The Roswell daily record. [volume] (Roswell, N.M.) 1903-current, 1905-02-04
TWO OLD
- 90 L@

yR.lTS Ofu MOSES JhckSOu Went 10 Lie
nearest village To buy "a hoe. His wife
bad asked him to drop into the of
ice Of tie Gazette and bring home n
hI:ni.ic of old papers for tie pantry
,Le'vrs. lie found the editor alone
tnai i..e panor about to suspend for the
-:tnt OF patronage. The editor noted
he farmers wrinkled face. bent back
AID ali conraGcd look. and after some
~"nef talk said:
~!.oak Ecre. Moses. you are an old
-o1l and | am ditto. You are grub
az: yJur life out for IA mere living.
ri | arn dead broke because the peo-
"a Ir-t- don't appreciate brains. Let's
20 iu.J ~tnerShip."
They sat aud talked for an hour. and
hp -.>;:!t was IN article in the next
,c,.i :: tilzrtte that created talk all
esrr lie coantry and within a week
isd lrcn copied all over tie state.
.Lr:e was i sl'ring on the Jackson
arm w;iir' hardly any one but the
cV:.rr kIirv of. and it WAS announced
-iat Tie " :crs of This spring Were Il
sire c,;re FIR all kinds of skin discusses.
re editor gave half IL dozen false
Games and tod IL dozen lies i'll the
article. but people with skin Diseases
lid not stop to question this verac;ty.
Tie paper had been off the press
cniy II day when they began to drive
ip - TIE Jackson farm. They wanted
Lat water in bottles. jugs. kegs and
barrels. ANA the old farmer WAS III.
h:in,l - sell il at SD much per -niloi.
Inside of 4 month he was shipping
spring water To points 4D miles away
While he WAS busy at the spring his;
wife WIS busy ut the house. Score
and scores Of people We're willing Ia.
pay 10 cent; for Il dinner. ANA bcfJr,
the r,l-h WIS over scores and score
Of others r. id 81 cents apiece for thc
privilege of sleeping on clean straw il.
tie barn.
The analysis of the spring waite
rr;cRc:I the bubble ut last. ana peopI
ceased t. come or send in or'.crS. Me-
SeS Went down to see The editor an
figure with him As they figured they
churkktI When they had reached the
eud of it tiir editor said:
Moses. or firm has taken in - 90
In cash. Figure ont the expense. an
we divide $1,000. You still have you
farm left. and ! may tell you that til,
Gazette has put on 30 new suliScriI,
erS aud has entered upon Il boom with
n Ii~ Il Ga home and hoe corn ana
say nothing In about two weeks on
trap will he ready again."
In the course of IL fortnight the neigh
ho"S of Moses Jackson noticed Il Stranc"
woman about his house. hui before
they had time to ask questions the "a
zcttc came mt with n two column ART
Vlc and CXpl ncd all. The strange wo
man was Mother Clark. the great lncat-
ar of mines; by means of tn" hazel rod.
S!,c happened to lie passing through
the district. and. to her surpri q. he
hazel raI kept pointing - the IacIlso.tI
''ar1n. She had felt II her uty To ston
qud tell Moses that great wealth lay
beneath the surface. 1t might be coal
Or it might be gold. but it was there
FOR sure.
Again there vas Il rush To the Jack
son farm. There we-c scores of diners
again Mt 20 cents apiece. and this time
there We're Sieepers for the barn almost
by the hundred. People wanted to
prospect for that wealth. they wanted
privileges. they wanted options. they
wnnted to go shares AMI work thing;
most any old way for mutual profit.
and tEc flrnl was torn I'm for the space
of two months before the last dig-p~
got discouraged and quit. Tlen Nose;
@Tci:t down to make a business call Oh
the editor. ara the editor said to him:
I'VE haven't lone quite as well as |
hoped for. but there is no kick coming
70 us. We sold three options ut ST.
9 e:ch. and with the profits on meals
end dodgers the figures run to about
$1,000.
The next week the Gazette stated
hat there was every reason to believe
that the rod pointed to oil instead of
minerals and that it hoped to soon
chronicle n great discovery. The dis
cover was made in time for the next
Issue. and it was a corker. Oil had
been found in such quantities that no
one could doubt the existence of a big
lake cf ii under the Jackson farm.
There We're some who cub that
eli had been found. but their doubts
vanished as they reached the farm.
There were the well. the bucket AMI
riIa smell. Those who descended into
-lie well came up covered with grease
ard convinced that petroleum was n
big thing. That the coal men had
failed WIS no reason why the oil mea
should not succeed. 4 dozen specula-
tors wanted options before the first
week was over. and every neighboring
farmer who would sell or lease found
q customer at his door. Leases and
options were taken on the Jackson
Farm to the lest acre. AID when the
nnerS had been made out and the
money passed over the editor of the
Gazette expressed his readiness to
fcIrc again with Moses.
The firm IF Moses Jackson & Co
VIII now divide UP the sum of 500
x" he SI:d as he lid down his pen
cl. W. might have GOT more by hang
ing ols. but we are no hogs. Tie man
~llo knows when he has got a good
thing IS tie nan who succeeds. Incl
hentally / viii add that / have had to
L,icn ~ ...rl -, l..A..- suhscri- tinns and 1