The Ottawa free trader. [volume] (Ottawa, Ill.) 1843-1916, 1859-02-26
Pixies Peak...The GOld...H0W TO Get

lucTcs
The Pixies Peak fever is about at its
height, and already we see occasional parties
trudging through town with their stout wa
CONS, and stove pipes protruding through
the neat white covers. They are advance
parties, whose impotence wont admit of
prudent delay until the grass is grown
But in month or two hundreds more will
follow in their wake, until, from present in
dications, we are Of opinion that the number
Of emisrants leaving the Missouri river in
April and May will be equal to the great Ca
liforna overland emigration in 1S49.
"What so they out for to see," or find,
or realize? Are the reports that come from
the new gold fields sufficiently authentic and
encouraging to warrant this mighty move
nent in that direction? We have before us
many columns of slips cut from all sorts Of
newspapers, and after reading them over
carefully, must confess that our confidence
in the auriferous promises OF Cherry Creek
| and the Blue and all other forks and branch
es in that vicinity is not raised to very
high pitch. One thing observable about all
the reports from the mines is :his, that the
favorable reports come geaerally from cor
respondents who are interested in Denver
City lots, or who write to newspapers or
business men, or town proprietors on the
Missouri border, where golden harvests are
expected to be reaped from the great emf
grafton Of which said border towns expect to
become central startings points. Here for
instance is a paper from Wyandot.e City, in
which after column or two of labored edi-
torial to prove that that is the point on the
Missouri to start from, we encounter far
ing caption like this:
slate and Important from the Coll Hines
Gold in Abundance-S25 per day,
&C., &c.
Then follow several long letters {, ON per-
sons who have inst arrived at the mines and
are informed that gold is found everywhere
that about Cherry Creek men have taken
out from 81 to $40 day, and that in enc
instance a man is "reported' to have taken
out S25 day.
Another paper from Brownsville, OK. t.
(also a great starting poinO gives the report
of dozen of returned proprietors of Denver
and Auraria City, who report in this style {:
These gentlemen have throughly pros.
pected, and exhibited specimens of the pre-
cious metal. Mr. Lawrence is an old Cali
/ f0rnia adventurer and has no hestancy in
pronouncing the Cherry Creek mines equal,
/ If not superior, to any of those of California.
Those new mining, under the many disad-
vantages, are making from 81 to $l2, and
, often Slo per day-irom D 10 SO cents per
pan. Gold is found from the surface down
to the bed rock, q depth averaging fifteen
feet. The only difficulty, at present, is the
want of water. But as several companies OF
competent capitalists are already organized
for furnishing water, this, therefore, cannot
much longer remain an obstacle Of any con-
sequence. The gold yet found to any ex-
tent, is hat is termed float gold," and
quicksilver will necessarily have to be used
TO considerable extent, in collecting the
finer and more valuable particles.
Shot gold has been discovered to seme ex-
tent, and old miners are confident of finding
nugget gold' in the spring. But little
prospecting has yet been done in the noun
;ains, owing to the season of the year and
the occupancy OF time in preparing comfort
Gold has been discovered in satisfactory
quantities, along the base of the mountains,
from New Mexico TO Fort Laramie.
And we could go On and give many CO.
lumns OF equally favorable reports, from the
same interested sources.
But let US look at the other side. Here is
what an old Californian writes to the ST
Louis Democrat, Jan. 10.
Some persons have already commenced
working in the mines; but so far it pays
poorly Diggers who have been the mos,
successful, have not averaged three dollars
per dav, and some have no, made fifty
cents, working hard at that. The gold is
very fine. 1t takes from 20 to % particles
TO make the value Of a cent. The largest
speck which have heard Of, will not weigh
more than % cents in value. All the large
Jumps that YOU have received in st. LOUIS
as Pixies Peak gold, were never obtained in
this region-they belong to California. All
the accounts of gold findings of an extravs'
CANT character, are the fabrications Of specu-
lators.
John W. Anthony writes to a Michigan
paper, about the same date:
have been Visiting at Cherry Creek and
Pixies Peak-also, South Platte gold dig
glngs-and it beats all creation; plenty oil
Indians and whites mixed up with half.
breeds, greasers, and Pike county men,
Nothing to eat but buflalo,-and no gold
Ill that can get away are leaving, and the
balance have bought squaws and will stay
till spring, if they don't freeze before.
could have bred three hundred men fol
their board.
And so we could 60 on with columns
more Of reports like these.
The truth is, in our humble Judgment
that although there is unquestonably gold
at Pixies Peak, too little is yet known about
it certainly to justify any considerable VEN
ture in that direction. The claim wants
proving up. This is certain, that thus far
none but fine or float gold has been discov'
cred, and this is seldom found anywhere in
quantti es large enough to pay great wages
Men Who can afford to lose six months
time and spend few hundred dollars, may
find it pleasant excursion to &C to Pixies
Peak, and lift they find no gold, can come home
again But the thing looks to us as too IN
certain to justify a man stalking his all up
on it.
But to such as are determined to go, the
question naturally presents itself, how they
had better 90, and by what route. On these
points, the newspaper advices are exceed
ingly copious, and SO conflicting that many
a poor Pixies Peaker must be sadly puzzled
For our own part. we should make short