Grant County herald. [volume] (Lancaster, Wis.) 1850-1968, 1853-12-05
4 Ylsit 10 elae E.eaa rElnes.

cant, While on VISIT TO the mines at
shallsburgh, gives the. following as his
hrst experience "down Sucker hole -
In wandering around among the dig
gings, picking up little information and
few specimens here and there, we found
very intelligent and gentlemanly young
fellow who was in charge Of the upper
end Of one of the diggings. and in plain,
god natured, sensible way, he gave us
in half an hour, better insight into the
business than could be gathered, proba-
bly,, from all the reports yet published.
He invited Us 10 go into the diggiugs
with him, volunteered TO pilot us down.
and after some discussion, my friend the
General and myself with many misgiy.
ings took leave Of the sunshine, left mes
sages for our friends with one Of our
who preferred to remain out
side, placed our feet upon the ladder and
the descent. Imagine your
old acquaintance, my dear Crescent"
prepared for that expedition into The
bowels of our common mother Earth
We had taken off such little articles Of
clothing as would not be benefited by
dirt, and substituted some miners dres-
ses for them. My rcgalia was a green
sack and wool hat, both Of which had
seen service probably in this part Of the
country since the Sank war; and the
General boldly followed me with sort
Of dressing gown and a straw hat, cute
5 cooked up before, as boys cock up
their hats at general trainings.
Down our ladder-a5out twenty feet,
looked up, and getting squiut past the
General, saw four fee; in diameter, Of
sky looking more surprisingly beautiful
than it ever had before. Downward. the
barrow well, skirted by ihe ladder.
stretched away till lost in thickness Of
darkness. Suppose the General. above
mc, should slip and come down. halt
led on round, and, as a precautionary
measure suggested the matter TO him
"These feet Of mine" said he, "ncver
Fail Ine;' and with one glance at their
| was treasured, and went
lon again. Down another ladder, 10 a
third. Here the hole took side pitch.
Iand the descent was rather more diff
quit, especially as it had got to be per-
sectly dark, but before we had accom-
'..sAcd that stage a glimmeriag shone
4 bat below ne, ana saw that eur faith
ri friend had lighted a candle. The
4 'ezt ladder changed to the opposite side
4 The hole, ana here was some nice ma
aauyefing with us grcenhorns in accom-
sHodattng ourselves 10 the circumstances.
Imagine yorsclt fifty feet in The sir cham
Fng from one ladder to another one some
s%o or three feet distant. managed ii,
thinking, however, like the man in the
Flver, that it was poor time for swap
1lnG horses. Down another, and anoth-
fr and 'hen we stepped upon terra fir
|na again, safe. SAFE, cid / say? II it
\ was safe to be down there, then safety
new sensation 10 me. We were at
lpne end of a hole eighty or ninety feel
! ong, and air and sunshine were at The
c!her. Sundry pleasant rec0ilec,ions OF
lf.ories about "dHnps," about water
bursting in and drowning miners, about
the sides and roofs, Of drifts" tumbling
8iown, fitted through my mind, but /
fhrew them of, and our mining friend
RIaying furnished each Of us with a cam
.dIe, we commenced explorations.
4 large drift from the bottom of the
fha.t which we descended, along which
BE could walk upright, ran norlhward-
~ 10 another shaft some ten or fifteen
Pods distaut-and one great benefit which
amS connection gave was a circulation OF
PR, which prevented the "damps," and
allowed the miners 10 work Where
1resh air is not thus furnished, the Dig
glngS cannot be worked during tho sum
per, unless as is pr4otised in some ca
feS fresh air is pumped down by ma
1fhae resembling tanning mill to which
4 canvass tube IS attached, reaching to
Fhc bottom. In this main drift large
fmoant Of mineral has been taken out,
DOW, however, the 'show' is not great.
S'ht the worknen were picking out small
sNeces from crevices here and there
4Nlches were occasionally blasted out lat
orally from FIVE to fifteen feet in length,
#and one Of them which we crawled into
fon cur hands and knees, was some thir-
~ or forty feet deep. In one Of these
Put Of the way places, found tucked a.
|way carefully tin can-and imagining
|that | had found something not exactly
in the Maine Law line, poked my can
lie around it, and asked my mining friend
what he had hid away there. Look
out, )" suid he quickly, 'that is powder"
! did not prosecute investigations any
further in that quarter.
After ali the mineral which can be
reached in a crevice is exhausted, blast
! ing is resorted TO, and the rock taken a
way sufficiently to allow rhe workmen
70 follow up the crevice. Now the fl
ring Of blast in our immediate vicinity,
Al that distance under ground, with thou
sands of tons of rock over our heads, was
feature in the performance which how
lever novel and interesting ii might be in
OlaeT situations, | was very willing TO
On'' from the programme. The omis-
I'Oe did not occur, though. Just as we
n;a concluded our tour through the Dig
S"Ss' and were preparing TO ascend 1--we
J. nree miners came running along the
s I5n'' and lodged Suddenly into one of
# VIC Slue outlines Our oruide hurFiedly