Idaho semi-weekly world. (Idaho City, Boise County, Idaho Territory) 1867-1868, 1867-06-19
THE LEMH1 REACTION.


Dortance in a substantial point of view This
belief was not thing of fancy or prejudice.
a r. had foundation in the information we had
from fine to time gathered in conversations
with and inquiries of men of probity and much
experience in mining, who had visited that re-
zion within the past three or four years, and
diligently and iaboriously prospected there for
gold. They all agreed in saying that it was
almost impossible to find a spot there in which
the color could not be got, but it was
equally impossible, they believed, to find any
place of any extent in which gold could be
found in sufficient quantity to pay average
wages. That there were pockets, or circum-
scribed spots which would yield richly they did
not hesitate to believe; but they were very
sure that no large area of really good, rich dig
gings could be found.
1t was, we say, from the statements OF the
many who had prospected that region, that we
have predicted the failure of the Lemhi or Sal
mon country as rich or lasting gold bearing
region. At last the proof of our belief is being
developed, During the past month, ever since
the mining season opened there, and the quail
ity of the diggings has been demonstrable,
we have been in the receipt of information
from variety of sources, by letters to our
own citizens, and others published in cotem-
porary journals in the Territory, written by
miners, traders, spectators, and all sorts OF
people, and the great body of testimony
contained in all these various letters has been
to show that there was much more of the SEN
sational than the substantial in the Lemhi eK-
citement. Facts have verified our predictions.
| Since our issue of Saturday the reaction
has, we may say, fairly set in. Word came on
that day of the return from Lemhi of Doc
Noble, one of the best among the practical
miners who came pioneers 10 this Basin, as he
is known to be also one of the most reliable
and sterling among our citizens, and that ac-
companying him there were, on the road back,
Messrs. Law. Lindsey, Ben. White, Sank
Owens, Johnny Grove, and others who had
left here for Leesburg short time ago. it
was no evidence of the failure of the Lemhi
mines that these gentlemen came back, for
only Doc Noble had been there, but it was
evident by his return that the mines of Lemhi
were not proven to be anything like SO good
as the mines of this Basin, because he GER
tainly enjoyed superior advantages Of ascer-
tanning the character of the mines during his
sojOurn there. The strongest evidence, how
ever, against the Lemhi region was the infOr-
nation brought that the mines had been very
diligently worked this season since the snow
permitted labor in them, and that in almost
every instance either great disappointment or
absolute failure resulted after weeks of work.
There also came back from Leesburg, Mr.. |
J. G. Bryant, a prominent merchant of this
city, who went there early with a stock of
goods which he disposed Of Mr.. Bryant has
been too long engaged in business in mining
sections to form hasty or unfounded conclu-
sions with regard to mines, and of placer
mines especially. His opinion is that the dig |
gings in that region will not prove extensive
OF ElCu. 1uCI0 dE6 low It'll SPOuoi ia SuAOAOo |
or on bars, perhaps, but take the great mass
of the country, and it will by no means bear
comparison, in gold wealth, with this Basin.
Mere wages may be made there, but even this
much not so certainly or uniformly as in the
Oldest diggings in this region, to say nothing OF
the better class of gold fields about here.
Mr.. A. Miller, former partner of Mr. Chas.
j. Bernstiel of this city, who is well inform
ed merchant of sound experience in mining
camps, writes to Mr.. Rernstiel, from LeeSburg, |
that that country is already very much over
crowded that there is very little to sustain it,
SO far as known; that many are prospecting and
but few are mining, and that business is daily
and rapidly declining. He advises people not
to 90 there Instead of Leesburg being as
large as Idaho City. it contains really about
one hundred houses, of which one-third are
stores, another third saloons and restaurants, |
and the remainder are cabins for miners and
others In every feature-the wealth and ex- I
extent of the mines, the size Of the town, the
amount of trade transacted there, and the
general boosted prosperity, present and future,
of that whole region-it now appears the
grossest exaggeration has been resorted to.
Stripped of all display and fancy the Lemhi
mines are really little better than Chinese
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