Sacramento daily record-union. [volume] (Sacramento [Calif.]) 1875-1891, 1891-01-05
SOMETHING Fer NOTHING.
ALLEGED SCHEME TO DEFRAUD THE
FEDERAL GOVERNMENT.
Men Asked to Put Up Money to Do an
Unlawful Act-An Agent in
This City.

PCS 6o4ng tDodt tue Ct6tS peipetTaEnl
double swindle of gigantic proportions
In the first place, the Government is beins
swindled, and in the second place dupe
are being made of large number of mer
on the pretense of putting them in tn;
way of making snug little piles of money
On Saturday James S. Hodges called a
the REcoRD-UsIoY Office and stated that ht
had been approached by a man Of very
smooth address, who was stopping at tht
Western Hotel, and urged to join in 6
wholesale scheme of timber land pre-enp
ton in Washington. 1t was represented
to him that, by advancing S25 he coulc
join party of men who were to leave on
Sunday night Qsst night from Tacoma
for the purpose of taking up timber lands
The inducement held out to him was
that, after he had proven up on his cIaim
the sum Of $1,000 would be paid him for !
deed thereto, beside the Government nrice
of the land, and also his expenses back to
California.
To Mr. Hodges mind the proposition
looked very fsttering, aud be intimated
that he would ike to engage ia the enter.
prise. typewriter document was pre-.
scented to him for his signature It was
intended to bind him to perform bis part
of the above mentioned agreement. Ia
this connection the alleged agent told Mr.
Hodges that be (the ageni) had to be very
careful into whose hands these agreements
were permitted to 90, as it was DESTROYS
that they be kept as secret as possible.
Hodges, however, was allowed to have
one IN his possession for short fine and
he submitted it to friend named George
a. Burns. This gentleman is e printer,
and, like most members of that fraternity
an intelligent, wide-gwake man. More
over, he was only. a week ago a resident OF
Santa Cruz, and it occurred 10 him that a
scheme Of the same character was being
worked in that place, where the promoter
thereof had advertised in The local papers
for men TO 20 10 Washington and take up
land. Burns had met this Santa Cruz
agent, and he al once went With Mr.. Hodges
TO the hotel to see if the Sacramento man
was not one and the same person who had
been shown up in the Santa CIuz papers.
GA meeting him he found that, while an.
swerlhg the same decription, the Sacra-
mento man went under different name
from that of the Santa Cruz man. The
latter gave the name of Weaver. while the
SACRAMENTO agent called himself Furber
The result was that he advised Hodges
to have nothing to do with the matter, and
Hodges thereupon returned to Furber the
agreement that hsd been given him to
sign. In one Of his conversations with the
agent the latter had told him that sixty
men would arrive in Sacramento on Sun
oay night on their way to the promised
land, and that those going from Sacra-
mento would join them here.
Hodges ana Burns then called at the
RECORD UNION Office, and the latter sug-
gested that If Santa Cruz paper of lest
week could be had. probably full expose
OF the operations of these parties would be
found therein. 4 search through the pile
OF exchanges resulted IN the finding of the
Santa Cruz Sentinel of Wednesday last, in
which, sure enough, was published long
statement about the manner in which the
scheme was being worked. 1t was as fol-
lows:
sUcKERs-THE WOODS FULL OF THEN-A SCHEME
TO ENRICH SETTLERS IN WASHINGTON.
On Sunday the following advertisement ap-
peared in the Sentinel:
WANTED : TWENTY-FIVE MEN, WHO
w have not used their Timber or Preemp-
ton rights, to ell at once on
WEAVER & CO.
Agents. room No. 2, Arlington House. No. AZ
Pacific avenue
On Tuesday morning Sentinel representative
called at the place mentioned for the purpose of
ascertslning the reason so many men were
wanted. As he made his way up ST. airs he saw
that the hallway On which room No faces was
crowded with men, all seemingly interested in
some subject which they were earnestly discuss
ing Inc men were evidently not millionaires
nor capitalists, but, on the contrary were of the
hard-working class, who earn their livelihood
by the toll Of their hands and the sweat of their
DroW. II was with some difficulty that the
seeker after information managed TO reach the
door of the room. After preliminary knock
the door was opened, and a room full of men
In the center of the room sat a young man of
medium size, smoothly shaven, with Ight-col.
ored hair, which hung in curly bands over a
high forehead. He was looking over a maj of
the Pacific coast, such as go with railroad
guides. After the man had given the reporter
searching glance he commenced to fill out the
blank space in some sort of printed agreement,
In which the sum SIS appeared more than once
The reporter asked him how business was, to
which the man, whose name is Frank Craig, re-
piled in an irritated tone which did not convey
much information, and asked why do YOU
want TO known The newspaper man replied
that he wished 70 gain some light on the adver-
usement.
II beg your pardon; I've been so much both.
cred by people asking questions that I've be-
come irritable therefore you will excuse the
manner in which spoke" SAID Craig, who was
profuse in his apologies. He then explained
the modus operandi, which was as follows:
There are thousand acres of unoccupied land
on the Skagit river in the State of Washington.
1t was TO have the land pre- empted the firm
Edwards the claim of the Intending settler
would be DATED and his expenses in going TO
the land paid. To secure the land the Sc tier
would have to pay at the rate of 81 so an ecre
This money the company would advance and
then pay the settler 600 clear for the claim
II the sett er himself advanced the money the
company would give him 81 SEQ.
The Michigan Land and Lumber Company
was represented to be corporation that deals
extensively IN lumber, with headquarters at
Tacoma. They desire 10 procure all of the tim
Der land available, and to do so had to, accord
ing TO the presumption laws, purchase from
actual settlers. By February 18th, the law by
which timber lands in Washington could be pre-
empted would expire, hence it was necessary
that settlers take advantage while yet it was
time. How many have already paid in their
money this morning. queried the reporter, as
he arose to go.
About twenty five" said Craig, who then
proceeded TO picture to his hearers the glowing
prospects of the land which would soon be
tapped by railroads, and cities would spring up
in night, as it were. He instanced Tacoma
Seattle and Fairhaven as examples of the won-
derful growth of towns in Washington
As the reporter opened the door to make his
exit he saw that the crowd had increased, in
fact they almost stumbled over each other in
their haste to get into the room so that they
could pour their money in the Golfers of the
firm in order to clear 81 900 for paltry S25.
In the afternoon. after the excitement attend
ant upon the discovery OF the new Golconda,
so to speak, had worn off, some of the invest
ors began to do some thinking. The result was
that dispatch was sent to Tacoma. asking if
such corporation Gs the Michigan Land and
Lumber Company existed in Tacoma. A neg
alive reply was received. This was told to a
member of the firm and he said that the articles
OF incorporation were on file in the State cap.-
tai, Olympia. This did not satisfy three of the
Investors, who demanded the return of their
money. They were told that Craig had gone to
San Francisco with the mornings receipts and
would be back on the noon train to-day.
The investors were not to be bluffed, even If
the firm did ho.d 9 full hand !" so they again
demanded their money, which was this time re-
turned TO them.
In the evening the reporter again called at
the room. Edwards. who is tall man with a
black mustache, said that Craig had been
called away on urgent business, and would
surely return to-day. Edwards further said
tnat ne had never seen the land, but Craig
who had been Ia book keeper in Seattle for the
Northern Pacific Railroad Company, had been
over the ground four times, and knew all
about it.
1t seems rather singular that so much land as
the hrm, claims awaiting presumption on the
liberal terms offered has not been taken up by
people in Washington, or by those who reside
nearer there than do Santa Cruzans
Another inexplicable fact is the reason why
the firm who are entire strangers, should wa mt
10 be the means of so much money being pre-.
sented to our peop.e, just for the aceommoda-
ton OF the Michigan Land and Lumber Com
pany, q corporstiou, it may be safely stated,
which was never heard of before by the men
who paid in their money. without any actual
guarantee beyond that which is given by the
a.. 49, -.