there is something wrong with your papers, captain,” remarked the collector a moment later. “They have cleared you in New York last Thursday, only four days ago. Didn’t you notice the mistake?”
“Oh, it is quite right. We left New York at nine o’clock Thursday morning. Won’t you have a New YorkHeraldof that day?” and the captain nonchalantly offered a newspaper to the customs officer.
“Crossed from New York to Southampton in four days? Impossible! It’s more than steam can do,” and Her Majesty’s customs representative looked at the captain in incredulous and rather resentful amazement.
“Just what we have done, nevertheless. But you are right about steam. TheMysteryis not a steamship. We passed Sandy Hook Lightship at 10:31 last Thursday morning, and we reached the Needles at 4:38 this afternoon. Allowing for the difference in time, that makes our running time just four days, one hour, and seven minutes. The course we tookwas three thousand one hundred and ten miles, so our speed averaged about twenty-nine knots, or thirty-two miles an hour. We ran as high as thirty-five miles an hour for several hours in succession. If you doubt my statement and the evidence of the papers, I’ll be pleased to furnish you with additional proof if you will come on board with me,” and Captain Penniman watched the growing astonishment on the Englishman’s face with some amusement.
“I cannot doubt your word, captain, but what you tell me is almost incredible,” spoke the collector after a long pause. He picked up the New York newspaper and examined the date-lines and dates of various news dispatches, as though still incredulous. “You know, captain, the speed record between the two ports is now six days, four hours, and some minutes. It was considered a great exploit when the new boats of the American Line cut the record down about seven hours recently. When you tell me you have reduced it by more than two days, you won’t blame me for being incredulous. You say theMysteryis not a steamship. What in the name of modern wonders is she, then?”
“We shall have to invent a new name for her, I reckon,” was the captain’s reply. “We use no steam, and carry no coal for her engines. She has no boilers in fact. Her motive power is liquified carbonic acid gas. We carry it in steel cylinders, and its expansive power, which is equivalent to a pressure of about two thousand pounds to the inch, drives our engines. Yes, she’s the wonder of the world to-day,” concluded the captain, proudly.
“I never heard of such a thing. I thought you were going to say electricity. You Americans are doing everything by electricity now-a-days.”
“No, electricity may come to it some day, but it costs too much, and it cannot be stored as this can. You will never get much higher speed with steam, because of the enormous consumption of coal required. We can carry enough liquified carbonic acid to drive theMysterythree times around the world, and the cost is about twenty per cent that of coal. Come on board and look her over. We have kept her a profound secret on the other side, but now that we know what she can do, we are quite willing she shall have the fame she deserves. I guess the news of this trip will make a sensation in London, eh?” and the captain rubbed his hands softly and chuckled.