The Indianapolis journal. [volume] (Indianapolis [Ind.]) 1867-1904, 1895-04-05
SPRECK ELS AND SUTRO
MILLIoNArREs JOIN IN 4 FIGHT
AGAINST c. r. HUNTINGTON.
story of How These Two Fatheriand
Products Acquired wealth After
Landing Poor I'm the United States
New York Press.

gig of time that arrays Sutro and Spreckeis
two of the most famous millionaires of the
Pacific coast, against Coils p. Huntington
and the Southern Pacific Railroad Company.
Though the Sugar King and the Tunnel
Magician have never been opponents. in
the knowledge of the writer, they have
never before been allied. Now according
to the reports they are both interested in
the building of the projected railroad, on
which work is soon to be begun, that will
connect Salt Lake City and San Francisco,
tap the great fruit region of California
and so prove potent competitor of Mr..
Huntington's Southern Pacific railroad.
The careers of these men have been some
what alike, but their personalities are quite
dissimlar. Sutro is one of California
most picturesque characters. His eyes are
black and cleaning and his snow white
hair and whiskers and swarthy complexion
would suggest an Arab sheik if only he did
not shave his chin. He has always been a
fighter and he has been noted figure ever
since he succeeded in his stupendous tunnel
scheme some twenty years ago. He is apt
to be a bit theatrical in whatever he does.
Claus Spreckels is a much less distin-
guished looking man than Sutro. In fact.
the Sugar King would hardly attract at
tention in a crowd. He is of medium
height, dresses neatly but unobstrusvely.
and has typical German face. His curly
hair and beard, once blonde, are now white.
but his eye is still clear and his skin re-
markedly smooth for man of his age.
Adolpn Sutro came into being sixty-five
years ago at Aix-la-Chapelle, near the
River Wurm, in Rhenish Prussia. where his
father was a maker of cloths. There were
eleven children in the family and Adolph,
being the eldest, was early set TO work as
siSting his father. After the revolution OF
1S4S, the father having died in the mean
time, the lads mother decided to come to
the new world with her numerous brood.
They landed in Baltimore and an attempt
was made by the young man, then nine-
teen years Old to get into some ofeapa, ION
1y. There is record as to how much or
a success he made in the East but IL was
been long in the country he determined to
join the tide of gold seekers then setting
Californiaward.
WAY TO MAKE MONEY.
When he reached the Golden Gate he soon
decided that, though he wanted gold quite
as much as he did when he left the Attain
tic coast, the actual digging of the yellow
metal was not at all to his taste. Besides.
as he shrewdly observed, comparatively
few of those who dug gold kept it, even If
they were measurably successful Those
who bought and sold, however. were max
ing money rapidly and keeping it, and so
he concluded to buy and sell.
But as his available capital was next to
nothing, he could not go into trade on an
extensive scale, nor in q line in which credit
of any consequence would have to be given.
So he. opened retail tobacco store. This
store he tended himself. and he. has more
than once told his intimate friends how
joyfully he took in a little gold dust from
a burly miner, just returned from the
sold over the counter and how carefully he
counted and weighed the proceeds of the
first days business.
Before Sutro left Europe and while still
a boy, he became greatly interested in geol-
ogy and metallurgy, and made careful
sciences. This was lucky.
AS soon as his little tobacco store was in
goo aan and sera ne his studies
Selling every opportunity that offered it.
self between customers to pore over the
volumes.
At the same time he listened eagerly for
every bit of information he could get re-
California. and long before the gold seek
ers had learned how profitable 1t would be
to turn from surface digging to delving for
the treasures that were quartz enveloped
in the bowels of the earth, he had decided
that quartz mining was. to be the mining
of the future. Had he been in possession
ners AS he was still comparatively poor.
however, he stuck to his tobacco store and
THE SUTRO TUNNEL.
His opportunity came in 1864. The men
who had control of the wonderful Com
stock mines had gone deep into the rocks
with their shafts that 1t cost more to work
them and pump them dry. so that the work
men could toll in safety from the incoming
waters, than the output of the mines
amounted to. Sutro made trip to the
Comstock and closely examined the shape
of the mountain in which its shafts were
sunk After s5veral weeks inspection he de-
cided that the plan he had half formed be-
fore he went was feasible. and he went to
under the mountain to the lowest level of
the mines, and let the water. whose pump
ing was so costly, drain away of its own
bore the hole. to be sure, but the owners of
the mine would gladly pay well for its
use as a drain, and in his mind he saw
vast profits rolling into the Sutro pockets
Then began the first really big fight of
his life; the. first contest in which the
poohed his plans. Some of them even made
fun of him, and others said his intellectuals
trouble him, and he was SO full of enthusi-
asm that after a while he began to receive
charter from the Legislature: shortly after
that he had 100000 raised. and straigntway
he set men and drills and steam engines
1t was years after that time, however,
before the last piece OF rock clipped
legislative charter and 100000 capital were
as nothing to the fight that came in 1870.
In this contest he had against him the
cation in Congress from the Pacific coast
and the firms that worked the mines and
the mills. and the scene of the battle was
transferred to Washington.
1t is possible that he would have avoided
this fight If he could have done SO, but to
shrink then meant ruin. His ready money
and all he could borrow had been absorbed,
and he had but one piece of real estate left.
1t was in White Pine county, but he sold
it for $3.50 and went to Washington the
proceeds being his only available cash. A
bill had been introduced, the passage of
which would have rendered the tunnel of
no value to its protector. There were
many charges that money was used on
both sides before the matter was decided.
but, at any rate, the bill was not passed
and Sutro returned to the slope triumphant.
The completed tunnel cost over IS, 000000
and soon after Il was in working order
Sutro sold out. The Comstock lode little
later became legs productive. and the
in the tunnel have realized
very little of late from their Investment
SINCE THE TUNNEL EPISODE.
With the money realized from the sale
Of the tunne! stock, Sutro bought land in
San Francisco right and left. 1t was in the
times OF sand Lot'' kearney that he made
his real-estate Investments. and few knew
where or how mgch Sutro bought He Sc
cured 200 acres, little of 1t occupied then.
AZ NOS ain all hr,f1r