Wood County reporter. [volume] (Grand Rapids [i.e. Wisconsin Rapids], Wis.) 1857-1923, 1897-08-26

property at $5,OOO,000; can sell il To-
morrow for 100000. 1t brings in
$4,000 income yearly. 1t has a 'front.'
age OF 800 feet and 1t brings the best
rents OF any property in San Fran
CISCO. That property ana some others
aIe mortgaged Tor Sl,4UU,UOO, not 81
42O,oOO, as L have seen IN nearly all
the papers, but a mistake OF 81 600 QUO
Is not much for a paper to make.
Now. that's all L owe. The Santa.
ANITA ranch, the finest one in Cali
Iornla, II do own it, cost over $40
0OoOO0. 1t is not mortgaged for a
cent, and own eight other large
ranches and fruit farms. | own III Los
Angeles county the La Puente, Terra
Grande, San tTanciscita, Pura Chica,
Fhillelugo, MERGED and the Sianca. /
also own one OF the largest estates in
hearn county, and one in San Ber-
nardlno county, and there is no mort
gage. lie total value OF all these, at
low estimate, is $1,000 900
/ have been represented as a fast
liver and spendthrIft. am the turthest
| removed from it. 1 am not a spender
or a high roller. l noticed in the
papers recently that had lost a great
part OF my fortune playing poker.
That makes me laugh, and must have
made Far, RalSLon, Mark Livingston
ana Senator Sharon groan and turn
over in their graves. 1 quit one poker
same over 100000 wInner-it lasted
three years. The cheapest chip was
| S1O0. 1t was in California. No, I'm
away ahead on poker. In my whole
life's run you might say l won in a
walk.
The biggest blutt | ever made was
100000. L gave an optlon on some
Ophlr stock &c Ralston IL Co., Senator
j. T.. Jones ana Senator Sharon till
IL O'Clock the next morning. / walked
into Sharon 5 ONCE and said: III
give you SIUU,>VU casn, shaking the
money at him, II you ii let me off on
that option. Glazer BROS. OF New
DIRK were my brokers' then. Now, [
really would have gwen MN SZoU,UUU
to have MIN buy the stock. Well, he
refused my $1,000 anu TOOK the stock
just what 1 wanted nlm to do.
Il made 100000 once in twenty
minutes; that's what gave me the
sobrlQuet Lucky. IL was this way
and not as 1t mas been repeatedly
printed. tloou, y Brien, Mackey and
Fair wanted TO get the control or the
Ophir stock. L hey already had the
Consolidated Virginia ana the CaIitor
mia. | was informed that La Sack,
president OF the company, was 10 get
$25, 900 10 turn TIE property or control
over TO Them. MS Was his ruSe. He
called an extra meeting. The purpose
was TO elect another director, making
claim two votes, one as president and
enc as director, and thereby get con-
troll. My lawyer, K. II. Lloyd OF San
Francisco, told me he could not pos
sibly serve an injunction before 11:20
or 11:30. The meeting was set for IL.
and all were present. | told my law
yer l would delay matters half an hour.
L did. L go, 1900 =. ,..~4.,..c t.l.n La
Sack, called - u. w. Grayson, now OF
San Francisco ~ watch for fair play,
knocked him eYTn twice, the last time
under a large ,..ole, where l kept him.
At IL 80 the papers were served, and
then L secured the control and made
$5,000,000 by Inc operation This was
done simply by getting twenty min
! utes' time and battling them in their
scheme.
| THE California bank went broke
trying to break me. They failed for
| $14 100000. That was in 1875. With
twenty-five years experience after
that, I'm not going broke in minute.
Glazer Bros, now of New York, were
my brokers when the bank made
| demand on me for $1,O00,000 cash
owed by p. m. They thought that
would force me to sell my stock, as
they knew | owed them $1,000, 900 and
was short of ready cash. When the
time came the bank had their ready
money and | offered to lend them
100000. In August the bank failed
LII 9It,UUV,VOo' Jill hCOnC, -" ". AhlAiog
Senator Sharon, R. H. Lloyd, Michael
Reese and myself opened the bank,
took upon ourselves the onus of pay
ing off that money, which we did, and
/ recovered $2,5O0,000 which the bank
owed me, and now the bank stock
is selling for $3.50 over the par value
per share, or for $3.50"