The sun. [volume] (New York [N.Y.]) 1833-1916, 1899-10-08
SUDDEN KLONDlKE RlChES.
LAWRENCE z. BROOKS's RISE FROM
POVERTY TO WEALTH,

Four Years Ago Laborer in = Vineyard
at $3.50 Day and Now Worth Upward
Of $500, OOO-su6erings by which Ho
Gained His Gold In tho Klondike.
SAvANNAH, ~ V, Oct AFTER paying .
brief visit TO his former home and birthplace
in this village, Lawrence f. Brooks has Just 70,
turned to Dawson City In the Klondike gold coun.
try. When Dr. william Seward Webb was In
Southern California last season. he took 30 lluch
interest in the unusual career OF Mr. Brooks In
the frozen north that he invited him to accom-.
pany his party to Santa Barbara and San Diego.
Mr.. Brooks is popularity supposed TO be worth
upward Of $500 600 Four years ago ho was
laborer in a vineyard at Fresno Cal, at 81 80
day. Ave years ago he tramped from San From.
cisco to Portland Ore. because he would not
spend the 500 he had saved. Ten years ago he
shovelcd malt in S. h. Nestcr's malthouse In
Geneva, and a year later he was working al bot
toming out the Erie Canal at clyde in this county.
He went to the Yukon River dggings from San
Francisco in March, 1898 He had $40 and
every cent had been saved by pnChing economva
He returned to San Francisco in September, 1904
and had more than 800 900 on deposit In tho
Croker Wordsworth Bank besides about 270
pounds Of gold dust and he owned two rich places
mines on Eldorado Greek IN tho kondiko region.
lie has invested his suddenly gotten wealth
carefully during the year that he has been on
the Pacific coast. He owns block Of five stores
on Larkin street. San Francisco that cost N
S95 600, and his rents thcrefrom amount to abnt
SO. 600 a year Besides he has II half interest
in an ostrich farm at Pasadena Cal. that is genr
orally suppose, To have cost him SIS, 900 or $40.
00O and he recently bought a block Of stock in tha
Los Angeles, Cal, traction railway for ,oO0
He has established his younger brother, James
Brooks in the livery business At Sacramento.
Cal, at cost Of 81 o 900 or S12 600 To his moth.
cr's sister Mira Flahcrty. he has given a 81, SOD
home at Sacramento. He has several small irs
vestmcnts at Los Angeles Cal Bits Of the story
he told while here Of his extraordinary rise from
poverty to riches entertaining
Il was born in this village" said Mr. Brooktk
That was in 1858 My father was a laboret
on the New York Central tracks and later was
Waterman at the New York Central hridge over
the long Montezuma marshes and the Seneca
River Just cast of this village There seven
Of us children and four were older than l. Wa
were very poor, lived in shanty aud ate but tho
commonest cheapest food Mother led Of ty-
phod fever when 10 years old and tathel
held the family together until two years later,
Sd" 70 e smd 2Tt WITH S
mothers sister. Mrs FlaheTty, while sold news.
papers and blarked boots for my, living. Then
| got u Job in livery stable at AUBURN and then
l worked on the Soule farm. near this villagt.
The late A. r. Soule took me to work for hip in
ter, but was too ignorant to read writing well,
and made so many blunders that ran awe1
10 Palmyra. Then | worked az boy for the
From the time was twenty until was tweniyr
seven was hired laborer and semi tramp I
went through more vicissitudes in seven years
worked and pinchsd ! TOOK care Of a team q
thereby got ride in frcig hit car across tho
tinent In California was a dishwasher. win.
stablemsn. saved abou, 500 in four y yea a
Hearing that big money could be made in Dig
ging gold on the Yukon River in Alaska, wen1
book u tell all about suffering from hung or,
cold and loneliness ! was at Circle City for threS
a life. l seriously contemplated suicide Theirs
was no gold there to be got and was suffering
"A sleek Indian came one day overland to G,c1a
City in August 1885, He ex cited the 400 miners
In Circle City by telling them of the finding Of
Klondike lie showed specimens and said he
hsd Joe ws ,R S Of sSs
as was, | Joined the frst party Of forty men who
to what Is now Dawson 1t was cold and bleak.
but so gold hungry were we that we paid no atten;
me- wRers could make claim to paeel bd
and where could dig gold II is a long story,
but in week had my claim claim stHksd out and =:
Bedrock, some thirteen feet below, god IS aud
I'm two weeks had 1--WE pounds of gold Win
that bought pine logs and lumber and built q
cabin which cost me about 81. 700, and which
would be dear at 500 anywhere in Wayne county
But. oh, the cold that first winter, For days ths
mercury ranged from 80 10 more than 90 degrees
below zero For two months we had only thros
hours Of blurred sunshine in each twenty four
hours II we had not been making. more than
81, 900 week. We should have died from melin-
choly and horrible food Think Of candles OF 81
each: ancient goldfish at rs cents a pound; coffee.
years old at 81 80 pound, and rubber boots AZ
an even $50 each | bought Il pickaNe for $50
and had TO tease to buy it, but We got geld. and
when June came at last and when We beg an the
annual sluicing | found | had more than 200
ounce OF $3.50 a pound.
Il sent all the gold To the San Francisco MINI
by the Alaska Commercial Company and went to
work for second year Of gold mining. II ale
most killed me, but cleared more than APO pounds
Of gold from July. 1897, to july, 1898 and that
paid for whole lot Of pain and blues and danger.
September 1897, for s22 900 and sold il in Jan.
uary. 1898 for $4,000 and got besides about
| 10000 in gold from it,
Il shall mine in the Klondike two wears mora
and then shall quit. have had one offer Of 49,
600 for my Eldorado claim, but want $40 o00
! for il. What am going To d" thcn' ! shall
| II, and then shall settle in San francisco and
| be blood, as well as one may with 50 limited On
| education mine is. Yes, shall return to r1y
| birthplace here quite often. You can't imagine
| how good II seems TO get back here again for \
| few days visit
| Brooks looks like n man Of i5. hut is not yet
SO. He dresses simply. In California he has THO
| equipage