Washington standard. [volume] (Olympia, Wash. Territory) 1860-1921, 1872-02-03
OLYMPIA. SATURDAY MORNING. TEB 3, lS7s.
WILDCAT TOWNS AS A FIELD FOR
THE INVESTMENT OF CAPITAL.

THE INVESTMENT VI UAflIAL.
In characteriEing the Land Mania as one
Of the most respectable, seductive, danger
Gus forms Of gambling, VIC have no purpose
Of considering the subject otherwise than
in its natural effects upon the people and
the country financially; neither in abiding
to Wildcat Towns" do VIC refer to any
one plat more than another, the number
of them already in existence forbidding
the suspicion that we intend anything like
spccial discrimination. With the motives
Of sellers or buyers we have nothing to do;
the law does not forbid the traffic, nor do
We propose TO prevent il, unless demonstrate
ing to our readers that buying Wild cat
lots is not the surest way in the world to
make money, should have that effect.
First, there are the numerous chances that
the many town lots that have no present
value will always remain worthless and
second, admitting that the contingencies
upon which their sale is based should hap
pen, then there still remains very great
chance that the purchaser will not be able
to find his lot when it is worth anything.
This remark is intended to apply only to
those towns that are not surveyed, the
condition that makes them purely Wild
cat. Competent persons inform us that
the Government subdivisions rarely or
never prove to contain the quantity Of
land for which they are sold, and that the
system of Donation claims, taken without
regard to the cardinal POINTS or ordinary
sectional lines, renders the question Of
contents still more complicated, to say
nothing Of the various questions which
may arise as to the age and precedence Of
various conflicting Donation claims.
Now that the moral view is waved aud
personal matters settled, let US consider
the chances of the game scientifically. To
do,this. of course we must use the language
Of the profession, and will, for the purposes
of illustration, adopt the favorite short
hand game Of Brag." To preserve the
prophecies and illustrate the seductive
influence Of the mania, We will suppose
the players to be the Rev. Mr.. Stumpandgo
and the Rev. DR.. Shrugandsqueal. The
stakes are lots in Thimblerig's 42d Addi-
ton to Olympia, and Discounts esd Ad.
ton to Thimblcrig's 42d Addition, both
unsurvcyed plats. The Rev. Stumpandgo
has "passed the buck" aud "gone it
blind" on corner lot in the 42d and
"stauds pat" Doctor Shrugandsqueal
straddles the "blind" and "stands con-
tent" on lot which is in the 63d Addi-
ton to the AID, and just over the street
from the Rev. Stumpandgo's lot The
game is made. In the course of time the
Railroad Co. locates its depot hard by, and
so both hands GILL" Each player holds
an invincible "two bullets and bragger,"
or"Jo Daviess," and at it they go, clipity-
bang. The first thing to do is to locate
the lots. They procure a SURVEY, which
shows that Shrugaudsqueals lot lies on
top Of Stumpandgo's. The game becomes
serious. The Rev. Stumpandgo skins
his cards with great care, and finding that
the plat of the AID was fled for record jus:
fifteen minutes before the esd, he "chips
in" with renewed confidence. His oppo
nent now "skins" his hand very slowly
and with one eye shut, as if he feared to
discover that his "bragser" was only a
king or . tenspot. He now finds upon a
very full denomination of all the papers"
LIST, That Thnblerig's 42d and Discounts
SD Additioa are located on two adjoining
Donation claims, the first on the Slambaug
and the second on the Bsngslam claims
and ID, That whilst Thimblerig's plat was
fled frst, q careful recalculation of area
and contents shows that his 42d Addition
coataios just 50 acres more than the
Slanbspg claim, throwing 800 lots of his
Addition, the Rev. Stumpandgo's among
the others, on to the Bangslsm claim.
This discovery satisfies Shrugandsqueal
that he has the "age" and so be " chips
in again. As the value Of the stakes
increase, the game becomes sharp, every
record, plat aud field note is raked up,
studied, weighed and compared; every
inch Of ground is neasured, remeasured
and calculated. The G3d Addition, like
the AID, turns on. to have three or four
buedred lots more than can be worked up
out u the material belonging to the
proprietor. and rs Thimblerig and Discoun,
have in all probability played on, their
hands and emigraied lorg before the
discovery is made, the class represented
h. ovx r~nav,v.~v fx,,,ds l,-o