Gold Hill daily news. [volume] (Gold Hill, N.T. [Nev.]) 1863-1882, 1864-02-27
RELIGIOUS INTELLIGENCE.
The Desert Mines.

From Messrs Epperly and Bateman, the latter
Recorder of the Desert Mining District, we learn
that further discoveries continue to be made In
that region, the fine weather favoring both the
business of exploration and the opening OF mines
already located. There are about two hundred
men in the several districts out in that quarter
Of whom over 100 are in the Desert. The other
districts are the Sebastopol, lying ~ or l2 miles
north of the Desert, and the New Virginia, u
miles northeast of the Sebastopol, and about the
same distance northwest Of Humboldt Lake.
The general features of the country are about the
same In those several districts the whole being
very dry and barren, and almost destitute ofwood,
grass and water. The hot springs in the north
ern part of the Desert District afford good quail
ity of water, 1T for drinking when cold Tolera
bly, good water, though slightly saline, has been
obtained in q well one mile and half from Desert
City. Another. sunk at Greenville, also shows
signs of water at a depth of o. feet. In the Sc
bastopol District there is tract of bunch grass,
which, being green at this season, indicates water
near the surface. So far, neither springs nor
streams have been found in this or the New Yir.
gina District the water used being brought from
the hot springs or the Humboldt Slough
There are five or six lumber houses in Desert
City and several in Greenville, some of them be-
ing large and well built. In Lake View there Is
large stone house, the miners, In the absence Of
lumber making shift to live in huts built of stone
and mud, covered with canvas, while not few
hole in the ground or pulling up sage brush
after the manner of the primitive inhabitants of
the country. Some four or five towns have al
ready been projected, though the only ones as yet
commenced are Desert City to the north and Lake
View to the south, with Greenville between
them Lots in Greenville and Desert City sell at
low figures prices in the other places being alto
gether nominal.
The minerals in the Desert District consist
mostly of gold, and although the lodges are, as a
general thing, narrow on top-being only from
one 10 two feet wide they expand as descended
upon holding their richness at the same time. At
depth of fifty sixty feet, the lowest depth yet
reached on any of them, several have with OF
live feet and are extremely rich in gold-much OF
It free, and some Of the specimens surprising any
thing ever found in Gold Hill The Mark Antony
and Cleopatra lodges, composing the ground OF
the Golconda Company, amongst the best in the
District are opened by means of shaft fifty feet
deep, and being large and full of metal, are con.
sidered very valuable In the Scbastapol and
New Virginia Pistricts the metal is almost exclu-
sively silver the rock bearing close resemblance
to that found about Austin, and so far as assays
go, II would seem to be nearly equal to the best
Beese River ores. The Smith g. Warfeld ledge
in SebaSropol Is said to be one of great promise.
The great drawback on that section of country ID
the want Of q good road and sufficiency Of good
water The former difficulty will soon be obyi-
ated by the construction of the Latson and Bran
which charter was obtained at the last session
fthe Legislature. Where supply of water Is
to come from, II is not SO easy to see, now that
several plans lately projected for carrying In
ditch from the Truckee have been defeated. The
miners feel very sore over the matter, believing
there was a surplus in that stream over and above
all required for other purposes, and ample for
their wants 1t Is q pity they could not have OBJ
tanned this much needed relief, az the want OF wa
ter Is now the most serious obstacle to the pro-
gress Of those mines. At present It Is being
packed in from the slough of the Humboldt and
has actually sold at two bits gallon. Another
argument in favor Of getting supply from the
Truckee Is, that the water Of that stream Is pure
and wholesome, whereas that now used is quite
the reverse II Is curious circumstance that the
water in boih...the Humboldt lake and slough Is
much more saline and impure after high WIND
than at other times. This Is explained BY the
fact that the salt water being the heaviest, sinks
to the bottom aud is stirred up and mixed with
the :esher stratum on top when agitated by the
wind the alkaline substances deposited on the
shores being At the same time washed of and
dihused through the lnain body ofthe lake-pir-
RiRid Uai0R.