The Sun.
London, England, 1867-01-19 00:00:00

The Steamboat Springs.

The special correspondent of the Detroit Free
Press gives the following description of this singular
phenomenon, dated from Star City, Nevada :—ln
my letter of the 9th November to the free Press I
promised to give you a description of our boiling
springs. These springs are situated about twenty
miles from Carson City, which is the capital of the
State. They are called " Steamboat Springs," from
the noise they make, which sounds like several
steamers discharging steam. These springs cover
an area of about three acres. The water is boiling
hot, and the escaping steam can be seen for several
miles before sunrise, and the atmosphere in the
vicinity is filled with the smell of sulphur. At the
springs are bath-houses, where at least 200 patients
are accommodated. There are also two fine hotels.
The water cures the rheumatism effectually.
There are crevices in the rocks where the water
can be seen boiling at a depth of thirty feet. Here
is also a spring which is called the breathing spring.
The spring is shaped much like a well. The water
recedes to the depth of ten or twelve feet, and re-
mains calm for five minutes, and then commences
to boil, and rises until it shoots in the air above ten
feet, and in five minutes it begins to recede. I tried
its operation for at least half an hour. I have no
doubt but years ago the whole country was subject
to volcanic eruptions, for lava can be found all
around these springs. Steamboat Springs are be-
coming quite noted as one of the greatest curiosities
of the age, and they are yearly visited by hundreds
of tourists. Lady Franklin, the widow of Sir John
Franklin, has written much about these springs.
She visited them some five years since. There arc
many other boiling springs in other portions of the
State, but none of the magnitude of Steamboat
Springs.
The City of Star contains about 6,000 inhabi-
tants. It is in Star District, Humboldt County,
and its main street is the overland stage road.
Daily the stages pass to and fro with the mails
from New York to San Francisco, and the tele-
graph wires give us news at all hours from every
accessible point on the globe. The discovery of
mines in this country caused thousands to visit us ;
towns were built, mills erected, and at this early
day we are now exporting from Humboldt County
alone, the amount of $BOO,OOO in silver bars each
month. There are at present 15 mills running at
Star City, using 115 stamps. In addition to
these there are now in progress of erection seven
other mills, making a total of 22 mills. Scarcely
a week passes in which we do not hear of the
purchase of some mine by Eastern or English
capitalists, who invariably take steps for the
erection of a suitable mill on their mine. The
Rothsehilds own largely in our mines.
The Humphrey mill, of Star City, gave as their
results of crushing 693 tons of ore, $159,639.65,
being an average of $230.36 per ton. As an evi-
dence of the steady increase in the production of
silver in Nevada, we submit the statistics of the
yearly report ending September Ist, 1866, of the
amount produced in Star District. These statis-
tics are obtained from the city assessment roll,
amounting in round numbers to $1,168,000. The
wealth of this region is almost inestimable, and the
receipts of some of the mining companies put the
riches of some oil wells to the blush. The mining
wealth of Nevada has induced the formation of
many new companies in most of your leading
cities on the Atlantic coast. The State of Nevada,
with a population of forty thousand inhabitants or
less, took out of her mines in gold and silver bullion
during the year 1861, as is shown by the statistics
of exports, more than $30,000,000.