The Manitowoc tribune. [volume] (Manitowoc, Wis.) 1866-1878, 1875-02-11
DOWN IN TIE MINES.
The Rich Galena---Miners Strike For
tune---More Discoveries---Lucky Men.
From the DUBUQUE Times of Thursday.


From the Dubuque Times of Thursday,
Mining In this vicinity, which had
long since lost it's old time importance
and interest, being confined almost en-
tirely to those who were thrown out of
employment for the winter, and to few
persistent, trusting miners, who consid
cred themselves lucky if they could keep
body and soul together, received a new
excitement and impetus by the news
that in the old deserted mine on the
Wilde ground, west of town, Bradford,
Lewis & Co., had struck cave which
showed half million pounds of mineral.
1t sets many others to prospecting, and
the lead mining fever RACES as it has not
in years before Old deserted mines
are again visited, and the sound of the
pick falls with dull thud in the tough
and yellow clay; new shafts have been
started, and the hills and bluffs about
the city, which have been prospected
and mined since, the days of old Julien
Dubuque, are alive again with eager,
anxious miners. In the gas house hol-
low alone half dozen new shafts are be-
ing sunk, this seeming to be the favor
tie locality, and well it may be when
one remembers the fortunes that have
been taken out of these bluffs.
We made a somewhat lengthy des-
cription of the Bradford, Lewis & Co.
mine few days ago, and gave as much
of its history as we were able to obtain.
Yesterday the news spread rapidly that
new discovery had been made at this
mine, and that its richness was ten-fold
greater than the first. Our reporter
visited the mine yesterday afternoon, to
ascertain for himself. He found that,as
was predicted at the time of the former
visit, the crevice at the head of the first
cave led to another cave. A passage
had been worked through this crevice, a
distance of twenty or thirty feet, and
then the miners came to CHIMNEY"
which led to a chamber below. This
chimney" the opening Of which is
barely large enough to permit a man to
let himself down its serpentine-hke
course, was through an almost solid
wall OF cube mineral. Following this
down about eighteen feet, the miner
came to another cave, and what sight
met his gaze! Great cubes and blocks
of mineral protruded from its walls, or
blocked the path, and the cave was at
least three times the size of the first.
Underneath the feet, imbedded in the
tough, yellow, clay, were great solid
masses of mineral, which the prod re-
vealed, and the practiced eye could safe
ly estimate at least million pounds of
rich galena in sight, knowing, to an al
most absolute certainly, that there were
at least two or three million pounds
more concealed in the clay, and what is
more, the signs are better now than IN
the start, for another cave of even great
er richness than this has been discovered.
The chimney goes further down, and
crevice leads north and south, and at
the western end of the cave is another
opening, similar to the one in the first
cave, which lead to this, and by the
thick vein of lead, the miners know
there is more beyond. Miners know
that these indications mean a series of
caves or Openings as the term goes,
which are sometimes repeated to the
number of five, one below the other. It
is the opinion of those best informed in
minig operations, and who have been en-
gagged in mining in Dubuque for thirty
years, that next to the great Langworty
mine, the Tom Levens and one or two
others, that have yielded from five to
ten million pounds of lead each, this is
the richest mine that has been discovered
in these regions.
The entrance to this mine is not such,
as yet, to permit of many visitors to it,
the passage way not being cleared.
Through the twenty feet of crevice, and
nearly as many of the chimney, the only
way passage can be made is by crawl
ing as serpent crawls, but in few
days the way will be cleared. A want of
air is also felt, and candles burn low.
In an inland town of California is an
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