The true northerner. [volume] (Paw Paw, Mich.) 1855-1920, 1872-12-20
The Diamond Fraud.

The San Francisco and New York
Mining and Commercial Company an
nounces that no more of its stock Is to
be issued, circulated, or transferred, that
the certificates are to be cancelled, and
the company dissolved. The San Fran
cisco and New York Mining and Com
mercial Company proposed to harvest
the diamond crop of Colorado, New
Mexico and Arizona. The company has
discovered that there is no diamond har.
vest to gather. Thus passes away one
of the hugest swindles ever successfully
undertaken here or elsewhere, more sue
cessful than anything which WAS known
prior 10 the writing of Martin Chuzzlewit
and the locating of Eden more success
full than the gold excltements OF twenty
years ago, which, while they proved
snares and delusions TO thousands, fur
nished wealth legitimately, at least TO
few. But this diamond swindle is stu
pendous success, occurring, rs 1t does,
after every form of organized fraud
was believed to be exploded, and in the
face of the universal complscency aris-
ing from supposed familiarity with the
geology Of the West, and the universal
diffusion of knowledge concerning the
ways that are dark.
The party to whom belongs the
doubtful honor of originating the
scheme, has the historical name of
Arnold. With the aid of borrowed
money, he bought up in New York a
bushel of worthless diamonds, and a
pint of 80 600 ones; and going to a ro-
mantle and unfrequented perch in the
Rocky Mountains, he and his confedrates
buried the gems Just beneath the surface
of the soil, and deposited them IN fs-
sures of the rocks. Then biologists
named Janin, whose testimony as an ex'
pert is worth as much as chemists in
a poisoning case, proceeded to a thor
ougn investigation of the new Golconda,
and, oddly enough, discovered the
gems. Janln's report was carried by
Arnold to San Francisco, where he
found a capitalist named Harpending
gullible enough to give him 500, 600 for
the discovery. Harpending transferred
an interest 10 William w. Lent, and a
god, at whose head were placed promi-
nent men in New York, including Nc.
Clellan and Barlow. The capital stock
was $l0,0O0000, and the shares sold on
the Pacific coast for $40. Lent paid to
Arnold and his clique S350,OOO, and the
sums which they received from other
dupes are represented as aggregating
$500 00C, but that ls probably an over
estimate. Before the stock was placed
in Eastern market, the company sent
down prospecting party under the di
rection of David ID. Cotton, an expert
the geologist Clarence King, in charge
of the United States survey Of the for.
tieth parallel, and Henry amin, who led
the way TO the tabled mountain, which
proved TO be fifty miles south Of Black
Butte station in Colorado. The diamond
field was found in an elevated table
land, the north side Of which was pine
CLAD hill. Janin pointed to other places
which the diamonds were washed, and
after fifty six tests, no diamonds were re
vealed except in a bed OF sandstone
Another day was spent in like fruitless
analysis. Janin identified holes here
and there from which he had taken
gems with his own hands, but new dig
glngs failed to reveal any stones. Cotton
says in his report: And to show the
correctness of our tests, placed severa
times very small ruby in the dirt each
gentleman worked, and IN every in
stance they found the stone, believing
it to be genuine find until informed
them otherwise"
So the bubble was burst. Janin il
not yet hung for ignorance or fraud, al
though he is in San Francisco; Arnold
is safely Off with his hundreds of thou
sands of dollars, and San Francisco il
still swearing over the swindle.- Chicdg,
Post.