Eureka daily sentinel. [volume] (Eureka, Nev.) 1871-1887, 1879-02-14
LEADvILLE.
Its Mines, as Viewed From n Prac-
tical Point.

us MhWcSs ~ vhtWCu HHOhh
ticRl Point.
Correspondence of the Rockford tCol.) Journal
/ have been here three week, nearly al.
Of which time / have faithfully put in
prospecting and examing mines and taking
notes Of this country, and now feel pre-
pared from the information l have practi-
cally acquired, to fulfill my promise to
write a letter for the Journal.
Leadville is $50 miles southwest of Dem
yer, and my first impression upon reach
was the best mining camp in the United
States; but this opinion has been since
very much modified. They undoubtedly
have here the richest silver mines in the
world--ores that go from 30 to 1000 ounces
to the ton, and some ores that are nearly
all carbonate.
The carbonate mines were discovered
about twenty months 60, by q couple of
Irish boys named Gallagher, aud they sold
their mine for $3.50, 900, and since then
there have been q great many mines dis
covered, and some of them are far supe-
rior to the Gallagher mine.
Most Of the mines are in close proxim-
ity to the town, and on hills no higher
THAI the lowest bluffs back of Rapid City.
They are said to be the easiest mines
worked known
The early rush to the hills was not a
patching alongside of the rush to Leadville.
Last April there were 10 houses here, now
there are over 1 ZOO. l suppose there are
over 5000 Inhabitants at Leadville, at
least. Talk about life i---there is plenty of
it here. There are five large smelters at
work; two theaters are in full blast; two
big dance-halls or hurdy-gurdy houses are
running; and too many gambling houses
and whisky shops to count.
Now, l will give as good and as true q
general opinion as l can. Leadville is a
rich silver camp, and will last as q silver
camp for many years; there will be a lively
mining town here for q long while. But l
predict that within eighteen months from
this time there will be as many unoccupied
as occupied houses in Leadville. Every
thing is overdone; there are five, yes, ten
working men for every job, and the pick
ing is mighty short for q good many of the
boys. All kinds of business is also over
done-in fact, Leadville is to-day a great big
bubble, and must burst soon. 1t does not
begin to be as good a country for pool men
as the Black Hills, and you can next spring
expect large accessions to your population
from this section. l have talked with a
good many old placer miners here about
the bars and gulches in Pennington county,
and they nearly all told me the next move
they made would be to your mining
camps-that they had been looking for just
such a country for years.
This is my report. A man might come
in here wi h money and make money, but
the field for working men is altogether
overdone. and the chances, from this on,
will be against everybody coming to Lead
Vile. All there is here in the mineral line
has been found, and there are a dozen pros
pectors to every prospect hole.
l have just talked with some friends who
have been out prospecting about eighty
miles southwest Of this place, on the other
side of the western slope of the Rocky
Mountains. They have travelled a great
deal through the mountains in this region,
and report having discovered a mine about
twenty miles south of here which goes as
high as sixty ounces in silver on top; but
they could not go down on it on account OF
it's altitude and the lateness of the season.
1t is not far below the line Of perpetual
snow.