The Bridgeport evening farmer., 1916-07-14
acoasanssa.l


 "Well," said Talbot fin ca1mer man her, i've won't quite do that, but we'll put some of those sand hills into the edge of the bay. You wait and see. If you want to make money you just buy some of those water front lots. You'n wake Up some morning to fac you're mile inland"
 laughed again, but just the other day, in this year 1899, rode in Q street car where fifty years ago great ships had lain at anchor. e We discovered Johnny and Tank and pounded each others backs and had drinks and generally worked off our high spirits. Then we adjourned to corner, lit cigars, tremendous luxury for US miners, and pi.nged into recital Talbot listened to us attentively, his eyes bright with interest, occasionally breaking in on the narrator to ask one of the others to supplement some too modest1y worded statement.
 'sWell,r he sighed when we had f1n- 1shed, you boys have certainly had a tfmel What an experience! You'll never forget itv' He brooded awhile. Fl srppose the world will never see its ( like again. It was the chance of a lifetime. I'd likc--no, I wouldn't I've lived too. We'll, now for the partner ship. AS understand 1t, for the Hang mans Gulch end of it we have, all told, about $5,0OO at any rate, thai was the amount Mcclellan sent down to me"
 saThat's it,r said [.
 s'And the Porcupine Flat venture was bad loss?"
 -The robbers cleaned us out there except for what we sent you," agreed regretfully.
 Since which time Tank has been out of it completely r
 Haven't made a cent sfnce," ac- { knowledged Yank cheerfully, land owe somethink to Frank here for my keep. Thought I had about $1 500, but guess ain't"
 sse At Italian Bar," went on Talbot chow much did you makew
 Doesn't matter what made" In. terposed Johnny, flor, as Frank told you, it's all at the bottom of the Sacra mento river."
 1T did pretty we'll said I. land pulled out 216 ounces"
 About $3,O00" computed Talbot. You're the plutocrat, all right. Well, z I've done pretty well with this end of the partn0Ahip too. I think-but l guess we'd better take fresh day to 1t. It must be ungodly late. Good Lord, yes! Three o'clockv'
 Nobody would have thought so. The place seemed nearly as full as ever. We accompanied Talbot to his hotel, where he managed, after some din- culty, to procure us cot apiece. ]. Our sleep was short, and in spite of our youth and the vitality we had stored in the healthy life of the hills we felt dragged out and tired. Five hours sleep in two days is not enough. q was up few minutes before the rest, and l sat in front of the hotel basking in the sun like lizard.
 Talbot appeared last, fresh and smil- ing. Breakfast finished, he took us all with him to the new brick building. After some business we adjourned once more to the Arcade There Tal- bot made his report.
 wish I could remember it and re- 2 peat it to you verbatim. It was worth 1t. But cannot, md the most can do Is to try to convey to you the sense of that scene-we three tanned, weath- CT beaten outlanders listening open mouthed to the keen, competent, sell assured magician who before our eye3 spun hs gIitteSing fabric. Talbot Ward had seized upon the varied pos abilities of the new city. The earn. S4ngs on his first scheme the ship store houses and the rental of tho brick building on Montgomery street, you will emember-amOunted net the first month, I believe, to some S6,00O. With his share of this money he had laid narrow margins on a dozen options Day by day, week by week, his op. sand lots, shore lots, lighterin~. planh roads, . new hotel Day after day week after week, he had turned these things over, and at each turn money ha.- dropped out. Sometimes the play t.sing proved empty, and then Talbot had promptly thrown it away, appar eltly without afterthought or regret.
 As fast as he acquired dollnr he in vested 1t in . new chance, until his in terests extended from the Presidio tc the water front of the inner bay. These interests were strange odds and ends He and . man with his own given name, Talbot H. Green, had title in much of what is now Harbor View that is to say, they would have clear title as soon as they had paid heavy mortgages. His shares in the comner. cial wharf lay in the safes of bank. ing house, and the dollars he had raised on them were valiantly doing duty ia holding at bay pressing debt on prccariously held water front equi. ties. Talbot mentioned glibly sums that reduced even the most successful mining to child's game. The richest strike We had heard rumored never yielded the half of what our friend had tossed into single deal Our / own pftiful thousands were beggarly by comparison, insignificant, not worth considering.
 Of all the varied and far extending e&airs the Ward block was the flower