HE BECAME A MILLIONAIRE.

Ashburton Guardian, Volume VII, Issue 2047, 26 January 1889, Page 3

HE BECAME A MILLIONAIRE.

Intelligence has reaohed Lsnmlngton, throagh thu mediua of namerous clal mtnta to the estat •. 'hat a man named Blyth has died inua ate la Oalifocnia, leaving an immeD^ p- operly, consisting of some 20,000,000 J0i. , and land to the extent of ha f a or unty. Some 200 persona living m America, Eugland, Bootland, and Ireland have come forward, alleging that they are h6lra to the property, and an Investigation Is being made into their claims. These persons state the deoeased millionaire some fifty years ago resided m Leamington, and was obarged before the magistrates there aboat 1842 with stealing tome wheat, and committed for trial at the Qaarter Sessions, by whloh Court he was transported to Tasmania for seven years, He served his time and then managed to return to this country, only, however, to remain for a short time, as In 1849 he started la a sailing vessel round O*pe Horn for California, when glowing acocuats bad como of the dlroovery of gold. On his arrival there he was entirely withont money, and some of the passen- , gets, out of charity, gave him their lamps, which, according to the custom among p Hangers m sailing ships, they ' used m iheir cabins. These be sold m ' the streets, and with the proceeds par- < chased articles which he hawked In tarn. I He then got a pack, and became a regular i hawker. His business progressed so . rapidly that he was soon the possessor of , 5000iol, whloh he lent oat on mortgage on a coo pie of aores of land outside the tben ' village of San Francisco. Shortly after ] the mortgagor failed, and Blyth was left with the two aores of useless land on his bauds. He sought m every way to relieve ; himself of the incubus, but no one would puroh&so the land from him. He was bo - disgusted and disheartened by this mis* : fortune, that he left the place, and taking : his pack started for the gold diggings ] While he wjb there someone wrote to h!m f asking what he would take for the land, \ but he being an illiterate man did not ; reply. Then he received two other* m- \ qulries respecting the land, and he deolded to return to San Francisco to see what It meact. To his amazement he found a ] regular "boom" had set m, and the < land which bad fallen into his hands was 1 worth a lot . of moE«y. He determined not t? oell, although he hid Innumerable (fierr, and leased it off for building par- < posei. On the ilte now stands a grand ; block of balldiogs He started m business, and everything he touched turned to gold, until he become one of the richest men amoog the many wealthy ones m that ts'ty. He died about a year sgo, leaving no will, and Lib estate has been taken uhirge of by the Receiver of the San Franofecp Court. Several alleged he ! rs live m Leamington, and are m very puor circumstances loedeed, two oj? three following the occupation of cattle droverr, but if they can prove that the millionaire Blyth who died was Identical with the ae'er-do-wellßlyih who was transported for felony they will all be exceedingly rich.