The Wichita daily eagle. [volume] (Wichita, Kan.) 1890-1906, 1900-05-13
"BARBED. WIRE KING
How John w. Gates Has AC-
CURED That Title.
STARTED A FARM BOY
Now a Financial PoWer--The
Case of Jester.

man has created such a commoIion in
Wall Street as John W. Gates has
aroused BY his recent operations. The
the stock OF the American Steel and Wire
Company was made To slump twenty
points inevitably suggested the methods
Of the former Wizard" The coup took
the Spectators entirely by surprise, with
the result that what is known as ''the
talent received an unusually hard
.cuaze.
Among the speculative element Mr..
Gates is as cordially hated just al pres
ent IS = man well can be. It is not
likely that Mr.. Gates himself is vast
ing any sleep over this fact, Tor, accord
ing TO report, the transaction has brought
his substantially balm in the form of
something Ike a million and three
quarters Of profits.
This Is not the first time that the T.
nanciaI operations Of Mr.. Gates have
displayed a meteOric character His
career since he came into prominence in
the business world has ab0unded in sur
p-ises for his business associates as well
2 for his financial opponent. His for
tune, which is estimated at present as
something between $l9,0l0,5J3 and SO 90. 90
has grown by series Of leaps and
bounds rather than by the slow accumu-
lation Of dollar on dollar.
The financial operations Of M Gates
have attracted more attention because he
= a u 5wcomer IN the street" II is only
within the last two years that ne has
taken hand in the game Of finance as
-r-.
country Wall street had heard Of him
before that-as long ago as 1856. when h
won q large legal victory over Washourn
6, BIoen and secured the right 10 manu-
factUre wire. But il was in ST Louis
and Chicago that Mr. Gates performed
his earlier exploits and accumulated the
fortune which he is now using TO heap
up further millions in his stock oper-
atoms
Mr. Gates is Westerner by birth. He
grew up on an Illinois farm and received
a good education, being graduated from
Northwestern College. at NaperyiIe, IL.
II Is not recorded that he displayed re-
marka5le qualities as a boy, but an event
that Occurred just as he reached manhood
showed. in its sequel. the determination
and indomita5le viii that has made him
a successful business man. This was the
murder Of his elder brother. Charles Gil
bert Gates.
The latter was engaged to a young
woman in Warrensburg, No, and for
come reason the match was opposed by
the y5sng woman's iyTotseE, Alexander
Jester His e-nizg became 90 acute ,taat
finally he kIl5d Gates IN cold. blood be
vas at once arrested, but while being
conveyed from the local prison 10 Mex
leo. No. he escaped. Young Gates sWOra
thar he would hunt the murderer of MS
brother te the galows or 10 the grave,
and during all the active and exciting
years IF his business career he never
lost sight Of his Determination. Ae he
became wealthy he spent thousands Of
dollars in employing detectives to trace
out the missing man.
~ Ieneht. n year ago. the murderer
who was living in Shawnee. Oklahoma.
ventured To write TO hsi sister asking
her nor TO reveal his whereabouts but To
communicate with him. Il was twenty
eight years after the murder, and no
doubt ester felt that at last he was safe.
But the sister. like Gates himself. had
never f0given the death Of her lover.
She informed IIr. Gates attorneys that
Aiexander Jester. the murderer of Chas-
Gates. was living in oklahoma under the
assumed name Il ". = Hi.
Mr.. Gates was at the Oriental Hotel
Manhattan Bra b. when he received this
new ne ----'-l 90 n '1-'' ---
Wesl. anu as SOON I'd"
OK 'i'' ma me- l'''z'l L.''->-..7
MN Our 3. va" a'''-7
oh7'S 'S '-1
lots ,-..--..---,-.. 49,.
lie -
NJ N"-57 90 80 --
en- a.. ,'.'- -.
'i--ie '--S
: t'-1'5" e'-s '@ 80
ti-7-l' -.'-' ---
E''e''' 90 81 l-'- u " az ---
ours MO '- -'7
jus anu
l"'' il'l''- @'-'''= -''l anu ~
I a.
In-- was fea--E the beginning o. AF' .
O--s business e-e' iie vas ''-
l'S' pa -'''- '-''- Ms -.'.'7
cess A3- 't." o- q very "iI7S, N.il0- HI
iae'. IL IS ''- d ll ' '''' a'','0-
ip1td the possession or H".t l-s nIrnoeT .
Of millions ne Is masters now. f1t II /
his taHIii'iIly Win 'le IRON ana S,se-
trade ana IN tae i@24-Iy l"e-. 45'AS de-
mand for lis prodU-ls he le~A1 AIS ep- .
PoCJunity.
A. chat time oaroed Wire was new /.
pre- 5ucr on the market There was an +
enorar- demand tor It i'r ie2ens- .