Lot 154
Davis, Jefferson, Autograph Letter Signed, on ruled paper, 4 pages, 8 x 5 in., Mar. 19, 1876. To General William Montague Browne, who had been on the personal staff of Davis during the war, regarding a failed business venture.
Davis became president of the Carolina Insurance Company in 1870. In this letter, Davis denies responsibility for a company's demise: "…I lost enough of money by that loosely conducted injudicious transaction to be quite unwilling to bear the responsibility of the failure of that company which I believe only lasted thus long by the means it derived from the Carolina. Had my proposition to examine into its affairs been adopted its unsoundness would have been revealed soon after examination commenced…Our babes in the woods went into a den of wolves. Not knowing even the meaning of the terms employed they bargained with two of the sharpest and least accomplished men in the town and relied on their oral appearances and on their 'honor'…"
He goes on to relate payouts from the liquidation of the company by Carolina Insurance in Virginia and South Carolina. Two small pinholes in top blank margin, else fine.
Estimated Value $1,200 - 1,500,
Accompanied by a 1979 invoice from Joe Rubinfine,
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| Realized $1,200 |
