The morning news. [volume] (Savannah, Ga.) 1887-1900, 1898-07-30
DUPED WITH SEA WATER.
Rev. Jernegan Sails to Europe with
Fortune.

Rev. Jernegan Sails to Europe with
Fortune.
From the New York Herald.
There is a queer story about the com
pany organized last November year ago
to get gold Out of sea water.
It's the most curious narrative of hui
man credulity and clever charlatanry that
has been told since the expose of the ia
nous Electric Sugar swindle nine years
ago. The promoters of that amusing
fraud got about three-quariers of a mil
lion out of the public. The Electroly-
tic Marine Salts Company is said to have
collected not less than fun million.
The Rev. p. T. Jernegan, the vice presi-
dent and general manager of the company,
sailed for Europe last Saturday under an
assumed name, and the facts here mar
rated indicate that he carried with him a
trunk full of good negotiable government
bonds These bonds were bought by his
brother in this city during the preceding
ten days. The movements of this brother
round town Juggling a grip sack filled with
thousand-dollar greenbacks, emptyng 1t
in payment for bonds and turning up The
next day with another grip fun of money.
form one of the queerest Incidents in the
story Where did he get all this actual
cash every day?
Read and you will learn the explanation
of the mystery.
word or two as to the company will
make clear the statements that follow Not
many years ago the Rev. p. f. Jernegan,
Baptist clergyman then without occupa-
ton, was reading one day in an encyclo-
pedia and learned the fact, familiar to
most persons, that the water of the sea
contained a certain slight percentage Of
gold much too small to pay for its extrac-
ton. The notion of getting gold out Of
the countless billions of tons Of water
caught his fancy and ia company with c.
y. Fisher he organized under the laws of
Maine the company that is the subject
Of this story, with a capitalization Of
100000, in shares of 81 each. Men with
honorable regulations were associated in
it. fine Office was opened in Boston and
the stock was advertised for sale. As in
the case of the Electric Sugar Refining
concern, the company was based on a
"secret process" Advertisements and
pamphlets scattered broadcast told how
Alessrs. Jernegan and Fisher, after years
Of study and experiment mad discovered
and improved this process Tor extracting
gold and silver from the sea in large guam
titles and at a commercial profit" and
Lubec. on the coast OF Maine was selected
as the site Of the works"
Being secret process, Of course the two
discoVcrers and promoters had
10 guard the works" and
everything connected Herewith in
impenetrabie mystery. The Rev
MIR. Jernegan became vice president and
general manager Of the company, and Mr.
Fisher assistant general manager What
the gentlemen who became associated with
them knew about the business was prob
ably very little. A regular intervals the
Boston Office received from Lubec gold
and silver brick, and one Of these-valued,
they say, az $2,000-was received on Mon
day last.
The Boston papers yesterday noted the
existence Of an unpleasant rumor that the
Rev. T. f. Jernegan was believed to have
sailed for Eroupe on Saturday under sus-
picious circumstances. and without proper
notice to his assistants. The Incidents
that have occurred IN New York during