The Manning times. [volume] (Manning, Clarendon County, S.C.) 1884-current, 1891-10-21

ness property. every 1Oot OF IL. ana l
can sell YOU q lot there for ten dollars
per foot---away belo~ its worth.
"You say It is close in?'
''Yes, sir, right in town"
about how far is It from here%
Not a bit over :. Iaile.
a mile?" John exclaimed. "Why,
I'G call that tolerably far out fora town
Of sixty or seventy population"
Far out?" Scraggs cried. why,
great goshen, man, it's in. Why, there's
additions laid off two miles beyond that.
This is going to be 4 city, l tell you-a
great western metropolis ~
'Do You think so?''
Think nothing. I know it. That's
a settled fact, and in less than twelve
months from to-day you will see twen-
ty thousand population here. and these
lots am Offering you for ten dollars
foot will be selling at from five to s!N
hundred foot. Think of that, ard tell
me what you can invest money in to
beat it??'
''What is this boom based on, Mr..
SCIdpBS. john >iSNSNi.
Based on solid facts. There is not
a town of any Importance within hun
dred miles OF US, is there?'
',No. there is not" John admitted.
But if he had known, he might have
said that there We're two or three ETn'
q! 4 within that radius that expected
to amount to something, and were. like
Paradise Park. making frantic efforts
to amount to something. But John did
not know this.
..Wen, then" ScragSs went on,
'we've got to have a great commercial
center out here, and we propose to be
it. We've got three or four railroads
planned ont and the companies organ
lied to build them. First, there IS the
Kansas City, Topeka & Paradise Park
line. Second, there is the Chicago,
Omaha & Paradise Park line. Then the
Galveston & Paradise Park line. and
last, the New York, st. Louis & Para
disc Park line. There are other lines,
but we do not mention them. for they
are not what we choose to call certain
ties. Franchises have been granted for
several lines of cable road, and charters
issued for water and gas works. Plans
have been drawn up for dozen or more
brick blocks. and OF course that IS but Il
taste OF what is to follow. II yoa want
to be an Independently rich man, with
more money than you know what to do
with, just invest every dollar you can
rake together, and do it right now.
You'll never have such another chance,
mark my word for that
Scraggs had ratified on at such rate
and with such wild enthusiasm. that
John Green felt quite daZcd, and he
scratched his head and walked Ii" floor
a few times before he could get his
mind into working order. Even then,
when he felt calm and collected, his
mind appeared unbalanced and such
phrases as ''towr lots" 'close in, ten
dollars foot" great metropolis. :"
went dancing through it like imps. But
eventually he collected his scattered
senses sufficiently to recall the business
that brought him to ScraggS' office, and
forthwith he stated it.
I'm sorry, Mr.. Green" Scraggs said,
with shaking of his head, but I
couldn't possibly accept your money.
The mortgage will have to run its time
before it can be paid.
81 would like to stop the interest,
John replied, "and have the money,
and cannot use it otherwise.
"Can't?" exclaimed Scraggs. "If /
had it I could mighty soon invest it.
Why, what have l been telling you?
Here, buy lots, man. You'd as well
turn thousand dollars or SO as any
body else. You can make five or six
hundred per cent. on that money as
easy as not. Do ike everybody else
like your neighbors out there-and in
| vest here"
John was about to offer some objec-
ton, but before he could say anything
the door opened and seven or eight men
came in, all anxious to make purchases
of lots Scraggs had talked them up
earlier in the day, and they had been
out to see the additions, and now came
| back full of enthusiasm.
John listened to their talk, and, after
they went out, listened to Scraggs some
more, and at last the fever began to
take on him. All his neighOors who
had mortgages on their homes and
couldn't pay them because they were
not due were investing in town lots,
and he supposed that if everybody was
investing he might as well do so, too.
If it worked out right it was 4 grand
opportunity to get start in the world
and build him q nice home and place
his wife and child outside the pales
of want Yes, he believed that he'd
invest, since he couldn't pay off the
debt He told Scraggs so, and in no
| time Scraggs rad his papers out ready
| to write up the contract and get it ali
safe before somebody else got all the
| choice lots. John thought he'd better
go home and talk the matter over with
Mary first, but another rush Of Gus
toners and another sale Of q dozen lots
decided him that delay was dangerous,
so he told ScraSgs to go on and fix up
the contract then and there.
Scraggs. by the way, was q typical
| western real estate agent-in some par
ticulars, at least. He was full of busi-
ness, unsparing Of his talk, bland, smil-
ing and wildly enthusiastic. lie was a
hustler from the word go, and he never
| tired OF talking up and showing up the
advantages of his town. 1t came as
natural to him TO figure up enormous
| profits on investments in town lots as it
! did to eat and sleep. and he always made
| it so plain that the wonld-be investor
| could almost see the profits sticking out.
| He always made each customer feel that
he was giving him 4 decided advantage
! over all other customers by letting him
him have lots that he had reserved tor
his own special tooth, so to speak.
! 1t must not be inferred that Scraggs,
or for that matter the average western
! real estate agent, was or is dishonest.
| l,o1 l,+c >f 1,,,Sjnnsc and Cnc-