Tonopah daily bonanza. [volume] (Tonopah, Nev.) 1906-1929, 1913-03-06

rivals in this marathon Of mechanical
skill.
| The race was on and, when the
flag dropped, Tonopah led all com
petitors with an easy grace that
shamed some of the most famous
firms of ST. Louis, Chicago, Milwau-
/ kee, Denver Salt Lake, San Fran
cisco and Los Angeles They were
all there to pluck the plum of enter.
prise and when the fiat went forth
that Tonopah had Won congratula-
tons we're given without the slight
est shade of envy The David whose
home nestled in the foothills of the
Sawtooth range overlooking the San
Antonio desert had humbled the
Goliaths of engineering.
Campbell & Kelly are brace of
modest gentlemen whose diffidence
is only equalled by their ability
which actually amounts to genius.
Right here, in Tonopah they have
established a business that will add
as much luster to the name of their
adopted town as certain amber
beverage has done for Milwaukee.
No one viii dispute this Every day
the firm is doing something towards
this end, and their achievements to
date make interesting human inter
est reading. Starting on a shoe
string, five years ago sleeping. eat
ing and working in a cramped little
shop that threatened to topple over
and engulf them in bankruptcy they
struggled for bread and butter. Car.
ing naught for fame or enduring
monuments they simply asked for
sufficient orders to keep very
hungry wolf from their door About
the time that other employees and
most of the store keepers of Tono-
pah were turning over for their sec
ond beauty sleep Campbell and Kelly
were toiling, sweeping, securing and
furnishing castings out of the pits
and preparing for another days mo-
notonous grind. The only help they
could afford was one moulder and
an apprentice and it required all
the rustling ability of the partners
to keep enough work in sight to an
ticipate the weekly pay check. One
month the payroll of S4O0 had to be
met out of receipts of 1856
Talk of Wall street high financed
How they did it neither can tell, but
they did. Picture to yourself $3.50 a
day to feed and clothe four men in
new mining camp and you will
: understand the full meaning of hard
F., times.
When gaunt panic strobe across
the desert and banks closed theil
vaults after cashiers and president,
had levanted to adjoining states
when merchants spoke of closinl
= their doors and removing to othe
: climes, Campbell & Kelly held dow
their shop with fortitude that de
serves highest reward. They fillet
all orders and met every obligation
They did not have a bed of rose
e either in practice or metaphor for
during their strenuous time the,
A slept on cots and nursed mea
= ticket that precluded pampered appe
tites. But they had the punch am
= the stick-to-it-iveness to win.
The Tonopah foundry and ma
chine shops were established i
1906 during the wild promotion pei
iod when oily tongued adyenturer
sold stock in any old scheme an
made their getaway before publ
creduility was aroused. Sixteen thol
said dollars was subscribed toward
= capital of $SS,OOO and, with the e.
l. haustion of this fund, the compan
entered into a decline and ende
J. its days in insolvency. Such wa
the status of affairs when H. !
n Campbell and R. ]. Kelly. two youn
machinists who came in with til
railroad, concluded to try their arr
- on reyiving the corpse. They ente
ed into lease and subsequent
took possession under sheriff
title. Since that memorable dat
the business of the foundry an
shops has been conducted under II
firm name of Campbell & KEEL
Inc.
Never will either Of these gent
= men forget the winter of 1908. Col
field had passed through the thro,
of labor revolution, mines hS
closed down, leasers left the countr
capital drew its pursestrings tight
than ever when the mining game Wi
suggested and dreadful silen
hung over southern Nevada, II
:" stiffness of death prevailed and
intense was the quiet that the ba
Of fugitive coyote sounded iii
w. a clap of thunder.
. Such was the period that tried t