The holders of these concessions
immediately consolidated their inter
est*, as no doubt was the original in
tention, and dispatched Juan Hidalgo,
armed with powers of attorney and
all necessary credentials, to obtain
the capital necessary to systematically
work one of the most gigantic schemes
of monopoly which the world has ever
seen—a monopoly embodying the
germs of a wealth and power w l . iqh
may possibly in time rial the glories
of the old Hudson Bay and South Sea
companies, with powers as will here
after be seen in some respects ap
proaching that of the East India com
pany. Sen ?>r Hidalgo's efforts in San
Francisco have been successful, and
in July last, under the modest title of
“Mother of Pearl Shell company,” a
corporation was formed under the
laws of California, with Jaau Hidalgo
as pi asideut, George G Watts (gen
eral freight agent of . the Union
Pacific railway) as secretary, and
D. Samuels of the ?aoe house,
of R. E. Phillips the capitalist (, i
and Julius Jacobs, general agent of
the Germania Life Insurante com- !
pany, as directors, with a capital of i
*500,000. It is hinted that in addition
to the foregoing names a number f 1
our prominent; capi’alists. among
others ex Gov. Parkins, arc interested
as stockholders. As an evidence of
the enormous profits to be made by
this gigantic scheme, it may be men
tioned that for the past two years jlhe
yield of tne fisheries conducted with
four schooners and twenty bohls, has
Wes from S2OU.6U) to $250,000 in
pearls and about ,900 tons of aheil
wortft'frmn £6O to £7o —say £65 a too.
or about $294,500 making a gross yield
of $542,000 per annum.
The company has now four sqjSr.
