New Ulm review. (New Ulm, Brown County, Minn.) 1892-1961, 1908-04-29
Easy Monsr.
copyright. 1901


the east in which he was employed
made cut in salaries that James
Halpin went west During the next
six years he was cowboy, miner. pros
pector and teamster. AS a prospector
he made miserable failure of it. In
the other yocations he put in honest
work for his money. Among his ae-
quantances he was spoken of as an
honest man and was often trusted
There were men who sneered at his
principles. For instance. when he dis
covered the $1,000 nugget in the dump
at the Golden Lion mine and turned
it in to the company as its property he
was sneered and laughed at on all
sides. The company did not even hand
him out cigar for his probity.
Then there was the case of the train
holdup. The robbers got the express
all right together with a big lot of
registered mail, but in their hurry they
abandoned mail bag and dropped two
or three packages. Ha1pin found them
among the rocks and sagebrush. There
was over $4,000 in all. The express
company started out to reward him,
but finally ended up by notifying him
that he ought to be glad that he had
not been arrested as one of the sus-
poets. Uncle Sam received his mail
bag and said nothing and did nothing.
AS prospector Halpin discovered
the Double Cross mine and told a
friend of it in confidence. The friend
fastened to the land Office and located
the mine in his own name and within
two months had sold it for a quarter
of million dollars. He was a man
without sand" and Halpin could have
gone to him with gun and at least
made him divide, but he did nothing
OF the kind. 1t thus came about that
the men who knew Halpin'' had two
saying to fit his case. One was ''As
honest as Jim Halpin" and the other
AS big a fool as Jim Halpin." He
was simply trying to be a square man.
1t was in his blood, and it took long
time to convince him that all the rest
of mankind was on the make and that
he would get the worst of the deal
every time. He had to be reduced to
rags and hunger before he would be-
lieve it.
One day Jim Halpin woke up. He
had travelled over good part of three
western states and was familiar with
the better portions. He got the loan
of suit of clothes and few dollars
in cash and brought up in the town in
which a certain member of congress
was living. They had talk. They
consulted maps. They made bar
gain. Halpin wasn't to be fooled
again, and the bargain or agreement
was ironclad The congressman would
have left loopholes by which he could
later on swindle the man who had
come to him as they had planned to
swindle Uncle Sam. but he had to aban.
don this part of the programme. When
all was ready Halpin set forth to To-
cate lands. They were fertile valleys,
timbered lands. coal lands and hills
filled with iron and coal. They were
entered under different names as home.
steads, desert lands, soldiers lands and
other trickery, and in one year they
had Sobbled up more than million
dollars worth. Then Halpin sold his
share for hundred thousand dollars
rather than wait longer. He also had
other plans he wanted to carry out
and he needed the money to do so.
Jim Halpin with hundred thousand
dollars to his credit in the bank was
no longer sneered at. He had be-
come a man to take off the hat to-
They dropped "the honest as jim
Halpin.' They knew that he had made
his money by sharp practice, but they
thought all the more of him for it.
The man who can make a fortune and
just escape the law in doing it receives
more praise than an honest man who
tolls a lifetime to get So. 900 together
The Jim" now became Judge OF
Colonel" when men addressed him.
In locating the lands Halpin had not
played square with the congressman
He had left out certain coal fields. He
now located them for himself. He was
even generous enough to pay the gov
eminent $3.50 an acre for land worth
perhaps hundred thousand per acre
and thus he had nothing to hide. The
coal lands were in the mountains and
the towns and cities on the plains. To
carry out his plans the two must be
connected by railroads. Mr. Halpin
went to three different legislatures. a
few members could be made to see
what a great thing it would be if this
and that town could secure coal at the
price of buffalo chips, and they were
ready to grant a charter. A number of
others saw it only after they had been
paid from $500 to $1,000 apiece. Land
grants were obtained with the charters.
By selling half the acreage the roads
were built. The price on the remainder
was doubled to make even There was
nh I, 4 !,