The Providence news. (Providence [R.I.]) 1891-1906, 1898-07-30
Jernegad Plant at Lubcc,
Me-, Shut Down.
NO GOLDJN ACCUMULATORS
President Ryan Says He Got Gold
From Narragansett Bay.
TEST MADE AT SILVER SPRING.

The affairs of the lclectrolytic Marine
Salts company and the somewhat pecu-
liar actions of Rev. =. +. Jernegan, Its
general manager. and his brother, Mar
Gus w. Jernegan. of this city, are still
a subject of great interest in business
circles in this city, and opinions are
divided as TO the stability of the COM
pany since the departure of Mr.. Jerne-
gan for Europe in more or less mys-
terious manner and under an assumed
name.
According to information from Lubec,
Me. no more precious metal will be
turned out at the companys plant for
the present, as A. N. Pierson, who has
been manager of construction OF plant
No. 2. shut down work yesterday and
paid off all his men. X. ID. Shanahan,
the contractor who has been putting in
new machinery, announced his inten-
tiol to pay off his 700 men Monday. 1t
, will require $4,000 70 square his ac-
count with his employees. This sudden
loss of confidence in the value OF the
concern is due, IL is said. to an investi-
CATION made by Messrs. Pierson and
Shanahan.
NOT A GRAIN OF GOLD.
tanks intended for the accumulation OF
the gold deposits, and not a grain of the
precious metal was to be found, though
they had not been opened before for six
days. IT is understood that Mr.. Pierson
drew the last dollar he had In the bank
yesterday 20 pay off lis men Whether
any further attempt will be made to
run the plant is doubtful. although
some of the officers Of the company say
they believe In the project and arc ac-
Quainted with the secret process.
MARCUS CAME TO TOWN.
Marcus W. Jernegan, the brother of
the Rev. Z. +. Jernegan. who lives in
this city, and who is said TO have been
the man who posed i'm New York last
week as Frank w. Thompson. private
secretary to A. Il. Holt of Providence
reached this city yesterday. coming
from New York, and went directly 10
his old boarding place at 66 Meeting
street. Mr. Jernegan emphatically re-
fused to have anything 10 say concern
ing the stories circulated about the
Electrolytic Marine Salts company. and
after short sojourn in Providence he
left for Boston. A story concerning
New York detectives being on MS track
could not be verified
RYAN CONFIDENT.
President Ryan of the company has
a
theory of securing gold from the waters
of the sea, for he says, in speaking or
the recent Incidents in the history OF
the corporation: Mr.. Jcrnegan Is a
graduate OF Brown university and or
the Newton theological seminary. lie
occupied the pulpit OF the Baptist
church in Middletown, where's was SUI
perintendent OF the Sunday school. He
first explained to me his process for ex-
tracing gold from sea water about two
years ago. have been engaged In the
jewelry business and do not think 1
can be easily fooled concerning gold.
GOLD FROM THE BAY.
'In February, 1897, purchased chem
icals in Providence, put them in my
pocket, went down TO Silver Spring,
below Providence, cut hole In the ice
over the tide way. and inserted these
chemicals in an iron receptacle not
larger around than a dinner plate. but
so constructed that the sea water could
flow through 1t. and connecting 1t with
small. galvanic battery, 1 lowered II
eight or nine feet below the ice In the
tideway, and then, with q friend.
stood guard over II without wink OF
sleep for "a hours. Then l TOOK the
product to an assayer who extracted
over 81 worth OF gold therefrom. did
not care for the silver.
"Now. there was nothing In that iron
receptacle save the chemicals / placed
there. the sea water and the electric
current / do not know the amount of
sea water that passed through, as j had
no means OF measuring the current.
Now. IL you can put gold In an electric
battery and pass IL through copper
wire. / may have been fooled thereby,
but never heard of it's being done. and
/ do not believe IL can be done. Mr..
Jernegan later showed me two other
processes for gold extraction from sea
water"