Evening bulletin. [volume] (Honolulu [Oahu, Hawaii]) 1895-1912, 1902-06-05
HOW GRAFT WORKED
FAKE NINE PROMOTER
AND HIS MANY SCHEMES
Spent Thousands for LaudatOry Art
icleS in Leading Journals Mon.
ey Sent From All Sides
Had no Property,

Des Moinca, La. May 2G.--Another
alias for Letson Ballet, the Cecil
Rhodes of America" Twentieth Cen.
fury Wonder of the Mining World"
etc, developed at his trial for fraudu.
lent use Of the mails this afternoon,
when Mrs. Alice d. Young of San
Francisco, formerly his stenographer
introduced the following telegram in
evidence, signed Corduroy Bill:
Baker City, Or, May 23.-To Mrs.
Alice d. Young, care Letson Ballet,
San Francisco, Cal; Pay Kid twenty.
five; everything lovely; private.
CORDUROY BILL"
Mrs. Young testified that the tcle-
gram was from Ballet; that Kid was
certain woman. and that II was one
of numerous ruses reSorted to by him
to conceal his movements. A postotiice
inspector testified that when Balliets
operations were investigated by him a
month after they opened and he ask
ed Ballet how he hoped to explain to
the Government the fact that by means
of advertisements he had secured $780,
900 subscriptions for stock in the
White Swan mine without having even
purchased the mine himself. Ballet re-
piled that he intended to secure the
money In some way with which to re-
imburse the stockholders in case he
failed ultimately to secure the mine.
but that he was confident that no such
necessity would arise, as the mine had
been sold at a sheriff's sale a short
time before for S593.7O and he could
certainly buy it at a figure which tho
vast sums he was receiving as stock sub
scriptions would cover several tlmea
over.
S. II. ROWAN, Balliet's confidential
secretary, testified that after removing
to San Francisco. less than two years
ago. Ballet rented a suit of eighteen
offices, hired ten to twenty girls, work.
ing two shifts, to answer his cores.
pondence, and took in $4,000 the first
year, and probably double that amount
by this time. That in connection with
his White Swan Mining Company. he
similarly promoted the Pacific Oil Co
and Niagara Mining Company. receiv,
ing money at a marvellous rate.
According to the evidence of Row.
Ian and Mrs. Young, most of this mon.
ey was expended in self-laudatory ar
ticles concerning Ballet in the Balti.
more American, Boston Journal, Phila.
delphia Ledger, New York Sun, Chica.
go lnter-Ocean. Ainslee's and Broad.
way magazines, and the Baker City
Herald. He paid $4,000 for single
news article in the lnter-Oceon, and
bought and mailed 100000 copies OF
the Baker City Herald at one time.
The Government claims that nearly
all of the money intended for the de.
velopment of the White Swan mine
was not used for that purpose by Bal
liet, and that instead he used II in such
advertising and in support of woman
ROWAN testified that from 5000 to $500
OF the cOmpanys money was used each
week to keep the Baker City Herald
afioat, which was bought by Ballie,
and run on a metropolitan scale.
| According to the testimony of Row
Ian. Balliet's nerve Is stupendous. as
Ballet wgs a mere boy without finan-
cial backing, through relatives or 9TH
erwise, when he entered the mining
enterprise few years ago, while Row
Ian was farmer boy residing at Ma
rengo, la. In two years they achieved
fame and fortune, though ROWAN ad-
mits he had worked most of the time
for his keep. being satisfied by the al
Turing promises held out by Ballet
one of which was that he should some
day receive half interest in the firm,
ROWAN states that he personally drew
the money from the White Swan fund
X O O X O O O X O