The daily crescent. [volume] ([New Orleans, La.]) 1848-1851, 1850-01-28

changed during the night; an unexpected storm
eurst over the valley and the next morning it
louna That the river had overhowed and carried
away an the hay that had been left In the feIds-
Inc crops Of the neighboring farms were com
Rse'eiy destroyed Bernard alone had not suffered.
ne success Of this first experience gave him such
.a.n n tne advice Of lawyer. that from that day
forth he adopted it a rule or Ii. canIuct and h.
came, BY his order and diligence one f tbe richest
| iarmersIn the country. He never fosuot the SER
vice done him by NJ Potter de la Ge9,nondsie tn
whom he ever afterwards carried couple Il his
nnest fowls every year as token Of gratitude
LFrom the Pacific News Nov M
The Collaborating Quartz OF Cafffornias
Mr.. W1igAt's Specimens and Iuressigations.
In our last publication, we alluded briefly 20 the
interest which had been excited here by the exhi-
| bition OF some fine specimens Of gold bearing
quartz, sand to be found in nexhaustble masses or
| quarres, through the whole mountainous region
Which forms the western slope Of the Sierra Neva-
| da We have since had opportunity Of exam
Ihlng these specimens, and Of learning, more mi
nutey, the character Of the rock the to which
1t has been subjected and the results which il has
given. We desire to avoid all exaggerated state
ment upon a subject in regard TO which the atten-
ton OF the world is already sufficiently awakened;
yet we deem it not too much say that the facts
thus indicated in regard to the character and sruc-
ture OF this vast mountain range, appear alto
Sttnef 70 Sufpd3Ss importance, previous dis
coveries in the gold region, which have yet been
made public. We are glad to learn, that the whcl0
subject will very soon be brought, in an authentic
shape to the attention OF the public. in the form Of
tIll and comprehensive report % the Department
OF State at Washington, by I. Butler King. As
early as June last Mr.. King devoted two entire
months to laborious exploration of the whole re-
gton, and fully matured his conclusions in regard
to IT. His labors were interrupted by severe and
prot racted illness. but his report will soon be
cnU r,lGfaI m Iii.
Washington before the discussions upon the Cali
iornIa question shall have up inECongress.
We hazard nothing in saying that the facts and the
views to be set forth in this report will command
the public attention and interest, to extent al
most, If not altogether, unexampled by any siniar
document As Cafornians, we await its publica-
ton with impotence. Mr.. King, we learn will
take to Washington with him, full collection Of
specimens OF the gold formations, both pure and in
union with the quartz, which will fully illustrate
and demonstrate, with almost mathematical clear
ness his theory of the gold region Of California.
The particular specimens which we have seen Of
these quartz mountain quarries, in the posses
sion OF Mr. Wright, one of the Members Of Con-
gress elect from California who will take them on
to Washington in the steamer OF tine 1St of De
cember. They consist for the most part, Of small
pieces OF quartz rock, generally Of brownish
tlnge, and, IN some instances, presenting the ap-
Pearance OF slight incipient decay, or decomposi-
uon of the rock formation In all these specimens
VI
| all, visible to the naked eye. The microscope
| however, reveals the gold more clearly Besides
| these pieces, which Mr.. Wright has himself Sc
ected, with great care, the airest average sam
pies OF the general appearance of enormous and
very numerous VEINS quarres of quartz, there is
| also one larger fragment Of the same rock weigh
| ing, we should suppose some ten or twelve pounds
from all parts of which the gold protrudes plainly
| In a state almost pure. This single fragment of
\ quartz, which Mr.. Wright by no means regards as
/ 0f fha k,t.. h. l.
pronounces to be the richest rock specimen he has
| seen, is found, by the most careful specihcQravitv
test, as applied to it by Mr.. Wright, to contain
pure gold to the amount of about stx hundred dol
lars. This piece OF rock, we understand from Mr..
wright, Is destined to be laid las memorial from
| the California mountains, we supposed upon the
table OF the Speaker of the House OF Representa-
| tives Its appeal, we think, viii be needed.
| But the interest or importance attaching to this
or to any other single and isolated fragment spec-
men, however peculiar and curious an. rich in it.
SELF is very slight and even inconsderable in com
parison to that which belongs to the more numerous
| fragments Of quartz, in which very little gold or
none, eau be dscerned by the naked eye and
which have been cautiously selected by Mr.. Wright
on the spot, as the iairest average specimens Of
whole veins and quarries, said to sweep visiby in
sinuous and broken lines through the whole west
ern slope of the Sierra Nevada, and to form vast
masses OF mountain rock, large enough and nu-
merous enough to freight many times over ali the
navies and commercial marine Of the world Mr.
Wright has spent he informs u.s. much of the past
season among the mountains, collecting his sam
pies of the quartz in different localities and sub
Jecting the yield Of gold from them, in very many
instances, to the most rigorous tests.
In all these experiments Mr. Wright has been
guided by the skill and Judgment of Mr.. Augustus
LELAND, gentleman largely conversant with mining
operations, and who has been from the iirss equally
Interested with Mr.. Wright in all the researches
which have been made.
The astonishing result brought out by these in
vesilgations is that in particular and very extern
sive vein, four pounds of this rock yielded upon the
average eleven dollars worth of pure gold. valued
at sixteen dollars TO the ounce. That Is to saw the
yield from these average samples of the rock in this
| particular vein, Is nearly three dollars for each
pound Of quartz, Mr. Wright exhibited to US two
small masses of gold, each about the size and shape
OF large musket bali, and both presenting the
granulaied appearance of gold &fraeted and col
lected by the aid of quicksilver One of these con-
tans about twelve dollars of pure gold, and the
largest yield which has been obtained from four
pounds of the rock from the vein in question. The
other contains about twsOe dollars, and is the
smallest yield which has been Obtained from any Of
the experiments upon the rock Of this vein. We
understand ihai the tests applied have been some
times the operation of quicksilver, and sometimes
The lest OF the comparative specific gravity OF the
pure quartz and the gold bearing quartz
The samples of the rock which Mr.. Wright has
tested, have been taken from many different veins.
In no sample tested has the yield been less than
uyAoi W lIc pOuuu Vi quartz. Ne average ytelQ
OF the different veins has been as determined by
the samples, from dollar and half TO two dol
lars to the pound Of rock.
single fact will show the unheard of and as
tonishlng character of the results which have been
thus arrived at Mr.. Wright informs US that he has
recently conyersed with an intelligent gentleman,
now in this country lwho has been long conyersants
in the capacity of an overseer, with mining opera
tons, as carried in the quartz VEINS Of Georgia
From this source. Mr.. Wright learns bat fifteen
| horse steam power, working twelvs stamps, will
stamp about a thousand bushels Of quartz rock in
day-each bushsl of quartz weighing about eighty
pounds Ii twenty five cents worth of gold Ii
| Welded from each blslel of eighty pounds, the
business is considered good one in Georgia. If
the yeld he fifty 10 the bushel, the profit is
| large. Now the yield of the rock which MrWriqht
has collected and tested, instead of being quarter
| of dollar, or half dollar to the sevenIy-fve
pounds, is, in one great vein, nearly three dollars
| to one pound. Abaie this, in view Of possible or
probable mistake, in view of the superior Weld
OF single richer vein, to average Of two dol
lars, or of one dollar, of half dollar, TO the
pound, and the result still remains, in every point
OF view, almost equally unexampled and moment
Gus. The whole question is, does gold bearing
quartz, making any approximation to any such
YIELD exist in California, in vast and inexhausnble
masses On this main point the recent invesuga-
tons of Mr.. Wright coincide entirely with the OBJ
seryations and conclusions Of Mr.. King. and with
the testimony of all the explorers of the region with
whom we have eonvefsed. They all agree thar a
large number Of veins Of quartz permsate visih,V