The San Francisco Call. Newspaper, April 15, 1906, Page 6

Ay MONG all the miracles that gold has worked, be- lied for tit? who had dia homes to enrich to buy a empty for the ved here ar , with an was called making of the rticularly in detailing the uses to things it did would of words and waste s grew magically in all directions, prang up along their lines, !} the emi- before, t sandhill ing of this new ac- the worke gathered ere e work—and the city grew e d g d in ir ning streams the goldfields and the silks and s and diamonds, the fine w and foods it could buy had to be t here, and the way made to bring @ Mother Earth chooses her hiddenytreasure, and « few of her childre slip their nds into cne of her pockets, it them as no bubbling cham- to be i IN FEINC this sent ou * for the o founda rried on. on the bootblack who :de miilionaire’s in propor- himself. the rush f c, the desir > gold field set up shop boxes. of th broker piece world s nd it was only a it the gold fields’ gift th mparatively, of he Comstock dwi pinched out Four d down from a city to a deserted vil- an Francisco felt the ion of its rising and \d during the produ s the Comstock gave the wo; p Francisco, $400,000,000 o stock gold Nob Hill was wi wansions, the Pala ised amid much discou ead-shaking, ships we roads, telegraph lines and ¢ linking all the world together, rancisco to the world diamonds ang silks and laces, fine wines delicate foods, more Counts and and empty honors—but these, 4 with the larger benefits, are like favors at a cotillon as matched t the edifice, for a thme whimsical Fortune led inscrutably and kept her finger on her lips—and her treasure secrets to her- She had given San Francisco a pretty good start—let San Francisco do for her- self now Ang thus the steadier, solider activitiss that give a city strength were born and grew ana prospered, and the money that had flowed in so magically made more money. Yet even in this period the gold fields were not churlish—they kept an open hand if not a lavish one. The gold fields of California alone went on giving. even ap to this day, a vearly toll of $20,000,000—and most of it to San Francisco. Then in 1897, nearly ten years ago, Na- ture opened another pocket, full to over- flowing with the best loved of treasures, In July a ship came down from Alaska, a scrubby little steam schooner, with a wonderful tale and a wonderful cargo of go! pure. gold—and once again San Francisco. was to benefit by thé gold fields. Piles of nuggets like so much corn, piles of the precious dust like so mu wheat, werc dumped upon pleces of buck#kin and displayed in show windows for the greedy to gloat over with watering chops. Then the gold seekers set out upon 2 pilgrimage to the frozen north, and brought back their sacks upon sacks of gold, until that which went 'in at the smelter and came out, fresh-coined and glittering from the mint, mounted up into the hundred millions—and at that San Francisch got only a part of it, but with whirisical Fortune favoring her, the big- gest part. How much of that Alaskan gold went into San Francisco real estate, how much of it went into the establishing of new business ventures, how much of it went into hotels and dry goods stores, and jew- elry stores, and restaurants, into the pockets of every one, from the capitalist and promoter and business man, and la- bor-union man, even down to the humblest toiler in the city’s streets, not even the statisticians ‘can tell us. But this we may know, for we can see for ourselves, if set to work the building of a new San Francisco’ where the old one had been. If you don’t believe it ride out from the ferry building to the ocean beach, and from the bay shore that lies between Fort Point and Fisherman’s Wharf to the bay shore upon the opposite side, and see what changes the hands of the builders have made in the nine years since that steam schooner came down from the Arc- tic water with the news that the Klondike had been discovered. The real estate men will tell you that since that'day when the old Excelsior ran Rer nose inte dock, and the miners with their gold macks came down her gang- plank., 8 new Ban Francisce of many storles and steel frames and modern im- provements has been buliding upon the gite of the older, less pretentious and- ramshackle San Francisco, and not only on the old site, but creeping out in all directions over the sand dunes from bay shore to bay shore, and ferry bullding to ocean. Tt has taken many hands to build it, and _ they have been found, and the new gold from the frozen gold flelds has gone to pay them, and thus, here again, the new wealth has been set in motion and start- ed upon its world mission. The steady stream from Alaska has been flowing in, and gradually growing less, 2nd again a calm in her affairs—another poriod of commonplace commercial and industrial endeavor such as marks the slow progress of less wonderfully favored cities—seemed coming upon her. Then yet again did whimsical Fortune play her another friendly trick just like the playful uncle who, after he has ap- parently emptied his bursting pockets into his favorite nephew’s hands, produces still another surprising gift. Fortune exposed yet another gold field— perhaps the most wonderful of them all— Jjust over California’s shoulder in her hungry, neighboring sister State, Nevada. She set a foolish little burro to running away with a prospector’s outfit, and she set him running ove: what was perhaps the most iazospitable, unresponsive, God- forsaken country imaginable—the Nevada desert. And by this trick, and by putting it into the mind of the angry prospector, after he had given the burro a well-de- served kick end cussing. to break off a Jjotting plece of rock, she revealed these new gold flelds that were to pour more gold into San Francisco. It is five years since the Tonopah gold fields were discovered—and by the aid of this discovery the new San Francisco that the Alaskan gold fields started has gone on growing. So wonderfully and swiftly and beauti- fully ig it growing that who that knew it ten years ago could have plctured it as it is today? The straggling streets wandering out and getting lost in the sand dunes are taking on decision. The ramshackle temporary aspect of the buildings that lined the streets has given away, and is dally giving away under the wreckers’ ropes and builders’ derricks to a handsome, permanent metropolitan ap- pearance. Luxurious hotels are going up within the same boundaries where the Palace was called a milllenalre’s folly “twenty years ahead of its time,” and two new stories are going upon the Palace, which has found itself outgrown. There are miles of shops whers once there were blocks, sky-scraping office buildings honeycombed with offices where a half dozen three and four story build- ings sufficed. Fashion and wealth have progressed miles in distances, and leagues in good taste from Nob HIlL Carloads of luxuries are imported every day, where as many in a month or a year ‘were enough. ‘Who lives in the high priced sultes of the luxurious hotels? ‘Who buys the flashing jewels and beau- tiful gowns in the shops? ‘Who eats the expensive dinners in the restaurants? Who rides in the whizzing, honking au- tomobiles? Who buys up the marine view lots to the building trades busy, the workers even down to the little seamstress who makes shirtwaists for the wife of the secretary of the business agent of the mine owner? Why, lucky individuals who but the v on the Nevada “struck it rich” sk the real estate man. the hotel man, he merchant, the manufacturer and all the way down to the littla seamstress, and that's the answer you'll get. The treasure that has been lying un- touched through the centuries is pouring into San Francisco now as it is but nat- ural that it should. s It is pouring in for the necessities and luxuries that are demanded in those rich \evada mining camps at Tonopah, at Goldfield, at Bullfrog and Manhattan. And it is pouring In for the luxuries that the lucky ones find they can at last indulge themselves in whep they come here for relaxatidn. The Bob Montgomerys alone, who sold the Shoshone group to Sehwab and his friends, are putting $§1,000,000 into real es- tate right here. The Tom Edwardses are investing in business property here and in a home at Burlingame. These are merely examples by way of good faith. To give the list of money spenders and investors from the Nevada goldfields would be like calling the roll of those whe have made their strike there. Because of the goldfields the astuts Gueggenhelm brothers are putting over $§1,000,000 in the building of a smelter for handling the ores that must come to San Francisco. Because of the goldfields that have con~ tributed to her making San Francisce leads in the manufacture of mining ma- chinery, and not only sends it over the mountains to Nevada, but to South Af- rica as well and to Alaska as a matter of course. By deducting the holidays of the year ending November 30, 1906—so the careful statisticians tell us—the increase in bank clearings for the year amounts to near- $1,000,000 a day for every business day of the year! Where does the money come from? In a large degres in its virgin form from the goldfields. BY HONORE WILLSIE. XCEPT for a solitary berth far down the aisle, Wilton had the Pullman to himself. In sheer lone- liness he had turned in early and lay staring at the stars and flitting telegraph poles hour after hour. His month of vacation at the old home had been a disappointment. The Texas ranch .would be good, he thought. His foreman would be glad to see him, and so would his puppy. And yet, after all, there was no one who really cared. “Hang it,” he murmured, as he tossed ack inte the net his coat, which a sud- den slowing of the train had thrown vio- lently into his face. “Hang it, I wonder why on earth Betty Allis had to take De- cember, of all months, for a pleasure trip West. The one month out of five years that might have given me a chance to see her and know her again. I wond—" There was a sudden darkness. Wilton found himself groveling on the car floor. fThere was the maddening sense of the helplessness with which, in a nightmare, one fights for breath and space. With fearful momentum, with grinding, tearing and upheaving, the car rolled half-way to its side, seemed to slide down and down, then with a violent shock stood still. The ghastly silence that succeeded was as ap- palling as the uproar had been. Wilton lay still for a moment, waiing for he knew not what. Then he crawled to his feet, gathered his clothes from the oppo- st “:ec;lun l]l:d rapidly dressed himself. ‘“Wonder what's happened?” he thought breathlessly. “Cee, smell that gas.”” And he started toward the rear of the car. As his hand touched the stateroom wall at the end of the alsle a girl's voice rang through the car. “‘Porter, porter, I wish you would come help me out.”” Wilton stopped. *‘Gad, she’s cool, anyho he thought, as he listened for the porter’s response. None eame. The odor of gas was filling the car. He leaped to the op- posite window and kicked out a pane, let- ting in a flood of cold air. Then, as quick- ly as its angle would permit, he dashed down the aisle to the other berth. “Let me help you, madame,” he said. “The porter has deserted us.” seem to be in a sort of well, my berth is so tilted,” answered the girl. “If you would just lend me a hand.” In a moment a girlish form was stand- ing beside him. ‘Wilton picked up a forgotten lantern and for the first time turned to look at the girl whom he had rescued. Then he gave a great gasp of astonishment. *Bet- ty Allis! Where on earth!” “Jack Wilton! \Where!—" The two stood silent In a hearty hand grasp. Suddenly Jack fell to trembling and for a moment a panic seized him. “Betty Allis!" he repeated, “to think that some one that I knew and—that | knew, was in this catastrophe, and so near death! It makes me—st makes me!—" Here Betty broke the tension with a IT WAS AN ILL WIND trembling little laugh that was nome the less merry. Wilton drew Betty away from crowd. “We can’t help,” he sald, “and you are shivering with the cold. I'm going back to get your coat and my traps and yours. Then we will make a camp here on the bank." A few minutes later found them toast- ing before a brisk little fire that Wilton had kindled, while over in the east low streamers of pink silhouetted the dull outlines of a mining village “Shall we try to find shelter " asked Wilton. , no,” answered Betty. the in the “Let’'s wait “Betty, why have you never written me all these years?" Betty looked at him quickly. This firm clear-cut face was different from the jolly boy's features she had remembered. And there was a new, impelling quality in his tones that she rather liked. N ause, Jack,” she answered, slowly, ecause you never wrote me.” “Oh, but I did,” he replied; “three dif- ferent times. T never received the letters,” she said. ou meght have known that Aunt Jane would take care of that.” Wilton walked up and down restlessly half a dozen times and threw some sticks on the fire before stopping In front of the girl. “And now,” he continued, “would you mind telling me why you sent me away from you five years ago? “That was not Aunt Jane's fault, she said. cagerly. ‘“Indeed, you must not blame her with that. She \'Uyuld pursue her own mecthods, but she never CD“.fld influence me in my own purposes.' h‘l;(hankl };cavcn for that” interrupted ck, grimly. You sent me away.” prompted. e Betty lifted her head bravel - te a y. “I sent you away,” she said, “that you might prove to me whether or not you were a man. You were only a college student then.” Jack thrust his hands more 4, B eeply into his pockets. He was hoelding in welll.' con- sidering the flood tide within, - rise and firelight vied with euhTohlel‘lesru;‘u lighting up the sweet mobility of her face. Yim it was the same dear Betty. i And now,” he sald, a little hoarsely, sce how useless it was, for you don't know what the years have done for me, and you are five years grown away.” Betty rose slowly and looked into his clear, dark eyes. She looked at the fine, firm mouth, the clean cut tanned face, the straight. strong alertness of his fig- ure. S_}_nq spoke slowly and softly. 2o Yes.” she said, “we did not write te f:lach ‘olher. but,” here she smiled a lttle, ki:‘;"‘ace tells me all that [ want to “And does it tell you that T have loved ;eo:“l?l_way!. loyally, for the long five Belty's voice tremblea a little. “Yes, Jack. it—" But the rest gf her reply was lost in Jack's arms. (Copyright, 1306, by G. M. Daniels.)