Memphis daily appeal. [volume] (Memphis, Tenn.) 1847-1886, 1876-03-04
THE BLACK HILLS.
Their Location and VnIue-Goid Dis
covered in IS36-The Fields ~
Rich of those Of CaIifOr-
nia-Etc.

From an Occasional Correspondent Of the
Appeal
CHEYENNE, w. T., February a.
Being now q resident Of this occidental
city, the great heajquartersLa-d outfit
ting point for the Black Hills, propose
to give my old friends and acquaint-
snces back at Memphis the benefit q
nv own observations and an account Cf
the Black Hills. l am at present clerk
in the large Quitting house Oi Kurt,
Morn & Co, in the Cary block. They
are doing an immense business in the
Quitting lire, as Cheyenne is conceded
to be the best point in the country to
start from, which shall proceed to DEM
onsuate.
CHEYENNE
is five hundred and sixteen miles west
of Onahs, Nebraska, on the line of the
Union Pacific railroad, and at the juno
ton of the Kansas Pacific and Denver
Pacific railroads with the Union Pacific
railroad. Ii is the county seat, Terrific
rial capital and metropolis Of Wyoming.
Its elevation is six thousand and forty
one feet above the sea level. 1t does q
heavy cattle and stock trade, having
shipped six hundred and forty carloads
of live stock to Chicago in the last ten
months, besides tive hundred and fifty
thousand pounds OF wool and over two
million pounds of hides. As it is the
depot of supplies for the surroundirg
Territories, the amount OF goods anu
merchandise that arrives here for distri-
button is enormous. Fort d. A. Russell,
Just in sight of the city, is one Of the
largest fortified forts in the United
StaIes. Camp Carlin is situated half
way between the city and Fort Russell,
and is one Of the largest distributing de-
pots iof United States supplies west Of
New York OF Chicago. 1t supplies all
the forts and military camps and sta
lions in the north and west, and is the
size of respectable village, having
twenty four large warehouses, each two
hundred feet in length, and about two
hundred and fifty other buildings, the
whole having the appearance Of thirty
ing town.
THE BLACK HILLS
that there is so much excitement over
lust now, MY, | presume, be called The
Black Hills proper. There are so many
black hilIslout west, that the uninitieted
are very apt TO get confused, and cannot
distinguish one from the other. For in
stance, there Isl the black hills Of the
Platte, black hills ofPowder river, black
hills of the 'sDivide,n etc. But the Black
Hills of gold notoriety, are situated as
follows: Between the forty.third and
forty-fifth degrees of latitude, and the
one-hundred and third, and one-hun-
dred and tenth parallels Of longitude,
occupying an area OF six or seven thou
sand square miles, one half or more OF
which is covered with dense growth
of excellent pine, oak and cottonwood.
For the benefit OF your scientific read
eTs, will here take an extract from the
very able report Of Lieutenant q. K.
Warren, Typographical engineer, who
says: "The Black Hills are situated be-
tween the forks Of the Cheyenne river,
on the forty fourth parallel, between toe
one hundred and third and one hundred
and fifth meridiaDs, and embrace an
area Of six thousand square miles. Their
bases are elevated from two thousand
five hundred TO three Thousand feet
above sea level, and the highest peaks
are about six thousand seven
hundred feet above tideWater.
The different rocks which compose
these mountains are: l, metsmoIphOzed
szoic rock and granite; 2, lower silurian
(Potsdam sandstone); 3, Devonian; 4,
carboniferous; 5, permain; 8, jurasiic;
Z, permain and cretaceOus. The discOv-
cry of gold in the Black Hills dates
back to 1886. In that year, old Tim
Goodle, and old Jesse Bridger, old
mountaineers, and,bOth still alive, saw
large quantities Of golden nuggets cap
tured by the Crows from the Uncapa-
pas and MinnecOnjOus branches of the
northern Sioux. We next hear of Father
DeSmet's gold story, Roman Catholic
mis- iOnary, who spent over forty years
among the Indians, by whom he was
greatly beloved and respected. He told
of a gold field of marvellous richness
somewhere in the northern country,
where large nuggets Of pure gold could
be picked up in abundance. He
cautioned the Indians never to divulge
the whereabouts Of the place, or they
would certainly have their country over
run and taken from them by greedy
gold-huuters. He told B shop O'Gor-
man (since dead) in 1873, in Omaha,
that he feared the whites would soon
find the place, as they were nearing it
every year. He never gave nearer in
timstiOn, and died with the secret. We
next hear of Indians bringing in large
golden nuggets to Fort Laramie soon
6lLGl It's d5 q
post; but, perceiving the extraordinary
excitement it caused among the "psl5-
faces" they became suspicious ard reti-
cent, and flatly refused TO give any in
formation as to the locality It was found
ip. Other northern Sioux brought in
golden nuggets to the early trading
posts establ shed on the upper Missouri
river, but, like their dusky brethren at
Fort Laramie, when they saw the greed
mess and extraordinary excitement it
OccasiOned, they also became wary and
silent. Finally General Custer let the
cat out of the bag, in his report to Gen
eral Sheridan, which was soon tTumpeted
all over the country. Then miners be gan
to steal into the tsbooed district, which
alarmed the Indian ring, aud such a
clamor was raised about the few miners
who were in, that troops we're ordered
to take them out. Nevertheless, miners
kept going in until the government at
lest, to test the matter thoroughly, sent
Prof. Jenny to the Black Hills, with in
structions to test the matter by the light
Of science. Pref Jenny made some
good discoveries at once, which con-
WINGED the most skepticsI that there was
gold in the Black Hills in paying guam
Ijtie'. Still, such was the powerful in
fiuence Of the Indian ring that they
brought such pressure to bear upon the
President that the troops brought all the
miners out OF the Hills at the same time
that Prof. Jenny concluded his labors.
have seen men here in this city who
were brought out by the troops three
times, but the moment they gained their
liberation they invariably went back
again. Finally, gold has been found in
such abundance, or rather the evil
dences Of it have been found on
every creek prOspected, that there
can no longer be q doubt entertained
but that the Black Hills will prove as
rich in the aurifercus metal as the gold
fields of California. Parties are return
ing occasionally now with very fine
specimens of gold, ss:aying nine hun
drsd and ninety-nine fine, and nineteen
dollars and forty. three cents per ounce,
coin value. There are now between
twenty five hundred and three thousand
miners in the Hills, and still they are
arriving on every train from the east,
south and west. This, of course, is q
mere bagatelle to what the rush will be
rs soon as the weather gets warm. Very
little can be done until spring, as the
Oround and all the small creeks are