The Republican journal., 1910-12-15
The Widows. Mite.

The Widows. Mite.
Some Lost all Their Insurance in Schemes
Promoted by Burr Bros. Preachers Vic
tins, Too.
One day last week a procession of
heavily yelled widows filed into the Fed
eral building in New York all day, beg
cling the post Office inspectors to get back
the money they sent to the Burr Bros,
late of the Flatiron building, but now of
the TOmbs, for investment in oil and min
ing companies.
Many told Inspectors Kincaid and
Reddy they had lost every cent they had
In the world through the Burrs and their
associates. Some related that they had
invested through Burr Bros. every dol
lar received from their husbands life
insurance on the promise of having these
sums doubled and tripled in short time,
with handsome dividends in the mean
time. With tears streaming down their
faces, they implored the inspectors to
take their money from the imprisoned
brokers.
When inspectors drove up to the Flat
iron building, followed by dray to cart
away the firms books, they found line
of men and women who had been waiting
there all day, hoping against hope that
some one would come in and get them
their money back.
Mrs. Lavinia Lawrence of Philadelphia
told Inspector Kinc hid she had hurried
over to the city as soon as she heard of
Mondays raid. She wore heavy black
crepe veil, saying her husband had died
only few weeks ago. His life insur-'
ance amounted to $4,000, and this was
all he had left her for her support. She
had seen the advertisements Of Burr
Bros, telling how small investment
would soon grow to an enormous sum,
and had sent them every cent she had to
invest.
Mrs. David Crabb of East Ninety-third
street said she was very poor woman,
with large family to support. By
stinting herself and working very hard,
she had been able TO keep her family to-
gether and to scrape together small
sum. She said Burr Bros. told her if
she would put this money in their oil
mines, she would not work much longer.
She believed them, and bought 5000
shares of their oil stock. Inspector Kin
share for it, or So, 500, all the money she
had.
A very old woman, with almost snowy
hair, said she, too, had spent her all in
the Burr's oil stock, 1900 shares of it
at so cents share.
''They told me-" she said, would
double my money in no time
Several preachers reported that they
had invested heavily in the various I'M
listed and wholly worthless stocks offer
ed from the handsome suite of offices in
the Flatiron building.
Frederick Gundelman of Brooklyn said
he had bought 1000 shares of oil stock,
and John Emerson, bricklayer, inform
ed Chief Inspector Dickson that he had
put $4,000 Of hard earned money into
Nevada mining stock. Somehow, he
said, the Burrs got his name and began
to food him with mining literature,
promising all sorts of things. He got no
dividends, as he had been led to believe
he would. On one of the shares of min
ing stock, he told Mr.. Dickson, was a
picture Of Gov. Sparks CT Nevada, as
the president of the company. Emerson
said he wrote to the Governor, and in a
short time received letter apparently
from Gov. Sparks saying the stock was
all right. Subsequently, Emerson de-
clared, he learned that the Governor was
dead at the time he wrote.
The bricklayer said he had invested in
the British American Goldfeld & Copper
Company, buying 5000 shares in this
company at Is cents share, and in the
Goldfeld Mining, Milling & Smelling
Company, buying 1000 shares also at Is
cents share.
Emerson showed Inspector Dickson a
letter signed E. H. Burr, dated February
10. 1910, in which he was told that the
mining stock was worthl ,ss and advising
him to get oil stock in its place. The
letter says, in part.
''To be frank with you, we are about
as discouraged with the mining business
as you are, and we decided to discontinue
all mining operations and direct our ener-
gies toward the financing and develop
ment of California oil properties. E.
"Would you like to change upon rea-
sonable basis the stock you hold in the
British-American Copper Mines & Smelt-
ing Company for stock in one of our ac-
tive successful oil companies? From
your standpoint such an exchange would
seem very advantageous, as your Brit
ish-American stock, as it now stands, is
of little or no value and the exchange
proposition we speak of would perhaps
be the only way Of saving the money you
have invested in British American