The Charlotte journal. [volume] (Charlotte, N.C.) 1835-1851, 1849-01-12


J. when tho water was let on the wheel. ii
II ,ail-race was found TO be too narrow TO PEI
!. init the water TO escape with sufficient II
j. pidity. Mr.. Marshall. to save labor, Il
;. The water directly ir;othe race with siron
. current so as to wash it wider and deeper
!. lie Effected his purpose, and large bed {
mud and gravel Was carried to the foot q
d the race. One day Mr.. Marshall, Is b
: was walking down to this deposit of mud
/, observed some gltiering particles at it
. upper edge; be gathered u few. examine,
them, and became satisfied of their value
tie then went 10 the fort, told Capt. Suite
J OF his discovery, and they agreed to keel
J II secret until certain giisi.mill of Suffer-
WIS finished. Ii. however, go. out, ant
spread like mage. Remarkable success.
! attended the labofs Of the first explorers
and in few weeks hundreds OF men were
drawn ihither. At the time Of my visit, bul
Pile more than three months after its dis.
covery, il was estimated that upwards OF
40O0 people were employ ed. A. The mill
there is fine deposit or bank Of gravel
which the people respec, as The property Of
Capt. Suffer, although he pre'ends to no
right 10 it, and would be perfectly satisfied
with the SIMPLE promise OF PIE emplion,
on account Of the mil which be had built
there g, considerable cost. Mr.. Marshall
was living near the mill, and informed him
that many persons were employ ed above
and below him; Iha. they used The same
machines as q, the lower ~asbings, and tina.
their success was about the encouraging
from one 10 three ounces Of gold per man
daily. This gold, loo, is in scales a little
coarser than those Of the lower mines.-
Ffom the mill Dir. Marshall guided me up
to the mountain on the opposite or north bank
OF the south fox. where, in The bed Of small
streams or ravlnes, now dry, great deal OF
coarse gold has been found. there saw
several parties al work, all Of /" bom we're do
M very well gtea, many specimens we're
shown me, some as heavy as four or FIVE
ounces IN weight, and ! send three pieces
Labelled No. D. presented BY a MIR. Spence.
You will perceive ,hat some Of the speci,
mems accompany ing this, hold mechanically
pieces Of quartz; tina, the surface is rough,
and evidently moulded 10 the crevice Of a
rock. This gold cannot have been carried
far by wafer, but must have remained
where 1t vas first deposited from tho rock
tina. once bound il. inquired Of many
people il they had encountered the metal
IN It's mattix, but in every instance they
said they had MOI but tina. the gold was
invariably mixed With washed gravel, or
lodged ia the crevices Of other rocks. All
bore testimony that they had found gold in
9 ieaier or lees quantities in the numerous /
small sulics or raviues that occur on thu,
region.
Ga ;he 7.h Of July left the mill, and
crossed 10 small stream emptying into the
American, three or four miles from the saw. /
mill. struck this stream (nov know ns T
Weber's creek) at the washlnss Of Sunol
s. Co. They had abou, thirty Indians EN-.
ploycd, whom they pay IN Merchandise
They aic getting gold Of character simi.
ar TO that found 10 the main fork, and doubt
ess in suiiitien, quantities TO satisfy them.
send you specimen, presented by this
company, of their gold. Fsom this point,
we proceeded up the stream abou. miles.
where We found great mlny people and
lndans-somc engaged IN the bed Of the
stream, aud others in the small side valleys
that pu, into il. These latter are exceed
I1gly rich, and two ounces were considered
an ordinary yield for days work.
A small gutter not more than hundred
yards long BY feet wide and 2 or feet
deep, was pointed out 10 me as The one
where two men-Willlam Daily and Perry
Nc oon-had, short time before, obtain
ed SIT 900 worth Of gold. Capt. Weber
informed me that he knew tina. these Two
men had employed four white men aud a.
bout hundred Indians, and that, at the end
OF one weeks work, they paid oil their
party, and had left $4,000 worth OF this
gold. Another small ravine was shown me,
from which had been taken upwards Of
Sl2 900 worth Of gold. Hundreds Of sim.
liar ravines TO all appearances, are as ye'
untouched. could not have credited these
reports had not seen, ia the abundance oil
the precious metal, evidence Of their truth.
Mr. Nellich, an agent of Com. Stockton,
had been at work abou, three weeks IN the
nelghborhood, and showed me in bags and
bottles over S., 600 worth of gold; and Mr.
Lyman, gentleman OF education aud wor
thy Of every credit, said he had been en-
papcd with four others, with machine, on
the American fork. jus. below Suffers mill /:
that they worked eight days, and tina. his
share was a. the rate Of $50 day; but
hearing that others were doing better al
Weber's place, they had removed there, and
were then on the point OF resuming opera.
lions. nigh, tell OF hundreds Of similar
/ instances; bu: to illustrate how plentiful
the gold was n the pockets of common la.
borers, | will mention simple occurrence
which took place in my presence when
was at Webei's store. This store WIS no.
thing bu, an arbor Of bushes. under which
no had exposed for sale, goods and groce
RES suited TO his customers. A man came
I'd, picked up box OF SeidIetz powders, and
asked its price. Capt. Weber told HIM II
IVA, not for sale. The man offered an ounce