The Minneapolis journal. [volume] (Minneapolis, Minn.) 1888-1939, 1904-01-02

one must have been bad or I would not
have this temperament OF evil. My
mother was a fine woman, a Pole, full
of nobility and honorable sentiments.
My father was good man, Industrious
and square dealing. et
THE key to my evil successful it
may be called such, has been my per-
sonality and lavishness with. money,
attracting gamblers who sought to
use me as a decoy. In nearly every
western town I knew the prominent
men. When they came to New York
it was easy to use them to my financial
advantage, and at the same time to
hold my own against the gamblers
who wanted them to spend money in
their establishments.
How easy 1t seems when the game
is properly worked 1 managed it in.
this way / tell the proprietor of
big Fifth avenue restaurant that /
wish to give a little dinner to a few
friends. AS he does not know me l
place $500 with him to my credit.
This is repeated at one or two large
hotels, theaters and other places The
fdinner over, / sign the check and tee
the waiter to charge 1t. send my
friends to the theater with a box at
their disposal. / take them to a
jewelry store for scarf pins or some
pretty tokens, and let them hear me
say: Please charge it to my account
This gives me standing among the
western men. I have q lot of them at
my fingers ends, and it becomes easy
to take them around to Cantield's and
other big gambling establishments for
which the gamblers pay me hand
somely. OF course, / gamble myself
and lose money with the rest, other
wise I would be worth fortune to-
day.
His Real Name.
My father, William Silberberg, was a
| Jewish rabbi, q man of great gifts,
with a genius for public speaking. He
came here from Warsaw, Poland, a
! young man of 26, and married beau
tiful young Polish woman in MilWau-
kee. He had q synagog in Memphis
Tenn, but later drifted into business
and became a merchant. In the Civil
i war he turned blockade runner and
made a fortune. When peace was de-
clared he went to Chicago and was
associated with Francis Peabody II
real estate, until a turn of fortune lei
him bankrupt. In 1870 he opened 9
with II. B. Chaflin & Co. Again ne
failed. In Atlanta I was born, the
youngest of nine children-siN now
dead. My oldest sister is the riches
woman in a town in Arkansas, Where
our family has remained since my
/ uedlL.
The young man relates how hi
, father made fortune at Fort Smitf
out Of Indian contracts. He repre-
sented the pool interested in the set
. tlement Of the Choctaw claims. The
; government paid $2O,OOO,OOO Il
square the claim of a group of indians
for lands opened to settlers. After tn
bow had received common schoo
education at Fort Smith, his fathe
t. died, leaving a chain Of stores in Kan
sas, Arkansas and Missouri. He wa
but Is, and his brother Aaron only Il
} but being the only male members
! the family, they took charge OF tn
1 stores. In four years, with new Dl0oo
3 their business had extended until the
Ehad twelve stores in different states.
> Success His Ruin.
, "This wonderful success was tn
, beginning Of my downfall, i mad
+ lessly, and l became the talk OF tn
q country. Gamblers f1ocked in to Sc
the gayest young man OF the stat
squandering thousands on Wome1
wine and cards. Gamblers not onl
q came from Kansas City, ST. Louis an
g California to get my money, put the
= brought pretty women with them.
"Result--I lost heavily, and in fiv
- months spent the larger part of tn
:, revenue of the six stores I was rur
u u ming in what was called the Kanss
- and Missouri circuit. My brother ra
i the Arkansas and Indian Terrltor
- stores.
when he took charge and we1
g over my books, he found l was $S7, oC
Is short His severity touched my DO!
l. ish pride, and, like afool, went
q California, leaving a great business bf
l. hind: secured a job as advertisemel
e writer, and easily made $500 a wee
n in fees from the merchants and con
% missions from the newspapers. But
% was soon in debt. Up to this date
ID had squandered no money not OF
own. Mother sent me funds in eme
al gencies-tens Of thousands of dollar
IN Had I worked as hard and showed
l. much ingenuity in building up tt
lg business my father left as [ have
he devising new methods Of rascality,
Of would be worth millions to-day
m my San Francisco fiasco Occurrt
,e in 1891, and as everybody had Il
Mexican fever, I followed Jack FC
lansbee and some California millio
aires to Chihuahua, where everythil
* was booming. My money soon va
es ished, and I hit upon a plan to 6
more. Chihuahua Telegram
re operator told me of the big forum
ne weekly transmitted by wire from t
cobool tho vo,1po Do