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Indiana University 
ness depression still hanging over the country the American 
Fur Company was struggling to exist. With the Ewings in 
a submissive state, it discontinued the Evansville agency and 
planned to withdraw from Indiana.^® 
The year 1842 marks the last battle for the furs of the 
Maumee-Wabash country. Crooks had heard of a scarcity of 
raccoons and he felt it “important to secure as many as pos- 
sible of the best, and Mr. Fury had better sweep the whole of 
the Ewing country where the good skins come from’’.^^^ The 
Ewings came back with a strong rise in prices and Crooks 
decided “to make them pay as dear as we can for the whistle 
for you must not imitate so ruinous an example”. 
Crooks was broken in health, however, and the hard fight 
with his competitors, combined with general hard times, had 
ruined his company. In the early fall it went into bankrupt- 
cy and the Ewings had the Indiana fur trade to themselves. 
There was no grief in the Ewing camp at the failure of its 
competitor. W. G. Ewing wrote : 
The Great American Fur Company it seems has exploded! dis- 
appeared, overwhelmed with most miserable Bankruptcy, they have met 
their just deserts they waged a Warfare against us that cost us a loss 
of at least $60,000. But had we united with them in 1840 (when we 
were trying to buy our peace) we would have sustained double that 
loss with a prostration of Business.”® 
The Ewings were not able at once to make much from the 
failure of the American Fur Company. They had suffered 
heavily in the fight, and the fall in the prices of furs brought 
them further losses. At the beginning of 1843 they were com- 
pelled to mortgage their property to Suydam, Sage, and Com- 
pany to secure their debts and to get money to continue their 
operations.^-® On this mortgage they were able to get $30,000 
to be invested in furs and skins, mostly “deer and raccoon”.^^! 
The prospects looked bright in 1843 for raccoon skins. 
The demand in London was growing and prices were advanc- 
ingy 22 Ewings hoped to get between 100,000 and 150,000 
Crooks to Brewster, August 30, 1841, in American Fur Company Letters, No. 17. 
Crooks to Brewster, April 14, 1842, in American Fur Company Letters, No. 17. 
Crooks to Brewster, May 10, 1842, in ibid. 
W. G. Ewing to J. E. Edmonds, March 23, 1843, in ibid. 
‘^20 January 16, 1843, in ibid. The mortgage was for $40,000, “more or less”. 
Suydam, Sage, and Company to W. G. and G. W. Ewing, February 11, 1843, in 
ibid. 
'“2 Suydam, Sage, and Company to W. G. and G. W. Ewing, March 25, 1843, in ibid. 
