Year: 1879

i


They gamble here more than they
should, but they do it openly, and conse-
quently the evil endangers much less hy-
pocrisy than it does elsewhere. The
gambling is also much more democratic
than it is in the East. There is no raid
ing here of small gambling houses and
protecting the large ones. The uniform
rate Of twenty-five cent chips makes the
green cloth accessible to everybody. You
see at the same table wealthy merchant
or broker from New York or Chicago, a
president of a New England school board,
and a rough-looking miner from Carbon
ate Hill. The very incongruity of such
an assemblage makes it orderly and deco
rous. Gambling rows are very rare, and
cheating on the part of the dealer be-
comes impossible, for the sharp eye of the
Western miner protects the Eastern inno-
cence.


The stories told of the reckless eHtrav-
agance of miners coming from their camps
to the city are only partly true. Those
who make really big strikes stick to their
money. The spendthrifts are to be found
only among the hard workers, who accum-
ulatc few hundred dollars by unbear-
able hardships and unceasing toll. They
want recreation. Money seems to burn
their pockets, and they try to get rid of
it as quickly as they can, on the plea that
they know where to dig for some more
when they want it. 1t i, this kind of
a fellow that you see substituting bottles
of champagne for pins in the bowling
alley, and making presents of jewelry to
female friends he has never spoken to
before. The natural law in accordance
with which the Jay Goulds. Russell
Sagcs, ID. p. Morgaus, and men of that
stamp grow richer and richer after max
ing the first big stroke, while the petty
spcculator goes only deeper and deeper
into the mud with every littlc lucky turn
he makes, operates as inialiibly IN ,uc
mining regions as it does in Wall street.
That the bulk of the wealth extracted
from the bosom of the Rocky Mountains
has not been squaulcrcd away is evident
from the surprising Development Of th.,
region. !, is in buildings, in machinery,
in gas and water works, IN railroads and
new mines that most ST this wealth has
been invested.


The present Iicuteuaut-Goyeruar Of
tlc State or NeyaIa. lir Tabor, Is one
Of tie best Illustrations of what people
DO here w..h their money when they get
hold of q solid amount Of i-. A lttle
over eighteen months Ego NJ Tabor kept
small grocery store in Leadyi.le. Two
miners, customers OF hi,, prospecting IN
the neigh0orhood. induced him to 60 INTO
partnership with them on the basis OF a
grub stake. They were to do the work
and he was to supply them with grub.
The legend is that all he gave them was
about $50 worth of provisions, after hav-
ing wiped out an old debt of some 500,
most of which was for whiskey. They
struck the Little PittSburg mine. and
today Mr.. Tabor is worth several millions
and has bought out his partners for $780,
600. The whole of this wealth is now
re-inyestcd in new mines, in bank opera
tionS, and in the erection OF new build
ings in Denver. Nothing could entice
him into dissipation or even mere luxury
He may possibly spend much money to
become Senator or mining king of the
eastern slope of the Rocky Mountains,
but there is no Jim Fisk style in the
lucky and successful miner.-NeC York