Evening star. [volume] (Washington, D.C.) 1854-1972, 1924-02-17

So testified Edward L. Doheny in ex-
planning his loan" Of satchelful of
money to Albert Fall in the oil-leas-
ing scandal inquiry.
This was from a man who at forty
was So poor that he had. to borrow
pittances in order to support himself
while he carried on what many called
his foolish search for hidden treasures
III the earth.
Some guessers who have studied his
career and his present, activities in
this country. Mexico and Europe, be-
lieve he is the third wealthiest man
In Anne RIGA
Doheny's rise to the financial sum-
NIT in twenty years epitomizes the
romance of American business. He
took many personal hazards to gamble
with nature. Three times he was
near death.
Many millions now represented In
the Pan-American, Huasteca and Pc
troleum Transportation companies
measure only part of his present
wealth. He Is part owner of the
private banking house of Blair &
90. In New York. Other corporations
lave absorbed his money, and his
holdings of wide-tlunG ranch lands
and three lavish home estates In Cali
fornia run into large sums.
One of these homes Is in the heart
OF Los Angeles--Chester Place,
group of some forty mansions that
had clustered into fashionable resi-
dental park covering a city block.
Doheny, wanting to dictate who his
neighbors should be, bought the
whole group.
In Mexico, by virtue of his COM
n,and of the companies owning four
Teen hundred thousand acres on the
cast coast. formerly the property Of
President Gonzales, Doheny is land
baron.
On above-surface improvements
alone nearly third of billion dol
lars have been expended He has
shipped so much BLACK gold out OF
the territory that. he has made Tam
pico the second port on this continent
in value of eXoprts. Twenty million
barrels year are his estimated ship
ments.
upon miles of pipelines. privately
built wagon roads. railroad. nests
OF monster storage tanks. refineries
with capacity of thirty million bar
rels, powerful trucks. hundreds Of
roughly built houses for workers,
with more than u hundred oil der
rtcks standing as lofty sentinels over
the scene of bustling industry.
Out of Tampico ply half hum
dred Doheuy oil tank steamers. And
all this from man who began his
oil operations with a pick in Los
Angeles with no capita. at all and
some debts in the bargain.
THREE times It has BEEN sug-
gested that he bears a charmed
life. During the multi illionaires
twenty years of wandering. over the
wild and woolly southwest in search
OF wealth in the form of gold or sill
Yer he paused at Kingston. y. Mex, to
accumulate a little capital to go on
with his prospecting.
In Fon du Lac. Wis. his native
town, he had received a high school
education and he now put 1t to use
by teaching school. A citizens vigil
lance committee was formed to deal
with cattle rustlers, thieves and ban
dts that infested the region. Do
heny was made, head of the organiza-
ton, proved himself fearless man,
and sent many Of the criminals to
prison.
Warned by the outlaws to leave the
country, he refused. In July, 1887, az
the schoolmaster was walking down
the main street Of Kingston, no
torious cattle-rustler emptied his
Winchester at him from across the
street. The man, who was known as
a dead shot, fired sixteen bullets at
Doheny from behind dry goods
case. but not one of the shots took eff
feet.
After the man had exhausted his
ammunition, Doheny walked across
the street and put him under arrest.
The prisoner got long penitentiary
sentence for many crimes.
On another occasion Doheny went
into one OF the border towns after a
long prospecting Journey for breath
% civilization. In one Of the towns
resorts liquor-crazed man. for no
apparent reason except that he didn't
like. the prospector's looks, leveled
his sfx-Shooter at Doheny's back and
was about to fire.
His life was saved by a friend, Dan
Grady. who leaped upon the man be-
fore Doheny knew what was happen
Ing. At last accounts Doheny was
grub-staking Grady and had done so
through the years. When he, came
into aff1uence, the oil man offered
Grady q life Job in the city, but
Grady preferred to live out In the
open spaces.
The third time Doheny cheated fate
was when he fell down a mine shaft,
breaking both ankles. He was fished
out and laid away until the fractures
healed, when he resumed his pros
pecting. as strong on his feet and
in his determination as ever to find
the pot of gold at the end Of the
rainbow.
Years later his pugnacity was
again demonstrated when he had a
fist fight with an architect who was
in charge of the building Of a con-
servatory on his private estate in
Los Angeles. The architect sued him
for $4,000 damages. Doheny set
tied out Of court q
\ X *
0F his first real grasp on the pot
" Of gold Doheny told friend one
day: