The Salt Lake herald. [volume] (Salt Lake City [Utah]) 1870-1909, 1898-12-12
HE Won THE TEXAN
-%-
How Colonel BaocOck Made Millions
For Chicago Men.
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TEXAS STATEHOUSE DEAL
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LOAN OF $50 TO BILL THOMPSON
BRINGS IN sa,ooo,ooo.
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Quiet Deed of Charity That Secured
a Big Contract to the Far
well Syndicate.
Chicago Inter-ocean.l


Meador, the old-time faro dealer as he
was chatting with a crowd Of cronies
in a popular sporting resort the other
night; but I've got one that beats it
out of sight What do you say to a
winning of 100000 clear on an invest
ment of $50, and the $50 was never in
hazard at that?''
Meador, who is known in faro bank
circles all over the country, was talk
ing to a select coterie composed of
Frank Kennedy, Paddy Carroll, Billy
O'Neil and a couple of politicians who
had dropped in to celebrate the election
of their ticket and quietly fix up the
division of some offices.
Think" said Kennedy; why, there's
only one thought to it, Tom You've
been hitting some new brand of dope.
Better take a brace to yourself or
they'll be having you daffy and send
ing you down to that Confederate home
in Missouri So long as you stuck to
whisky you never sprung such yarn,
but there's no telling what queer ideas
man will get into his head when he
begins hitting the pipe"
Reference to the Confederate home IN
front of Meador is much like shaking a
red rag in a bulls face. During the
war he was a. gallant soldier on the
southern side, and for years afterWard
a high-rolling gambler with plenty of
money Like most of his class who did
not make provision for a rainy day, the
shutting down of gambling in Chicago
left him without occupation, and his
means were gradually exhausted. For
the past twelve months Tom has had
hard struggle for existence, but, des-
pite his condition, is just as debonnair
and Independent as he was in the days
when he walked about town with thou
sands of dollars in his pockets. The
suggestion of his friends that ne should
lay up for the winter in the Confeder-
ate home he takes as a direct personal
insult, and the bare thought of it makes
him stutter in rage.
BIG PROFITS FOR CHICAGO MEN.
"Y-y-ou're a s-smart g-guy," he
spluttered at Kennedy, "bbut in t-this
case you don't know what you're talk
ing about. I tell you that L know of a
party of men who raked down profit
of 100000 from an outlay of only $50,
and they are Chicago men at that. And
what's more, they got the money. You
can see some of them on the street
almost any day, and, if you don't be-
! lieve my story, just ask any one Of
them about it. I'll gamble I'm right as
to the general facts although 1 may be
a little shady ON the details, for it's
some years ago the thing happened
After round of drinks Meador went
on to tell his yarn in the following
way:
"a dozen or fifteen years ago-I dom
| like to fix the time exactly-the people
of Texas made up their minds they
wanted a state house and capitol build
| ing. Now, Texas in those days was
rich in land and poor in money, and
to erect a state house required the in
vestment of considerable cash. All the
/ public lands in Texas are owned by the
! state. and at that time-it was before
! the rush of immigration-the best of
! them could be had for so cents an acre.
People used to think the Lone Star
state was inhabited only by shooting
| cowboys and rustlers and poisonous
! rattlesnakeS and there was some
| foundation for this opinion. 1t was
hard to even give away the land and
| get taxes paid on it. Cattlemen let
| their herds roam at will over the rich
prairies, and made fortunes, while the
state had hard work to get money for
running expenses. It's different now,
since northern and western people have
! found out the truth, and Texas is pros
pering in population and wealth. But
| that's another story, as some writing
| fellow-Kipley, [ think his name is
says.
when the word went out that Texas
was in the market for state house
! there were four men in Chicago who
saw an opportunity to make some
money in the deal. These men were
Colonel Amos c. Babcock, Colonel
Abner Taylor. Senator Charles B
! Farwell, and the latter's brother, John
/ V. Farwell. I don't 'zaow which OF
| them originated the an, but at any
rate they conceived the idea of taking
| their pay solely in land. They were
willing to advance the cash for the
construction of the building, provided
the state would make them a grant OF
several millions of acres.
OPPOSITION TO NORTHERN MEN
ut looked like good thing fol-
Texas to work off a lot of it's surplus
real estate, and, as it turned out, il
certainly was a good thing for the
syndicate. They were all smart men
and could see that the time was fast
coming when Texas lands would be
eagerly sought after, and they would
! be able to sell their holdings at a goo6
price. There was only one obstacle in
! the way. The old war feeling was still
rampant in that part of the country
and the Texans who were in control in
the legislature hated the very sight Of
a northern man. 1t was bad enough
they thought, to have a Yankee come
down there to live, to say nothing abOu
doing business with a party of them
and especially when that business wa;
of a public nature and would net the
invaders a snug profit.
Right here [ must double on my
trail, so to speak, and go back a little
Two of the best known men in Texa:
in those days were Bill and Ber
Thompson. They were both typica
gam blers, and dead shots with rifle OF
nistnl Bill became involved in some