Yorkville enquirer. [volume] (Yorkville, S.C.) 1855-2006, 1906-05-15
astiseellaaeoas Readins.
THE DESERT HAS ITS CALL.
Prospeetors Who Can't Keep Away
From It.

Prospeetors Who Can't Keep Ava,
From II.
Say. boss. kin I talk to you 70
Jest a minute?"
The speaker was tall, thin man
with gray hair and whiskers, hi
face the color Of a tanned hide. Hi
eyes were intensely blue and had |
shrewd, good natured expression
and his face, while stern, was wrink
led In just the places to indicate ,
habit Of laughter. He was leaning
on the marble of the cashiers win
dow in a large bank.
"Is 1t grubstake, or porterhouse. Of
both?"
Yes; ALL" said the man, laugh
ing. you're a guesser from Pana
mint"
II can't talk to you now, but
will meet you at the restaurant
around the corner In half an hour,
said the cashier.
In the restaurant later the grub
stalker Joined him, dead broke, dry
hungry, but good natured.
i've been down the Panamint
way" he explained after he hat
cleaned out the big bowl Of soup
Every dern fool Is going irl there tc
try and see what Scotty's got, bu
my hands are up. I lost my best
burro there and I've had enough;
but I've got something good down ir
San Diego county, and that's what
want"
did you ever make g. stake?'
asked the cashier.
Found the Red Rose"
What"
Fact, and I kin prove 1t. Dye
know Col. A. c. Beltmer?"
why. yes. he banks with u.s." re-
piled the cashier.
well, ask him who found the
Red Rose mine, and while you're
about 1t you might also ask him who
was dern fool enough to sell out fol-
thousand dollars. s.s I'm that man.
You've heard the old saying that a
suckers born every day. eh? Well
I'm the Friday sucker; I was born
on that day: sure"
~ was strapped. and sold out for
a thousand dollars. You see poor
man makes a find: how's he, without
a cent to get the attention Of men
with money or get within a mile OF
them?
when I struck the Red Rose
was hundred miles out on the des-
ert. All I had on earth was four
pounds Of bacon and a pound OF
coffee. Some chaps came along and
offered me that money for my claim
and I took 1t.
81 went to Los Angeles. walked
into a barber shop. got a bath and
shave, then went to a store and told
the man to fit me out from head to
foot, and VOW when I went out
didn't know myself. bought a bag
and went over to the hotel and en-
tered my name as John Handy. Red
Rose. San Bernardino, county, took
the best room, gave the bell boy a
dollar, and the next morning read in
the paper that Col. John Handy, the
millionaire mine owner from Red
Rose. was in town.
"Well, I gained twenty pounds in
the next two weeks and at the end OF
the month I was broke. No, no;
didn't drink 1t up.
+ ran across the wife Of an old
pardner She was scrubbing floors In
schools, and she was sixty-five years
old. I staked her with $500, hired
a little house for her so she could
rent a room or two, and that clean
ed me out.
But I got stake from a restau-
rant man and the next day I was
walking to the DESERT and, dye
know, there's something about the
desert that kind of locoes a man
But this time I'll let you into 1t.
"You know they have been find
ing some queer stones down at Mesa
Grande Pala and different places in
San Diego county; and last week !
was sitting in a barroom at Daggett,
out on the desert, when man came
in. the picture of hard luck. but when
he came to pay up he unrolled from
hoo LOT 90 ri or f.
fered to sell them to me. One was
the most beautiful blue you ever saw.
where Is It? I sold 1t for 500 at
Indio one night. wanted a burro.
and I struck an Indian and bought
his burro, for the stone and $40; he
wanted 1t for his squaw.
ut might have been worth $1,000
for all I know. but the point was
this. The man I bought 1t from gave
me a map of the place where he
found 1t: here it Is. He said he
knocked it out of the side Of the cliff
with a stone, and there was a lot of
1t all broken up and no good.
II kept a little piece and showed
it to a travelling jeweler and he told
me that IL l knew where the mine
was I was in luck and would make
my fortune; so there you are. The
stone has probably been knocked
and hammered with rocks. and all
you want Is to put in a small blast
and get in to where it's good"
How much Of a stake do you
want?" asked the cashier.
Grub" was the reply, grub for
two months and some new tools.
Hundred dollars will do it."
"All right" said the cashier, I'll
go you: sign this" and he drew up
the following:
I, John Handy, agree to divide
with anything l may find from jan
uary II, 1905, to March IL, 1905, on
account Of grub stake Of 800 pro-
The prospector signed the paper
and said he would make 1t six
months. The cashier took him to an
outfitter's and the next day the man
left for the desert. All Of which Is
the story Of the discovery of one OF
the best tourmaline mines In south