Los Angeles herald., 1907-07-28
DETECTIVES
KEPT BUSY
WEDDING OUT sWlN0LERS AND
FAKERS
FEDERAL GOVERNMENT MOST
POWERFUL AGENCY
New York SIeuth on the Trail of Pro-
moters of Fake Mining Schemes
Presents His Con-
clusions

field chamber of commerce and one
among the many Nevada millionaires, in
the course of an after dinner talk at the
California club a few nights ago, took
occasion to denounce in unmeasured
terms all fake mining propositions and
interruptions promoters. Mr.. Brewer de-
clared that all unreliable corporations
and scoundrels in the business world
soon find their level and are Stunned
by all honest men,
Government officials aid to great
extent in exposing crooks of every char
acter and federal detectives are kept
hard at work uncovering fake PROPOSE
tions of every nature.
Old Games Worn Out
"The green goods game and the wire
tapping game have become a little bit
worn out" said an old detective to a
New York Sun reporter Just now it's
the mining game that the authorities
are up against, and you can take 1t from
me that they are up against it good and
hard"
The Sun adds that the detective has
made a reputation for himself working
for the United States government and
did more to stamp out the green goods
game than almost any one else in the
business. What he said about the min
ing game is echoed by almost every one
whose business 1t is to protect the pub
lie from the man with the misleading
prospectus and a supply of nicely litho-
graphed stock certificates.
To people who have put their money
into the hands of the man with the pretty
prospectus only to hear no more from 1t
or the mine 1t may seem little strange
that the authorities, federal and local,
have not stepped in and tried to stop the
stream of cash that has flowed from the
pockets of the people of this country into
the hands of some of these INSCRIPTIONS
mining promoters.
There are several reasons why they
haven't. In the first place, according
to those who ought to know, there is no
investigation more expensive than that of
running down fake mining concern SELL
ing in one corner of the continent stock
in mine supposed to be in another cor
ner 5000 miles away. 1t takes thousands
of dollars, months of time and a man
specially equipped for this kind of work,
a man with brains and ingenuity pos
sessed by few detectives even among
those employed by the government.
Another reason is that the laws of the
states are at fault in not putting restric-
tions around the companies they create.
In few cases where such swindlers have
been exposed and the swindlers convicted
the punishment has been light as COM
pared with the outlay necessary to secure
conviction.
Got After One Man
Some years ago, before the discoveries
in Nevada and elsewhere that have given
such an impetus to the promotion of min
ing companies, legitimate and illegttt-
mate, the government did get after one
man who had launched a mining COM
parly up In the northwest and was SELL
ing stock to the public by the barrel. The
company was not only advertising by
pages in the newspapers of the country,
but it was sending all sorts of literature
through the mails.
One of the best postoffice inspectors
in the employ of the government was at
that time stationed in Chicago. He was
put or the case and told to find out
whether the government had any right to
issue a fraud order and arrest the pro-
moters. The mine was in a region al
most inaccessible 1t took this detective
almost one whole year before he had dis
covered enough evidence on which to
make an arrest. In that time he had
trave.ed hundreds of miles on horseback
and on foot, had engaged experts and
looked up miners. He finally found that
the company had been organized and had
sold stock before it had any mine or min
ing claim and that few hundred dollars
of the proceeds of the sale of stock had
afterward gone to secure an option or
a claim pronounced to be worthless. That
was all there was to the $1,0OOOO mining
company whose stock had been dis
tributed broadcast. The investigation
cost the government s170O and the chief
promoter got just two years in jail.
Now and then the postoffice 1nspec-
tors do step in and a mining company
goes up the spout. In nine cases out OF
ten the investigation preceding this ac-
tion by the postoffice authorities mas
taken many months, and by the time the
proper evidence Is secured much stock
has been sold Not until they hear of
the action taken by the inspectors In
stopping the mail and arresting the pro-
moters do the people who have bought
this stock and parted with their savings
wake up to the fact that they have been
deceived.
Many Schemes AfIoat
According to the authorities. there
probably never was time when there
were so many schemes afioat which
would bear government Investigation,
This is due to the new discoveries OF
ore in many sections of this country
Canada and Mexico. One reason why
more are not investigated, they say, is
because there aren't enough inspectors
to do the work. All told there are 2oV
postoffice inspectors scattered over the
country. Their work includes running
down mail thieves as we'll as swindlers'
In fact the protection of the mails from
thieves is their first duty ordinarily
Protecting them from fraudulent use
comes next.
In the large cities there are from six
to ten inspectors, but of these not
more than two can be assigned to the
detection of swindles.
GIVE us twenty good men," said an
inspector recently, and 1 will guar
antee that we will keep some of these
stock swindlers on the run. AS it is
we haven't got enough men, and until
the force of inspectors is considerably
increased a lot of people who haven't
got the sense to investigate a thing
thoroughly before they give up their
money are bound to get stuck. That
is, unless they do more than they do at
present to protect themselves"
In a great many cases when COM
plants are made to the local authorities
of savings lost in mining swindles the
authorities are forced to turn the mat
ter over to the government inspectors.
While the stock, perhaps, has been sold |
here and the offices of the promoters
are here, the mine or the oil well may
be in Mexico.
As n general thing district ATTORNEYS