Weekly independent. [volume] (Elko, Nev.) 1887-1914, 1913-06-06
The LUCK OF A
GOOD LISTENER
How a Down and Out Miner
Struck II Rich.

cinl condition. 1t was 2 cents In band
literally I'm hand-tor he was looking
at the copper coins lugubrtously, 10
membering at the same time that there
was not even a crust OF bread In tho
house for his wife and two little chill
dren- He had taken a chair on the
porch OF the Sandwich hotel btSnuse
chairs there Were free and he didn't
belong anywhere. Sam was a miner
n had worked in many mines. He
had been caught in a labor storm with
the result OF loss of employment. His
savings were all gone, there was no
prospect Of work where he was, and he
had no means OF taking himself and
his family anywhere else.
Two men were sitting ut the other
end Of the porch talking together ex.
citedly, though in a low tone. Calkins
heard the word strike" and. suppos-
Ing II referred to labor matters in
which he was interested, he pricked up
his ears and oon discovered that they
referred TO Il strike OF paying ore I'm
some mine the name OF which they did
no mention. One OF the men took a
package from his pocket-the
was q piece Of newspaper-and, un-
rolling II, showed his companion speci-
mems Of ore. Calkins caught the words
six hundred TO the ton" This told
him that the specimens mentio ed as.
sayed to produce this amoun out OF
a o Of ore. After passing the SAM
pies back and forth for awhile they
were rolled again In the bit OF news
paper, and the q who had produced
them put them again I'm his pocket
Soon after both men arose and went
AWAY.
Calkins would have gone away, too,
II he had had any place TO 20. But
be hadn't Being restless, he got up
and walked over to the other end of
the porch. In II chair in which one OF
the men had been sitting he noticed a
little dark lump about the size of a
hickory nut Taking 1t up. he looked
at It scrutinizingly.
"If the Constant vein hadn't run
out" he remarked to himself. "rd
swear the chunk came out OF It."
1t was a brownish quartz and full Of
gold. Cnlkins had worked In the Con-
slant mine, which had proved incon.
stant. While there he had taken out
Just such ore rs this. But he had seer
the vein grow narrower and narrower
till 1t was nothing more than a crack.
The mine, after n search for n p
Ing Of the vein. had been abandoned,
and Calklns had gone to work else
where, Personally he believed that II
the vein were followed deep enough II
might he found to reopen. But the
stockholders we're discouraged and
would not stand assessment. Sudden
~ 1t occurred to Calkins that the vein
had been followed and paying ore
again struck. Then came the quick
thought. Can l.. with only 2 cents in
the world. profit by what I suspect IL
It is true?"
He went into the hotel. where a
printed list of quotations of mining
stocks was hanging on the wall, and
glanced Mt sales OF Constant There
were sales at @ cents n share. The
stock had recently stood ut 4 cents.
Then Calkins walked up the street to
the office OF n man Of the name OF
Fisher. who he knew held some OF the
shares.
"I've got some information" said the
miner. do you want II, or shall I
take II elsewhere?'
"Im your man"
"What'l you give?"
"Tcn per cent or the profit"
make 1t 20 and I'll out with It,"
"Au right-oO II is"
Cnlklns produced his chunk of ore
and told Fisher that It had come out
of the Constant mine. Fisher asked
how he knew it, but Calkins declined
to satisfy him. lie felt sure that II
his man knew he was guessing the
transaction would end then and there.
Fisher had that morning sold part of
his stock at q cents n share. He sent
In an order TO buy It bnck and 10000
shares more mt the market price. He
got 1000 at o, 1000 Mt G1s and the bal
ancc Mt figures rising by fractions till
the price paid was ~ cents. The sales
were larger than for many months.
but not considerable.
Calkins wished to ask Fisher for n
little money I'm advance to buy n sup
per for his family, but dared not lest
he should lead him TO suspect that the
whole affair was simply Il game to
beat him II Of n paltry sum. SO great
was his suspense that he preferred to
keep away from home. He was hang
Ing between heaven md hell.
The next morning when he turned
out Of an clubhouse where he had slept
he spent his . cents for n paper. There
In big headlines lie saw the
mcnt that the Constant vein had been
recovered. richer and broader than be-
fore. When the Mining Exchange
opened the stock went up to So n
share and stayed there. Before noon
Fisher gave his informant n check for
nearly 1000
Fortune had favored the mnn whose
capital WINS but 2 cents. Those I'm the
secret had bought up what stock they
wanted Mt private sale, knowing that
II they all went Into the exchange TO.
gothcr they would advance the price.
When Cabins went home loaded with
good things he found his wife crying.
his children clamoring for something
20 eat. Ills bank book dried his wife's
tenrs. and his bundles stopped his chill.
dren's clnmor.