Iowa County democrat. [volume] (Mineral Point, Wis.) 1877-1938, 1878-03-01
THE ROMANCE or ACCIDENT.
How Some Important Discoveries We're
Made-.-Chance Inspirations.
From Chambers journal.

tions and discoveries owe their origin to
the most trivial circumstances; from
the simplest causes the most important
effects have ensucd. The following are
II few cullcd 1T random for the amnse-
ment Of our readers
The trial Of two rohbels before the
Court Of Assizcs ut tho Passes Pyrcnecs
accidentally led to II most intcrcstin :
archaeological discovery. The accu'ed,
Rivas, II shoemaker, and Bellcr, weav-
er, by armed attacks on the highways,
and frequent burglaries, had spread ter
ror around the neighborhood Of Sister
ON. The evidence against them was
clear; but no traces could be obtained
Of the plumber, until one Of the men
gave clue To the mystery. Rlvas in
his youth had been ~ shepherd boy
near that place, and knew the legend
Of Trou d. Argent, II cavern on one Of
the mountains with sides SO pfecipltOus
as to be almost inaccessible, and which
no one was ever known TO have reached.
The Commissary Of Police Of Sisteron,
after extraordinary labor, succeeded III
scaling the mountain, and penetrated
TO the mysterious grotto, where he dis
covered an enormous quantity of plum
der Of every description. The way hav-
ing been once found, the vast cavern
was afterwards explored by sa,nnts and
the researches brought to light num-
Der of Roman medals of the third cen
tury, flint hatchcts, ornaments, pottery,
and the remains OF ruminants Of cnor-
nous size. These interesting discover
ies, however, obtained no indulgence
for the accused (nadycrtcnt) pioneers
Of science, who were sentenced To- TWEEN
ty years hard labor.
The discovery Of gold in Nevada was
made by some Mormon immigrants in
1860. Adventures crossed the Sierras
and set up Their sluicc-boxcs in canonS;
but il was gold they were after, and
they never suspected the existence of
silver, nor knew il when they saw it.
The BLUSH stuff which was so abundant
and which was silver ore, intcrlercd
with their operations and gave them the
greatest annoyance. Two brothers
named Grosch possessed more intcll-
gcncc than their fellow-workers, and
were the real discoveries Of the Com
stock lode; but one Of them died from
u pickax wound in the ftGt, and the
other was frozen to death in the noun.
tlins. Their secret died with them.
When NJ last, in the early part Of 1859,
the surlace groupings Of the lode were
found, they were for the gold they con-
tanned, and the silver was thrown out ls
being worthless Yet this lode since
1900 has yielded u large proportion of
all the silver produced throughout the
world. The silver mines Of Potosi wcrc
discovered through the trivial circum-
stance of an Indian accidentally pulling
mp Shrub. to tho roo,e Of which were
attached some PARTICLES of the precious
metal
During tho thirty years war in Ger
many, the village of Coscrnw in tho
island Of uscdom, on the Prus sian hor-
der of the Baltic, was sucked by the
contcnding armies, the villagers cscap-
ing TO the hills 10 save their lives.
Among them was II simple pastor
named Schwerdlcr, and his pretty
daughter Mnry. When the danger was
over, the villagers found themselves
without houses food or money. One
day, wo are told, Mary went up the
Stcckolbcrg to gather hMckberrcs; but
soon alterward she ran back Joyous and
brcnthlcss 20 her father with two shin
ing pieces OF amber, each of very great
size. She told her father that near the
shore the wind had blown away the
sand from II Vein of amber; that she
straightforward broke OF these pieces
with II stick that there was m ample
store of tho precious substance; and
TINT abe had covered it over to conceal
her secret. Tho amber brought money,
food, clothing and comfort; hut those
were supcrstitious times, and u legend
goes that poor Mary was burned for
witchcrnu. AT the village Of Stumen,
amber was first accidentally found Ivy II
rustic who was fortunate enough to turn
some up with his pillow.
Accidents have prevented MS well rs
caused the working Of mines. At the
moment that workmcn Wee about to
commence operations on n rich gold
mine in the Japanese province Of
Tskungo violent storm Of thunder
and lightning burst over them, and the
miners were obliged to seek shelter else
where. These supcrstitious people,
imagining that the tutenr god and pro.
tector Of the spot, unwilling to have the
bowels of the earth thus riiled, had
raised the storm to make them sensi-
bic Of his displcasurc, desistcd from ill
further ATTEMPTS To work the mine.
A cooper III Carniola one
evening placed new tub under n
dropping spring in order to try # it
would hold water, when lie came in the
morning he found itso heavy that he
coul hardly move it. Az the first,
superslitious notions that are apt to
L -