The united opinion. [volume] (Bradford, Vt.) 1881-1970, 1910-10-07
GOODWIN AS A
STOCK BOOMER
Rice Wanted Him to "Nlne
and Dine" Europeans
HOPED TO "ROLL IN MONEY"

Disappointed Because Actor Could Not
Place Stock Across the Pond
Would Be More Than Surprised II
$500, 200 Could Not Be Made Out of
Ely CentraI-Mrs. Rice to Testify
For Government
New York, Oct. Allow George e.
Rice, behind the Scheftels mining
brokers company, expected to make
| $500, 900 out of the public in Ely Cen
trail Copper, and wanted Nat Good
win, the actor, to wine and dine Eu-
| ropean people into becoming liberal
| patrons, Is disclosed In mass Of cor
respondence found In the main office
of the concern in New York. to which
place a great bundle of similar cor
respondence was taken from the Bos-
ton Office following the raid by the
federal government last Thursday.
Another development Of the big
tangle is the announcement of Mrs.
George G. Rice that she has been try
ing to get a divorce from her husband
and that she makes accusations
against Miss Bessie Lafell, formerly
an actress, who lives in New York
and has been a friend Of Rice.
Immediately after testifying before
the federal grand jury" said Mrs.
Rice, 81 am going to Reno to get my
divorce, so that l can testify at the
forthcoming trial of Scheftels & Co.
as a government witness"
Rice was the brains of the firm,
which is charged by the government
with using the mails with fraudulent
intent in the sale of mining stocks.
Goodwin was formerly associated with
Rice. Goodwin has said that he did
not know until last fall that Rice's
real name was Simon J. Hertzig, an
ex-convict.
One letter from Rice was evidently
In reply to one written by Goodwin
from St. Louis, where the actor was
then playing. Goodwin was to go
abroad the following month, and ap-
parently he had talked about selling
some stock in England.
IL am utterly at sea as to how can
fill the bill regarding your wants in
Europe" Rice wrote on July 8, 1909; |
I'VE have only got an eight-foot hole
down on the Bovard mine, and you
could not get any engineering report
on the property except that II is a
promising prospect. l do not need
anybody in Europe or America to sell
real mines for me, nor does anybody
else.
ANY time we have the ore blocked
out we can put up our own mill and
make all the profits ourselves, and If
the property you take along with you
has got to stand such an examination
as school trained engineers are apt
to give it, 1t is folly to monkey with
1t. | had expected that you would be
able to place some stock across the
pond, and since you are convinced
you will be unable to do so l will have
nothing to give you along, so just
forget all about the mining end in Eu-
rope.
My idea was that you would be able
to pull off something like - did over
there. He did not take mine there,
but stock prospect, and fed 1t to
them. He gave dinners and banquets
and cut a wide swath, and then had
them underwrite the whole capitaliza-
ton of one of his companies"
Rice liked the Bovard property, as
witness this: IF the Bovard property
continues to show up during the next
ninety days as well as during the past
sixty days, you and | won't have to
do very much hustling hereafter. and
will be able to roll in money.
Just think of 1t, Nat! We are
spending about $4,000 a week for ad-
vertising just to get new names to
send our literature to. We have
simply been building up the business
with a view to establishing ourselves
and making a fortune this fall.
Il have the proposition for the pub
lie in the Ely Central Copper COM
pany, and if we do not make $780,
900 out of it we shall be more than
surprised" Rice then discusses the
mine and repeats that killing will
be made with it, He insists that it is
very easy. Then he returns 70 Good
win. The actor is told that he would
be most welcome in New York be-
cause he might help to establish a
credit with a trust company and for
further reason.
Rice modestly concludes: You
know find II essential to keep fairly
IN the background, and Scheftels
alone is compelled to see everybody
who wants to do any business with US.
He has not half enough time to meet
he people. and, moreover. he is not G
half as good a mixer as you are"
Chavez Heart Displaced