ment of their
Montana copper and silver properties entirely to Daly, and he has been
coddling the mines along, saying nothing about their real worth and
quietly passing by the richest parts, awaiting the day when he could buy
his partners out. Shortly after you let it be known that we were to go
into 'Coppers,' Daly came to me to talk things over, and it took me only
a short time to get under his waistcoat and find just what he had out
there, and it took me still less time to decide that he offered
something a little better than anything we had yet turned up. These
properties, which we can secure for $24,000,000, which will carry with
them the majority of the 1,200,000 shares of Anaconda, alone are worth
$75,000,000, and with the addition of the Colorado, Washoe, and Parrott,
which he recommends that we buy and which he is in a way to secure for
us at a bargain, will cost not over $15,000,000. So it came right down
to this: We could trade with Daly immediately, while if we waited until
the first section was out to the public the inevitable appreciation of
Anaconda stock in the market would alone make it impossible; for even if
Daly was willing to go in with us, Haggin and Tevis would not let him at
anything like the prices he now names. It seemed best to take action at
once, so we closed with him; and we have also just closed with the
Washoe and Colorado, and we want you to secure the Parrott. Under these
circumstances, could we do otherwise than we have done?"

His argument seemed conclusive. It looked so fair and unanswerable that
I could not disguise from him that my fears had fled. I was immensely
relieved. My fight oozed; I became as pliable as any of the brittle
clay which he daily kneaded for each shaping with his applications of
oil.

"What are your plans, Mr. Rogers?" I asked quietly.

"This is what we thought would be the thing to do if you agreed, Lawson,
for, of course, you are, after all, the one who must decide. First, you
shall go over everything we have done, and if you feel sure we have
property worth at least, at the hardest kind of hard-pan prices,
$75,000,000, we want to whoop up the country to the very top notch of
expectation, and while doing so begin to hint that there are to be three
or four sections, and that the first one will embrace Anaconda,
Colorado, Washoe, Parrott, and lots of other unnamed things. Then our
idea was to offer the $75,000,000 by public subscription, and by using
every do