A Great Failure

San Fbancuco, May 8.- The assignmnt of the oíd established commissicn house of William T. Coleman & Co. yosterday caused I a big scnsation amonp meiv.hants. A I cular issucd by the firm declama that pressiug demands íor moncy forc-ed them to suspend In order to save the creditors, and that the liabilities oí 3,000,000 are covered by assets oí 54,000,000. One of the causes of the failurc is given as an investment oí f2,000,000 in borax works which they had negotiated to sell, but the sale of whieh was spoilcd by the proposal to put borax on Uie iree list.