West Virginia argus. [volume] (Kingwood, W. Va.) 1877-1946, 1896-11-05
ABOUT CRIPPLE CREEK.
characteristics Scenes and Incidents
to BE Encountered in the Colo.
RADIO EldOrndO.

! Special Contribution for The AReus.
Cripple Greek is made up almost
entirely Of small frame buildings
occupied by saloons and gambling
houses. Merchandising is oyerdone,
L should say. / saw one grocery
store where twelve clerks were AZ
work. Groceries, dry goods, cloth
ing, etc., are sold very reasonably,
but beer rs sold Ut two glasses for a
quarter; whiskey, the same price.
a gambler is as good as anybody in
Cripple Creek, and saloon keeper
better. The town, however, is not
"tough." You do not see men in
the streets carrying pistols, but tho
gambling games are wide open.
Cripple Creek is in the same coun-
ty (El Paso) with Colorado Springs,
where no liquor can be sold. Colo.
RADIO Springs, however, has five
stock exchanges, two of which are
kept open day and night, like a
restaurant. These exchanges are
always crowded, and the Colorado
Springs people, although so good
about liquor, have no hesitancy in
roGolng the unwary 10y selling them
worthless stocks.
Cripple Greek has electric light
gas and water works. The wafer
comes from an artificial lake on
Pike's Peak, which is only sixteen
miles a%ay. AT night the town re
minds you Of the Midway at The
Worlds Fair. The main street is
five blocks long. There are three
other business streets of about
equal length. A corner lot on this
best street, 15x12O feet, sold lately
for s19 600. A real estate boom
has been added to the mining boom |
and the result is pandemonium.
1t is said ut this season there are
from thirty to forty deaths daily at |
Cripple Creek from pneumoaia,
largely due to exposure. Visitors
are unable to find proper accommo.
dations. and, if man who is not |
accllmated takes pneumonia from
exposure, he Is pretty apt to die.
Hundreds of men keep "bachelors'
hall in cold rooms, and 1.-Two on
improperly cooked food. As the
altitude is very nigh great many
of the tender feet die.
While l was in town ] heard a
man offer $3.50 a month for desk
room in the Office of the Palace
Hotel, the only brick building in
Cripple Greek. The offer was in
dignantly refused. Lots tnat were
worth $500 three months ago are
now being held for So, 900. A fool
IS being born every minute.
From three to fiye hours are re-
CURED TO get chance to inquire at
tho Dostoffice for mail; from two to
three hundred men are in lire con
stantly ut the postoifice, and the
postoffice is full of mail that has
never been distributed. Everybody
is crazy about everything. This is
the rule aC Cripple Greek.
There arc OveG IA thousand in
corporated mining mpanies in
Cripple Greek, and Of this number
less than fifteen yiuld return on
the Investments perhaps you know
that gold mines are not producers,
but actual consumers Of the worlds
wealth. In other words, more
money is spent In gold mining than
is obtained from it; every dollar in
gold dug out the ground costs a
good many dollars: 1t is said that
about sixty Cripple Greek mines
ship ore. but only fifteen pay dIvi-
bends; into the other go mines
money is being poured like water.
Over a thousand companies have
been incorporated, but only fifteen
pay dividends; there are a thousand
OF other 'claims" which are prob
ably worthless. 1t is estimated that
there are 5000 men in the district
earning wages, certainly 1900 Of
them receive their pay, not from
what is produced in Cripple Creek,
but from fools who send money
there.
How to Ward OF an Attack OF Cronp
In speaking Of this much dreaded dis |
case ra--l.. fsf