Chapter III
IN the course of an Eastern trip during January, 1900, I took occasion to call upon C. A. Smith, a millionaire lumberman of Minneapolis, Minnesota, whose acquaintance I had formed previously. At the time of our first meeting, I had given him an option on sixty quarter sections of timbered school lands, aggregating 9,600 acres, situated in Coos and Douglas counties, Oregon. This deal had fallen through for the reason that the tracts were not in a compact body, being merely a portion of the 16th and 36th sections of quite a number of scattered townships.
Although my initial effort to do business with Mr. Smith terminated in failure, it served as an incentive to approach him concerning a proposition of greater magnitude, as I had become more or less familiar with his system of operation, and felt satisfied he was not of the cheap variety, wherever personal interest was involved, and that nothing would balk him in the line of investment, providing there was anything in it for himself.
Upon my second visit, I endeavored to impress him with the idea that I was somewhat of a timber-land plunger myself, and that I was in a position to interest him on a basis that would yield large returns.
Calling the next day, as per appointment, I found him exceedingly eager, as on the day before, to discuss the matter of timber lands and the best method of acquiring title thereto. In fact, we had several conferences upon the subject, all of which were arranged at the suggestion of Mr. Smith.
I felt from the start that he meant business, and was convinced furthermore that he was looking for just such lands as I had in view—those that promised to yield large returns—but was unaware, of course, to what extent he would go in order to secure them, or, in fact, whether there was any limit to his ambitions in that respect. This information, however. Smith divulged to me in his own good time, and in such way as to satisfy me that he would go to any extreme in obtaining vast holdings of timber.
After exhibiting plats showing the lands I had to offer, and explaining all the details incident to prices and the facilities for manufacturing the product into merchantable lumber, he asked me if I was aware of any tracts of good timber that had been surveyed, but which were still vacant and subject to entry, to which I replied that I was familiar with several fine bodies of timber in that condition.
He then inquired if it would not be a more feasible plan, in my opinion, to locate a lot of men under the timber and stone Act of June 3, 1878, furnishing them the money with which to. make final proof, and acquire title in that way.
I informed Mr. Smith that the plan outlined would most assuredly be considerably cheaper in the long run, but that it would necessitate the expenditure of a large sum of money at the outset.
