The morning news. [volume] (Savannah, Ga.) 1887-1900, 1895-10-13
MEIGS AS MONTE CHRISTIE.
THE METEORIC CAREER OF A FU-
GITIVE IN SOUTH AMERICA.
He ReckOned His Profits in Millions,
and Was said to BE. the Richest
Man, south of the Isthmus-LaVIsh
TN I'M m emf
From the Chicago Reeord.

Topeka, kan--Gen. John {. Caldwell or
Topeka, member of the state board OF
pardons. probably knows more of South
American history and of the generation OF
men Of that continent now passing Off
the stage than any other citizen of the
United States. The purpose of this let
ter is to tell the story, as Gen. Caldwell
knows it. Of a fugitive from California
justice-of man who dealth in millions
and who, in his daily lifeg gave away
fortunes as common men. gfte' a penny
at street crossings-of Harry Meigs, who
in the eos fled from San Francisco u
debtor to the public treasury and hunted
by the sheriff.
you have heard Of Henry Meigs. of
course" said GenesC aIdwe4l, but have
you heard his story? It is the story of
Monte Cristo in. flesh and blood. If the in
cidents of Harry AIeig's life could be writ
ten he would rank in romance along with
Dumas creation. ~s-
Il first knew Henry Meigs in 1869, when
1 went to Chile as consul at Santiago. He
had been there several years. He began
life at Albany, n. Y. where he kept d
small lumber yard. But that Was not a
business for a man of his financial genius.
and when the booming period was on IN
California he went there and began to OPP
crate. He was popular and he soon won
the friendship and confidence of the peo-
pie. He was made treasurer of the city
and county of San Francisco He was
| the custodian of many thousands of dot
lars in addition to the fortunes left by de-
ceased persons pending the administration
| of their estates. There was so mucn
money in the vaults and he had such
! firm hold on public confidence that ne
began to believe that he had some sort
| of an equity in the gold that dailytpourec
| into him. Friends, who had helped him
| into Office appealed to him for temporary
| loans, and he yielded rather than offend
them. Then possibly the spirit of specu-
| lation seized him and he may have taken
for himself. But no matter what became
| of the money, it was the same old story.
He looted the treasury, his friends failed
| TO restore what they had borrowed, ana
| there was nothing left for him but flight
| Il do not think Meigs took much money
| with him to Santiago. People say that he
| was looked upon as an adventurer even
| before his story was known, but his
genius soon found the opportunity. He
| experience in railroad construction-not
| even the knowledge of a common country
! surveyor-he nevertheless turned his at
| tention to LAT kind of work. He began
| by completing. los miles of railroad from
| Valparaiso to Santiago. A mountain
range lies between the two cities and an
| English company had built the road to
Llaiai, town situated at the foot of the
mountains. This is half way, and it was
!
mountains that must be overcome dis
couraged the English and they abandoned
| the enterprise.
But the Chilians wanted it completed
| to their capital, and Meigs, grasping the
| opportunity, undertook ii. 1t was a great
feat of engineering; the like had never be-
! fore been attempted in South America. An
important part of the contract was the
| question of time. Meigs was required to
| perform the work within a given time,
| with the understanding that If ne made
/ shorter work of II he was to receive an
| enormous bonus for every day saved.
/ There was a small fortune in every day,
| but it seemed to the Chilians to be an
| impossible undertaking, and the govern
,ment unhesitating accepted Meigs' terms.
| This road was completed and the cars
running to Santiago many days before the
| time fixed in the contract, and Meigs made
| Sl,0OOOO0 or more out of it. His principal
| gain was on the time saved. He taught
| those people the science of railroad con-
struction. The route lay over high di-
/ vides, through tortuous canons, and across
mountain torrents, but Meigs found en-
| gineers equal to the task. He filed the
| mountains with men, and while the Chilli
ans were still doubling the mans ability
| to perform he had bored tunnels through
| the solid rock, shelved the road along the
| streams, and was knocking at the gates of
Then began a career of social splen-
| dor. His wife had died soon after his ar
| rival in Chill. and he placed his widowed
sister at the head of his household. AZ
| ter his first railroad success there was
] magnificent quinta, or suburban home at
| Santiago. 1t was a structure of great
beauty and fabulous cost. wooden
staircase cost $4,000, and the entire cost
| of the house probably reached 81 600 600.
| Having completed this palace Meigs rested
while from active life, contenting him
| self with social successes.
| Then Meigs began to fall short of
| funds, and to retrieve his fallen fortune he
put up his quinta at rattle, enlisting the
aid of a French advenrurer. Many Chill
| ians, anxious to help Meigs, took chances.
and when the lucky number came out of
| the wheel it CHANGED to be held by the
1 Frenchman. The transaction was crook
| ed, but the Chilians were unwilling to be-
| live it until the quinta reverted to Meigs
after that Megs' luck seemed to turn in
| Chilli. He continued to own the quinta,
| but aside from that he had little.
'He next looked to Peru as a fleld Of
| operations and l was told that he was
| compelled to borrow 1000 to defray the
expenses of a journey there. His reputa-
| ton had preceded him, and the Peruvians
| The most notable were the Oroya and the
| Arequipa roads. The former is from Lima
toNthe crest of the Andes Mountains, the
| design being to connect with Amazon nav
| igation and so to the Atlantic. He ac-
/ complished the work, the difficult feats of
| engineering attracting the admiration of
the world. But the enterprise did not
| prove profitable to the government. The
| other road was from Mollenda to Are
| quipa, in the central part of Peru, beyond
| the coast range. This road passes over
an altitude of 1900 feet.
| }"AIeigs made millions in Peru. At one
| time he had contracts with the govern
ment in his own name amounting to $780,
| 100000. He told me t-tIar-rr11-that his
pay roll was 100000 a week. And yet
| Meigs was not a railroad engineer. In
| fact, he was no engineer at all. But he
| had in his service.tha-beSt- American en-
| gneers, to whom he paid large salaries,
| and on the successful completion of a
road a larg bonus in addition. AS for
| instance, the engineer who completed the
| road to Arequipa, in addition TO a salary
| of $40, 600 a year, received a gift OF 100000.
| Upon the completion of the Arequipa
road he chartered two large socean-going
| steamers of the Pacific Steam sNaviga-
| ton line, fitted them With wines and pro-
Visions and invited the entire congress
4 of Peru, all the national officers and
prominent men, to be. his gnssts at the
/ celebration of the opening 81 athe road.
| To amuse the leisure hours OF this dis
| tinguished company he took along an e.
| cellent Italian circtass company. All the
notables of Peru lived for a fortnight as
| the guests of Mr.. Meigs. Champagne
\ flowed as freely as water. He had beau
| tiful medals of gold, silver, and bronze
struck in commemoration of the event.
| These medals he distributed by thou
| sands. The cost to Meigs of this splen-
i did entertainment was not less than