The Indianapolis journal. [volume] (Indianapolis [Ind.]) 1867-1904, 1895-12-04
MINING STOCK CRAZE
A NOTE OF WARNING WHICH INvEs-
TORS MAY DO WELL TO HEED.
British Syndicate Said to BE Booming
Worthless stock and Selling to
Credulous Capitalists.

British Syndicate said To BE booming
Worthless stock and Selling to
CreduIous Capitalists.
Pittsburg Dispatch.
The expose in the Dispatch Of a syste-
matte attempt to boom blind pool mining
stock all over the country. through news
papers and INSCRIPTIONS promoters. has al
ready found verification. A special telegram
from Cripple Creek lays the chief sin on
the shoulders of British syndicate.
Beware OF stock in, gold-mining COM
panies that is selling for few cents a
share" These were the words OF James At
well. cashier Of the Plttsburg postoffice.
Mr.. Atwell is interested in mining prop
erty in the Cripple Creek district, and Wis.,
tied that region and made a careful exami-
nation of the gold field. Mr.. Atwell said,
further:
Cripple Creek is undoubtedly the most
wonderful gold camp In the United States.
Some of the ore is of a low grade, but the
cost of labor and of smelling has been 50
reduced in recent years that ore yielding
SIS a ton will pay for the mining. The sue
cess of some of the mines. and the general
circulation or the fact that Cripple Creek
is full of gold have given the sharpers their
opportunity. Recently many wildcat COM
panes have been organized which have
bought or leased property in the Cripple
Creek region, but outside the gold belt and
not worth a continental These companies
have big capital stock, on paper only,
and they are floating their shares In East
ern cities for the purpose OF catching suck
ers. These shares are not listed on the Colo
A.. T;-,fn III
are quoted at only few cents on the dol
lar. Such stock is of account. The par
value of mining stock is 81 share, and the
stock of mines which are really valuable
is quoted at a high figure. some OF 1T being
worth 81 and more a share. Considerable
of this worthless stock Is being pushed IN
seems TO be an idea that great fortunes
are. to be made in anything that is called
gold-mining property
HEADQUARTERS IN THE WEST.
| No mining companies merely for the pur-
| pose of milking the market have been or
| gained in Pittsburg. These companies have
| their headquarters i'm Colorado, either in
| Denver, Colorado Springs or Cripple Creek.
| Agents of some Of them have been operat-
ing in this community, and considerable
| quantity of wildcat stock has recently
been sold in Allegheny City at / cent
share. Reputable brokers deny that they
are meddling with such stock, but the
| men who are handling them seem to be-
| lieve that the people of the Northside are
| more gullbie than the people Of Pittsourg.
| They have been working especially among
| tn Germans and have particular pre-
| objection for widows who have money to
| invest. Any person who buys mining stock
| at less than ID cents snare is almost
certain to lose every cent invested. and
| even at few cents above that figure any
return is extremely doubtful: -
/ of
| them circulars from Colorado stock brok-
| ers which are highly rose-colored, and oc-
paper Which aney has ai been beong Cripple
| Creek. This often brings down the game.
Colorado brokers in mining stocks send
this city. These circulars usually 60 into
| the waste basket. but some of them were
fished out yesterday and given to me. They
| is the central point where most of the dea.-
! ing in Cripple Creek stock is DONE and these
SroReas The s Colorado springs Mining Stock
| Association has an exchange. where the
/ trading is done Twenty-tfree mining COM
| own really good property, have their stock
| listed on this exchange. Even some of this
| listed stock is quoted at a r.diculousiy low
| figure.
BUT TEN HAVE PAID DIVIDENDS.
There are but ten of the horde of gold
mining companies at Cripple Creek which
| Globe Mt Rosa, Pharmacist, Portland.
Union. Elkton. Enterprise Moose. Nugge,
| and Victor. Elkton and Mt. Rosa have not
| paid anything since last winter. Pharmacist
/ has not paid dividend since jan 10, 1893.
| It's stock sells for Is to 16 cents on the do.-
| lar. Portland stock is quoted at more than
| S. but 1t is the only one of even the divi-
dend-paying mines whose stock Is above
| par There is not much of its stock on the
| market Ii has paid half a million dollars In
| dividends, it's last payment being cents
Most of the mining stocks are not listed
| on -he Colorado Springs Exchange Some
| bat most of them are simply rainbows.
| They have high-sounding names, but low
sounding Of There ostun is f9 9fs an
| legged capitalization is $4,000. Nov. Is its
stock was quoted In Colorado Springs at
i Il had i''e erept up the extra half mill to the
| even penny Then there is the Goldstone,
mon less c than the cent?! sdea share Are
cents; the Eureka, 11a cent; the Golden
| Dale. y cent; the Magma Charter. cents;
/ cents: the Star Of the West, cents, and so
| on. Are these names not attractive?
Within the last three or four weeks T9sla :. a
| Cripple Creek merely for speculative. pur-
poses. Many of these concerns are simply
| of England. A gentleman who has inter-
| ests in the gold field said yesterday:
LONDONER is EASY GAME
'.I learned only few days ago that GER
| tain mining shares are selling in London for
| f5 sterling, or SIS. You can buy that very
stock in Cripple Creek, where the poverty
of the property is known. for l cent a
/ share. That shows how the English people
| are being bled.''
There are indications that some smart
| Englishmen are going into the bleeding
business On their own account. A special
| telegram received yesterday from Cripple
| Creek says: 1T is now known that rich
| British syndicate is gathering up cheap
and worthless claims, and stocking each
for from s., 100000 to 5000. 600. Their scheme
| is to list them on every exchange list, rep
| utable If they can, disreputable IL they
must, and then making wash sales among
themselves. In this way they succeed in
| they unload on the suckers, the latter
| learning too late that he holds a lot of
worthless paper on claims clear on the out
side of the paying streaks. Within the
| past six weeks innumerable suspicious COM
| panies have been springing up, so fast that
no track can lie kept Of them. Many of
these have sold their alleged claims to for
eigners. believed to represent the big
| bunko syndicate and its many agents. 1t Is
believed they intend to milk both countries
completely ere the Cripple Creek craze dies
really valuable properties, have ever been
asked to name price by these Intending
swindlers."
Reputa bic mining stock brokers whose