The Indianapolis journal. [volume] (Indianapolis [Ind.]) 1867-1904, 1896-08-30
ROMANCES OF THE MINES
HOW CARPENTER sTRATTON IL
MOST LOST THE INDEPENDENCE.
Half "a Million DOLLAR Mine Sold for a
80 Grocery BiIi-Ups and Downs
of Victor and Portland.

cAC 4-sVV A4Ch III SlipBiC SlCths dnQ lOiiy
10000 of them are mourning over the for
tunes they nave lost. You meet every day
miners who will tell you how near they
came to owning the Portland, the INDIE
pendence. the Victor or other big mines
which are now turning out tens of thou
sands of dollars a month. Some will whis-
per how they sold mines for a song which
are now worth millions, and others will
curse their luck as they describe the for
tunes which nave slipped through their
fingers.
i saw a man hauling logs at the town of
Victor. near Cripple Creek. the other cay
who sold a half-million-dollar mine to pay
a grocery bill Of $40. He was earning So a
day. and he was working for the men who
bought the mine. His name is Jerry Win
chell. Four years ago he owned a number
of the best locations in the Cripple Creek
district. but now he is not worth q cent.
The mine which went for grub is famous
here. 1t is known as THE Last Dollar"
Winchell located it in 1891. and not long
after that. when he found himself in debt
to the amount of $40 to H.. II. Mills. a gro-
ceryman, he gave him the mine to square
the bill. Mills was not satisfied with the
settlement. He objected, but Winchell had
no money and he had to take it. Three
years later. however. he sold the mine for
SIS. 900. and the purchaser resold it a month
or so after that to Senator Wolcott and
others for 800, OOO. Now it is producing
quantities of gold, and no one knows what
it will bring in the future.
1 sat at dinner in Browns Hotel. in Den
yer, the other day beside a lorid-faced.
long-bearded' man from Colorado Springs.
We soon began to talk of the mines OF
rrinpla Croak Tho cnhiAot IF tho QhQllo
Company came up and 1 asked him If he
knew anything as to the Cripple Creek
mines owned by it.
Yes" said he. II should say I do. Their
best mine, you know, is the Buena Vista.
1t pays almost all the profits of the Isa-
bella company. It's vein has been traced
for three thousand feet. and it has already
produced more than 500. 900 worth of gold.
| had a chance to buy half of that mine
for 500. and did not take it. A man in
my employ discovered 1t. He was one of
those fellows who are always hard up, and
one day he came to me and told me that
his family were out of provisions and that
he must have money. He spoke of the
Buena Vista prospect and offered me a half
interest in it for 500. / told him that /
would give him the provisions, but L did
not want the mine. / said / did not believe
there was any gold in the Cripple Creek
region. The result was that he went away
and sold the interest TO other parties.
Within two weeks those parties sold their
half interest for $50, 200. and a month later
my man got $4,000 for his share. The
Isabella mining stock at it's present selling
value is worth more than a million. 1t has
paid slO0. 200 within a month in dividends.
and / could have got one-half Of it for
800. Oh, Lord, it makes me sick when |
think of it,"
STATIONS CLOSE CALL.
The independence gold mine is said TO be
the richest In the world. 1t has. il is said
from five TO seven millions dollars worth
of gold in sight, and its owner, who was
working at his trade as a carpenter five
years ago, would not now sell it for SIC. eoo.-
900 cash. And still the Independence has
several times been offered for sale and the
offer refused. This was in the first days
of it's history. One of Dave Moffat's ex-
perts told me the other night how near
he came to buying it. Said he;
1t was several years ago. before the
Cripple Creek region was much developed
that L came here from Leadville to see
what 1 could find for Moffat. Eben Smith
was with me, and We bought the Victor
mine for $4,000, and have. as you know,
made about a million out of it. Well. one
day I was walking about Stratton's mine,
when 1 saw a miner whom knew shovel
ing out ore and rock. l asked him whether
the mine was worth anything. He said
that he did not think that it was worth
much, and hat Stratton would never get
anything out OF it. / went into the build
ing. however. and Clipped off a bit of the
0rn ord MT 10 Il, 49, .O,I--% MT. a.
L had it assayed. 1t ran $500
TO the ton. sounded Stratton
and found L could get the mine for $40. 600
cash at an option OF SO, 00O. i replied that
| could not make an offer until l could go
through the mine and make a number of
assays. and that while the first ore might
run good. that which 1 got later might not
be worth mining. This was agreed TO, and
L was just about to wire Eben Smith that
We had better buy the mine, when got a
letter from him. saying that the panic had
struck Denver. He said that everything
was fat, and that Monat had written him
20 go slow. and not to buy anything for a
time. He told me 10 break off any nego-
tiations l might have and go off fishing
until the trouble blew over. l thought the
matter would keep for a month, so l went
fishing. Thirty days istar / came back.
only to find that Stratton mad struck good
ore. and that he you'd not sell at any
price. He took out several thousand dol
lars that month, AMI n~ow-well, now every
one knows that the independence mine is
worth millions"
STRATTON WOULD NOT SELL.
Mr.. Colbrand. the manager of the Mid
land railroad, told me the other day how
he tried to buy the independence and
failed. 1 had asked him whether there was
any danger of Stratton losing his property.
He replied:
Not a bit of it. Stratton has had TO
| fight hard to make a fortune. and be is not
going TO let it slip through his fingers. /
know that he has refused some big offers
for the Independence. 1 once tried to buy
it myself and failed. The offer came to me
from New York parties. Mr.. Schley. of the
big banking firm of Moore & Schley. want
ed the mine. and Schley wrote me that he
had parties who were willing TO pay any
thing for 1t up 10 $1,000, 600. He wrote that
If l could bring about a sale, no matter at
what price or on what conditions, ne
would give me $4,000 for my trouble. He
knew that i was acquainted with Mr..
Stratton. and thought that L could sue
ceed."
Il don't wonder that you made the trial"
said l..
NO; of course, not" replied Mr.. Col
brand. You can't pick up 1000 every day.
even here In Colorado. 1 was very anxious
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