San Andreas independent., 1858-06-05

FON OOlD. W Y HdfS q
little piece of quartz which came from
sixteen hundred feet under ground it
was dug out of a seam in the foundation
stone of hi gh mountain covered with
trees century Old Thirty men are at
work, day and night, under the mountain
and they have already excavated cham
Der nearly one hundred feet square At
distances of ten or twelve feet, pillars of
solid ground are left to keep the roof from
falling In, and in addition to these sup
porters, heavy posts are placed upright
and wedeed fast. After while, the
ground above settles on these posts.
crushing the wedges and cap-pieces to
splinters. All round the chamber mi
ners are at work, drifting further and
timbering up as they go. Entering, you
can see nothing but two or three dozen
dim lights which seem to be struggling
to keep alive; you can hear the grating
blows of the pick and see the sparks fy-
ing about. We can compare it to moth
ing except swarm of fre-fies in a dark
cave. The heavy breathing of the men
can be distinctly heard the air is warm
and oppressive to the lungs, but soon the
respiratory organs become adapted to the
atmosphere and the visitor forgets his
apprehensions of suffocation in contem-
plating the wierd little world before him.
Directly he begins to see clearer The
miners are dressed in rough, coarse
clothes, which are smeared with mud of
all colors Others, who work where wa
ter drips, have India rubber coat and
pantaloons, and water-p proof hats and
boots. When they go out these clothes
are changed for the ordinary dress worn
by the miners above ground They sell
dom talk when at work, and inquisitive
strangers annoy them, generally getting
laconic answers. They have no breath
to spare, ard had rather be left to COM
munion with themselves, and to pursue
the golden phantom that leads its myste-
rious way through the foundation places
of the hills, ever keeping little before
them. Presently a man comes in with a
lamp in his cap, pushing car on wood
en- railway, which he leaves to be filled on
side track, and starts off with another
He takes the paying dirt outside to a
washing place; the rocks and refuse dirt
are piled up in the excavations. Some
times blasting is necessary to remove very
large stones, and then the fixing of the
fuse is the signal for all to get behind a
pillar or projecting rock, and for the visi-
tor to take his final leave They are 90
ing cut to send in new set of hands,
and to wait for the smoke to clear away.
And this is every day life in a tunnel
The miners look rough and weary, but
they are not the slaves of the mine
Some of them are shareholders in the
vein, and are worth from five to twenty
thousand dollars others are hired to
work for FIVE dollars day of ten hours,
live in the same cabin with their employ
ers and take as much interest in the
household affairs as the owners. The
hired laborer in the mines is not like
hirelings in other States he is indepen-
dent, self-reliant, quick to resent insult;
if discharged from employment, he can
90 to work on his own account, with the
chances in his favor, and after expend-
ing all his earnings in prospecting, can
hire out again.
From such place came the little piece
Of gold we know where it came from,
but not its destination. Perhaps it may
be added to the treasures of the deep !;
it may help make the coin about which
Emperors will go to war it may encircle
the trembling finger of bride, or lie in
the coffin plate of some money -gatherer
yet unborn. Trinity Journal