Givens was then notified of conditions, and made arrangements with Allie Houser to file upon the claim, which was deeded over to Smith immediately after the final proof had been made.
About three months later I decided to call upon Smith once more, this time explaining to him all the particulars connected with the Allie Houser substitution, but he was as obstinate as ever, and declared that he would not deal with me upon any basis whatever until the last patent was in his hands.
I then offered to accept $8,000 in cash, allowing him to retain the $2,467.45 until the issuance of the Allie Houser patent, when he could deduct also the $150 extra that was paid out by Kribs, but he likewise scorned this proposition, according me the same cold-blooded turn-down I had received in all my efforts to effect a legitimate settlement with him.
It is evident from Smith's demeanor that he was then preparing to swindle me out of my just dues, or planning in some way to keep me out of my money indefinitely. The Allie Houser claim had just been filed, and in the natural order of things, no patent could issue for months to come, and if necessary to carry out his scheme of deferring payment, he could take advantage of the situation to prevent the issuance of patent indefinitely, as under the terms of our agreement, he was not obliged to pay any part of the amount coming to me until after final title had issued to all the lands involved.
I thereupon returned to Eureka, Cal., and instructed my brother to immediately bring an action against Smith for the recovery of my money. A few months later, learning that he was in San Francisco, I notified my brother, and through Attorney Frank J. McGowan, of San Francisco, we succeeded Page 309
