HOMER E. RHEUBOTTOM WRECKED THE CORTLAND CORSET COMPANY

Cortland County Sentinel, Thursday, February 25, 1897.

HOMER. E. RHEUBOTTOM.

JOINS THE CHAIN GANG TO WORK ON THE CORPORATION.

Once Lived in Cortland, Where He Wrecked the Cortland Corset Co.—Sketch of His Career Here and Elsewhere.

   The Atlanta Constitution of Tuesday, Feb. 16, contains a two-column cut of Homer E. Rheubottom, formerly of Cortland, and the following article:

   "RHEUBOTTOM  IN THE CHAIN GANG."

   H. E. Rheubottom left the jail, in which he has been confined for over twelve months, yesterday morning to work his sentence in the chain gang with that of the other county convicts. He has six months to serve in the county chain gang and served the first day yesterday. It is the first time he has been out of jail for any length of time in some months. He was placed in a gang in charge of Capt. Donaldson and began work yesterday morning. He will be kept at hard labor for six months. The consigning of Rheubottom to the county chain gang ends his case which has so long been before the public. He awaited trial for a long time, and when he finally obtained a hearing, the case ended adversely for him.

   It will be remembered that on Jan. 25, 1897, The STANDARD published the following United Press dispatch sent out from Atlanta:

   ATLANTA, Ga., Jan. 25.—The jail holds and the taxpayers are supporting a curious prisoner. H. E. Rheubottom has been confined for fourteen months. During this time he has never been heard to grumble about his imprisonment. The other prisoners at the jail have given him the title of the "silent prisoner." Repeated efforts have been made to have the case tried and a decision rendered. It has been placed on the docket fruitlessly three or four times, yet it has never been tried.

   It is a case of out of the frying pan into the fire. If he is dismissed on the charge of cheating and swindling he will be immediately arrested by a deputy marshal of the United States for violating the postal laws. If he is sentenced to the state camps it will only be for a few years. When his term expires a representative of the United States will be on hand to again conduct him to prison, and a long term in the penitentiary awaits him. Rheubottom, then, is aware of the fact that if he lets his case come before the state court, it matters not what the decision may be, he seals his future fate.

   It seems that the recent prisoner of Fulton county jail prefers to spend the rest of his days there than to be the prisoner of Uncle Sam for a stated term of years. On each of the days set for trial a deputy United States marshal has been in the courtroom with a warrant in his pocket. Rheubottom, still languishing in jail, is a heavy expense on the county. For fourteen months he has been eating from the jail larder, and he continues to eat. Rheubottom was formerly a wholesale merchant in New York.

   Rheubottom is well remembered in Cortland, and there are a number of people here who wish they did not remember him so well. He came to Cortland in February, 1891, from Weedsport, N. Y. He represented himself as an expert and experienced manufacturer of corsets, and desired to get up a company here for their manufacture. He roused the interest of Samuel E. Welch, who was then a prosperous dry goods merchant, and of Byron H. Bierce. A company was formed under the title of the Cortland Corset Manufacturing Co., and was capitalized at $19,000. Messrs. Welch and Bierce took all the stock except $2,000 which was purchased by Mrs. Rheubottom, who appeared to have the money in the family.

   It was not known then, but it appeared later that Rheubottom did not dare to hold any property in his own name, as he was then under indictment for swindling at Weedsport. His father had been a manufacturer of corsets at Weedsport and the son had learned the business there, but he had swamped the concern by swindling the stockholders.

   Rheubottom was about the smoothest and most plausible fellow who ever came to Cortland. He identified himself prominently with the Congregational church. He attended all services and took part in religious and social work. He became a member of a number of social organizations in town and made himself highly popular.

   The company obtained possession of the plant of the old corset company on Homer-ave. [Miller Street—CC editor] and began operations March 1, 1891. Rheubottom was superintendent and manager and had charge of the books. From Mr. Welch we learn that about forty hands were employed at first and for a considerable time as many as 160. The first year the company sold over $19,000 of finished work and seemed in a highly prosperous condition. It was in operation for a year and a half. Before the end of that time it appeared that Rheubottom had disposed of all the money realized and had borrowed largely from many sources in the company's name. The creditors pressed hard and the concern was terribly embarrassed. Rheubottom attempted to explain his books and made a plausible statement. The other stockholders trusted him.

   About this time he went to New York and formed a new company which was incorporated under the laws of the state of New Jersey which was to buy all the goods of the Cortland company and sell them. For a few months the Cortland company sent goods to New York, hoping to get out of its difficulties in that way rather than to close up at once. But matters kept getting worse and the end came.

  The New Jersey company proved no good and Rheubottom only took this means to get more goods into his possession to sell. Rheubottom carried off nearly all the books of the Cortland company and they could never be found. Legal steps were taken to get possession of the books, but to no purpose. The liabilities of the company exceeded $70,000 and the assets were trifling.

   The result was that in paying the debts of the company Messrs. Welch and Bierce lost almost all they had of the savings of a lifetime of honorable business. The most important thing of all—their own good name—they did not lose. The matter  was well understood by the people at large, and the two gentlemen who had always been known here were held in the same high respect and esteem as before. They did all in their power to pay the debts of the company and secure their creditors. They were and are honored by all and they also have the sympathy of all.  

   Rheubottom never came back to Cortland. Some people have kept track of him from time to time and at last he turned up in Atlanta jail, where for a time he kept his identity concealed. All will learn with interest of his conviction in Georgia. Apparently he hasn’t the smoothest path in the world before him, for it would appear from the Atlanta dispatch that after the county gets through with him the state will take him in hand.