Cottonwood report. [volume] (Cottonwood, Idaho) 1893-1901, 1893-09-15
A zoo BBL, flzZIf'
The Grand Bubble Bursts,
and Cottonwood Reaps
the Whirlwind.

Last Spring two strangers ap-
peared ON our streets, and intro
duced themselves as A. j. WD-
NER and y. CoATNEY, Of Col
ton. They claimed to represent
a company of capitalists, con-
sisting of BARNETT, Lively and
themselves, who were looking
for location for large -four
ing mill. They were "none O
yer small kind" and were not
doing business on an ordinary
scale. In fact "They were going
to build mill right here in
Cottonwood, which would eclipse
anything in the State-a 200
bbl. day institution" ''They
would spend $4,000 in putting
up and equiping the mill, would
create cash market for all the
wheat Camas Prairie's produc-
tive soil could raise, would grind
100000 bu, per year, ETC., etc"
These and other assertions Of
like caliber, pulled the wool over
the eyes of Cottonwood s citizens
and caused them to fall froH
grace. From being men OF sober
judgement and careful calcula-
tion, they got a little off, and
talked historically of "The Mill
"The Bank" Corner Lots, ,""Wa-
ter Works." "Motor Lines, 2
Electric Lights" etc. etc. In
some OF their mill-dreams and
midnight visions they saw
Little Cottonwood stretched out
into a mighty city of-of-of-er-oi
of one hundred thousand or so
and themselves Cresus like, en-
riched by the tremendous up.
heavel in real estate prices
But, alasl alasl those COLDER
dreams have departed; thei1
opulent corporeity "died born
in" and now lie buried in thu
Stygian grave of oblivion.
These philanthropic capital
ists,i not wishing to appea
selfish, generously and incident
= ally offered to allow the peopl
of Cottonwood and Camas Prair
lie to put in the mere sum G
$4,000; just to pay interest o.
the investment you know. Som
}. of our leading men got out an
- rustled for the gang, an
: through their efforts, we are in
u fermed $4,000 bonus was sui
4 scribed. After exhausting th
II peoples patience by the oft re
peated and m,onotonous feques
for more subsidy, the eloquen
+ A. j. WIDNER announced tina
"The company have decided t
build the mill at Cottonwood
and that excavation for tn
:. building will commence with
two weeks" This was Jul
Is 22nd, They then left for tn
lower country after assuring ou
citizens that they would retur
n within ten days and begin wor
' on that monster mill
Now ensued protracted an
painful period Of silence and al
sence; WHICH has heightened int
a. weeks and months. AS tt
mon grew apace and OF
Capitalists" with their '''ente
prise failed to materialize,
I'd gradually dawned on our befut
n died minds that we had bee
of duped by a gang of schemir
adventurers-that Cottonwoo
had sown in good works an
s. faith, but her reward was II
q whirlwind.
. Persistent inquiry has fails
c' to elicit the true cause OF tt
failure of these men to redee
be their promises. 1t is suppose
by some that the inability to $
cure a clear title to the lar
selected for the mill site, pr
IN n! vented their building. Viii
IN others think, and probably CO
Ge rectly, that their bank accou
ms consisted chiefly Of the "boh
papers" given by the people
tes Idaho Co. On. account OF t
r present financial stringenc
they no doubt failed to feall
legal tender oh the Strength
Camas Prairie paper, and cons
T, ouently were left without tn
;. $3.50, 900" a.
IT. But whatever the cauFe
on failure may have been, the bur
= ing of this over-stretched bubI
III has rudely awakened us fr'