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| Soapy Smith leads the charge! Spanish-American War 1898 (fantasy piece by Jeff Smith) |
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| Pacific Hotel & Sample Room Skagway, Alaska 1898 |
Hi, Gary.Time and again, Gary has proven himself to be an honest man. This sale is no exception. He is not saying this IS Soapy, but merely saying it "looks like Soapy." I admire that. The photograph is up for auction as of this post and you can find it HERE.
Thanks for the opportunity to look at the photograph closer. I can't really say one way or the other. It could be him, and it may not be. The man in the photograph is wearing what looks like a derby. The only known photographs of Soapy in Skagway show him wearing a light colored, wide brimmed sombrero style hat that was common with many of the stampeders. Did he have different hats? We don't know. His clothes in the known photographs were the standard dark business suit style. I hope this helps.
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| Sidewalk memorial to Soapy Smith 17 and Larimer Denver, Colorado (photograph by Dave Elstun) |
In 2009 I was made aware of a Soapy memorial plaque in Denver, Colorado by a friend. I have since found out more about it. It is 18" diameter and located on the sidewalk, near the curb on the southwest corner of 17th and Larimer Streets. The inscription on the plaque reads as follows.In the 1880s and 1890s Denver was the nation's headquarters for "con" men, a dubious honor that it maintained into the early years of the 20th century.The GPS coordinates for the plaque are 39° 45′ N, 104° 59.771′ W. I added the marker onto the Historical Marker database website where there are the following Soapy Smith related markers listed.
The most famous con man was "Soapy" Smith who sold $5.00 bars of soap from 17th Street, claiming that some had one hundred dollar bills inside the wrappers. (Marker Number 17.)
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| The Bucket Shop 1892 |
These institutions are peculiar to American cities. The more phlegmatic temperament of the denizens of the old world does not lead him into the vagaries of the citizen of the “great Republic," where wealth fixes caste, and gold is too often worshiped in the place of God. In the United States, more than in any other country, activity, mental as well as physical, is regarded as the chief end of man. In fact, a rocking chair under full swing, would be no inappropriate heraldic national emblem. It is true, as a German paper says of us, that we “chew more tobacco and burst more steam engines than any other nation on earth." With us, life is restless, and we can find recreation only in excitement. It is this feature of our national character that inclines us to gaming and to speculation in a far higher degree than any other people. Could it be eliminated from our nature the “bucket shop," like Othello, would find its occupation gone.
Yet the reader, the lines of whose quiet life are cast outside the whirl and turmoil of a great city, may not understand the signification of the term. A "bucket shop" is an establishment where those whose inclinations prompt them to speculate in stocks or produce, but the scantiness of whose means forbids their operating on an extensive scale, may gratify their tastes by risking (and losing) the few dollars which they can ill afford to spare. The epithet" bucket" is a term of derision, having been originally applied to such an institution to imply that a customer might buy or sell a “bucketful" of any commodity which he might select.
These concerns differ only in respect of size and appointment. They are all conducted on one and the same principle. The visitor, on entering, finds himself within a large room, sometimes handsomely, sometimes meanly furnished. Rows of chairs are arranged for the convenience of customers and chance-comers, facing a blackboard. The latter is the indispensible [sic] requisite, the sine qua non, without which the transaction of business would be practically impossible. In these chairs are seated men of every age and of nearly all grades of social distinction. Clerks, artisans, merchants and men about town mingle in a sort of temporary companionship, truly democratic. Beardless youths sit side by side with men whose heads have grown bald and whose step has become feeble in a vain chase after a phantom, a chimera, a will-of-the-wisp, always just, within the grasp, yet ever eluding the clutch. Here may be met the confidential clerk, who sees nothing wrong in following, at a respectable distance, the example of his employer, who ventures his thousands upon the floor of 'Change. Here one jostles against the decrepit old man, once a millionaire, but who having sunk his fortune in the maelstrom of some great Board of Trade, now passes his waking hours before these blackboards, reckoning that a red-letter day upon which he wins five dollars. And here, too, may be encountered the successful business man, keen of eye, quick of step, alert of perception, who has been drawn hither partly through a desire for speedy wealth, partly through an inordinate craving for the excitement which is not to be found in the legitimate walks of trade. The eyes of all are turned toward the immense board on which, chalk in hand, some attache of the establishment momentarily records some change in quotations of stocks or grain. and which seems to have for them all the fascination of the candle for the moth.
Bucket shop of
Clement, Parker and Co.
Note the "buckets" catching the ticker tape on the far left
(courtesy of The JetSetRnv8r)
Far different is the scene here presented from that witnessed on the floor of the great Exchange. There all was clamor and apparent confusion; here quiet and decorum reign supreme. The silence is unbroken, save by the sharp tick of the telegraphic instrument and the droning monotone of the blackboard marker. Yet there is one point of resemblance between the habitues of the" bucket shop." the dealers upon 'Change and the patrons of the gaming hell; one and all, they win without displaying exultation and lose without manifesting regret. In the" bucket shops," however, the attentive observer may sometimes hear the heavy sigh of dispair from the young man who has been tempted to risk his employer's money, as he perceives the last dollar of his margin swept away by an unlucky turn of prices; or witness a senile smile of satisfaction momentarily gleam upon the face of the feeble old man who sees himself about to be provided with the means of keeping soul and body together for another day. 0, wretched picture of sordid greed, of fallacious hopes, of blank despair! 0, sad illustration of the sadder truth that in the contact for the mastery of the heart of man, the evil too often outstrips the good!
But let us examine into the business methods of the proprietors of these resorts where gambling is made easy, and ruin is placed within reach of the humblest. As an illustration, let us suppose that the customer wishes to speculate in some stock, say Missouri, Kansas and Texas. The blackboard shows the fluctuations in quotations as they occur on the New York Stock Exchange. The margin which he is called upon to advance, is one dollar per share, and he may limit his transactions to five shares, if he sees fit. It is a matter of indifference to the proprietor whether he elects to buy or sell; that obliging individual will accommodate himself to his wishes, whatever they may be. Suppose that he buys five shares of the stock in question, at a moment when it is quoted at 16-1/4. If it rises to 17-1/4 he may, if he chooses, close his deal, receiving back the five dollars which he advanced as margin, together with another five dollars, the latter representing his profit. If, on the other hand, it drops to 15-1/4, he loses his margin. It is easy to see that such a transaction as this is nothing but a bet, pure and simple.
The illustration given above is drawn from the smallest description of business done. Yet, as has been said, these dens of iniquity are patronized by the wealthy merchant, as well as by the poor mechanic and clerk. It is on the poorer class of customers that the proprietors depend for their steady income; it is from the wealthier customers that they obtain sums of money which they denominate "plums."
The manner in which such traders are fleeced by the unscrupulous scoundrels who conduct these institutions may be illustrated as follows: One of them will inform a confiding patron that he has received information from a source which he regards as trustworthy, that some inactive stock-perhaps Denver & Rio Grande-then selling at 9, is about to rise. At his suggestion his customer purchases, let us say, 15,000 shares on a margin of one dollar per share. This done, the proprietor of the "bucket shop" telegraphs to a broker to "sell 3,000 D. & R. G.-quick, quick," in blocks from 8U to 8. The broker who receives the dispatch, either alone or with assistance, offers the stock; the offer is promptly accepted by another broker, to whom the wily manager has telegraphed instructions to buy the stock at the price named. The final quotation, 8, fixes the price, and the sale is promptly reported to the bucket shop by telegraph. The result is that the too trustful customer's $15,000 advanced as margin, is swept into the coffers of the daring rascal who has perpetrated the fraud, and whose only outlay is the payment of one-fourth of a cent commission on the fictitious sale and, purchase.
Bucket shop of
Haight and Freese, New York
(courtesy of Financial Spread Betting)
Let us take another illustration, drawn from a suppositious transaction in wheat. The speculator perceives from the quotations on the blackboard that some future delivery of wheat opened at 86-1/8. Every minute or two new quotations are shown on the board, the apparent tendency of the market being upward. He also sees that during the preceding hour the price has been as high as 86-5/8, and as low as 86. When it touches 86 again he concludes to buy, guessing that it is likely to rise. Accordingly he purchases 1,000 bushels at that price, advancing ten dollars as a margin. Perhaps the next change is an advance to 86-1/8. He might now sell out without loss, as the 7/8 in his favor amounts to exactly the commission charged by the shop. The next quotation is, say 86, and the following one 85-7/8. If it should continue to fall until 85-1/8 is touched, he is said to be "frozen out," inasmuch as the decline of 7/8 added to the 7/8 brokerage charged by the proprietor, equals the ten dollars which he has advanced. Perhaps he concludes to "re•margin," in which case he will put up ten dollars more. Possibly the market may now take an upward turn and rise until 86-1/8 is again reached. It is now within his power to close the transaction without loss other than that involved in the payment of the commissions. Let us suppose that he does so. It is quite probable that it will now occur to him that the market is likely again to recede, and he accordingly sells 1,000 bushels at 86-1/8, once more advancing ten dollars as a margin. If the price continues to rise until 87 is reached, our venturesome speculator is again frozen out, and is ten dollars lighter in pocket.
The above supposed cases are fair illustrations of the average bucket shop trading. A majority of the patrons of these establishments are “scalpers," satisfied if they can win five, ten, or twenty dollars, and close observers say that fully seven out of ten guess the market wrong. The shop always makes its regular commission, no matter what may be the result of the transaction. " Puts," "calls" and "straddles" are also sold at these places, although, of course on a far smaller scale than by members of the regular exchanges.
But bucket shops have other and darker sides. It is by no means uncommon for a manager so to manipulate quotations as to wipe out speculators margins at his own pleasure. Thus, if it is for his interest that a certain stock or commodity should decline, the quotations which he posts upon his blackboard show a fall, without reference to the actual course of the market at the regular exchanges.
Jeff's Bucket Shop?
(Actually this is a Karaoke place)
Another, and favorite, device of the gentry, by which large sums are often realized, is to "fail." A considerable amount of money-say $50,000 or $60,000--having been received as margins, and being carried by the house, a plan is formed by which it may be absorbed by the proprietor with but little chance of detection. In order to accomplish this he has resort to the aid of some reputable (?) firm of brokers, who are members in good standing, of some regular exchange. He arranges with them to enter in their books, records of fictitious transactions with him of such a character and to such an amount that he may appear to have lost the money in speculating, for the benefit of his customers, upon ‘Change. The obliging firm of brokers receive, for rendering this valuable service, the regular commission of one-eighth of one cent per bushel upon the transactions thus fraudulently entered. It is, in itself, a striking commentary upon the methods and morals of the average, commercial exchange of the last quarter of the nineteenth century, that brokers can be found, who, while claiming to be upright, honorable business men, are willing, for so paltry a consideration to outrage integrity, and drag honor in the dust.
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| Artist, E. J. Hawkins puts finishing touches on his Soapy Smith sculpture intended for display in Creede, Co. (photo: Courtesy of Denver Public Library - Western History/Genealogy Dept.) |
Soapy Smith, the Colorado version of Robin Hood and Deadeye Dick rolled into one, will soon have his grizzled face peering down the main street of Creede, the mining he loved so well.
The likeness and spirit of this fabled Western character has been captured by a Denver sculptor, Edward J. Hawkins.
FUNDS ARE SOUGHT TO PAY FOR BUST
The ball is rolling in Creede now to gather funds to finance casting of the bust which Mr. Hawkins created, to transport the finished work to Creede and mount it on a pedestal in the Mineral County mining community.
Soapy was born in Georgia in 1860. He spent his early life in Texas as a cowpoke where he carried the proud name of Jefferson Randolph Smith.
Shortly after Soapy’s arrival in Denver, he earned the nickname which he carried until his death in Skagway, Alaska in 1898.
Picking 17th St., as his “beat,” Soapy set up a portable stand and sold soap to cowboys at $5 a bar. Before his audiences, he wrapped bills ranging from $5 to $100 in some bars of soap and began the sale.
ONLY SOAPY’S CRONIES HIT THE JACKPOT
He did a land-office business, but buyers who hit the jackpot were members of Soapy’s gang.
Soapy had an understanding with the police that he would fleece only out-of-towners.
When the silver mines opened in Creede, Soapy and his gang headed for the mining town. Within a few days Soapy was boss of the town and he and his boys “policed” affairs.
HE MADE MORE CASH WITH THE ‘PREHISTORIC MAN’
One of his famous Creede episodes was the “finding” of a prehistoric man in one of his diggings.
The stone man was placed on display in Creede and for five years Soapy collected admission charges.
At the end of that time Soapy sold the stone man to a Washington buyer for $2500. The buyer later discovered his prehistoric specimen was made of plaster and cement.
Soapy was kind-hearted as well as nimble-minded. Running across an illiterate preacher one day, Soapy decided the town needed a church. He raised funds for the building in an afternoon and later he and his men attended services, seeing that the congregation contributed enough to keep the church financed.
SOAPY SMITH DECIDES TO LEAVE CREEDE
After the killing in Creede of Bob Ford, slayer of Jesse James, the town began to develop official law enforcement methods. Then, when silver prices took a tumble, Soapy decided to move on.
He returned to Denver for a time, then left for Skagway. He encountered the same situation there he had in Creede and repeated his Colorado operations.
Finally in 1898, law and order came to Skagway and Soapy was killed during a battle between opposing forces.
SOAPY SMITH FETE PLANNED FOR SUMMER
The monument to Soapy is being constructed with the idea of creating further tourist interest in Creede. Plans are in motion to establish a Soapy Smith Festival during the summer months.
Among Creede people who are working on the project are Mrs. Mary Thom, unofficially heading the committee; Gene McClure, John Dabney, Bill Jackson and Orie K. Hargraves.
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| Picture #2 |
Hi jeff - the tool, although staged, is a clay tool. I have three shots that intrigue me -
Picture 2 - I zoomed in on the lower left (as the eye sees in the picture) of the base - above "Jefferson" you will note dark spots on the base - this indicates water to me - and, clay must be kept damp at all times and covered when not being worked into. The neck above also reveals a hatching pattern - which is a "nearing-final" state in a sculpt before it is smoothed to a finish for the final mold to be lifted from - and, given that this period of time produced bronze busts that were usually smooth and not textured, I would lay good money on this still be in the raw form and not finalized.
As for the lettering - if you look at it closely in the enlarged picture # 2 - you will see it is not even in height or width or cut - this is not a machined finish, nor, would it have been on a bust being done in the time period associated with this piece of work. There are other flaws elsewhere in these that let me believe this is a less than final work and still in clay.
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| Picture #3 |
Picture # 3 - the collar and left shoulder - again, the cross hatching - now, that may be there to represent the fabric in the coat, and, if so, it has a purpose in the use in the sculpt. However, there is a wide variance in color range - which reads to be moist areas of clay that are wetter than others. And, the grey color of the overall piece is far different than a final bronze cast - with, or without, patina - would appear in a black and white picture. There is a definite tactile appearance that metal gives that is not resident in this picture.
Also in this, you will note that the coat collar has a definite undercut line to it. This is something that would tend to appear in a presentation piece in clay. The reason for this is that undercuts are horrid for a mold to be pulled from. The usual practice in a sculpt that has undercuts or pieces that do not present themselves for an easy one-piece mold to be taken is to have to cut the clay sculpt apart and then mold those pieces separately - and then mount the final wax pours together before investing for the casting. And, some pieces are so difficult that they are actually cast in bronze separately and then welded together and smoothed into the final piece...prior to the patina being applied.
That collar undercut would (I tend to believe) be made smooth and linear as a surface before going to molding for making the master to cast from due to the reasons given above. Another reason I believe this is clay.
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| Picture #1 |
I come to Picture #1 next - there are still a lot of undercuts on the face and around the eyelids. Especially notable on the left eye. This would be a smooth transition before casting. The inset eye itself is traditional to sculpts. The close up reveals also what seems to be a large amount of clay irregularities - the harder bits of soil that didn't get mashed enough when the clay mix was made - and those add a texture to the working medium that really take a good effort to smooth out for the final cast - having seen enough raw clays this is another sign to me that we are probably looking at an initial study piece in the raw sculpt form.
If you look at the top of the hat brim, you will find the most interesting item in the picture to me. It is a small stamped image. And, that brings us to Picture #4...
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| Picture #4 |
Picture # 4 - That is an artist's stamp. I would lay 99% factor on that. And, that comes from a die that the sculptor has made to mark their work with as a signature. Not all sculptors do that, mind you, but, the instructor's I knew in school all had their die on their presentation works (clay sculpts) when they presented them for bids.
The other thing that is really glaring wrong about this - the die stamp is dead center in the hat brim. If this were a finished piece, that is not where an artist would place their mark of creation. A signature or mark would be on the back of the base or somewhere else that would not distract from the overall picture on view to the public. This is like a flood-light that is glaring into your eyes and does not belong in that location on a finished and cast sculpt, period.
However - that may also give you a clue to work from. If you can track down the sculptor by records or pictures of who he is, or, by the recorded stamp used, you might be able to, at the least, know who this artist was.
Hope that helps you a bit more along the way.
All the best – Kym
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| Saloon nude? |
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| Nymph in a Web by Le Quesue |
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| Jeff Smith's private Soapy Smith museum |
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| He Died To Save Skagway |
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| "Where there's a bill, there's a way" |
AN elderly couple were tricked into believing they had won £12,000 – but instead were conned out of £1,750.
Pensioners Michael and Jane Haigh have been left struggling financially since they were stung by the overseas scam.
Michael and Jane Haigh
The couple, of Shepherds Grove Road in Hammerwood, were fooled into parting with their hard-earned cash to release the "winnings" in November.
But after weeks of daring demands and persistent phone calls from people claiming they were from the "Euro World Lotto Corporation", the pair realised they had fallen victim to a cold-calling lottery fraud.
Mrs Haigh, 69, said: "It was just awful. It was absolutely traumatic. Michael got phone calls for weeks afterwards. They absolutely hounded him.
"One day, he got this phone call out of the blue, saying he had won. He thought it must be right, because it was the same firm that he has used before.
"They gave him instructions to go down to the bank and get money out. They then said the money had not gone through and he had to do it again.This carried on going until we realised what was going on. It was just a nightmare from then on."
Mr Haigh, 70, had used the lottery firm, which no longer exists, more than a year ago, which led him to believe the fraudulent phone call was legitimate.
He explained: "They said I had won e14,000, or £12,000. I couldn't believe it at first. Then all the phone calls came. The problem was I had to pay them the VAT, which they said I would immediately get back with the winnings.
"I realise in retrospect that I was fooled, but being of an older generation I had tended to trust people more than I should, especially when the initial contact seemed bona fide.
"I thought it was worth going for, but I ended up losing £1,750.
"I don't feel bitter about it, because in one sense it's my own fault. But I feel betrayed by the people who are constantly telling me I'm a very lucky person. I feel it doesn't speak very highly of human nature.
"I'm left now picking up the pieces to restore my own bank balance."
Sussex Police has issued a warning following further reports of people in the area, particularly the elderly and vulnerable, being targeted by individuals claiming to be from foreign lotteries.
PC Kate Buckler said: "There might have been other victims. If you are contacted in this way about an alleged lottery win, please remember – if it sounds too good to be true, it probably is.
"Keep your personal details and finances safe and never agree to any financial transaction over the phone with someone you don't know."
I am sorry for their loss. They are not alone. This bunco swindle has changed little in 150 years, minus the technology used. Human nature has not changed nor have the methods used by the gangs of con men to separate the unwary from their cash.
My great-grandfather was an American confidence man of the old west. Those interested in history might recognize the name "Soapy" Smith. Many of the same games he operated in the 1880s are still used today. Besides displaying the very interesting history of Soapy Smith, my websites also serve to educate people about the various methods employed by those who use their wits to rob their prey.
