New-York tribune. [volume] (New York [N.Y.]) 1866-1924, 1883-10-13
SELLING A MYTHICAL MINE.
1.,,Es A. AUSTIN AGAIN ARRESTED.
rREsn CHARGES BY PERRIN II. sUMNsE-A CAHLEE
or sWINDLING,


rREsu CHARGES BY PERRIN II. sUMNsR-A CAREER
OF swINDLING.
Early in last July one "Col.n James A. Austin
was arrested at the instance OF j. 5. wheaton, OF
the Vanderbilt Hotel, charged with giving
HCns ne TO his financial standing. About two
months before Perrin II. Sumner, real estaIe
broker. was arrested at the SUIT VI -
ding. by. means of bogus Mining i ctdiIL of
and the principal evidence against hun consisted Of
an affidavit by Austin which virtually announcer 10
a confession of completely. summers Caso ~ nov
pending motion for the vacation OF the oluer VI
arrest having been denied by Judge OH0Tman ana d
the case being appealed W AusI0 Tn' change Yes
terdav ne was arrested again on fresh charge pre-
ferred by Mr. Sumner, and was heid IN @5VUV
hail TO answer, and is now IN the hanuS VI
deputy-sherfs. The, papers ~ IN the tSS9
consist mainly of aflidavits. These sh9w ihaI
Sumner met Austin at the Fifth Avenue Hotel IN
December. 1880, and after a short acquaintance
Austin asked him to negotiate the sale OF
mine in Colorado. Sumner according 10 ms OWL w
himself Leslie H. Crouch, Peter t. Crouch VIII
lam A. Crous, +. ID. Thomas and Augustus 900 W.
Fischer. who put up $4,000 part OF the @o,UiUV,
worth, Austin said, at least l.QoO.OOO'
The reason he gave fos disposng OF prop,
er f worth S25OOOO for such a sum was
The mi ne before in could become actually salable
No deed was handed over by AUSTIN ana the il G
beers of the syndicate began TO get ANXIOUS one
dav however the Colonel rushed up to sum
ICY Sb tbe iInta nence that he had paid flying
visit to Colorado, discovered announcer IeuSo Un 20
nropcTIy and was going to work it in preference W
HE ORIGINAL mine. The syndicate thought Ile6
saw disoOsltion on Austin's part to leaye IhtIli
they phrased it. and w decaTed that
the new mine richer than the olu oGo anu US
uiayed lump of ore admatt
contain over 90 per cent Oh S,t W.
He offered TO give his associates snare In TINS
mine named the Silver Cliff in place OF thelr nave
in the original mine. On January o. 1851 an agtce-
Tent was signed by Sumner and Austin trausler-
ring quarter share of certain property IN me
Connty of Custer, COl containing mine
estimated by Austin to De WoT9n oS6 oG
worth So 600. Thedeeds and plans OF the properly
were exhibited and all went well until 1t was as
discovered that the whole dialr was d NY 'h anu
that the deeds had been obtained by fraud:
The affidavit of George Sherwood, a mining Gu
gineer shows that Austin had asked MN 10 OBTAIN
for him, if possible the title TO some mining claims
IN Colorado, Sherwood Obtaned.some, OF the Vaiue
of $1,000, but Austin objected to them as beng 100
valuable and asked for Sned3p[ ayeDt rT
did, and received from him the sum OF SlOo 40" ~
and was subsequently induced, on tEe promise Oh
having the balance III few hours 10 8lNo up tI0
deeds He never saw either deeds or balance again.
and the former were used by Austin toplay ms 1T
tle game" on MIR. Sumner and his trends mean
Tyhiie Austin had not only drawn from the syndicate
further sum- in the shape OF assessments OF
but he had also bled another client OF summer
TO the tune OF about T6'OOo ~ chGn%o tod IN
son is a SCotchman and an engineer VINO sGt'Ieu III
New-York with a modest capital, Whlch ne III
tended to put into profitable mining venture
Applying to Sumner for advice he was ADVISED Oy
him to buy another quarter interest IN the silver
Cliff Nine He did so and lost every cent ne ha9 IN
the world. In May last, as already stated he hau
Sumner arrested, the principal evidence Delns an
affidavit made by Austin in which the latter aleSeG
that he had met Sumner in November, 1851 ana
had been induced by him to palm OIL WOrIhles'
mining claims as genuine and proof OF tleir gen
uineness to exhibit a fragment of ore which re ha9
purchased in New YOTkCIty Sumner haSnOW turned
the tables by getting up an apparently c"mplC,o
case against Austin, which is backed up by mu'tl-
phcty Of atlidayts. ,. ~
Austin seems to be a man of various talents all
tending i'm tie direction of obtaining money 10y
various pretexts. When he first arrived IN inns
CITY from Missouri be went to the tItth Avenue
Hotel whore he ran up bill SAID to amount TO
over s.. 900 All the proprIetors have ever received
for this is some worthless baggage and a judgment
for the amount and costs. Mr. Leland, OF Iue
Sturteyapt saws he suffered to the extent OF SLOW
At the Hoffman House Austin cashed dTaft lol
500, it is sad, drawn by Major Hopklnss
j. b. TomlInson, Superintendent of the CampDcl
Mining Company, obtained worthless stocks non
him in exchange for good bonds Lately 'GoloheI
Austin has posed as the president OF the Pennsy'
vania and New-York Coal and Iron Company
doing business at No. 10 COrtlandt-st, and IL was
while al his Office that he arrested yesterday