Complex sentence: News of the strike spread quickly and was followed by a stampede of miners in the late fall, so that the entire creek was soon taken up and scores of men with rockers busied themselves in cleaning out the richer and more readily worked portions of the gravels.
Split into simpler sentences: News of the strike spread quickly and was followed by a rush of miners in the late fall. The entire creek was soonstaked and scores of men with rockers busied themselves in cleaning out the richer and more readily workable portions of the gravels.