Buchanan County bulletin. [volume] (Independence, Iowa) 1869-1891, 1875-11-05
Virginia City.

City is a mining town somewhere out
among the Rocky Mountains, is about
all that people in the eastern and
central parts Of the United States
generally have of the locality of the
late great conf1agration. Virginia
City Is situated on the eastern slope
OF the Sierra Nevada range, twenty
five miles from the California line
full three-fourths of the way from the
Rocky Mountains to the California
shore. 1t is built directly over the
"Comstock lode" and the earth be-
low has been honey-combed by min
ing shafts, drifts, chambers, tunnels,
&c, to depth of over 1000 feet
the superintendent earth being sup
ported upon tiers of immense timbers.
The mines were discovered in 1859,
since which they have yielded little
over $2OO,OOO,OoO in silver bullion
As consequence, this city of $4,000
inhabitants is the richest of any city
of its size in the world-richer than
any city Of ten times its population
anywhere else in the United States.
The shops, stores, and restaurants,
&c, are more gorgeous and dazzling
in their splendor than any in New
York, Philadelphia, or even San Fran
cisco. There are nearly a score of
well known mines. The Consoli-
dated Virginia, since the first of last
January, has paid monthly dividend
of $40 a share, total of S1,OsO,OOO
each month. The gross yield of the
mine in September was $l,sl2,32l-
the greatest amount of silver bullion
ever extracted from single mine in
single month. The California mine
is richer, and when got into working
order will pay greater dividends
Both these mines are owned mainly
by John Mackay and James G. Fair,
of Virginia City, and James G. Flood
and VIM. S. O'Brien, OF San Fran
cisco, who bid fair to become in three
years the richest men in the nation.
John Mackay's income this year, not
understanding the late fire, will be
$1O,OOO,OOO. 1t was these men who
broke the California bank ring. WIN.
Sharon, Senator Jones and their CO.
adiutors, though still worth from ten
to fifteen millions each, have lost
their prestige. Three-quarters of a
mile from the Consolidated Virginia
and California mines are two others,
the Belcher and the Crown Point
In 1871 the first of these was owned
by Sharon mainly, while Jones was
Superintendent of the other They
had been working berren rocks for
years. Shares were down to $3.50
each. In the opening Of 1872 an i'm
mense body of rich ore was struck,
and in two weeks stock rose to ST. 900
share. In other words, if a man
had invested two dollars and half
at the right time, he might in a fort
night have taken for his stock $4,000
IN gold, lacking $40. These two
mines have since yielded $so,O0O,OOO.
Yet, as above intimated, the Virginia
Consolidated and the California are
much superior, both as to extent and
richness. There are dozen or so
other mines, of less Importance, al
though yielding immense dividends.
! A brief paragraph in the dispatches
the day after the great fire was, as
few readers at distance might sus-
pect, of infinitely more consequence
than the burning of the entire Vir-
ginia City, to wit, that which stated
that the timbers in the mines were on
fire. When the silver-bearing and
gold-bearing rock is excavated, the
ground above is sustained by timbers,
amounting to thousands Of tons in
all. Should these timbers get on fire,
when they burned away the earth
would fall in, and not only Virginia
City be swallowed up in the gaping
chasm, but the mines themselves
would be in worse condition than
when there was nothing Of them but
untouched, solid rock.