The morning news. [volume] (Savannah, Ga.) 1887-1900, 1890-02-19
-oR1pA,s PHOSPHATE BOON

"stil huntn now. The country, here
obouts is full of men from all parts of the
s+s.s-buyers, sellers, land owners, capt.
| 4-fists. SPECTATORS, and sharps from all over
| +ba country, on the lookout for snaps y
everybody maintains a profund secrecy
n 70 what is going on, but there are numer-
| Crs ru!norS Of deals of all kinds and sorts.
| I, rhis connection may be mentioned the
fs,t that several Jacksonville capitalists,
are, it is said, making arrangements for
buying phosphate lands with the
ar5wed purpose OF utilizing the
| nrotuct Of the mines IN the direct manufac-
tIlre of fertilizers, either here or in Jack
sonville A prominent Maryland man has
Il been here for nearly five weeks in search of
phosphate. He is already interested in
fertilizer materials, and has an extensive
business connection with phosphate and
fertilizer men. 1t is said that he has $500
coo at his back with which to buy phosphate
lands. but up to three days ago he had not
invested dollar. He says:
A PHOSPHATE TRUST POSSIBLE.
''There are dead loads of phosphate in
this state, but it is question in my mind
whether very many, if any, OF the beds
outside the Dunnellon region will be worked
n the near future. You SEQ they are not
concentrated. That is where the Dunnellon
people have a big advantage. Now, l
haven't dollars interest in either of the
companies and don't expect 10 have: but [
can easily SEQ where they have the bulge
On all outsiders. Their lands are not
widely scattered, and the pockets which
they propose working are nearly all in close
proximity TO each other. y railroad al
ready runs through the heart Of their DOS
sessions. To build SOUR tracks directly into
tie beds ard 20 operate movable mining
plants arc comparatively easy matters and
involve no great expense. The question of
transportation is great factor to my
mind, IN determining the commercial value
Of phosphate lands. [ may find a rich
pocket" OF phosphate, equal in quail
ity to the best in the Dunnellon re-
gon; but il it IS twenty-five miles from
railroad and separated two, three, or ten
miles from another rich ''pocket," how can
! hope to open it and compete in the market
with companies which have no transporta-
lion problem TO solve and whose phosphate
beds are all within easy reach of each
other? Mind you, Pm not Standing in
with any ilan or company to bear the
phosphate land market. want
to buy, bit / don't see my wav
clear yet to become a phosphate
miner On an equal footing with those who
would be my competitors in the market in
z certain sense. | shall remain here six
months, if necessary, in order to exhaust
eli the possible channels of Investigation
into this subject l may be big buyer of
phosphate lands within thirty days, and
may go home six months from now a couplo
Of thousand dollars poorer, and with no5 an
acre of phosphate land in my possession.
But when l do go, L shall know it ALL
DON'T forget that"
"What do you think is likely to be the
outcome of the present conditionsm asked
the Times Union man.
u can foresee two things The phosphate
is here III Florida in large quantities. This
fact can easily enough be demonstrated.
Now, it isn't going to pay Tom, Dick and
Harry to go into mining operations all over
the state. Ii several large syndicates with
plenty of capital should be formed to con-
troll all, or nearly all, of the scattered phos-
plate lands, they might then be in a posi-
lion TO exert an influence equal to that of
the kings in the phosphate market
The oil and coal producers all have
10 combinesa TO control the output
Of their wells and mines; if they didn't the
production would be constantly ahead of
the demand and the consumption. and the
result would be that they would all go
broke in a twelvemonth. So phosphate
combination in Florida is among the posi-
bilities of the near future. A phosphate
trust, embracing all the companies oper-
atlng phosphate mines or beds anywhere in
the world, is likely to grow out of the
conditions incident to the new discovery in
Florida"
WORKING THE LAND OWNERS.
1t has recently come to light here that
there is an organized scheme somewhere
for the purpose of exciting the people all
up and down the belt of the counties where
phosphate has been discovered up to date
or for some other purpose not plainly APP
parent For instance, farmer came into
the pOstoffice at Parkersburg, in Marion
county, a few days ago, and there found a
letter addressed to HIM something like this:
OCALA, FLA. Feb. 10, 1890
Mr.. --, Parkers5atyg, fla
DEAR SIR understand that you are the
owner of sixty acres Of land in township -
range -, Giving the exact location of the
farmers homestead). 1t has valuable phos-
pilates on it. l will give you $50 an acre for it.
Let me know your decision at once.
ARCHIBALD W. KNowLToN.
OF course the farmer was excited some
what. He said. however, that he had never
prospected on his land, and that no one else
had, as far as he could learn. There isn't
al auger-hole or a pit on it, he says. If
anybody has been boring they have plugged
up the holes again. He made inquiries,
however, of friends in Ocala as to VINO and
what Archibald W. Knowlton is. He
discovered that there is no such man living
IN Ocala, and no such man has been
there at any of the hotels during the last
six months But the farmer is impressed
with the idea that there is phosphate on his
land, and he wouldn't accepta bona fide offer
Of 500 an acre for it to-day. 1t might
appear at first blush that this was simply a
piece of mischief--aa anonymous letter
written to the farmer on purpose to excite
him. But further investigation shows that
hundreds Of such letters have been written
10 people in the phosphate regions. They
come from all over the state-from small,
obscure towns as well as from the
large cities. Some even from distant
states. They are all written in the same
Vein and have anonymous signatures What
profit can accrue to the writer's from this
expenditure of time and of money for sta
tlonery and stamps does not appear. But
1t mas accomplished one thing. 1t keeps
up tho price Of lands, or at least has q
tendency III that direction temporarily 1t
may be- d movement of the ''bulW to offset
she bearish look of things induced by the
tSIk Of some Of the phosphate kings
THE 'BEARSn AT PLAY AGAIN.
Another movement on the part of the
bears" has just come to light. A man in
Citrus county, for instance, may discover
phosphate on his land. He will show the
find" 90 a chemist, have it analysed, anC
men sell for 800 q ten days option on IL at
500 an acre. An investigation of the land
VIII then be made by the prospector or his
agents, and st the end Of the ten days the
:, +Oy1 Al fbo. &c