Mineral Point tribune. (Mineral Point, Wis.) 1869-1938, 1869-02-03
LETTER FROM THE FAR WESr.
> ROCHESTER, CITY, MONTANA
TEKRIToRN.

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alid variety of its resources. Rut the
chief sources of its riches are it's gold
and silver mines and they have
made Montana famous.
Gold mining is divided i'm two elias
ses-placcr and quartz All cold
originates in qua 't2, ..and the gold
found in guichcs, by various means
has been separated from the uuartZ
Through nature's influences the
quartz becomes decompoScd-rot
and iii due course of time, the auri-
ferrous dirt Is carried down by the
mountain torrents and deposited in
the valley OF gulches below
Placer OF gulch diggings are gen
orally the first discovered, and as Il
matter of course. the first worked
out. But little capital is required in
placer mining, in comparison to that
required TO work quartz. The claims
are first prOspected by sinking Il hole
To what is termed bedrock" :" which
Is stratum of rock or clay. below
which the gold does not penetrate
Sometimes the gravel is rich, while
III some places the precious metal is
found only on the " bedrock" If
the gravel or pay-dirt pans out well,
or good prospects are obtained the
miner goes to work to open his claim.
If the water is troublesome he brings
up drain ditch in co-operation with
owners of other claims. The cost OF
such drain is in proportion to the
fall of the gulch and the derth to
" bedrock Some miners k .ep the
- bedrock " drained by means of a
water wheel and pump.
The top dirt is then, by the aid of
shovel, pick and wheeIbarrow, taken
oil down to the pay gravel This is
called . stripping" a pit eighteen
feet wide and thirty feet long is the
size generally stripped, as it is the
most convenient to work Sluice
boxes are then placed over the pit.
y sluicc-boX is twelve feet long, six
inches wide ana ten inches dcep. \
string of sluices is composed of four
or five boxes, and they are SO placed
as To have about ten inches fall to "A
box. This is done so rs the water
VIII carry oil all matter thrown in.
Each box has what is termed Il
: riille, Il common rifle iS merely a
faiSe bottom, or rather board. that
exactly fits the bottom of the sluice-
box. This false nottom is filled with
auGur-hOles SO as to catch the gold.
which being SO heavy sinks to the
bottom of the rifles, while the sand
and gravel is carried away by the
water. quicksilver is generally put
in the lower box to catch the finer
particles of gold, which otherwise
might be washed away.
Where the top dirt Is too deep to
pay for stripping a shaft is sunk t.
bcd-rocks and drifts are run in differ
ent directions, and the pay dirt is
hni3ted, by means of Windiass and
bucket, to the surface and dunfuea
into sluIces which run conveniently
by. Bar and hill-diggings arc either
ground -Siuiced or worked hy means
II hFIrsulia,s
Although a great deal OF money
has been, and is still being taken out
the greater part of ii is tak cu from
The Territory. As soon a. lucky
miner ' makes his pile" his first and
natural Impulse is To leave the cOun-
try and return 10 The States or - Che
land 0i his birth. OF course. he
takes his dust with him, and thus
the territory reaps no more benefit
than if it stii remained ia the
ground.
ROCHESTER, CITY.
So, then, We are compelled to looI,
to our quart leads rs the solid fuun-
dation and permanent Sourcc OF our
future prosperity. There are as yet
Tut few good mills in the territory
and they are paying large dividends.
What We need is capital. Quart
mining requires capital la begin and
To carry il on successfully. But the
moncycd men of the East seem chary
to make the venture. Montana is
paying the penalty due Colorado for
her shortcomings. \ great many
capitalists lost money, and not Il few
We're ruined hy spcculations in Colo
RADIO quartz, which in the end proved
to be worthless.
Some companies sent out agents
who knew no more about quartz than
4 " pig does OF politics " their
agents bought leads that were not de
veIoped, put up mills on them, and
in nine cases out of ten, failed. |
have known of companies in this
territory to erect a costly mill, AZ Il
then start out and look for a lead
OF course such policy is derogatory
to the interests of any country. and
we here i'm Montana feel the effects
wrought by many foolish failures
made here and elsewhere The mills
that have been erected Oh we'll de-
vebped leads are uniformly success
ful, and some are producing excel
lent returns.
One OF the liveiiest quartz camps
| in this county is Rochester CITY.
| From Virginia City to this place is
a nice days ride, being about forty
| miles due west. 1t is one Of those
| cities of the mushroom genus, which
| literally " spring up III a night of
which class this country and the Pa
| cific railroad ale so prolific. Let an
| excitement he raised at a certain
! point, and "a grand rush is made from
the surrounding camps. This is Oft
/ times not appropriately termed "A
| . stampede The gulch in which
/ the discovery Is made is stakcd of in
| claims of one hundred or two hun
dred feet each, and numbered each
| way from the discovery claim, which
belongs 10y rightto the person or per
sons making said discovery. The
| diScoYerer is generally made recor-
| der" and a person by paying sta
| ted sum, as fee to the recorder Ell
te. a claim and receives a certificate
therefor.
| Rochester gulch, or basin, was the
| scene OF a stampede ~ nearly three
years ago, but il could not be work e.I
nor prospected ON account of til,
| water, and at that time labor com
| manded too high a price to warrant
drainage, &c.
NEW DISCOVERIES.
But there were other than place.
diggiugs. Several quartz leads %
unsurpassed richness have been dis