The Salt Lake herald. [volume] (Salt Lake City [Utah]) 1870-1909, 1900-04-29
THE BITTER BITTEN.
Tenderfoot Gets Even With Man
Who Swindled Him.
(New OrIeans Times-Democrat.)

CNew Orleans TlIneS-Democrat)
when 1 was mining in the Gunnison
country, back in the 'SOc,'' said one of a
group of western men, talking over old
times in the hotel lobby, "a little, spin
dle-legged Philadelphia named Macarthur
struck camp, looking for a good opening
for investment. A gentleman with that
kind Of a yearning could always be ac-
commOdated on the frontier. and, as Nc
Arthur was by long odds the ,greenest
tenderfoot that ever came over the range,
he was generally regarded as legitimate
prey. At that time the camp bully was
fellow named Jack Slater who owned a
worthless prospect hole called the Big
Casino and, as soon as he heard that
Macarthur wanted to buy a mine, he
made preparations to unload on him
The little Philadelphian was such an out
and-Out greenhorn that Slater didn't take
the trouble to do any scientific sailing
He simply dumped a barrowful of rich ore
into the shaft, stamped it down, and in
yited the stranger to take a look at the
property and help himself to samples.
Macarthur went down the shaft, peered
around through his spectacles. and came
up with his pockets full of the ore that
had been put there for his special benefit.
As soon as he got the assayer's report he
bought the mine for s., 900 cash
Everybody knew the poor fellow had
been outrageously swindled,' continued
laughed over in the saloons and the
gambling houses as the biggest joke of
the season. Meanwhile Macarthur hired
couple of laborerS, went to work Seri-
ously at the bottom of the shaft, and next
day the camp was electrified by the re-
port that he had really struck it rich. It
seemed that, after sinking about loot
deeper, he uncovered fine ore body, the
presence of which nobody had ever sus-
pected. The news reached Slater when
he was playing faro, and he nearly fell
off his chair. Then he made a Decline
for the Big Casino. and at the bottom of
the shaft he found what seemed TO DE a
magnificent out-cropping of decomposed
quartz, full of free gold. As soon as he
laid eyes on it and realized that he had
actually been fool enough 10 salt a
bonanza he began to scheme to get the
Macarthur that a former partner had
turned up and was going to contest the
validity of the sale in court, so, purely as
a matter of Justice he offered to return
the purchase money with 500 bonus II the
Philadelphia would deed the mine back
The little man didn't seem to realize what
a big thing he had struck and got nerv-
Gus at the talk about contests. To make
long story short. he finally accepted the
proposition, put the money in his inside
pocket, signed the necessary papers and
left town on the next stage, Jeered BY the
entire population Next day Slater made
the painful discover that the ledge or
decOmposed quartz was itself lake ana
that the mine had been sailed in highly
artistic fashion None of us ever saw
Macarthur again. but it was to,eraDly
clear that he had discovered the original
swindle Immediately after purchasing and
then set about deliberately to turn the
tables on the man who fieeced MN, me
spindle-legged gentleman from Phiiadel-
phia wasn't as green as he looked.