The Washburn times. [volume] (Washburn, Wis.) 1896-1976, 1913-02-20
4 BIG COLD BRICK
The Trap That Jernegan Baited
With Salt Sea Water.
SCHEME OF A CLEVER ROGUE.
The Smooth SwindIer and His Accom-
pIice Showed How Easily They Could
Extract Gold From the Ocean--Fleec-
ed Their Dupes and Then Decamped.

pIice Showed How Easily They Could
Extract Gold From the Ocean--Fleec-
ed Their Dupes and Then Decamped.
Various inventors have been working
for years on the theory that there Is
plenty of gold In sea water If only
some process of extraction could be de-
veloped.
Some years ago the Rev. Prescott j.
Jernegan was the salt water wizard Of
the hour. From the day his bubble
burst and he left for Europe nobody
seems to know chat has become Of
him. Jernegan, who posed as clergy
man, and c. e. Fisher, once a floor
walker in New York department
store and before that a diver. got to-
gether in the fall of 1896 and for a
whole year carefully considered the
problem Of extracting gold from salt
water. 1t is true. their whole field of
thought comprised the use of salt wa
ter as an accessory only, the real ma
terial from which the gold was to be
extracted being the American people.
Very artistically Jernegan, to whom
was left the matter Of publicity, per-
mitted some vague rumors to leak out
"A leading clergyman had marvel
GUS money making device. The world
was soon to be stunned by fact that
would make the possessor of the orig
nal secret so rich that all the multi
millionaires would be paupers in COM
parison."' When they had stirred up
public curiosity Jernegan and Fisher
went to New England and there set up
some mysterious machinery.
On Narragansett bay was an old half
tlismantled wharf, and at the sea end
Of this the two erected a cheap frame
shanty about by 10 in size, with a
square hole cut through the floor and
looking directly down into about fifteen
feet of water. An electric wire from
a small battery was run along the pill
ing of the wharf and attached to a
mysterious box, with heavy iron
clamps and holes all through to per-
NIT Of free passage of the water back
and forth.
Finally the great secret was divulged.
These two men had discovered way
Of taking all the gold they wanted from
the salt water at cost so trifing
that it was ridiculous to mention 1t.
Two wealthy persons, one Provi-
dence jeweler and the other a New
York florist, were approached by Jer-
negan with what seemed to be such
trustful and childlike proposal that
they both embraced it eagerly. 1t was
that, all his apparatus being ready for
experiment, they would come to the
shanty on the wharf prepared to go
through a nights vigil and witness the
result, accompanied by any scientific
friends they cared to bring along.
The idea. as outlined by Jernegan,
was to send a current into a pan of
mercury held within the box, the recep-
tacle then being sent to the bottom of
the sea and drawn up after several
hours, when it would be found that
the mercury had absorbed gold from
the ocean.
When the night of the experiment
came the box was prepared in the
shanty, two chemists, friends Of the
capitalists, bringing their own mercury
with them. The box was lowered to
the bottom, and then the party Of five
began their wait. Soon after daylight
Jernegan announced that it was time
to draw the box up again. This was
done, and the whole party eagerly set
to work to find out whether any gold
had been received. When the chemists
announced that gold to the value of
$14 was found mixed with the quick
silver all were stunned by the discov-
cry and realized at once the vast pos
sibilities In more extensive operations,
the original experiment having been
practically made with toy apparatus.
The story spread like wildfre, and
the modest Jernegan was prevailed
upon to organize company. STOCK
was sold, and after getting possession
Of thousands of dollars the promoter
sailed away to Europe. The success OF
the great experiment was explained
afterward. Fisher, the diver, had gone
out from the shore In his diving suit,
opened the box and, taking out the
mercury that had been brought by the
chemists, substituted vial Of his own
that had been strongly impregnated
with gold.
Both before and since the Jernegan
fraud many attempts have been made
to extract gold from salt water, some
Of them fraudulent, some genuine and
based on scientific grounds that have
from time to time appealed even to
deep students. But all so far have
failed dismally. Though traces OF gold
are to be found in salt water, COM
mercial application is practically I'M
p0ssible.-New York Press.