The herald., 1894-03-04

to pay from the start the interest on the
first mortgage bonds, guaranteed divi.
dends on the preferred stock and in.
terest on the Income bonds. Never was
anything that had not happened more
sure than this"
These income bonds were engraved
and put on the market without q rod OF
railroad being built or dollar to build
II. l do not know how many OF those
bonds were sold, but l saw some OF
them In the hands of purchasers. The
concession upon which this company
was organized wac forfeited, and Mr..
Owen went to Mexico City and obtained
another without subsidies and far less
favorable otherwise. He has repeated
the came operation in this last conces.
sion, and is still selling bonds. There
is no railroad built nor likelihood OF any
being built.
From these sources of obtaining money
ona can see what he 10 realizing from
his scheme. He has made several at
tempts to cell out upon terms that would
make him a millionaire. He has pub
lished his plan OF colonization far and
wide, with 80 much positive assurance
that those who have been victimized are
glad to Escape, even when ruined finan-
cially, and have no heart to expose his
villainiee; while others are not suffi-
ciently interested to go to the trouble
and expense. So he goes unanswered,
and this silence gives general assent.
He has confederates in New York, in
Topolobampo and in the City OF Mexico
who are interested in the success OF his
scheme. This movement OF OWENS is
one OF the deepest schemes OF villainy,
and withal the boldest, that has been
undertaken in modern times.
This brief statement will give your
readers an idea of the motive power
that has resulted in the ruin OF hun
dreds of families, the breaking up Of
many homes, and of suffering and hard
ship beyond language to express.
Mr.. Owen never owned an acre Of
land in Sinaloa, but secured the option
on some 100, 900 acres by a contract to
purchase, and on the strength of it se-
cured possession of the land, and repre-
sented to the world that 1t was his.
The colonists dug ditch by raising q
ditch fund, the Credit Foncier having
nothing to do in it's construction; and
now Mr.. Owen represents to the Mexi-
can government that the ditch belongs
to him. and holds possession by virtue
of his concession. Many OF those who
helped to build the ditch and were de.
pendent upon it to irrigate their crops,
we're compelled to lose them because
Mr.. Owen ordered the water to be shut
off, and for months they were compelled
to haul water in wagons, sometimes a
distance of 10 miles, although q con-
tract had been made between the gov.
ernor of Sinaloa and Mr.. Owen to give
the water every other week to these
people. But the governor had not been
gone three days when Mr.. Owen or
dered the check put in, which remains
under lock and key to this day, or at
least as late as the 4th of January, Oh
which date left.
Some of these statements seem almost
incredible, but they are all true to my
certain knowledge, as l have been there
from the tirst and was director named
in the chart to represent the Pacific
coast.
could say much more in detail, but
this communication is intended to show
the motive OF the whole scheme. Mr..
Owen cares neither for the building OF a
Failfoad nor the establishment of col
ony. 1t ie the millions he expected to
realize, in part as before mentioned, but
most in realizing on the sale of lands he
expected to make in his scheme--lands
that he intended to buy cheap and sell
to colonists at exorbitRnt prices.
Col. ]. A. Strester of Chicago has
bought these lands, and Owen has now
nothing to build his colony upon. These
facts should be made known to the
public.