The Abbeville press and banner. [volume] (Abbeville, S.C.) 1869-1924, 1878-12-04
COLORADO,S SILVER CLIFF.
The Marvellous Discovery of Two Poo
Mining Prospectors.

COLORADO'S SILVER CLIFF.
The Marvellous Discovery of Two Poor
Mining PROJECTORS.
On Saturday, June 20, Edwards and
Powell, two miners, were travelling
through the Wet Mountain valley, Gus
ter county, Colorado, on their way to
Rosita. They were about twenty-five
miles southwest of Pueblo. At certain
elevations the Spanish Peaks were in
sight. Their road ran along the foot of
low spur of PERCEPTIONS rocks separ-
ated by narrow gulch from cone
called Round mountain. The rocks
were black with the stains of manganese.
Hundreds of teamsters had passed them
without dreaming that they contained
untold wealth. They we're black and
volcanic, and there was nothing that in
dicated the presence of precious metals.
The afternoon was very hot, and the two
men rested in the shade of the cliffs.
Edwards casually remarked that the last
time he passed them he had broken of
a piece of the overhanging rock, and had
observed that it had q green tlnge.
Powell became interested, and proposed
that they should go and look at the
rock before resuming their journey.
After short search Edwards found
the spot where he had found the green
rock. Powell broke off some pieces as
high as he could reach. The grain
seemed mossy and of vegetable growth.
Powell pulled out his jack-knife, and
began to scrape it. A gray metallic
CLEAN appeared. It was horn silver, 30
called because when rubbed down and
compressed it cuts like horn. Not
knowing what it was, but thinking it
might prove valuable, the two men
made a careful examination of the cliffs,
and staked out five mining claims, post
ing the requisite notice, and giving the
name and date of the discovery. Each
claim entitled them to 800 feet across
the lode by 1,5O0 feet longitudinally.
They filled bag with specimens from
these claims, and had them assayed in
Rosita, six miles away. The silver but
tons found in the bone crucibles gave
value OF l 900 ounces to the ton.
The report spread like wildfre. The
inhabitants of Rosita identified the black
manganitic rock, and knew where it was
alone to be found. When Powell and
Edwards returned to their claims on
Monday half the residents of Rosita
were on the ground. But the black,
rotten.looking rock was 80 unlike the
usual ore deposits that they staked no
claims and laughed at the discoverers.
They predicted that if the two men
worked that rock, they would be bare.
footed within three weeks. Powell and
Edwards, however, were not discourage
ed. They took in one Hafford as part
ner, and resolutely went to work with
their picks. In four days they broke
out six tons Of rock. They spent near
ly all their ready money in hiring teams
to draw the mineral to the reduction
works. The returns are said to have
been $5, 400.
There was no more laughter. The e1-
citement was unparalleled. In twenty
four hours the hillside, the adjoining
plain, and Round mountain were cover
ed with claims. Several other extreme.
ly valuable deposits were discovered.
There was o rush from every mining
district in the State. Denver and other
cities poured out their hundreds OF
eager seekers after wealth.
Tents and shanties sprang up like
mushrooms, and the Silver cliffs were
crowned with busy mining camp. Men,
tattered apd tircl, roame1 the country
with eager eyes, and speculation ran
rampant. An eyewitness says that
they would stick up a stake in a prai.
rie dog. hole and ask $40, 900 for it,"
The first house was built on September
8. Now there are over hundred. Six.
teen portable saw mills are buzzing
night and day on the hills and in the
gulches, and every town within fifty
miles has been depleted of lumber. The
plain below the cliffs is white with the
tents of eager prospectors. The roads
are worn and dusty with the constant
grinding of wheels and the tramp,
tramp, tramp of the army of occupation
is heard in all directions.
The mines are located in what is known
as the Hardscrabble district. Six years
ago Rosita was the center of mining
district of wonderful promise, but it
quickly petered out. The great "Maine"
mine, which made very poor man
millionaire in one year, is four miles
southeast of the Silver cliffs. The region
is volcanic, and it is said that there are
several distinct craters near Rosita.
Volcanic upheavals seem to have burst
the primary granite, and to have forced
through chimneyed passages masses OF
eruption bearing molten precious me.
tails. The silver has been cooled amid
q mixture of porphyry, manganite, field
spar, gypsum and other mineral sub
stances more or less decomposed and
entirely unstrati6ed.
The mine first worked by Powell, Ed.
wards and Hafford is known as the
"Racine Boy" SO far it has turned out
nothing but horn silver, a chloride car.
ried in decomposed porphyry full OF
seams. In it's surroundings it resembles
the mineral taken from the Comstock
lode. Thus far it is the only mine IN
Colorado that does bear this resem-
blance. The ore is found in deposits,
without any crevice veins or distinct
walls. The mine is full OF hard quartz
boulders, which are coated with scales
of chloride of silver. These scales con-
tain the bulk of the silver, but the
precious metal permeates the whole OF
the mineral. The chloride is broken
from the boulders like egg shells, and
the finest ore ia sorted and put in sacks.
It returns about 875 ounces to the ton.
The low grade pans out from 100 ounces
upward. Like the metal of the Comstock
lode, it is free milling ore, very easily
reduced, and contains no base metals.
The mine has been bonded to Califor-
MIA company, who are working it in har-
mony with the owners, only a slight
wall of rock separating them. 1t ls
asserted that, with very small force OF
men, they are taking out between $2,Ooo
and SO, 900 day. The mine is lot over
4o, foat door, on1 scarcalv twenty five