THE SILVER EXCITEMENT IN MELBOURNE.

Waikato Times, Volume XXX, Issue 2461, 19 April 1888, Page 2

THE SILVER EXCITEMENT IN MELBOURNE.

Mr Vin'cknt Pykb writes as follows from Melbourne to the Dunedin Star :— In one way and another I enjoyed facilities for obtaining a good dual of solid information about the "silver boom." I say "silver" advisedly, for, as I said before, gold is not in it. The capital of a silver mine, the number of shares and shareholders, tho amount paid up, and such other trifling considerations are never questioned. These things arc of minor consequence. Neither is it a matter of importance to know whether the mine has been tested, or what are its prospects. The question is not " Will it pay?' , but only "Will the shares rise to-morrow ?" The whole affair, with perhaps one or two exceptions, is simply a matter of gambling in stock; and the commonest of casual questions is " What is the latest swindle ?'' Of course this will not last. Already there are signs of declension. The "bulls" have tossed prices to their utmost capacity, and now the " bears " are going to work with a vengeauce. There will be some warm work yet. Hundreds—nay thousands—will be "let in" for sums they can never pay, and there will be, ere long, such an astounding crash as the colonies never yet saw. Then it will be found that the mosquitoes of the Stock Exchange have made themselves quite safe, and the unhappy honest investors will be squeezed out of financial existence. The knowing few —Itnbitucs of tho inner circle —will have made fortunes, and the many will have melted such shares of fortune as they possessed. It is no new story this —it is the usual and inevitable finalo of such Mississippi ventures. One ingenious way of beguiliug the innocent stranger by enlarging the supposed value of silver mines is worth mentioning —not becanse of its novelty, for it is an old device; yet few understand it. When you read of enormcua yields of silver to tho ton it is usually a ton of galena that is meant, and not a ton of rouk, as in the case of golden quartz. This, of course, increases the supposed yield enormously, an I sets all calculation at nought, to the profit of dealers and the bewilderment of purchasers and investors, if any there be of the latter. Meantime the gentlumon whose profession it is to float companies are making money by the fist-full. The most ordinary terms for performing this delicate business is for the owners of mining property to "go halves" with the broker —that is to say, the broker receives for his attention exactly the same sum as the owners of the mine ; and in addition, the mine owners are solely responsible for all preliminary expenditure, " Yes," said one of the tribe, "we will float the company (silver of course) for £56,000 ; and we will take £20,000 for our share." And they do not blush when they announce their terms. Many of the so-called silver mines have never had a pick put into the ground, and nothing but imagination has been called into request to locate silver ore at all in two-thirds of the speculations afloat in the Melbourne market. A vein is discovered —perhaps only one inch thick—somewhere in the illimitable wilderness, and forthwith an army of speculators go forth compass in hand, and such fragments of conscience as they are possessed of cirefully stowed away and labelled "Not wanted on the voyage." Thus equipped they mark out miles of country and get paragraphs inserted in some looselyconducted newspaper after this fashion : —"Silver lode traced for ten miles." That is enough. The moths flock to the candle. If tljeir wings are singed, who cares ? The very best and most genuine mine yet opened will not pay more than 2 J percent on the prices paid for shares, and nine-tenths of the others will never pay a cent to the dollar. The latest effort in this direction is found in the "ruby mines" of South Australia. I was shown a quantity of these " rubies" at the Technological Mi'seum. Very beautiful some of them wore ; hut alas ! they were not rubies at all—only garnets. Subjected to the inquisitorial eye of science, their true character became apparent, and thus a neat promising "swindle" was cruelly sacrificed in its infanoy,