Tonopah daily bonanza. [volume] (Tonopah, Nev.) 1906-1929, 1912-04-20
MONEY WITH A STRING.

A species Of fraud which has been going
in New York for many years finally I'M
covered By the government officials during the
week This fraud has its aim the batting of
the poor mining prospector ON the basis that the
ban king shark will finance his property right off
the reel for whatever sum he figures his prospect
will warrant.
To the credit of a great many local publica-
tions this particular scheme has been exposed on
four sides repeatedly and consistently. Despite
this publicity these so-called Investment bank
ers' have continued to ply their trade, and il
is generally believed that they have amassed
siderable wealth in doing so. Their scheme of
operations was as thin it was bare, and was
based entirely on the realization that there
thousands If propositions in the United States
waiting to be financed The banker in question
got into many papers as would allow him to
use their columns, and his basis of advertising
was that he could secure capital for the develop
ment of all kinds of mining property and was in
position to undertake the financing of the pro
lect from start to finish.
Hundreds and hundreds of replies, naturally
received to such bait, and it seems most
unfortunate that the penny-wise policy adopted
in many daily and Sunday newspapers gave this
man the greatest encouragement to operate ON,
his advertisements could invariably be found
in Sunday papers which were willing to accept
his business
The inner scheme of his workings has been
tApOSeu SO often lHdl III mas DceH worn almost
threadbare However, says the New York Min
ing Age there other organizations of this
kind which doing similar fake business in
this city and it is to be hoped that the govern
ment will get after them with the same zeal rs
they have displayed in taking a ease against the
individual who raided during the past week
1t is needless to say that these individuals
willing to finance any old thing at any old
price, and matter whether the scheme projected
refers to a belated invention or a patent which
has been thrown out of court or the financing
of new sagebrush raiser, these people are always
most willing to undertake to raise money for it..
After having interested their principal thoroughly
in regard to their ability to raise money they ask
him to remit an advance fee Of anywheres from
800 to $500 to cover the preliminary expenses
of organization. they put it. If the dupe at
the other end sends the advance fee this is the
last he ever hears of the project, the money, or
| the company. If he complains that the banker
| is not raising the money promised, the banker
replies that times hard and that it is impoSsi-
bic to interest anybody at the moment in the par
| teular project involved 1t is most extraordinary
to realize that this kind Of thing has been going
| on so long unmolested Hundreds of inquiries
| from susceptible miners have been received in
this office that one topic and in every instance
| they were warned to the utter inability of the
| people involved to make good any of their al
| legged promises 1t is to be earnestly hoped that
week will put harpoon through as clever a get
rich-quck scheme has ever been perpetrated
| in New York City