The Dolores star., 1924-07-11
ZEN Of the Y. D.


with Y.D., and then the two sat on
the veranda and smoked and dis
cussed business. Transley found Y.D.
more liberal In the adjustment than
he had expected. He had not yet
realized TO what an extent he had won
he old rancher's confidence. and
Y.D. was man who, when his conf
dence had been won. never haggied
over details. He was willing to com
promise the loss on the operations on
the South Y.D. on a scale that was
not merely just. but generous.
This settled. Transley proceeded to
interest YD. In the work in which he
was now engaged. He drew a picture
of activities in the little metropolis
such as stirred the rancher's in
credulity.
We'll. WELL" Y.D. would say.
''Transley, I've known that little hole
for about thirty years, an never seen
II was any good excep' 10 get drunk
In. I've seen more things there
than Is down in the books
You wouldn't know the change that
has come about In few months" said
Transley, with enthusiasm. Double
shifts working by electric light. Y-D.
What do you think Of that? Men with
rolls of money that would choke a COW
sleeping out In tents because they
can't get roof over them. Why. man,
| didn't have TO hunt a job there; the
job hunted me. could have
had dozen Jobs at my own
price II could have handled
them. It's just as II prosperity was
a river which had been tr!ckling
through that town for thirty years,
and all of u sudden the dam up in the
foothills gives away and down she
comes with a rush. Lots which sold
year ago for a hundred dollars are
selling now for five hundred-some-
times more. Old ranchers living on
the bald-headed a few years ago ind
themselves today the owners of city
property worth millions, and are
dressing uncomfortably, In keeping
with their wealth, or vainly trying to
drink up the surplus So far sense and
brains has had nothing to do with It,
YD, absolutely nothing II has been
fool luck. But the brains are coming
in now. and the brains will get the
money, in the long run"
Transley paused and lit another
cigar. YD. rolled his in his lips. re
tlectively.
Il mind some doln's in that burg"
he said, as though the memory of them
was Of greater Importance than all
that might be happening now.
Transley switched back to business
1--WE ought to be in on it, Y.D.," he
said. Not on the fly-by-nlght stuff
don't mean that. But l could take
twice the contracts If had twice the
outfit
all four legs and removed his cigar.
'You mean we should hit her to-
gether?" he demanded.
ut would be a great compliment to
me, If you had that confidence In me.
and I'm sure 1t would make some good
money for you
How'd you work it?''
You have bunch Of horses run
ming here on the ranch, eating their
heads off. Many Of them are broke,
and the others would soon tame down
with scraper behind them. Let me
put them TO work. I'd have to have
equipment, too. Your name on the
back of my note would get 1t, and
you wouldn't actually have to put up
dollar. Then we'd make an inven-
tory of what you put into the firm and
what put into 1t, and we'd divide the
earnings In proportion
after payin' you salary as mana
ger, of course" suggested Y.D.
That's immateriaI. With a bigger
outfit and more capital can make so
much more money out of the earnings
that l don't care whether | get sal
airy or not. But I wouldn't figure on
going on contracting all the time for
other people. We might as well have
the cream as the skinned milk This
is the way It's done. We go to the
owner Of a block of lots somewhere
where there's no building going on. He's
anxious to start something, because
as soon as building starts in that dis
triCt the lots will sell for two or three
times Wnal tney 90 now. we say to
him, Give us every second lot in your
block and We'll put a house on it In
this way we get the lots for trifle:
perhaps for nothing. Then we build
a lot of houses, more or less to the
same plan. We put 'em up quick and
cheap. We build 'em to sell, not to
live in. Then we mortgage 'em for
the last cent we can get. Then we
put the price up to twice what the
mortgage is and sell them as fast as
we can build them, getting our equity
out and leaving the purchasers to set
tie with the mortgage company. It's
good for from 30 to 40 per cent profit.
not per annum, but per transa ction."
ut sounds interesting said Y.D.,
IAN / suppose might as well put nv
spare horses an credit to work.
don't mind drlvin' down with you to-
morrow an looking her over frs.
hand
This was all Transley had hoped