Mineral Point tribune. (Mineral Point, Wis.) 1869-1938, 1886-05-20
SAN FRANCISCO srock-eAMBLNG.
The Fate of a Former Member Of the Bonanza
Firm.

Sacramento bee.
am confident that the romance OF
/ stock gambling will never be written,
writes a San Francisco correspondent to
/ The Bee. Life here il too rapid, too
pushing for men to pause and reflect on
/ that curious has been of san francisco
/ But never stroll Pine street, or llnger IN
/ the shadows Of Pauper alley, but meet
someone who would be entitled TO a place
in that unwritten romance. The tail hg-
ure. face clean cut and refined, gait slow
and painful from the effect OF an OLD
wound. is before me as / write. James
d. Walker ten years ago was member OF
the bonanza firm. and his check was good
for S5OOOOO. aye. for S1,00O,00O, at any
bank in the country. Then Flood and
Fair bought him out, and Walker opened
brokers' Office under the Nevada
bank. and did all the business of
his former partners in these times Flood,
Fair and Mackey were on the top notch
of speculation. They were swinging the
market at their own sweet Will, and max
inc or breaking the thousands who were
battling with the fierce trade of stock
gambling. Alexander Austin, or SANDY
as his friends used TO call him, had just
served his term as tax collector, and went
in with Walker. How they did make
things booml The high-salaried clerks
the book keeper got $500 month, and
had a sumptuous lunch served every day
in a large room in the rear of the Office at
the expense of the firm. Their expenses
we're enormous but so was their Business.
They were clearing 100000 month,
but they were standing on the brink of
precipice Flood remarked that other
and outside brokers we're manipulating
certain stock precisely as his own brokers.
This would never do, so he called a con
sultation, and informed the Walker firm
that sort OF thing would not do, that there
was traitor in the camp somewhere, and
that, unless he was detected and fred
their relations could not continue. Close
and earnest investigation was made, but
without avail. Then came the transac-
tion of more than ordinary Importance,
but to the intense disgust of the bonanza
firm, it was apparently foreseen and an
ticipated by these same outside brokers'
kept posted apparently, by some
traitor in the WalkerAustin camp. Then
the bonanza people changes their broker,
and from that hour the fortunes of Walk
er & Co. began to decline. Matters grew
worse. Austin committed suicide. Walker
sold magnificent mansion in Oakland
which cost him close on 100000, TO prop
up the waning glory of the swell firm. At
last it was a clean case of bust, and |
don't believe Mr.. Walker to-day could put
his hand on 5000 | saw him looking
wistfully at the Nevada bank building,
propably comparing the different states
of Flood, the member, and Walker, the
ex-member of the firm. He discovered
when too late, that the high priced book
keeper was the traitor. He sold his en-
ployers but no luck ever came of his
treache,y, and he is to-day keeping books
at $50 a month for Hebrew clothes deal
er in Portland Oregon,
Walker is but a type of hundreds of
others who have had their chance and
AMI their day on Pine street. With
n strange faulty these wrecks still cling
to the locality where they made and lost
fortunes in the past, though nine tenths
of them have not a dime to speculate with
and could not get credit for glass of
lager, when their names n decade ago
were sufficient guarantee for dozen or
fifty dozen cases of champagne. A few
have pulled out with small stake,
and there ara some there yet who have
"A little money, and would speculate if
they saw little opening, and not few
fanatics who await the coming of the
Messiah the discovery of another great
bunanzO.