The Salt Lake herald. [volume] (Salt Lake City [Utah]) 1870-1909, 1884-08-31
A CLEVER FRAUD.
How Diamonds We're SoRn With
Shetguns I'm Arizona.
Cupidity's Usual Revenge.

In 1871 two rough-looking pro-
specters walked into the Bank of
California, and asked for Mr.. Raj
ston, the cashier and leading spirit
of the bank. They had too little
buckskin tags, which they said con
tanned something, and they did 1 OF
exactly know what IT was. One of
the bags they said they believed
had diamonds in the rough, but the
other they said they did
not "kn0w what kind of @ id
store il was. They must be gar.
nets." Ralston laughed at the idea
of diamonds" but he asked to see
them There was about nalf a pint
of black, dirsy~looking crystals,
ranging in size from q pea to a ha>
zelnut. The other bag had dark
bloodeFed stones that were promptly
pronounced Arizona "garnets" by
the great banker. and cast aside
as worthless. He told the proan
pectors to leave the bag with the
black crystals, and he would have
them examined by experts. He did
80. Professor lie Counte. the geo
logist of the University of Cali
fornia, pronounced them diamonds.
So did Professor Janin, the best
mining expert in San Francisco.
Shreve and other leading jewelers.
all agreed they were diamoude.
Shreve had one partly cut, and il
revealed beautiful white stone.
The question then arose: "Where did
they come from?' Ralston was
greatly excited. He called In
Sharon and even took d. O. Mills
into his confidence. The two pros.
pectors gave their names as vii
liam Arnold and Isaac w. Slack
and said they had been prospecting
in Arizona and Utah and Wyoming
and they had found these stones II
one of the regions named, but re.
fused to say just where. They said
however, that there were "bushcls'
of the same kind left. The diamond
fever grew, and finally Ralston
Sharon, Nicholas Luning, a grea
San Francisco capitalist, William
M. Lent, S. l.. M. Barlow, of New
York, George D. Roberts, the pres
ent postal telegraph man, Michae
Reese, the great Jewish millionaire
and several others formed eyndi
cate and sgreed to take the "dia
mond fields" at Sl,090,000, provided
the re presentations OF Arnold anC
Slack were verified by experts
Meantime the other bag Of speci
mems YVES submitted to test an,
found to contain genuine rubies
sSome were sent to New York to b
cut, and we've found to be genuin
stones. These were said to com
from the same "felds.''
THE DIAMOND FIELD.
When they had the bargain draw
up in black and white and S25, 100
laid as earnest money Arnold an
Slack revealed secretly to Ralstol
the location of the find, and offere
to pilot thee of the Banks own ex
perte to the ground. One mornin,
in April, 1872, four disguised sgure
crept down in the dawn to the OAK
land Ferry. They were Arnold
George d Roberts, Henry janis
and George Hearst. Janin was thu
most accomplished geologist an
mining engineer in the city, an,
Roberts and Hearst were the bes
practical miners in California. Tn
party took the cars and Arnold pi
loted them to Green River, WV. I
There they left the train, got mule
md an ambulance and struck TO
the Green River Mountains, forty
five miles south Of the railroad
They were on the ground q week
The diamond field did not seem I
be more than fifty acres in extent
and was at the base of \ low rang
of barren red sandstone hills. The
found diamonds in the create
quantities scattered about in tn
low beds Of dry gravel. They du
Town and found them in groups c
six and eigh'. They were all great
excited except Arnold. When, q
I tue end of a week, they prepared I
leave they had more than quart {
diamonds and Iubies OF 8
sizes. Well, when they &c
back to San Francisco th
town was aaame. a company wa
at once organized with $1,000 (
capital. The million dollars to ps
Arnold and slack was advanced b
Ralston, and in part made COED b
the syndicate. Roberts, Lunninf
Lent, Ralston and Sharon each pu
in S10e.000, and Barlow made up
put in New York to take $3.50, OC
more. Then the public began I
clauor for the stock, but so conf
dent were the promoters of tn
sch me that they had new Col
conda that they locked the stock u
in the Bank of California and re
fused to let share go out. Arnol
and Slack took their money and LEI
the coast. Arnold got $4,000 i
cash, He went to EliZ,bethtowI