Los Angeles herald., 1905-08-06
= AsMUs HANSON, who made and ]

IN spent one fortune, has another II
sight which he intends to keer
Not that he is less generous than IL
days of yore, for he is the same in thi
respect as he always has been, but h.
has a ripened judgment and prett!
wife for whom to provide.
Rasmus Hanson needs no Identified
tion in Colorado. A pioneer in tn,
state, and particularly in the great Sai
Juan region, he is known from borde
to border of the commonwealth as th'
man who is equally at home whethe
in evening dress acting as host at {
banquet rendered scions of the nobilit!
across the Atlantic or preparing a mea
for himself and some wayfarer in thu
humble log cabin in a gulch near tht
little mining camp of Eureka, in which
he spent many years.
In either instance Rasmus Hanson il
genial, generous and entertaining. More
than twelve years ago, when fortune
first smiled upon him, Rasmus Hanson
crossed the Atlantic for the purpose Of
seeing his old home in Denmark an6
enjoying himself in other ways. Ir
London he met many members of the
nobility, and finally was presented tc
the then prince of Wales, the present
king of England. With superlative DEM
ocracy and surprising assurance Han
son soon rendered the prince a banquet
What he spent at this banquet is not
known definitely, but the sum has beer
placed at $4,000 by those claiming to be
informed.
Against the one prince who has beer
Hanson's guest may be placed the
names of hundreds of grizzled miners
who have spent years seeking gold. His
trust in human nature is sublime. Han
son never has locked the door of his
little log cabin in the gulch near Eureka
since the day when 1t was completed.
Hanson is building home in Silver
ton for the bride whom he married in
Denver, March 20, 1904. Most of his
life in Colorado has been spent in and
about Eureka small mining camp ten
miles north of Silverton. His log cabin
was one of the first ones built in that
home. Now that another fortune is
within his grasp he will occupy more
pretentious dwelling.
From a banquet board in London to
the bare table and scanty fare in the
cabin of a prospector. in the Rocky
mountains seems a far cry. Yet Han
son never wondered at it, nor did he
murmur when he found himself expert
encing what apparently would be the
most unpleasant of the two extremes.
Instead, he says to this day that never
in his life has he enjoyed himself more
than when living in his little cabin,
working hard every day to uncover
veins which he sought in ghis various
claims and contenting himself with the
simplest fare.
The man is a philosopher of the nat
ural type. His education was limited,
and in this respect the broken English
which he speaks is helpful rather than
a hindrance. His philosophy was born
in him and his optimism is boundless.
That morning years ago in London
when Hanson realized that he had gone
the pace until his wealth had vanished,
he counted what he had left, and, find
ing that his thousands had dwindled to
hundreds, he decided to return to the
mountains, where he secured his first
fortune, and seek another.
Many would have been in despair.
Hanson was regretful, but not forlorn.
His soul was buoyant with the hope
that where he had secured one fortune
and after patient toiling at his claims,
has found fruition of his hopes again.
Hanson came to Colorado from Dem
mark. leaving his parents there, when
a young man. He made his first for
tune when near forty. Now. when be-
tween fifty-five and sixty years of age,
he has another. The Sunnyside Ex-
tension property in Sunnyside guch
made him wealthy, and It was the
fortune which he spent in England.
When he returned be began work on
claims he owned across the ridge from
the Sunnyslde and Picayune gulch. In
one of these the Mastodon. he has I'M
covered much ore. and while his second
fortune has not been taken from the
mine, It is no exaggeration to say that
he has it, and that it will prove greater
than the one he squandered.
Something more than year ago Han
son met Miss Laura Leesburg while in
Denver Miss Leesburg at that time
had charge of cigar stand In large
business block. All his life Hanson had
been heart and fancy free, although
he met many beautiful women while
enjoying himself to the full in the