The Helena independent. [volume] (Helena, Mont.) 1875-1943, 1894-01-22
GROVES MINING COMPANY
Employees Now In Helena Tell How
BLUE Dick" Deceived Them
and Their Friends
Methods Pursued TO Sell the Stock
of the Montana 81 Illinois
Mining Company.
20 Bsoomr Miners, aud 90 Receive
4I05 Month.

500 n Month.
Chaa Porter Grove. more generally known
throughout Montana as "Blus Dick" has
appa emily reached the crisis in bis career
AZ The president Of the MontanA and Him
ois Gold Mining company. tomeihng
like a year ago Grove, DR.. NoTman Croker.
OF Chicago. and Francis Brooks. whose resi-
denea 10 unknown. organized under the
laws Of hontaGa the Montana and Illinois
Gold Mining company. The capital stock |
vas placed a. g. OO0. 600 divided into l.OO0.- /
600 shares al s. each. BeTond the fact Of
its incorporation and Groves somewhat
notorious reputation nothing was known Of
the company or OF it's pToserty. Grove was
known to be the owner OF half dozen or
more prospects in Jefferson county near
Radersburg. situated on what Is known ~
Coon ridge. The nans was given the ridge
by she miners OF the district owing 20 the |
fact that Grove isA coloTed man. some
two months after the organ Eation Of the
company Grove left Montana. The next
hea OF him Was early In November. 1893,
when numerous inquiries we're received in
Helena regarding Grove. who was posing in
Louisville. X ., a. a millionai o Montanian
and abe president Of the aforesaid mining
company. II developed that Grove had
won the Affections of a oolorad girl and the
confidence OF numerous colored people of
both sexes on the strength of his alleged
itch mining properties. He married
the girl and sold the conhdinR oolored
brothers aud sisters large blocks Of the
stock Ht the uniform price OF 50 per share
the par value. Leaving Louisville with bis
bride after d swell wedding. that stirred
Kentucky cOored society to its dsuths,
blue Dick' journeyed 10 Chicago. While
in Kentucky he found that the most lucra-
tive field in which 10 dispose Of mining
stock was in church oil eles. In the Windy
City, therefore. he hunted ~ the pastors
and the pillars OF the oOloTed churches.
Blue Dick" despite his lack of education.
10 very smooth and convincing talker,
, especially on miuing propositions as num-
trous white men Ia Helena can testify. TO
their financial loss. Grove had little DIM
Guilty in arranging for meetings AZ tho
clutches. where he could deliver addresses
: on The subject OF the great fortune that
would come to those Wao would invest In
shares OF the Montana and Illinois Gold
p Mining company. As the result OF these
meetings he sold in Chicago several thou
: sand shares at the regular Trice, 81 per
share. by this time Blue Dloh" and his
: scheme had been pulled quite extensively
c by the eastern papers and purchasers OF
stock began to inquire as 10 when dividends
might be expected. just 40 this point an
p other bright idea struck "Blue Dick.
lie called another meeting, aud
e made proposition 20 the oolorea men In
attendance 20 the effect that he was now
{ ready 20 ope' ate the mines belonging to the
company; and that IL there were any in the
) audience who would like to 90 out to Mon.
tana and work on the mine. II they would
{ ZACH purchase one share OF stock IN the
company he would employ them, paying
( tDem sos month. The proposition was
q eagerly accepted aud Blue Dick made an
. other clean up. A few days afterWard be
selected thirteen Of these men to 60 to the
mines. The men paid THAR own fafe and
accompanied by "Blus Dick" and bis wife
and his wiie's brother, WIN. Howard, the
party came 10 Montana. hrse OF the men
n we're told that they would be located IN
Helena where one OF them would have an
u Office, and the other two would work on a
n gold mine be had In the city limits. This
alleged mine 10 claim that "blue DICK
II located some two years ago on Rodney
N street near state. lie sunk SHAFT on 10,
reporting while doing this, fieh strikes OF
gold ore, and finally sold an intersss IN II
= 20 a white man for a small sum. To this
pfo1e o. he has no title and. 10 IL alleged
e by mining men who have inspected ~, &c
have no valae As q mining pTopeTty. While
1, on the trip to Montana Grove told his men
that instead of part of tho force going q
} Helena they would ali proceed 20 Coon
ridge, and thither they went while theiI
ND tlunks came on 70 Helena Grove
had promised 10 put the men
S, who had never seen mine, IL
charge OF practical mining man
L. Instead OF this DO installed VIM. Howard
who had never been west Of Chicago. al
,C manage OF the p.oi0 ~ The men iron
Chicago found that no preparations has
been made Tor them. They were turns'
into cabin without furniture OF any sor
and shifted for themselves "a best the
could. Grove and his wife stopped 40 tn
m town of RRdeTsbuTg. about eight miles iron
- the NINE for about week and then wen
-. east. The men from Chicago were not pro
- vidsd with any mining tools, nor we're the
70 told 90 do any work on the mine. They IN
70 auired among the white miners living O
ths vicinity ami thsV found that Grove
property consisted OF ave or siI pTospsS
hoes and two fairly wsil developed mine
as that might possibly pay FOR further deVel
opnent. They also found that so far q
~ the residents knew she OnlV money eve
made out OF these properties had bee
w made by Grove selling interests 30 Helen
people. Ia was Nov. IL when thrse men LEI
er Chicago for Montana. 1hey arrived ~ Oh
mine three Gays later. just before Cnris
nj mas when the fret month was up. they n
eeived ON ManHrer Howard. each an 81
or velops containing $40 Ia cash aud ee
ti6cato Tor nineteen shares Of stoek. IN
he made according 20 Groves figures $40
Four OF the men, DR.. J. Brister Jaco
n j. smith. g. Bramwsl and {.
smith. protested vigorously. The
rk wrote 10 W. Il. Arthu', ths secretary OF n
eompsny. NJ Louisville. ny. 60 Dr. Norm
tn Croker. the treasurer. Twenty -seoond an
state streets, Chicago. and TO Ms. MeRoi
IS. eriaou. the general agent, whose othee u
300 DaarGo 10 street, Chicago. To none
n these we're sRy replies received. and on Js
) these four meu quit the mine aud wake
he intu Helena. where they nave since bee
stopp.ng with Duke Dutriueillc, on Fit
r avenue. since coming into town they ha'
carefully Investigated the standing and re
utation OF "Blus Dick aud Saturday nigh
a. result Of tbtss iaVestigstions, tbs
laid they had come TO she cone usion thl
those Who had Invested 10 the stock OF a
Montana aud Illinois Gold Mining CON
paLv had been grossly deceived. Ia
Z We the story as outlined above, AMI 81
~ they did 80 Ia order. n possible, Co prove
q owe Sec wing Others rs he Tad them al
their trends. While these men we're at Q
mine ID Cfoke visited the property. Ia
iaq been s NJ there By tLe stockholders
sc II a. was what Grove re- esented
~, they do nos know what he may have
w 10 tsd 10 the stock no .dsTs. bat thsY
know thst not dollar NO tb Of 90 b
cen done on the mine IN siH months, mol
pound Of ore shipped. The fouT men q
- qeutlemAulg fellows Of conaidefaols educ
- ton DR. Brister being deasist aud ye