Fergus County argus. [volume] (Lewistown, Mont.) 1886-1946, 1888-11-08
MILLIONS OF MONEY.
How it Was Accumulated by the Famous Big
Four'-flood o BrieH. Mackey and Fair

space of ten years. four bonanza
kings. They weren't bonanza kings
when hey first opened their eyes. and
began to kick AT things in general on
the Emerald Isle. But all he same
They had II in them: and when they
began To play tag and mumble-ie-peg
they commenced To dream. in u Vague
sort of way. of bonanlas. and when
they btTamr men hey all struck the
greatest bonanza the world has ever
known. The 81 DRY reads like Monte
Cristo."
tine oi this quartet was named
James Clair Flood. lie was known
for many years. owing to his proflision
OF blonde locks, as the Golden irish
man" lie was "a carpenter 10y trade.
Anothe was named William :. O'Brien
always called BILLY" OBrien for
short. lie had no trade, but was
what il known in these days rs II
hustler. Ireland wasn't rapid enough
for these two. They were high spirited.
confident young fellows. and they lust
achei to get into the swim and swirl
around little. They yearnel for
velocity. One day they said to them
selves that they thought they knew
their gait pretty we'll. and they GUESSED
they'd 90 to America lust To look
around little. They did not know
each other. and met for the first time
on board ship. They ,lid II good deal
of talking on the voyage. and when
they landed in New York they were
fast friends, and struck M "a partner
ship that was not dissolved till death
When they arrived in New York. and
had Il chance to take in the town.
they came to the conclusion that,
after all. it was too big. They wanted
more breathing space. Then hey con
tracted the mining fever. rs mostly
every one did i'm those DAYS. so. i'm
1851, they took passage in the good
ship Elizabeth Ellen doubled the hoiS-
ferrous Horn and landed ut Yerba
Buena, now san Francisco.
They were in the II Dorado OF the
world. treadii,s the golden sands OF
California. the end of the plitt,riuy
vista through which the eyes of the
world were gazing with longing. TN,
fever was at its height. Men were.
going wild with excitement. Every
ship brought crowds of eager adyen-
turers. and fortunes were being made
in amazingly short times weeks. DAYS.
even hours Flood and o'Rri,n ver.
AS eoper rs the rest
WL,t lii ,he,, no.
Did tbev rnyort oround shr;aL
invest th. i;ttIa Isl th.v h.,l in LII
c,t mimi, s,hsmess '' W
Goto, NJ, n,,,.l,
Th.v st,,rt.I - ,,d.., ,J,.. ,r
refreshmeut in n In, c,h;n All ,h.v
called If the .Au,.t,nn nnc,, ,rhay
mada nonav M, t.,,,, ,;,,l,, iii
Thev weren't s,yins -, wnrJ n, and
hv thev commenced to law ON, !, mr.,
al tbe;, nrot;ts in s,,,,u mimi, r',,
t,res III a,.,.,,n,ula,.d an,,,., 49,,
money
Their nl,c. w,s f,.ou.,t.l hy all
sor,. .,n,I ..n,,,l;,;o. -, , -.
vino. win L;nh hn,.- h.d CO... a.
tl,, mines mi last ,.,.r,,ti,;,,,. -
less miners Who snen, ,h,.;r j,,st III,
wafer. y,mhI.r. .,J,..n,urars al
stomns III mon
II was nj nj. ,;,,, I'm, ,,a ann.
t,t-I,ter known ,s Tho Ri, Eon,',
was made comnl,to ANON" tia nc,.,
sional freu,,ente ,s nj tho .,lno, was
/, hr;ybt vn,,nu Jr;sh,,,n ,.,,,aJ Ioi,,,
" Nnrk,v ia h,J t..,, .,,,n,,,tI H.
mines for some time b,J haen ii, in,
and niek;nu th,. n.,si in r,nn;,,s
streams, tramlin. alone with his
blanket and tools. but somehow he
never managed to strike it rich. But
he was an experienced miner. and was
chock full OF IDEAS and nerve. lie
didn't have any money. but Flood
and O'I,rien thought his ,xp,rience
would he worth "A good deal To them.
They formed n compact. Nackav
knew another Young Irshman. n clever
engineer, experienced in mines. His
name was James q. Fair. lie didn't
have u cent, but he too, was made "A
partner.
BY this time Flood and O'Brien
were pretty well off. Nackay and Fair
took their kits and went off to pros
pect. They were not very successful
for some wears. and lust managed To
get along. Byand by came he rlImor
across the Sieras that great veins of
quartz carrying a Strange black mel al. |
which experts said was silver. had
been discovered. Mackay and FAIR
went there from the placer di.eings in
the valleys to the quartz lodes high up
in the ice and snow and Arctic winds |
which pour down from Manitoba with |
a biting intensity nobody who has not /
spent u winter in Virginia City can
imagine The two made money for
themselves and for Flood and OBrien. |
their quiet, Industrious partners,
"'way down in Frisco" Mackay's
wife kept n miners boarding house i'm |
Virginia City.
Then they struck consolidated
Virginia" in whose shares servant
girls soon after made fortunes and
rich men lost them. The WAY they
struck it was curious. 4 young miner
came to Mackay and Fair one evening
and said he had good claim which he