The New York herald., 1875-07-20
THE HAYDEN SURVEY.
LIFE IN MINING vILLAGE--A NEW DAILY
OBSERVATION-DISCLOSURES OF A HORRIBLE MAS
OBSERVATION-DISCLOSURES IN OBTAINING PHOTO
GRAPHIC VIEWS.

KsTABIIsHED-DETAILs OFF A HORRIBLE MAS
ACKNOWLEDGEMENTS IN OBTAINING PHOTO
GRAPHIC VIEWS.
SAN JUAN CRY.
ANTELOPE PARK July o. 1875.
Continuing my narrative OF Vesterday's day.
mile above our camp, in the very bosom OF the
mountains lay the transparent, COOL parking
lake, beautiful sheet OF water possessing q
tiful name. San Cristoval Lake perhaps two
miles long and half mile in width, with a sandy
beach soping gradually inward, until at length
Its pebDly bottom makes apreclpitous descent
and all OBJECTS are lost In its mmeasurabe depth.
Romantic Islands dot Its surface, on wAich grow
clusters Of trees and lovely wild flowers. Around
its margin high promOntories and rocky bluffs
jur out, from which can be obtained a nne view OF
the mountain val ey. Through the lake nows
the Lake Fork OF Gunnison River, which, half
mile below, makes a fail OF seventy feet. roaring.
foamlng and boiling like a huge cal
dron OF suds, eaJtng out caverns In the
walls OF the solid rock as 1t whlrls around
and around forever. In the right bank, Just at
the foot or these falls is natural cave extending
into the hillside for seventy 1--WE feet. These Ar
genta Falls, as they are called. arched over
whenever the sun shines by brilliant rainbow
and Just over them a rustic bridge OF spruce
branches has been thrown by some appreclatlve
miners. Descending the rapid river we fnd an
over mass OF lava rock ffry-elght feet. Az the
top the water Is compressed between rocks
scarcely two yards asunder, and the whole vol
ume rushes through and spreads out like gigan-
tic fan OF feathery mist ere 1t reaches the bottom
OF Its sudden descent Just q mile below this lat
ter fall in the river Is situated Lake City, a town
OF log huts one story high containing but one or,
at the most, two rooms. At present there are
about forty houses within the limits OF the mining
village, and, considering that the place mas
sprung up in three months, 1t deserves
much credit for Its enterprise. Already it
can boast OF q liquor saloon. q restaurant, grocery
store, two butcher shops, barber saloon, an as
sayer's ONCE recorders ONCE, and last, but by
no means least, printing ofrlce, in when Is pub
lished, once week, bright, pithy little sheet,
called the StIUeT World AS yet there have Teen
but two issues, though from the character OF
these, there can be no doubt tnat the paper will
be success In the course or time, but how 1t can
be supported by the town is more than can be
readily understood and as there is no regular
mail to connect this out or the way place with
the rest OF the world the paper cannot expect
much foreign help for the present. Tue onice OF
the SiIuer World is log cabin OF one room where
the forms are prepared and the printing done by
q nand press. Tue roof Is made OF thick poles,
covered with mud and sand which comes rattling
down through the crevices. This is printing un-
der din culties, but the company has already nego-
tiated for more substantial edi1ce. which Will be
commenced as soon as the saw mill Is completed
which Will furnish the lumber. Our camp In this
valley was pitcned about three miles above the
town. and scarcely hundred yards from the
scene OF the
LAKE FORK TRAGEDY.
1t may be remembered that as O branch OF the
United States Geological Survey passed through
this section last summer they met a party OF
artists who had just discovered the boCies OF i've
murdered men. Upon investigation 1t proved
that they had been killed by one OF their COM
rades. This happened nearly two years ago, pre-
vious to the settlement OF the district. We all
went over to the grove where the 1endlsh act
had been committed. 1t was a likely spot for
such a deed, aud cut Tor an accloent the massacre
would not have been known TO this day. In
low, damp hollow, scarcely one hundred feet long,
bounded on one side by The river and on the
other by q bluff some thirty feet nigh, stands a
thick dark grove Of spruce trees. Here 10 ths
dead OF the night, when all his companions we're
lost In sleep, Al Packer, the murderer, sent tnem
all suddenly into another world, with no prepara-
ton or warning. AS o entered the wood and oo-
served the remnants OF clothing and blankets
lying around In I've distinct spots mar King the
very places where the massacre had been perpe-
trated a cold call OF horror crept over Us. We
gained the following account OF the event from
one OF the old miners WHOM we met in tue neigh
bOrhood:-
party OF men, twentT-one In all, LETT Salt Lake
City Tor the mines, some repairing 10 PueOl0 0tn-
ers 10 SaRuacne, to winter, wnllo a third party,
consisting OF SIX men, directed tnelr steOs toward
the san Juan mines. While they were camping at
this pace one OF tnelr number Killed the remainder
Ol the party and ROBBED tnem OF 3 1900. He went
TO Saguache and told 81 many conflicting stories
about his companions having Oeen murdered that
be was arr ested on suspcion; but no. hng being
proved he was released, Tne story that he related
most frequently was TO the effect that the party
had suffered from hunger and not being able TO
procure food or any klnd drew lots, as q last re-
sort, tO determine who should be sacrificed. mus
one after another was literally eaten up by tue
survivors until tnere were but two left One was
stout muscular man and the otner, Al Packer, q
small man. In ORDER to save mis- own Lie the latter
murdered the NTH man ana tnen crossed TO
the settlements This story improbable
tnat no one believed It, for, had there been a
shadow e truth IN II, many believed hat the nesn
oil ode man would have prevented the rest rom
starving through the wnole winter. As this parry
o. artists was passing along an open track Just
above the scene CT the tragedy, a dog winch theY
Dad wltn them ran down into the holio" aud set
up such barking and nowling that they were at
| trscted W the spoL where theT found ave sksle'