The Findlay Jeffersonian. [volume] (Findlay, Hancock County, Ohio) 1870-1881, 1874-11-20

had left one of the older settled min.
ing towns to inspect ledge belonging 10
my present companion and company,
and also to find whatever other prospects
there might be open to location and pos
session. This statement will account for
my present journey. Wilson & Co. were
TO put their mines into my hands. to be
sold by Inc to other and wealtlIier par
ties, if liked the property.
On the morrow there was before me
part of a day's''ride, previous to reach
ing Wilson & Cos camp: and after ar
| irving at that point, there was the climb
ing on foot of mountains of rock. naked
| to the hot MONDAY sun, except in those
favored spots where struggling, strag-
| Cling trees sucked a scanty and scrubby
life through their bruised roots in the
stony soil. | tried to forecast the future.
even for day; but gave it up, and pass
ed into sleep with as full a confidence
in the unknown as | could have felt in
the positively ascertainej. Do we not.
no matter what may be the tone of our
faith, rely more implicitly upon the wide
unknown ths upon the known or
movable?
L need not trouble the reader with the
result of my speculations and climbings
with Bill Wilson. We did not find that
''staving mine, but we got through our
business, and returned to town; stopping
however, on the way back, to visit, what
Bill called the ''craziest camp in Neya-
vada."
After going through narrow, steep
cannon, we climbed a crooked, rocky trail
and stood upon the dump, near which
the club-footed mule was slowly limping
around the shallow circular pit of an
drGStrd dragging after him a short heavy
beam fastened at the farther end to a re
volving centerpost in the middle of the
pit; and this beam in turn dragged heavy
stone round and round, through a mass
of rock mush. l need not say that this
mush was well-pulverized ore, mingled
with a portion of quicksilver; the mer-
curry gathering into itself the silver, as
the dragging rock freed it from the stony
portion of the ore.
There is not a great deal to startle the
gaze of the rider through the sage-brush,
where the gray of one valley has its re-
flex in each other valley, and the ranges
of mountains have, at first view, about
the sameness of burrows in a new-plow-
ed field. But, in the utter absence of
bright green pastures, and the myriad
seamy palms of leafy woods with tn;
CLINT and glitter of gliding waters pool
ing underneath, there Is a wonderful
play and a delicate blending of subdued
colors, along with grand and varied
lining out of mountain tops against the
blue-white canvas of the sky; while ev-
cry change in the atmosphere alters this
shading and blending, in degrees so slight
as to be scarcely perceiveble TO stran-
gers eye, and yet to be felt, even when
not taken into exact account. Over these
gray valleys and sober-hued mountains
travel the images of the floating clouds,
painted by the sun,-a moving piano.
rama with nature shifting the weird
lights; and the naked geology of the
country modestly changes color under
the inquiring glances of the sun.
said: William, my boy, do you see
anything pretty or sublime in the sur
rounding country y
Scenery exclaimed Bill, suddenly
refining up his horse and looking around
-''which2 Therel"
''Why," waving my unoccupied hand
in a lofty manner, this grand, quiet
chapter in the wide-open history of the
universe, where the great Central Intel
ligence has written ..in lines indelible-
not subject to proof-imprint, or printers
revise, error or errata-the prehistoric
Sermon on the Mount"
''Ehln calculated Bill. 'Ef you come
that agin, you'll make my eyes bung out
like butterfiy's. You skeer me-"
''Well, William, / will desist; but there
is, nevertheless, lofty repose, a grand
reserve of tone, in these silent surround
ings which seem to hold the chirrup and
clatter of more busy, bustling lands in
the strong quiet of true aristrocratic
scorn."
81 don't know what you're drivin' at,
any morn bump on a log. Mebbe you
are a-playin' off on the scenery peoplel |
"How do you do2" said to the man
on the dump, as he landed a bucket of |
ore from the windlass.
80 So" said he, smiling and twink
ling at ME, as he stood erect, with the
crank of the windlass in his hand.
mot far from heaven, up herel'
This remark seemed to strike him rs
such particular good joke, that he
laughed all over, and SHE'D a piece of |
rock out of the bucket at the pigeOn-toed |
mule; then he looked at Bill, which |
at nothing.
''Is your brother down below?' said
Bill
Yes"
''This gentleman wants to see him."
''All right, said the young ROcksaw, |
and disappeared down the shaft, by way |
of ladder nailed against the timbering, |
leaving his laughing face the last part of |
him visible.
Didn't tell you," said Bill. ''he |
would laugh more'n any two men! But |
the other chap won't laugh. The Rock |
saw family amt laid out in fair shares
one got all the laugh, t'other all the sol
emn."
Presently there came slowly up the
ladder barred head of light brown hair, |
sprinkled with gray, and busted with |
minute rock, and soon there stood be- |
fore us a middle-statured stout man, |
clad III garments of a hundred pieces, |
carefully and coarsely sewed together. |
''How are you, gentlemen he said, |
as he Strengthened up from the mouth of |
the shaft, in a voice at once deep, musi-
cal, and doubling.
. "Well, thank you. How are you, sirl |
Mr.. Rocksaw, L believe" said, extend
ing my hand.
''Yes, sir; George Rocksaw," said he,
taking my hand in a manner both shy
and hesitating
'.Mr. RocIlsaw, said. 81 have heard
that yourself and one other man-your
brother, l presume"
''Yes, sir; Andrew"
have worked a mine for years all
alone. / should like very much, il | |
may be permitted to ask it, to see what
two men can do in this hard mountain"
He looked at me, with one hand on
his hip, and the other stroking his long,
sandy whiskers, and answered:
mo. sir. Against our rule. There IS
nothing to see"
'Imerely wished to see your work
the amount of labor"
''Sorry to say no, but that's the rule.
Never depart from it."
All his talk was in the same even key;
neither assertive nor commanding, but
shyly, rather than modestly, positive.
Andrew came up the ladder with a
face still on the verge of breaking over
into a laugh; but gave all his attention
to the circulary-mule, who seemed in
cIined TO stop and take an interest in
the conversation. George Rocksaw ven
tured no further remark, but stood, as
before, stroking his whiskers with his
hard hand.
well, good by, Mr.. Rocksaw." 1
said. once more profering my hand.
GOOD by, sir" said he, taking his
hand of his hip to put it in mine, and
was gone down the ladder in an instant
thereafter
By this time, Bill was in the saddle, in