Mining Securities. E-book. Formato PDF - 9780243643080

And yet the mine, thus made the object of speculation and perhaps aban domed in disgust, may be really of value and capable of being worked so as to pay a moderate profit on the capital actually invested in its development. But the idea was given out in the beginning of the enterprise that it could be made profitable at once, and because this has not been the case, the holders of the stock lose all confidence and refuse to furnish the capital, without which hardly any mine, however rich it may be, can be put into a condition in which it can for any length of time be worked with profit. The system which prevails in this country of chartered companies with a large number of shares, seems especially adapted to make the mining business, which contains so much of the lottery element of uncertainty in it, a mere object of stock speculations. The records of the last few years (prior to 1854) show almost without exception that companies with large fictitious capital and an enormous number of shares, have been got up for the purpose of swindling the public, and not for bona fide mining purposes. It may be laid down as a universal rule, that the stockholders in a mining enterprise should be_ kept fully informed in regard to the expenditures and operations of the company. A frank and full publication is the only guarantee of sincerity and good faith. When these things are more generally understood and the public refuses any longer to be victimized, we may expect to see a less noisy but far more effective development of our mineral resources than we have yet had.