The Topeka state journal. [volume] (Topeka, Kansas) 1892-1980, 1904-02-02
KANSAS NEWS.
Man Who Purchased the Gold
Brick Explains.
Jacob Allen Tells How He Was
So Easily Worked.
OLD CONFIDENCE GAME
Man Called at His Home and
Formed Acquaintance.
Allen Thinks He Was Given
"DOped' Cough Medicine.

Wellington, Kan, Feb. Jacob H.
Allen who was the victim of a gold
brick swindIer in Wichita for $4,000 the
29th of last month tells the following
story of how he was worked:
about O'Clock in the afternoon of
the 2Sth a gentleman appearing to be
about 80 years of age called at my
house and asked if I was Jacob Allen.
told him he was correct. He said: I
don't believe you are the Jacob Alien
am looking for I then asked where
the Allen came from that he was look
ing for. He said he came from eastern
Ohio. told him that was born and
raised in that part of the country.
Well he said, you may be the one
after all and If you are there is an old
man that knew you when you were a
boy at the Manhattan hotel, Wichita,
and wishes to. see you to make some
arrangements with you for fear he may
die. He has a lot of mining stock
which he wishes you to look after
He handed me a cigar which I
smoked and had me read a paper which
was called the Gazette which gave a.
picture of him and an elderly gentle
man which was the old man and gave
an account of them buying mine from
an old Spanish woman for $4,000 which
would be worth millions if developed.
He told me to be ready to take the
first train and we would go and see
the old man. We took the Santa Fe
train to Wichita that afternoon and
smokes two cigars apiece before we
reached the hotel: these made me feel
drowsy but thought nothing of it. He
took room % and assigned me to % at
the hotel.
After he had been gone a few min
utes he came in my room and said that
the old man was sleeping and we would
not see him until morning, asking me to
go to his room and see some samples
of the ore from their mine. l went and
examined them and they seemed very
fine, but was SO drOwsy I could hard
ly keep awake,
Upon waking in the morning he
came in my room and asked how my
lungs were. saying that he noticed
coughed a great deal. He brought in a
bottle of Piso's Cure for Consumption
and asked me to try it as it always
helped him. I drank a swallow out of
the bottle and we went to breakfast.
but remember talking to several per
sons that I knew
'After breakfast we went to my room
and he asked me to let him have $10,
900 on the mine for which he would
give me SIC, 900 in stock. That he would
leave enough ore with me to more than
pay me for same. We went down to a
drug store on Douglas avenue and ask
ed if there were any good chemists in
town, to which some one replied, Prof
Stone at the Hamilton hotel We went
to the hotel and asked for Prof. Stone
and told him to come to room % Man
haitian hotel and assay some ore.
upon arriving at the room I took
another drink of the consumption cure
by the time the professor arrived
was pretty dopy and can hardly re-
member what I done
He assayed one single brick pure
gold and offered Armstrong (for this
was the name the fellow gave) $21, 00t
for it, but he refused. When the pro
fessor was gone he asked me if I was
going to give him the money. I told
him would get it for him, so we went
to the Fourth National bank and tele-
phoned the bank at Wellington to lei
me have $4,000 in cash We then went
back to my room where I remember
but little more. [ have faint recollec-
ton of giving him the money.
when I came to in the afternoon
knew I was a victim so I notified the
police, telling them that the brick was
in my room at the hotel"