The Mount Holly news. [volume] (Mount Holly, Burlington Co., N.J.) 1891-1942, 1894-05-08
Attemnt to Swindle.

Two confidence men attempted to swim
die Judge Ephraim P. Emson, last week,
by the gold brick" scheme, but it did
not work About two weeks ago a man
called at Judge Emson's house, and asked
to see him on important business, but was
told that he was out of town. A few days
later the same man, recognized by the
farm hands, drove by a field where the
Judge was at work, but the stranger did
not stop, nor give any indication that he
was looking for anybody. Soon after
another man drove up. This fellow
stopped and asked for Judge Emson The
latter made himself known, and the
stranger requested private interview on
important business.
He introduced himself as Elijah Thomp
son, of Flagstaff, Arizona, a miner, unable
to read or write, but the owner of great
riches. He told the Judge long tale of
the discovery of one of the lost gold mines
of the Aztecs, through the accidental find
ing of an old parchment map, which had
been made when the mine was hidden
! from the Spanish invaders. There were
three partners who made the discovery of
this Ell Dorado; and one of them had
died. His name was Emson, and his
dying request was that his partners should
send news of his death to his eastern rel
atives He had, he said, brother Eph-
rain living near Mount Holly New Jersey.
Thompson and his partner had loved
Emson as a brother, for he was square"
man. So they had gotten right smart
pile" of gold nuggets together and come
east to find his brother. They were hon.
est, and wanted Emson's heirs to have
the one-third interest in the mine. Both
had come east, first to New York, then to
Mount Holly. While at the latter place
they had learned where Judge Emson
lived and there too his partner had been
taken ill, and he had left with him most
of the gold. But he had several thousand
dollars of samples with him, just as they
came from the mine-gold so pure that 1t
could be picked from the crumbling
quartz.
Judge Emson, who had been listening
patiently, here interrupted him to tell |
him there must be a mistake. He had |
had but two brothers. One died as boy |
of IL years in Ohio; the other as captain
of vessel In the Savannah river, aged 80.
But the confidence man was not in the
least daunted by this. At first he said
there could be no mistake; but the Judge
was obdurate Then he changed his tao
tics. There was enough wealth in their
mine to make three men as rich as Fair
Flood and Mackay. No one would know
that Judge Emson was not the heir of the
other Emson, and why shouldn't he be.
There were very few people of that name
in fact the Judge was the first one he
had found in the East, and his partner
the only one he had known in the West.
But even this hattering and certainly
offer had no effect upon the
Judge, although Thompson said he want
ed no money to develop the mine; and
only asked the Judge to go with him to
Mount Holly to see his partner, and then
if he wasn't satisfied to go West and see
the mine. He also showed letters of rec
purporting to be from
prominent citizens of Arizona and Cali
fornia for equally prominent New Workers.
Judge Emson declired to bite, and the
left. Soon after he had gone, the
man who had driven past short time be-
fore, was noticed going toward New
Egypt. He picked his pal up and they
went to New Egypt where they took sup
per, and left town on the eight O'Clock
train. One of the men was recognized as
a fellow who visited New Egypt last sum-
mer and wanted to see Judge Emson on
very important business, but failed to see
the gentleman, who was away from home.