The weekly North-Carolina standard. [volume] (Raleigh, N.C.) 186?-1869, 1866-10-24
spondence of the New York Herald.
NORTH.CAROLI

= = :
Interesting letter from Portis Gold Mine-His-
tory of its discooery- Supposed to be the
richest surface mine in the qcorld-A neo
seasbiny process Hospitality to Northern
Tile Constitutional amendment Lack
of labor and capital.
PoRTIs, Franklin Co., Oct 8, 1865.
Knowing the interest your readers take in
the existence and development of the miner
al resources of this country, have thought
an account of this remarkable mine would
possess to you and them sufficient interest to
Justify the space to be devoted to it.
Hearing Of the Ports gold mine while in
Petersburg, Va, resolved to visit it and
see for myself If the statements made to me
concerning it were not exaggerated, and
taking the cars OF the Petersburg and Wei
don Railroad, / came to Enfield, N. G., where
took carriage for the mine" which is
situated in the angle between the Raleigh
and CASTOR Railroad, and the Wilmington
and Weldon Railroad, and about twenty
miles from Enfield, N c., on the latter, and
the same distance from Littleton on the
former. o3
had provided myself with letters to the
Superintendent, with whom had enjoyed an
recollected by many of the officers of the
Army of the Potomac as the Chief Quarter
master of the Sixth Army corps, and was
warmly welcomed by him.
have spent three days proftably and
pleasantly in exploring the nine hundred
acres which the company own, and which
is the basis of the Ports Mining Company.
The existence of gold here was first discov
cred some thirty years ago, the land being
owned by a poor shoemaker named John
Ports. He had purchased the land on credit
and was unable to pay for it, and the Sheriff
had gone to his house to levy an execution.
He had taken with him miner from the
gold mines near Charlotte, in this State, who,
while the Sheriff was attending to his duty,
was looking about outside, and became at
tractcd by some shining particles in the mud
with which the cabin of old Porlis was
chinked He made careful examination of
them and found them to be gold, and, pur
suing his investigation, found the crevices of
the cabin almost literally chinked with gold.
He at once communicated his discovery to
"Old John," and steps were Immediately
taken to work the mine Ports found him
self raised to sudden wealth and stopped
making shoes.
Even with the primitive and simple i'm
plements then used the mine gave surprising
returns. Ports leased it to different parties,
permitting them 10 work it, and taking one
fourth of the proceeds as rent, and this gave
the old man all the money and more than he
could spend. His sudden and unexpected
wealth had the effect usualin such cases, and
he and his family were ignorant, simple-min-
ded people, who lacked the strength of mind
to enable them to bear their sudden prosper
ity. They rushed into all kinds of extrava-
gance.
They built house which at that time in
| this section was palace, and gathered
| around them an indiscriminate set of para
| sites The house became noted for its hos
| pitality and for the lavishness with which
choice wines and liquors were bestowed upon
all comers. 1t was called a paradise for ped
lers, who were sure of an invitation to stay
for weeks and of disposing of their loads to
| the inmates. At every session of the court
| the old man, it was said, was regularly fined
for harboring disorderly characters. copy
one bill paid by him to pedler, now in pos
session of Thomas K. Thomas, the President
of the company, and who administered the
state of old Portis It is as follows