Muscatine weekly journal. [volume] (Muscatine, Iowa) 185?-1890, 1859-07-15
The Gold RegiOns.-.Lctter from
w. N. Byers, ESQ.
OMAHA. N. T. July 7. 1856

OMAHA, N. T., July Z, 1859.
JOHN MAnlN, ESQ.,, Ed. Masculine Journal,
DEAR SIR:-My eye has just fallen upon a
paragraph in the editorial columns of your
paper Of the LIST inst, under the head of "Mr.
Greelcy's letter probably forgery" which,
rejecting as it does upon me personally,
demands from me some attention, and for
which beg Of you a little space in your
columns. lift were myself alone concerned,
would not trouble you, satisfied to let the
matter take its course, relying upon time to
show to the world who is right and who
wrong, we'll knowing as | do the inevitable
result. But it is for the sake of the many
friends | yet hope have in and near Musca-
tine, who have seen this imputation cast upon
my character as man of veracity and honor,
that beg this privilege.
You say, "There is now reason to doubt the
genuineness of the document going the rounds
of the press as statement from Mr.. Greeley"
&C., &C., and close by saying, "If that is a
forgery, 1t is ono Of The 6asest as ceN as one
Of the most stupid acts Of deception connected
with this GIGANTIC uUMBUG." Now that estate
ment" appeared as an Extra of the Rocky
Mountain News, (of which am the respon-
sible editor,) bearing date June 18th, and
from which you no doubt copied, as did the
papers in all the important cities in the Union
even the Tribune itself. You, as an
acquaintance If cannot say friend-of sew
eral years standing, know me well enough to
know that would not lend myself to an act
SO base as the preparation or dissemination
Of a fraud and forgery so base as you intimate
in your article above referred to-
You have seen the Neus since it's appear
ance; you have read my salutatory, in which
| declare my determination to adhere strictly
to the truth; to publish nothing as a fact,
unless Iknev 1t to be so. That rule has been
tollowed md uiH be to the very letter. Idefy
the ~orld to point to 'iagle paragraph in it,
editorial columns ,chich clnnot be substan
t,a'ed precisely and literally as set forth.
Twill not give you any gold stories; but
mark my prcdiction-that, before one year
shall pass, the world will acknowledge that
the Rocky Mountain gold mines are paying
larger wages to greater proportionate num-
Der of the men working them than any other
gold mines ever worked in the known world /;
and that the Rocky Mountain Nsws, despite
all the ISLANDERS and abuse heaped upon it by
the press at large, will have greater inAu-
ence, and will be doing larger business, than
any other Office west of the Mississippi and
east Of the Rocky Mountains press of St.
Louis only excepted.
tits your privilege, Of course, to discourage
emigration from your country; to keep the
people there raising produce, building cities
and railroads; but can you do it? Aye
there's the rub!
1t cannot be expected that one half or one.
sixth of those who go to the gold mines will
make fortunes--it never has been asserted.
If the thing had ever been done in any bust.
ness in the world, it might again be expected
but it has not
"Gigantic Humbug" Just such 81 gan.
tic humbug in California in 1s4s has pushed
the world ahead half a century in the short
space of ten years. say give us frequent
lust such glorious golden HuMBUGs. Ten
years ago, the harvest laborer received his
fifty cents per day-now he gets three times
that amount; and why? Because rich gold
mines were discovered. twill soon be seen
where the humbugs originate.
leave in few days, with my family and
effects, for the gold region, there to take up
my residence, feeling well satisfied with the
prospect before me.
Very respectfully, your obi serv't,
WIN. N. BYERS.
Remarks.-Our friend, Mr.. Byers, truly
remarks that our acquaintance with him
ought to satisfy US that he would not lend
himself to such base deception as forging a
letter from Mr.. Greeley Had We known at
the time that the letter in question was orig
inaly published in the Rocky Mountain Ne,cs,
under the immediate supervision of Mr.. Byers,
we could not have doubted its genuineness,
although there was discrepancy in dates
We were not alone however, in suspecting it
forgery, as the press very generally discred-
tied it till it was published in the Tribune.
We are not one of those who hope the reports
of gold discoveries are false merely because
we have predicted that the whole excitement
was intended to humbug. We sincerely
hope they will prove even richer than Mr..
Byers expects, with all his sanguine anticipa-
tons. We must confess that the evidence
now before us leaves no further doubt in our
mind. Gold has actually been discovered in
quantities richly remunerating the labor of
mining. The following, from the Omaha
Nebraskion extra, of July 9Th, enclosed by
Mr.. Byers in his letter, contains very fattering
news from the mines:
About II o'clock this forenoon, Mr.. VIM.
N. Byers, of this city, A. Dean, of Kalamazoo,
Michigan, VIM. Chess and w. Defrees, of
South Bend, Indiana, and j. Stanwell, of
Morgan county, Ohio, arrived in this city
direct from Cherry Creek gold mines, having
LETT Denver City the 2lst ult. The intelli-
gence brought by these gentlemen is of the
most important character. The mines are
proving valuable beyond the widest expecta-
tons of the most sanguine. The Gregory
disgnss alone arc yielding an average of about
fifteen thousand dollars per day. Other
digglngs are doing almost as much. To con-
f'rm these almost fabulous reports, these men
bring with them-the fruits of their own labor
upwards Of secen thousand foe hundred
dollars !" float and shot gold, and numerous
specimens of the richest and most valuable
gold bearing quartz. all Of phich ve have seen.
This is, we believe, the largest amount of gold
that has been brought from the mines of
western Nebraska at any one time, and it
settles the question as to the value and amount
| of the a,,riEeronS denositS hauond an.. oa.l ..