Nebraska advertiser., 1858-11-04

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out with the Ray county company, left for
the States, by way of Bent's Fort. About
the same time, two men Of the latter
company left, by way of the Republican,
making in all about sixty men that left
for the States before any considerable
amount of gold had been taken from the
mines. have been thus particular in
describing our movements, In order that
| might explain the reports that have
been recently published, giving discoura-
ging accounts of the mines.
OF Mr.. Smedley's report + have al
ready spoken. He admitted when he
left that the work had not been half
done. l have also spoken of Capt. Beck.
Now, / suppose that you, Mr.. Editor,
might ask any one Of those sixty men
about the mines, and in every case they
would tell you that "the thing was all a
humbug, that they had just returned from
there, and that they could not make day
wages" and with few exceptions they
would be honest in what they tell YOU,
and you would honestly publish their re-
port; when few facts would explain the
whole matter. A copy of The Weekly
Democrat, of Oct. 18th, IS before me,
in which find letter from some Kansas
City gold hunters, dated Council Grove,
in which they speak Of meeting men re-
turning from Pixies Peak, who brought
discouraglng reports of the mines. You
will notice that | have spoken above of
eight or ten men leaving us on August
18th, and this letter from Council Grove
is dated Sept 25th, which would be about
the time they would arrive at that point,
and well they might give diScouraging
accounts of the mines for they had but
81 or 50 worth of gold, not as they said
1.-The product of summers hard labor" :"
but the product of a summers folly, in
running after Mexican stories, combined
with less than one hours washing with a
pan. Let those men who wrote that let
ter from Council Grove "push on" as
they say they are determined to do"
and they are "all right"
Again l see among the news by the
Salt Lake mail that "at Laramie a gen.
tleman was seen just from the mines
who said that the mines were humbug
that while man was making $3.50
he would spend $500. Now happen to
know the gentleman spoken of, because
between the 1st and Goth of September
only one man went from the mines to
Laramie, and know that he never work.
ed d day in the mines; he belonged to a
class that live without work, and went to
Laramie at the invitation of the miners,
presented in the shape of resolution
adopted at public meeting, and In the
words of the resolution he departed in
two hours" But see that am prolong-
ing this communication to an unreasonable
length, and the express is about TO leave.
My7objeCt in writing thus far has been
to contradict the discouraging reports of
the last few days. Now a word about
the
MINES AS THEY REALLY ARE.
No work has yet been done there-no
claims to any extent have been made-the
time has been spent in prospecting with
pans-a halliday here and a halliday
there. No man has found a piece 'twen-
ty-three ounces, one ounce, or (to my
knowledge) one pennyweight. To the
best of my knowledge, information and
belief, no man made sixteen dollars in
one day. The men who were there when
; / left were working with pans, carried
their dirt from four to seventy rods, and
made from $3.50 to $500 per day.
, The better way for your readers to
Judge of the yield of the mines, is to know
the prospect of the pam" l have seen
$l.50 in single pan few times-40 to
so cents frequently, and hardly less than
. 8 to 10 cents. Californians will tell you
that with three cents to the painful they
can make good wages. The Californians
5 in our party say, that when they can get
sluices arranged, they can make every
: day they work SIS. There, then, yor
, have the whole story. Unless some new
"diggings" have been discovered since
I Sept. Doth, you can put it down all report.
I of wages higher than SO as exiravagant
: and receive them with "leetie grain oi
a allowance" Ifyour readers are satisfied
: with wages under that sum, let them &C
5 there, and they will make it. There i
] room enough for twenty thousand mining
! claims. The gold is wash gold,'' and i:
: in the opinion of the wisest heads in tht
: mountains, but the beginning of mex
J., years discoveries. Every man there tha
y has had any experience in mining is sa
r tisfed with the prospect for the next sea
son. and some Of them extremely enthu
siastic.
U THE TIME TO GO TO THE MINES.
/ would advise no person to start for tn
e mines after this date until spring. / thin
some have gone two or three weeks to
S late to escape hardships, but this will d
for the present. will soon furnish you
s readers with further information in re
O gard to the mines, routes. &c. 1 may b
e permitted to remark that / have hear
n that some of those who have come in fror
:. the mines have received hundreds of lei
y ters daily in regard to details, campin
: places, &c. No person can afford to an
swer all the inquiries of that kind for nc
II thing, however much be may wish to az
o commodate the public, for il would TAX
y all his own time and two or three asst:
e tants besides. have kept an accural
II journal Of the route up the Arkansa
IS along the mountains and down the Pla,i