The daily dispatch. [volume] (Richmond [Va.]) 1850-1884, 1877-02-09


A. NJ, 42; noon. So; 8 p. NJ, So: 6 P
NJ, 4S; midnight, AZ.
-.r s..4 ss-.-.----. -...
The New Eel Dorado.
LIFE AND OCCUPATION IN THE BLACK HILL.
GOLD DIGG1NGS-DEADwo0D CITY-ITs POP
ULAT1oN-cHARAcTER OF THE PEOPLE
GAMBLISG-AMUSEMEN BUSINESS - THE
DIG6INGs-THE HOSTILITY OF THE IN
DIASS-wHoLE COMMUNITIES MURDERED B1
THE SArAGES, ETC.
from the Virginia tNey.) Chronlcle.l
There is no regularity about anything,
A man opens place OF business ano
makes lots of money, then he gets the
prospe citing fever, starts for the gu'ches
and shuts up his shebang. When place
is closed up it means that the ow ner is out
digging, has been xii in fight, or is of
on spree. We have no municipal govern.
ment at all. Every man thinks he is mayor
81 the town. Every once in while the
boys call mass-meeting, draw up resolu.
tions, ETC., and decide to incorporate the
town and have Board OF Aldermen; but
at the end of the week nobody knows
what in h has become Of the resolutions
or the aldermen. We start a new city gov
ernment every two weeks, and burst one
every week-if there is any.
THE THEATRE.
The orchestra chairs are made of stakes
driven into the ground with round piece
OF board about the size Of your hand nailed
on top. Admission, $3.50; reserved seats,
S5. They run sort OF variety show, and
sling in the jokes and stage business as
broad as possible. The can-can" was
danced for some time until the boys got
80 - -
singin' or We'll clean out the place; we
want something eleyatin'," and the man.
ager had to import female sentimental vo.
She sung 'Sweet Spirit, Hear My Prayer
"Consider the Lilies,' "I Know that NV
Redeemer Liveth," and other high-toned
music, and I thought the boys would 60
crazy with delight. But they got tired OF
it in about O week.
There are saloons all over the place, and
whiskey four bits drink. They put two
barrels up on end, nail board across for a
bar, and deal it out. A miner who wants
to treat, pours some gold dust on the barrel
head and says, "Set 'em up" They never
weigh the dust. Sometimes a man won't
put down enough dust, but they never say
a word; and il he's little tight, and pours
out ten or fifteen dollars worth, they never
mention it. They have three faro-banks
running all the while. They don't use
checks for the boys; when they won q pile
OF checks they threw 'em all over the place,
and some were too drunk to handle 'em.
So the checks got played out. Now man
puts little Sold-dust in dollar greenback
and it goes for two dollars. Ten dollars
worth Of dust in 4 ten-dollar greenback
goes for twenty dollars, and so on. They
never weigh dust at all. but guess the
amount. ... ....
THE DEADwO0D DAILY PAPER.
We have a daily newspaper-that is,
sometimes it's daily-and then when the
compositors get drunk it don't come out for
several days. II man wants gun-waddins
he goes and pays four bits for a paper.
Whenever they start new city government
they print lot OF ordinances; then there's
grand rush for the paper. Sometimes il
comes out twice week, and sometimes
twice day.
A GROWING GRAVEYARD. ..
Every man in Deadwood carries about
fourteen pounds OF firearms hitched to his
belt, and they never pass any words. The
1CllOW Luul SSSS Jlo Oul LII SC 10 VIC DCSI
man, and they lug off the other fellows
body. Our graveyard is big institution,
and q growing one. Sometimes, however,
the place is right quiet. Pve known times
when a man wasn't killed for twenty-four
hours. Then, again, perhaps they'd lay out
five or six day. When man gets foo
handy with his shootin'- '-irons, and Kills five
or six, they think he isn't safe, and some
body pops him over to rid the place OF him.
They don't kill him for what he has done,
but for what he's liable to do. L suppose
that the average deaths amount to about 100
q month. ., ~
THE HOSTILE SAyAGES.
The country swarms with 'em. They
swoop down on the small camps at night
and kill whole parties. In one camp, a few
miles from Deadwood, fifty-two men were
killed in one night. But I never saw q
word about it in any newspaper. The Chey-
enne papers suppress all such items, and if
the Deadwood papers print them they are
bought up at any price in Cheyenne. and
destroyed. / have gone out several times
to hunt for men who went out to prospect,
and found them all dead. once saw if
teen men lying around campfire where
they had been shot down and left. The
t<thC tuCli Sul1ChSS3 anu
coin, but leave the gold.dnst.
THE GOLD DIGGINGs RICH. a
The diggings are immensely rich. have
known five men to take out $4,000 day
right along. OF course every place isn't
alike. Some men don't strike such rich de-
posits, but man who is thrifty, saving,
and Industrious can take away a3big stake
at the end OF year. The men who come
from there broke are shiftless fellows, who
gamble and drink all the while, and squan-
der every cent they get. ] have seen men
but down weeks run of dust on single
,ard. There is no limit to bets, and ! have
seen S1,S00 put down on the ace, and it was
what q man had washed out Of the gulches
N week. OF course the. dealer took
t.. Board is SIG week, and everything
Use in proportion. The quartz CLAIMS are
.Iso very rich. I saw, Just before 1 left, q
piece OF quartz literally honey-combed with
rec gold-more gold than quartz. The
,iere was not MS. big as my hat, and there
vas $500 in gold In it. There are no stamp
Mills, however, and no attention is paid to
quartz lodges. The present claims pan out
rom $40 to $50 day, and il it wasn't for
he indians men would strike out and find
pIendid diggings all over the country.
z A man who had his brains knocked out,
ind still lives, is supposed to have designed
m fha connie valentines disnlapes} fhfa wear