The Salt Lake tribune. [volume] (Salt Lake City, Utah) 1890-current, 1907-03-18
ROMANCE OF THE MINES.

tinucs.
In all the ages of the world there
has been nothing else so exciting to
human imagination, so provocative of
| human ycarning after the wealth by
which all other things are deemed pro-
curablc-as the search for precious
metals. The hope of the voyager and
the dream of tho alchcmist are united
upon the desire to have gold, gold, goldl
In no age has the romance vanished,
It is here as strongly now rs, when
seven thousand years ago the Chinese
empcrors were land in their wondrous
tombs with golden pieces III their hands
to pay their initiation fees into the
hereafter.
The other day, according to the Gold
field News, Miss Gencvievc Holden
was a telephone exchange girl in Salt
Lake. 4 mining man wished to find
his friend quickly in order to round
out deal, and the services Of the
good-natured Young lady were enlisted
To that end. She discovered the needed
factor, tho transaction was completed,
and great profit came to the promoters
A block of stock was given TO the girl
AS a reward. Just like miners, who
love to get in order TO give! Good luck
pursued her, for the stock went to a
big figure and Miss Holden sold. Good
luck still pursued her, for Miss Holden
invested the money, derived from the
stock sale, in mining claim at Dia-
mondield; and rich strikes in that
vicinity have raised the value of her
property to the figures Of fortune.
Is it any wonder that romantic hopes
congrcgate themselves around the pur
suit of mining9
That is the happy story.
And now for the sad story Of al
chemic dreams come TO naught; Thomas
w. Lawson, the man who boosts copper
stocks and then drops them, has been
printing his alluring advertisements in
the Eastern papers and has induced
large following to buy his offered
shares. With the old instinct-come
down from the dark ages and still
strong within them. the descendants of
the lord and thousands of people
thought TO turn their little savings into
completeness; and they invested. From
the newspaper reports their romance
was for a day and is ended in night
of sorrow; for there is no assurance
that their money viii return.
And the difference between the two
kinds of romance is the difference be.
tween the honest mining effort of the
West and the wild cat mining disposi.
tion Of some of the promoters and
purchasers in the East
In the West, girl had some shares
in legitimate property. She sold the
shares at legitimate price, She in
vested the proceeds iu legitimate
mining property after it was examined
and recommended. And she can sell
her prospective mine TO legitimate
buyer who has examined it-and be
lleves in its worth-at an honest fig.
ure. In the East, the man least capa-
BILE of judging as to the value is the
man most likely TO rush into the wild
cat mining share market. And the
man qualified by antecedent knowledge
and action to be accepted as an author
ity is the man whose advice is most
followed by credulous public In the
West, men of approved experience, of
ability, Of energy, are opening legiti-
mate mines; and Western men who
buy are likely to realize from their
holdings. If Western man goes East,
he takes with him, as a rule. legiti-
mate enterprise; and Eastern investors
who take part arc likely to meet with
high returns.
The Romance of the Mines has its
cruelty, however; for whenever an
Eastern wild eat promoter deceives
Eastern wild cat investors-and their
dreams are shattered-min.
ing is blamed The fault is with the
fools, and not with the mighty business
which gives permanent riches 10 the
world
The romantic possibilities of mining
are as great as ever in the history Of
but investors should invest
with mining men in mines, and not with
wild cat spcculators in wild cat shares