The morning news. [volume] (Savannah, Ga.) 1887-1900, 1892-06-27
HOW Ha STRUCK MILLIONS.
The Famous De Lamar Tells How He
Became Rich.
From the S. Louis Post. Dispatch

The Famous De Lamar Tells How He
Became Rich.
From the 81. Louis Post Dispatch
A fashionably dressed gentleman, appar-
emily about 40 years of age, with brown
hair, auburn mustache and pointed impe-
rial; with quiet, calm eyes; a. fiorid COM
plexion. showing traces OF considerable sun
tan not yet bleached out, dropped into the
office of Col. r. C. kerens, in the Oriel
building yesterday morning about 10 o'clock.
he was the dramatically famous De lamar,
"the Monte Christie of Washington So
ciety," as correspondents have loved to call
him during the last season in the national
capital. He had come into view in the
Washington armament like a comet. Fresh
from Idaho. the owner of an Idaho gold and
silver mountain that had already yielded
him fortune Of several million dollars, and
was developing richer every day, he would
have had no trouble in becoming II Wash
iDgton lion.
He was introduced into swell Washington
society, and always appearing provokingly
cool and selt-possessed, hs became the SEN
sation of the day.
The romantic mine owner was not in
clined to deadhead his way In return for
the tlattering reception of the Washington
"swell setn he gave bachelor entertainments
that were the talk of the town. The most
gorgeous of these was a party at the Ar
lington that cost Il cool $4,000, which
is described by Washington cores~
pondents second only to the bona
parte ball" in magnifioence. When
Patti went to Washington De Lamar
filed four boxes with the favored young
ladies OF his acquaintance. He gave other
frequent theater parties, luncheons, etc, aud
at the close of the Washington season con-
fessed that be had spent 10000 in the Macy
whirl of social life. But he also confessed
that he was extremely bored by 10 all ;
laughed at the dandy young foreign at
tacheS OF legations whom he had met. and
also at the weakness OF American girls for
these exquisite foreigners, and his original
remarks on these subje were published In
the Washington correspondence of many
papers. Then De Lamar calmly left WASH
ington.
His appearance in st. Louis yesterday
was the next event in his brilliant orbit
after leaving the Washington planetary
system. He spent the day here as the guest
of Col. Kerens, dined at that gentleInans
home, and later last night left for New
York, where he has engaged passage for
Europe on one Of the Cunard liners.
He said 60 the reporter: IAN this stuff
about my Washington season has been
printed again and again. Ill tell you how
/ found and developed the De Lamar mines
in Idaho:
''Some six years ago was prospecting
around in Idaho. It so ohanced that on
these prospecting trips | visited an aban-
doned mountain, six miles below Silver
City, Idaho. found there many old pros
pecting claims. gopher holes dug many
years ago, learned, by some of the after
ward bonanza kings of the Comstock lode,
who used to work on War Eagle mountain
before the Comstock lode was discovered
Those men had eventually not liked the
formation Of the present De Lamar mount
ain, and had abandoned their work there.
81 arrived at different conclusion, how
ever. ! saw the most unnistakable indica.
tions of valuable ore bodies on that
mountain, and at once began prospecting in
earnest. was quiet about it, too. For six
weeks l slept out in the bush, every day
closely tracing the mineral indications
without drawing attention TO the work /
was doing. l finally concluded that the
mineral belt extended for nearly two miles
in length by one In with, and then l began
the work of getting possession OF all that
property. / bought up every one OF the old
claims, covering it at prices ranging from
800 for one claim to 1922, 900, the price paid
for the best claim as 1t then stood. After
doing this | secured a mile OF mill sites, laid
out the present town Of De Lamar. secured
all the water rights and surveyed a tunnel
entirely through the mountain, some $500
feet in length, but only at a depth of 300
feet, while the mountain lies 1900 feet
above the creek below.
II next started gangs of men at work
both sides, pushing the tunnel through with
out losing time.
THE people all around that section of the
country laughed at and pitied me- They
thought / was just throwing money down a
hole In the ground never to get it back
again. The place had already been pros
pected over and abandoned. 1t was no
good, they said. Why, they almost thought
had gone insane with the mining fever
and was after millions that existed only in
my imagination.
but within few months after beginning
that work cut my first vein twenty EIGHT
feet wide, averaging $50 per ton In gold.
This alone made the mines worth $500, 900
without any further strikes, but at he same
time as that vein was reached, indications
of silver were also discovered and followed
up. Within six weeks S480, 900 of shipping
ore was taken out that asseyed as high as
So. 900 per ton.
"Then knew that was millionaire. |
established the,town DeLamar, built mill,
tram railway, a hotel, a boarding house,
laborers' houses and fine brick school
house costing $4,000, which / made a
present Of 10 the town that bore my name
"Since then the mines have yielded several
million dollars in ore, and at last accounts
there was more In sight than has yet been
taken out altogether. Last year the ore
reserves increased some SO, s01.OO0. Since
then l have put the property into an En-
glish company. in which l will retain the
largest half interest, and have now retired
from the active management of the mine
II was born and brought up on the sea. l
have always had a fondness for it, and one
time in my life | was captain OF a merchant
vessel. The rest of my life will be devoted
to travelling for pleasure, mainly uDon the
ocean. | am now on my way to Europe,
and IN England 1 shall have yacht built,
in which intend TO knock pretty well about
the whole world. That will be pleasure
enough for me. l had a taste OF swell
society. 1t is good enough for just a
'whirl. as you might say, but it gets lit
tie ridiculous after that"
MEDICAL