A  few  years  ago  he,  in  company  with  several  others,  or-
ganized a  scheme  for  working  certain  gold  mines  said  to  be
located  in  a  distant  territory.  A  company  was  made  up,  the
country  was  flooded  with  flaming  descriptions  of  the  valuable
mine,  and  stock  was  issued  which  sold  readily.  The  bonds
were  soon  taken  up,  and  in  a  month  or  two  the  so-called  com-
pany commenced  paying  handsome  dividends.  A  number  of
gold  bars,  bearing  the  stamp  of  the  mint,  were  on  exhibition
in  the  company's  office,  and  were  triumphantly  exhibited  as
amongst  the  first  yields  of  the  valuable  mine.  For  several
months  the  dividends  were  paid  regularly,  and  the  company's
stock  rose  to  a  splendid  premium.  It  could  hardly  be  bought
at  any  price.    No  one  doubted  for  an  instant  the  genuineness


THE   SECRETS   OF   THE   GREAT   CITY.  159

of  the  affair,  and  the  lucky  company  was  the  envy  of  all
Wall  street.
In  a  few  months,  all  the  stock  being  disposed  of,  the  com-
pany ceased  paying  dividends.  This  excited  the  suspicion  of
some  of  the  shrewdest  holders  of  the  stock,  and  the  affair  was
investigated.  It  was  found  that  the  wonderful  mine  had  no
real  existence.  The  gold  bars  were  simply  gold  coins  melted
into  that  form  at  the  Mint,  and  stamped  by  the  Government
as  so  much  bullion.  The  dividends  had  been  paid  out  of
money  advanced  by  the  company,  who  were  simply  half  a
dozen  unprincipled  sharpers.  The  stockholders  were  ruined,
but  the  company  made  a  profit  of  a  clear  half  million  of  dol-
lars out  of  the  infamous  transaction.  Legal  proceedings  are
expensive  and  tedious  when  instituted  against  such  parties,
and  the  stockholders,  rather  than  increase  their  losses  by  the
outlay  necessary  for  a  lawsuit,  suffered  the  swindlers  to  go
unmolested.
