The sun. [volume] (New York [N.Y.]) 1833-1916, 1878-12-16
MINING TOWNS IN GEORGIA.
GOLD WASHING AND ILLICTT WIfIShEr
MAKING IN THE HILLS
Working Over Ore that Pans Out One Dollar
Ton, aud Passing by that which f. W orth
nt Least 9e5O-spirits Hot from the stiiI

- Ton, aud Passing by that which f. " orth
Mt Least se5O-spirits Hot from the SIN.
DAHLoNEdA, Ga, Doc. 0.-Thc gold mining
OF this region would be moro properly described
as gold wishing" for. although the work Ia
not placer washing but tho crushing OF gold
bearing material found I'm deposits md veins
in the hill sides and through the masses OF the
hills II is all worked in open cuts and washed
or. aa the local term has IL. flooded D." by means
OF water artincially taken to the hill tops from
the cuts TO the floors Of tho respective mills.
Another peculiarly OF this gold washing Is
that poor material is crushed hero which would
probably not be- worked elsewhere and that
rich material which IL here in abundance and
would DO worked elsewhere, IL entirely ig-
nored. All that Is worked here il stun contain
ing free" gold. and labor here is so cheap TINT
II pays to work ore containing even dollar
ton, while sulphurets, OF which there arc many
veins which have nssayed up to $3.50 and $500
ton, are not worked because there are as yet
no reduction works in the entire belt.
Labor s in far greatereupply than can to-day
be employed. Life in the hills is cheap and tho
requirements few. There IL little or no agri-
cultural work to be done within radius Of ton
or twelve miles Of Dahloncga. About Gainesville
ono aces some cotton and some corn. but that
is left behind. some six or eight miles out Of
| Gainesville. and from that point up TO Dahlon-
| eRa the only signs of human labor are the UNI
slightly vostges OF gold hunting. in the shape Of
piles OF taiings on the banks Of ovory gully
stream. or creek. through which mounds. in
many plncee. n second growth Of trees has shot
NJ and partly hidden from sight tho hideous
| distortions made years ago on the face Of fair
| nature.
Unskilled labor ia both white and colorcd
| and II paid by the railroad company and gen
orally about Gainesville at sixty-llvc cents n
day. The regular. rate paid at the mines Is
| eighty cents Work 4 purriaI IN nil or
| round and every day eNccp, sunday. and the
! hours OF labor are from sunrise TO sunset
| Ihcrc Is such supcrnbundancc Of unskied
| labor that tho managers Of the mining
works are enabled 10 select the most trust
| worthy. and this Is generally white labor. Col
ored men aud whites work together on a perfect
| equality. but am inclined from investigation
To- oclieyr that white labor is generally, pre-;
| lerred. This white labor is almost entirely OF
| young men. and the writer was forcibly inn
| pressed with the utter listloss aud almost hope
less expression on the fnces apd In tho de-
meanor OF this class OF labor. To him 1t spoke
! 81 aseif;consciousnoss OF degradation IN being
| work alongside Of what these young men had
| been brought up to consider an inferior race.
| one dny at ne Pigeon koost. while Whiting for
| the location Of tho turbine wheel for the new
mil on Mr. Barlow's property. four laborers
| the writer. They were all young mcn-two
| were white. two colored. Each had on his
| They wcrc All dressed alike diriv' uukampi
| and almost in rags. Tho sole difference be-
/ AMfNu lutm WIS IN tuN color OF Their SKIN, but
~ they He'd past tho writer. on their return
/ from their days work. the whites raised their
| eyes 10 the writer and each Of them gave him
| How-dc I'll" colored men mnde no sign. IL
| is not customary there 10 return the sau-
ttion OF a colorcd man. and they couse-
| qu"ntiy seldom venture one. ono word
about the condition Of the freedman ~
| the opinion was forced upon the writer.
thority That the increase ot sncb Jsco a
| NJ consumption. diplitheria. pneumonia. and
| others 81 that class + enormous among the
| having been taken care Of in time OF slavery.
| these former slaves are totally untitled L.
| take care Of themselves. They expose them
stiNce u the lnclemency ~ the weather aud IN
| other ways. with tho inevitable results. As boz
| lore stated the demand for labor IL small. and
a. an Oh dhrkey-oi whom he writer had asked
hls opinion oi the personal result of emuncpa-
ton 10 him-said: on massn. is mighty
| boGersome nj time g. get de grub T. An uu-
| pleasant deduction fron what he saw was
forced upon the writer he found himself face
10 lace with one of the results 81 emancipation.
and felt that the death 81 slavery means cNtlnc-
iuu oi III" cuiorcd race.
Au"'hcr feature nlout Dahlouega anil it-
ul"tlon. II r. No field for Mr.. Murphy ur any
I other anti-hihulous apostlr Not 'uly Is thn
sal" oi ull siurtunus or malt liquor strictly proc
| liqnor of any sort ran l." b"ugit there. I'm tho
| hills there are still supposed 90 boz som" Illicit
| il-ill"rs. known there a. Mpou-hinors.' hut
inc sum th"v mas" i- -o Nll0uuu- that. o. ono
| ol our party said after smelling IL: | have
ulWhNe lftu IN favor 90 Rrolu'tiul ot tIo army.
but if Unitol States troops arc Ia ho occupied In
huntins guy, arr'siing AMI cons suing e. the
son u- this would use all my influence tD in-
crease the army u hundred thousand mem
On one 9'ras ion, Will" riding through the
woods with two % his friends The writor saw
some of This stun made Oneof Ia" party had
oppressed desire o. taste this Wniskey md
tho gentleman who was showing us round in
the woods took MS up trgil almost invisible hy
rca- % ol all.u leaves. We came 90 "a log cabin
". ro told To- 90 ic down" with an uccumpauylng
,Npicule. ana the occupant of the cahru-very
Dot |Hff NH I'd NHHUH ].
We inquired whether he could give Ms u drink
~ whlskey. H. turned 10 n man. whom we
hAd nU' sen , > ins ON bench away back IN the
in. NC pitcher" Jim said 10. rs ali out.
Wen. make some. and hurry up And Jim
dil maxi T. IL stuck some plne, logs and VIVA!
u known ia Georgia rs bit Of " fai wood full
OF iitchl under an iron pot standing IN the
corner. anu lighted The nre. The pot had tin
cover on IT,. and fastened 70 the cover was
brnken earthen pitcher attached with somo
s!auting downward. was an old gun-barreL
TINS was tho stil pure and simple. Tho
placed under the end Of the guu-barrol, and
me moohshihers task WAS accomplished. As
cooking books say, n was served warm.
and uncquth. being debarre1 those advantages
whieh add So materially TO the growth 81 q sec-
tlon or community. The educational adyan-
lagos IN THIS section were comparatiVrly none
until within tie last few years. Tho close of the
Wat ioHhI northern GsorEa lmp0v.ri-hg,l and
without the means Of education. The United
States Government had AZ Dahloncga II building
4lniraby ADAPTED Tor school purposes. The
United States Mint or rather branch mint. at
Dah!onega, was built in 1885 at cost of $40
900. Alter the war It WAS used as u school for
coored hdren. In 1871 the Mint building was
procured for the. Board Of Trustees OF the
North Georgia Agricultural College mainly
through the Efforts Of the Hon. W. p Price. tho
President Of the Board. To this most excellent
tude.
The University Of the State, holding the Land
Strip iund, endowed the college with S2.uOO per
annum which has since been increased 10 80 300.
For years the North Georgia Agricultural College
has uohly worked its way on this mcagre amount.
aided by a few other gifts from private indiVid-
uhis, 10 position which places 1t among the
finest schools in the state. The ultimate aim Of
tho Bonrd IL to make IL n free school with a
course OF study beginning with the alphabet
ana finishing with the degree Of Bachelor of
Arts students Of all classes flock here for in
struction, Owing to the insunicency Of money
the number Of teachers is small, but they are
earnest Jealous workers. In tho last scholastic
year 800 students attended the college, while
the university at Athens has only lG9, The
school Is open TO both sexes. and the system OF
education works well.