COTTON "NAPOLEON."

New Zealand Herald, Volume LIX, Issue 18172, 18 August 1922, Page 7

COTTON "NAPOLEON."

MILLIONAIRE SN A YEAR.

BANKRUPTCY PROCEEDINaS MILL BOY AT THIRTEEN; A receiving order in bankruptcy was made at Oldham against Sir William Hopwbod, the "Napoleon of"cotton finance." It was issued on a, creditor's petition, and caused a sensation in Manchester and the county financial circles.' A year ago Sir William was a director of 31 cotton companies, and chairman ot most ;of, tliem. But within the past 12 months he has resigned from a great many of theso directorates. Few men- have had a career . oi 'more surprising progress than the originator of the cotton mill buying boom of 1919, and few have given more to charities in so short a time.

„i raat Shaw, near Oldham, in 1862, W ilham Hopwood started work at the* - age of 13 as a " little piecer "in a cot- ' ton miU belonging to the Shaw Spinning Company. He became in turn "big piecer " and "minder" and " overlooker, " and 16 years ago he became manager of the newly-erected Trent Milk at Shaw. Later, he was given a seat on tho board of. directors of. tho company, and afterwards became chairman. £60,000 for Oharities. For years'past he has beoa a ; notable figure in Shaw, bufc it was during the great cotton boom that followed the war that his name became known almost throughout the world because of his many company flotations and the large sums he gave to oharities," He bought land for a park and bowling, green and other recreation grounds, built institutes for' various religions denominations, "presented organs,, and augmented local church livings; in. the district. He also bought an orphan home for the Order of Buffaloes. It was estimated in 1920 that he had given at least £50,000 in this way, and at thai.time he was reputed to be a millionaire, ' One after another, in 1919, cotton spinning mills fell into his hands, and their shares jumped up in market vajue. to such an extent that many fortunes, were: made.

For a time everything that "Billy" Hopwood touched seemed to' turn to sudden prosperity. In 1919 he bought up 30 milk; by the end of 1920 his deals totalled over *3Q,00Q,000. < ; -,;r,' T ; ..'.„■ ■■'■■** Wtoard"- Promoter., c .V ; In the earlier days of the booni, soon after the armistice, he was living in a six-roomed house where he worked on his big scheme in his shirt sleeves. He was regarded as a "wizard" in his mil! dealings, and it was said of him that "Billy buys cotton mills like another man buys bottles of beer." ' . ; There was no formality in his method of doing big business. He issued no elaborate prospectus. He paid no percentage to underwriters or brokers, arid saved thousands -of pounds by avoiding the printing and postage of millions of prospectuses.' ''•' These notices were hot sent "oat broadcast, but were posted only to a few shareholders, who, he knew, would respond. The public faith in his honesty and in his -judgment was the keynote of his remarkable career. On one.'■ dotation £150,000 was subscribed in 24 ibouTs,:; ,

Keen Sportsman. ; " Sir William is a .typical Lancashire man, land is ej&remely interested Sin | sport, especially cricket, swimming. and ! pigeon racing. .He gave numerous cups : for various branches of sport, and two years ago inaugurated the Hopwcod Marathon race. In spite of his rise" to great wealth, Sir William seems always to have remained the shrewd, hardheaded Lancashire worker in ibis tastes. Only last autumn he challenged Mr. Robert Barker, M.P.. to a homing pigeon race for £1000 a-sido,, between the birds of the Sowerby Bridge homing societies and those-of ; Boy ton. • ! ; ; When he made a tour of Europe, over a year ago,;.he brought from, Rome a crucifix given to him by the ]?ope, to ;be set up in St. Joseph's Rowan Catholic Church at Shaw, a building newly erected at his expense. ' A good story is told of his- visit. to Monte Carlo. He was informed that: he would be required to wear evening dress, whereupon he replied, "If they savit orat to me as to what I mofi do I'll-buy th* place and refloat it." :•"-- . v -- He was created a knight 'in''l92l; (6i his public services. : '{;, : \'l . ". : r ''.'.,