Page:Oregon Historical Quarterly vol. 3.djvu/268

258 He withdrew from the company in 18 with about $5,000 instead of $25,000 if he had done as advised.

It was my intention, with the proceeds of the last sale of wool, to liquidate the indebtedness of the company, have regular monthly pay days for the employees, and, when it was necessary, to pay cash for wool; and by all means to retain this as the market for all the wool of this valley, as it then was and could have been for some time to come with proper management, but the "quartette' owning property in the vicinity of South Mill Creek, and aiming to make it more valuable, an extensive "flour mill" was erected with the proceeds of that wool, and, that not being sufficient, and finding that there was quite a large amount of factory goods distributed through the valley (intended to be exchanged for wool) an immediate demand for payment in money was made (a violation of my understanding and agreement), which would have been a great disappointment to the best patrons of the company. In consequence of which many of those who had engaged wool intending it for the factory sold to San Francisco buyers, who, finding the factory company was working under a different management and a different plan, sent men through the valley to purchase the wool, the result of which was that it checked the demand for factory goods and invited competition in the securing the wool to such an extent that the company found it difficult to secure sufficient for the factory.

In 18— Robert Kinney became one of the Willamette Woolen Manufacturing Company by purchasing one of the Smiths' eighteen shares of the stock. At about this time, or before, the Smiths, seeing where their superior mismanagement was taking them, in some way extricated themselves altogether from the company. I am not able to learn how or in what way, other than the unloading