St. Paul daily globe. [volume] (Saint Paul, Minn.) 1884-1896, 1885-02-05
Marriage of Miss Mackay and Bourbon
Prince.

From the Detroit Free Press
"Well, that beats the Arabian Nights all
hollow exclaimed gentleman in the Rus
sell house yesterday, as he threw a,'se his
newspaper. ''But don't believe Mckay
has struck pay dirt this time"
! doesn't it seem funny that man who,
twenty years ago, was shoveling ore for "a
day and glad to get work of any kind, should
now loom up as the prospective father-in-law
of a real live princel FUNNY Why, that's
| no name for it; its simply amazing. But 1
don't believe the deal will pay as big profits
as squeezing the holders of Sierra Nevada
stock by the mild application of ffty-eent
assessment on every share.
However, Mackay is generally pretty
| level-headed, and with 500, 900, 900 In cold
cash to back him, and his daughter prin-
cess, I wouldn't wonder If he showed the
Johnny Cra3eaus in Paris how we used to
make things hum in California and
! Nevada
"Are yon personally acquainted with Mr..
Mackay and his family?' asked the reporter.
Acquainted with them? l rather think
| am young man.
CSED ~ CADlN Win MANUAL
in Sierra county, and lots of times we went
without our breakfasts because the cupboard
was empty and we hadn't the dust to re-
plenish it. Those were glorious days,
| though, and when one of US was lucky
enough to fud pocket which panied out
rich the whole town was soon made aware OF
| it, and we made the place howl as long as it
lasted. Everybody couldn't get rich, though
and some of the boys, Mackay and myself
included went to work for a company, but
we could't stand it long. ShoVeling gravel
| in sluice about three or four feet above the
top of your head amt very much like play,
even if the wages are good. We didn't
mind it bit when we were prospectiIS for
ourselves, but it was mighty tough to so it
| for anybody else. / struck out for White
Pine and Phoebe, and Mackay made break
for Virginia City. and there's where he
struck his gait, although first along he didn't
seem to know how to make money.
SHE took his time about it, and when he
got q chance he made it tell. The first big
money he made gambling in stocks-and
that's how he made his millions-amounted
to about $40, 900. And where do you think
he put its He bought draft for the whole
business and sen: it to his poor old mother
n Ireland. That showed what the man was
made of. n Most of US forget the old folks at
| home when we get dollar or so ahead, but
| Mackay didn't. He sent the money, and
started over again. Everything he touched
| seemed to turn into gold. If he bought
| hundred shares in wildcat claim the stock
began to boom, and he always sold out just
before the price went down. After while
| he made enough to buy controlling inter-
| est il one of the mines, | think it was the
! Gould 81 Curry, and then he began to boss
| the market. If he wanted stocks to go up
| they went up like kite, and when be said
drop they went tumbng like pile Of
bricks. The two Jims-Flood and Fair--as
well as O'Brien were in with him in all the
speculations, but they couldn't have made
half what they are worth ii Mackay had been
| out of the firm. Flood lived in Frisco and
Mackay, Fair and O'Brien lived in Virginia
| City O'Brien didn't amount to much, be-
cause he always told all he knew, and more,
| too. If the bonanza firm intended to make
the stocks go up or down, O'Briep knew
nothing ..about it, He made money, no
matter
now THE MARKET WENT,
and that was all he wanted. There was
afraid of, and that was Ralston. of the Cali
fornia bank. Ralston was even smarter
than Mackay, but he hadn't the money to
carry out his schemes, and had to knock
under. That was the time when Mackay
broke the California bank, which was the
sickest piece of work ever heard of.
I'm those days there wasn't any paper
money on the coast. and if a man wanted to
20 down to Frisco from Virginia or Carson,
aud had any great amount of money, it was
mighty heavy and inconvenient 10 pack
around. For the convenience of the people
the California bank issued gold certificates,
which were the same as the gold notes now
in use except that no bank except the Cali
| lornia was obliged to redeem them.
''Mackay secretly bought up all the certif-
| Gates he could wtIfBut exciting suspicion,
! and at last got about 81 200. 900 worth He
put them in n grip and walked into the bank
in Virginia City and
DEMANDED COIN
for them. They couldn't pay them all and
had to put up the shutters. The very mo-
ment the bank was busted he opened the
! Nevada bank which to-day Is as good as
any in the world. RaIston, tire cashier of
| the California bank committed suicide by
/ "
"You would be surprised to see how com
mon and souchy Mackay looks when he is
| in Virginia. | have worked for him and
| know him as well as | know my own brother
! | have often seen him on the street with one
trouser leg Inside his boot, the other outside.
! He always wore gray SLOUGH bat and dark
! coat, and when he drove out In state white
horse htcIed to blackboard was @pod
enough for him. The horse could be bought
anywhere for SIS aud the blackboard was
dear at any price. When his family were in
ParIs-and they we're there nearly all the
tlme-Mackay kept house In the Garry office
on ID street, in Virginia, his hostler
ACTING AS CHAMBERMAID,
valet and man Of all work. Here he was at
home to anybody who cared to call on him,
and visitors were invariably treated TO cigars.
! But such cigarsl One Whit would be all
that fellow could stand. They were the
/ very worst in the market, but Mackay didn't
/ know IT, He paid a good orice for them, aud
/ supposed they were the best. but not being a
/ Judge of the weed he always got left on bar
! gain Of this kind
81 guess he has bad all Of the Pacific slope
he wants. The mines on the Comstoek are too
deep and too hot to be profitable and Virginia
! City has seen its best days Only few
mines are being worked and they are not
taking out enough ore to pay expenses.
When they yet hard up they levy an assess
meut, and that keeps them running for
| little while.
''This prince business is all good enough
on the other side of the water, but plain
John Mackay, even If be has shoals Of cash,
| has no use for princes In his family ana Ill
bet his rough manner will shock the nerves
Of his highness on more than one occasion"