A CALIFORNIA REMINISCENCE. A Good Story of Mine Salting.

Te Aroha News, Volume V, Issue 228, 12 November 1887, Page 9

A CALIFORNIA REMINISCENCE. A Good Story of Mine Salting.

"Talking about salting experiences," remarked a veteran member of the California colony to a number of fellow associates, who were killing the dog days in a down-town office the other day, "I had a funny one. It makes me laugh when I Hunk of it now. In the good old Comstock days, I was in Virginia, Nov., employed in an official capacity in one of the big mines. Which was it? Well, never mind, it wasn't a long way off from where the big bonanza was afterwards found. Like everybody else employed in the Comstock, I gambled in shares. I held stock in S , and they had gone back on me seriously. I thought if I could get even I would sell out and swear off. The Superintendent and I were on friendly terms, and if there had been n point, I knew he would give it to me. But, oittsides of sinking a winze from the 1,200 to the 1,300, about completed, which was on low grade ore, there was nothing to hang a point on. Just about that time a very lucky operator, who thought he knew a mine when he saw it, came up to Virginia to see what was new in the mines. He dropped into an office and had a chat with the boss. After that he expressed a desire to see the new winze. By the way, he was a trustee and had the entree of the mine. The foreman happened to be away and the Superintendent had business up town, so I was delegated to show the big operator down the winze. A thought struck me. If this big operator was favourably impressed he could make a deal in the stock. A hatful of ore had frequently caused spurs in the leading Comstocks, as you know, and this very operator had a big following. My mind was made up. I must get even on those shares, or there wouldn't be any meat in the house. The operator had about a dozen small canvas sacks to hold samples, which he carefully took all the way down the winze remarking as lie did so that the ore was kindly looking. It was hot work, as you can imagine, and when we landed on top, the big man was all in a glow of perspiration. ' Here,' &aid he, handing me the samples, ' take care of these for me while I take a bath. ' In the office were any quantity of fine specimens of sulphurets and other kinds of ores taken from spots in the mine. It didn't take me long to ' salt ' the samples, and away went the big operator tohave them assayed * for curiosity.'

A Speculator's Bull LucK. " Then I watched the market, and sure enough the stock felt a certain upward pressure, and soon after ifc was rumoured ! around that my big operator was buying ; that helped the upward movement. For once I didn't change my mmd — I gave my brokers orders to sell when she touched cost price plus assessments. Within ten clays from the sampling process I was out. What did the stock do then ? That's where the fun comes in. It kept going up, and inside of two weeks was selling for double what I sold mine at, and when the deal culminated the big operator was $100,000 ahead. So that ' salt ' didn't hurt him any and didn't hurt me. He afterward turned that 8100,000 into more than $1,000,000 by other fortunate speculations, and is alive and well and as happy as a man of his disposition can be. Did he ever suspect the * salt ' 1 No ; don't believe he did. He believed in his assays and thought probably that the insiders were trying to keep him in the dark. He comes to New York occasionally and we have a drink together. Of course he has forgotten that little episode, and naturally I don't remind him of it. That was my first and last ' salt ' experience, and it was done just on the spur of the moment, and because — well, nobody liked that operator, anyhow, and almost any one on the Comstock would have liked to put such a job on him. And to think that he made big money on it ! TeJl you, gentlemen, honesty is the best policy. Will you smile ?"' They all smiled.