, 1873-08-28
California Correspondence.
COLUMBIA, Aug. Is, 1877

COLUMBIA, Aug. l5, 1873.
EDITOR D1spAToH-In a late number
Of your sprightly journal I noticed the
mention of a prospecting expedition
then soon to be started and prosecuted
the present season in the Olympic
mountains, for mineral Of any sort
which might be therein contained, and
I allude to the matter for the purpose,
mainly, of saying that I have great faith
in the success of the enterprise, provid-
ing it be faithfully and skillfully prose
cuted. That rich deposits of gold were
contained in said mountains, was an
opinion of mine when on the Sound a
few years ago, and entertain the same
opinion still. Had 1 been where 1 could
have conveniently done so, nothing
would have pleased me more than to
have joined the expedition aforesaid.
Having mineral eye-acquired by ma
nv years experience in mining in Cali
formal would like an opportunity to
apply my mineral vision and veritable
old FORK to some of the "gulches" issu-
ing out at the base of the Olympics.
That there is gold in them, or some of
them, will wager a mug of Crichton's
best, if you dare. Once upon time
while sojourning in the Sound country,
I took passage on the little steamer
flames Mortle," with some half dozen
ladies and gentlemen, for a logging
camp on spun Of the Olympic range,
some forty miles or so up Hoods Canal,
where the indefatigable and terrible Ben
Turner was operating. by running logs
down the side of the mountain through
a shute half mile or more in length.
into the briny waters of the placid canal.
Ben, with lis charming young wife in
camp, a good team and able hands at
his command, stood upon the apex Of
his logging renown. Upon tho occasion
of this visit to the sald' logging camp,
noticed gravel along the borders of the
canal where we landed, which bore a
perfect resemblance to much of the au.
riferous article in California, and. to use
a common expression Of miners here
from the Western and Southwestern
States of the Union, "looked like it
ought to pay" But l had reither tools
or time for prospecting, and SO my
fortune lies concealed in the gravel OF
Hoods Canal at the place mentioned. or
thereabouts. until the present time. But
if live and grow we'll, Mr.. Editor, I
am coming up. some of the coming days.
to pan out the entire Olympic range.
nd then sonbody II find out "what's
thar"
According to the newspaper accounts
of its transactions, the n. 2. Railroad
. Company, like all of its brothers of the
railroad persuasion, is exhibiting its
swinish principles. Why did it not es-
tablish its terminus at Seattle? Because
you did not donate the entire town to it.
One half of your beautiful city wouldn'
do for it. No half part of loaf can
satisfy the Unsuitable NAV of railroad
company. When you think that such
an institution is going to play anything
but hog in its business transactions, you
will find yourself egregiously mistaken.
Call an angel down from heaven and
make him member Of a railroad com.
pany, and in the course of fewsnons6
he will be as good thief as anSo4i
them. He couldn't help it. Contan(
uation is extremely contagious, and II
portion Of humanity, either in the sin
gular or plural, can impart it with great
er force and effect than railroad cor
poration. The angel would either hav'
to steal, or spread his wings and g
back "where neither moth nor rust doti
corrupt and where thieves do not breal
ttrouoh.'' &c. To the capitalists anl