The Sauk Centre herald. (Sauk Centre, Stearns County, Minn.) 1886-current, 1911-02-02
IheLion sShare
By SADIE oLcoIT
Copyright by American Press Asso-
citation. 1911.

overreaching themselves by trying to
| overreach some one else. Unhappiiy
| few of these cases come out to the ad
vantage of the person overreached.
Peter Inslee. a prospector. discov
/ cred a rich vein of ore in Colorado
and sold half interest to Enoch
/ Smithson, who organized company
for its development. Inslee's share
| was all in the stock of the company.
he owning a few shares less than
! Smithson. thus giving the purchaser
] full control in the premises Inslee
did not get any dividends on his stock,
and being very poor, with wife and
a couple of kids to support. he was
obliged to sell few shares occasionally
to keep the wolf from the door.
| Meanwhile the price of the stock on
| the exchange was gradually settling.
When the company was organized a
few shares were sold at so per cent
of their par value. AS Inslee kept
putting it out he got less and less fol
! 1t till he was obliged to part with con
| siderable shares at time to supply
| his necessities After awhile he sold
! the last of it for cents on the dollar
About this time. going by the mine
| he saw that high fence had been
put around it. He strolled up to the
gate and was refused admittance For
| the first time it occurred to him that
| Smithson had pretended that the mine
was not paying in order to depress the
| stock
Inslee went to Potter, a broker in
colorado Springs and asked him to
find out what floating stock of the
company there was on the market.
Potter investigated subrosa and dis
covered that there was all of Inslee's
original stock and a part of, Smith
sons, which the latter had given in
payment for mining machinery and
other necessities. Inslee told the
broker about the fence recently put
around the property, saying also that
he suspected there was a "nigger" be
hind it Potter agreed that if Inslee
| would at any time find out that the
mine was doing well he would adj
vance money to buy the stock. he get
ting a slice of all he bought besides
his commissions. So they got up a
code of communication and Inslee
! went home.
Staining his face so as to pass as a
half breed Indian, Inslee went to the
mine and applied for work. He was
obliged to apply several times before
being employed. When he got in be-
hind the fence he found that he was
not allowed to go out. Nor was he
or any other man in the mine permit
ted to communicate with those out
side except by letter, and all letters
were inspected before being sent.
Inslee felt assured that the manage
ment were expecting something re-
markable. Then one day it was evil
dent that something remarkable had
occurred Smithson went by, talking
excitedly to a man Inslee knew to be
capitalist, and Inslee heard Smithson
say, "Six hundred dollars to the toni"
Inslee dared not communicate with
Potter direct. He could with his wife,
though only about family affairs, and
had told her before leaving her to heat
his letters. The day he heard Smith
sons remark he wrote her, inclosing
some wages he had received. Mrs.
Inslee heated the paper and brown
letters came out on it.
"Wire Potter to buy all he can get.
Six hundred to the ton."
Mrs. Inslee at once sent the message.
Potter found that already small or
ders to buy the stock were being exc
cuted, and the price had gone up from
6 to cents. He had learned who held
the shares and went round buying 1t
at private sale. In this way he kept
the price down till he had bought all
Inslee's original stock and so much Of
Smithson's as was on the market.
Smithson's brokers were now en-
deavoring to secure the stock at an
advanced price through the exchanges.
but found none for sale.
One morning Inslee walked into Pot
ter's office and told him that mag
nificent strike had been made at the
mine. Potter at once began to bid in
open market for the stock. He secured
none, but effected his purpose, which
was to give better value to the shares
as quoted
Then Inslee. undisguised. went to
the mine, called for Smithson and de
manded an accounting. Smithson told
him that he had paid him for his in
terest and ordered him of the prem
Uses. Inslee advised him to be ready
to turn the property over to new
management one month from that day,
on which was to be held the annual
election of directors.
When that day came around Inslee,
who held his own original half Of the
stock and one-third Of Smithson's, ap-
peared at the meeting Of stockholders
-he and Smithson held 1t aiI-and vot-
ed in new board with himself as
president.
"And now. Mr. Smithson,' he said,
''rH trouble you to vacate these prem
ises."
There was nothing for Smithson to
do but to turn the mine over to its dis
coverers. under the law governing cor
porations. Smithson, who was ambi-
tiouS to have both his own and Inslee's