The Lakeland evening telegram. (Lakeland, Fla.) 1911-1922, 1916-12-18
The Trump
Card Mine
By Guy HALLECK


mine, where they were taking out gold
in paying quantities. and had invested
my savings In it had subscribed for
my stock when the owners were form
ing the company and they needed mon
ey. Consequently I got good lot of
stock for very little cash. Three hun
dred and fifty dollars was all had,
but it bought me 10000 shares Of stock.
The lead" on which the value Of the
mine depended soon died out, and the
mine appeared to be worthless, but the
incorporators knew of paying veins
which ran in our direction and believed
that some of them extended into our
property. So they held on until rich
vein was discovered on adjoining prop
erty, and there was a fine chance by
digging down hundred feet to strike
the extension. But those interested In
both mines kept the secret from out
siders, and our managers got on to 1t
only from their neighbors trying to
buy US out.
Twas completely ignorant Of all this.
One morning I was told that the COM
pany had no more work for me, 1t hav-
ing collapsed, but since the original
owners did not like to see me lose any
thing they would buy my stock at what
l had paid for it. l thanked them, but
told them that I saw no reason why
should not suffer with the rest, and
would put the certificates away and
consider them charged up to profit
and loss. But they insisted on making
mo whole, and 1. unsuspicious, sold
them my stock.
For some time after this, so far as l
knew, there was nothing doing in the
Trump Gard mine. Occasionally there
was q quotation at from 3 to cents q
share On the mining stock exchange.
Ono evening while walking by the
property I was surprised to see some
workmen coming out Of hole in the
ground, carrying their dinner pals. l
asked ono Of them II they had been
ct work. but he was Norwegian and
spoke no English. In fact not man
Of tho lot could understand 4 word I
said.
If had simply discovered that work
was being done In the mine would
not have become suspicious. But that
the owner had thought at to employ
J only those who could not communi-
cate with inquirers seemed singular,
especially since when l was working
for them their men were mostly Amer
leans.
Looking at the sales list of stocks
that evening in the newspaper, saw
more sales Of Trump Card shares than
had noticed for several weeks previ-
GUS, though the price had only advanc-
ed 4 fraction. I wondered if some.
thing was going on. That night lay
awake thinking.
I sent my wife to nnger in the neigh.
borhood Of the mine and watch. She
saw nothing unusual. There was moth.
Ing alive In 1t SO far a. she could see
The same night I went to the prop.
erty and sat on q stump near By till
2 o'clock in the morning. when a cart
loOmed out Of the darkness and pass.
cd away into the darkness again.
noticed that 1t was without creak.
knew enough about mines to believe
that It was carrying ore, and the axles
were mumed.
The next day I went down to Den.
YER, where procured an interview
with . man who had held q lot Of
Trump Card stock, but had sold It q
. small peoAk before The mine collaps
q. told him that I could give him
. pointer q prospective Iiee IN Z
certain stock and secured q eentrac,
ho0 him that n NAMED Il and h
bougAt and made . proat - was b
dve No - per CENT Of his gains. Their
told hin that I believed there wal
something up In Trump Card.
He consented 10 maize q small invest
nant h u b. way Of observing tn ef
lest On the market and, being bus,
himself, committed the matter to me
I found that tie only stock to b. had
were scattered shares held by those
who considered their Investment /,
dead los, and most Of these did no
care to sch at the present low marke
price. This Strengthened the conf
dence Of my hacker. and when / pro
posed to 60 about among the formel
stockholders and pick up the stock a
private sale, paying an advance on tn,
market price for 1t, he assented.
| In this way I got what stock did no
belong to the original owners, an,
then / began to bid for more on the ex
change. Some stock came out, and m,
hacker feared that We were buying ,
dead horse. But 1t turned out that tn
ring had sold some stock to proven
the price from going up. This they tii,
because some Of them had not got Al
tho shares they wanted.
ii When had bought all the shares m,
hacker would stand for and had pu
back the money I had received 70
those the managers had so kindly re
heved me Of. was obliged to avail
developments, They came one da
when there was q scramble for Trum
! Card stock on the exchange, and
went up like squirrel climbing tn
trunk Of tree. My wife, who was a
much absorbed In the matter as
came to me with the papers giving a
| account of "a Stir In Yrump Gard