Morning appeal. [volume] (Carson City, Nev.) 1877-1906, 1893-07-13
THEORY AND PRACTICE.
A Financier who Tried to See
What Silver was Worth.

| yer tlcket was placed III the Helu
last fall, | have been an enthusiast
on the subject of free silver, but to-
day l am free TO confess that as
silver tinancier L am as rank failure
as ever sprouted in Douglas county
When the news came that silver
coinage had ceased in Indiaa, |
placed little reliance in the stories of
the depreciating effect it would have
upon our silver, but as the days
| passed | found the decline had come
to stay, with the worst to hear from.
l noticed that every drop of few
cents, was followed in like manner
by fall in wheat values until now L
/ see no more show for the wheat
raiser than the silver miner; for an
ounce of silver will buy just as many
pounds of wheat to-day, as it would
when was double the present price.
| But what I started out to explain
| was, my failure in bit of silver
| scheming.
In the running of my ranches and
timber interest, the payroll is large
and a. l had been haniing out gold
every month, with just enough silver
to make proper change, brilliant q
idea struck me. This idea was the
cause of many sleepless nights and
hours of mental worry, but the time
came to act, and at it | went with
vim.
1t was clear proposition, [ ar
! gued Ito myself), that any fool might
! see the opportunity as | saw it; only
others had not awakened to it
as soon as | had, therefore what
would soon become an every day oc-
currence, and immensely profitable,
must have a starter, a father SO to
speak, and I resolved to be its
father. The only drawback to my
plan wac the fact of ready cash not
being at hand for the grand scoop,
In Stunning up, | found | owned
about thousand dollars III small
sums around the valley, and at the
end OF the mouth would owe as much
more, and as my plans insured
these payments by an outlay of a
little over o. lalf the amount | felt
easy on that score. But the simple
payment of these was not sufficiently
large for man of my capabilities, so
| decided to make big killing and
make more debts. In doing SO, /
had to do some fire figuring for
most of the people of whom | Dor
rowed money or bought cattle and
grain, insisted on taking note, and
every one of them read payable in
Z. S. gold coin"
| Owing to my superior knowledge l
suppose, it was not difficult to con-
vince my neighbors that current coin
was really what was meant, and the
substitute was made. But when
| got over the line into California,
although only few miles, the senti-
ment changed and the gold clause
busted many trade.
succeeded, however, in buying
some eight thousand dollars worth of
marketable plunder principally on
my notes at 60 days. You see
didn't care to give long time notes,
for the simple reason that l e1
pected to pay them all in less than a
week, but no ono was told of this
for fear of their catching on to my
racket.
| actually felt sorry, and was
nearl y moved to tears in one instance
where | bought forty head of fine
steers of man, at really the market
price, but i'll my own heart knew
they were only costing me about one
half the amount, but l restrained my
; emotion, and took in another lot at
better figures (for me)that afternoon.
Ten days Of this work and prepared
, to clean up.
[ lacked ABOUT two thousand IL
!, cash, but had no difficulty in borrow
ing that of neighbor, only that
!, thought him mighty particular IL
:, suggesting that he having better
: pasture than mine, that | might JUS
as well run in some eighty head Of
= steers for awhile. This party is 4;
good silver man too, and he proved
= it by writing the note payable in sill
yer money of the United States.
He would have made good schoo
= ! trustee too, last Fall, but he would