The Emporia news. [volume] (Emporia, Kan.) 1859-1881, 1879-07-25
fair, all things considered,

matism, sOre-throat, &c, are frequent,
though not often fatal The "blarsted
furriners," who have not been used to
such high living" growl much of the
climate and "blow'' at the catarrh, but
their early education has been neglected.
By far the greater mortality of the place
results from Ium, and since last August
one preacher has attended 100 funerals,
100 of which, he says, resulted from in
temperance. Instead of rum, fires and
blankets are nightly necessities here the
year round. and a furious snow storm in
June or July is not thing to excite
alarm.
What of the future? The city is the
center of vast mineral region, her
smelters are first class, and with her in
coming railways, she will remain a dis
tributing depot for large area of coun-
try, and be able for MANY years to sup
port considerable population. A few
of her own mines are yielding we'll, al
though liable to fail. At present there
are more people here than are needed,
employment not genial, and with which
they are not familiar, the chief demand
for labor being in the smelters or mines,
neither of which are attractive to people
from the states.
1t is fatal error for people 10 come
here, or to the mountains or anywhere,
expecting to suddenly shovel out a for
tune. The business of prospecting is
especially uncertain. Not one per cent.
of those who engage in it succeed, while
thousands bankrupt themselves in vain
efforts to force the hills to give up the
coveted treasure. If any reader will
turn to any current number of the New
York Mining Record, he will find in its
list of dlvidend-paying mines, only
four such credited to Colorado. This
does not, of course, include mines own
ed by individuals, but as nearly all the
best are stock concerns, it affords a fair
clue to the profits of mining. In the
Silver Cliff district after all the bluster
that has been made about the richness
of that camp, one mine, the Bassick,
gold, is the most valuable, and yields
more than all the others combined in
the entire large county of Custer, and Is
said To have turned out 1000 in June
The total product of all the gold and
silver mines in the state, for 1878, is re
ported to have amounted to $4,000, 600
Were this sum equally divided among
all prospectOrs, less their expenditures
1t would give each of them-nOthing-a
more money is always spent III develop
ing a given mineral district than is
taken or dug out of it. Of the thous
ands of holes dug in this district, less
than thirty have struck valuable de
posts and only % are delivering ore to
the smelters, and very few of these are
paying frst-class returns, or 80 to 75
ounces to the ton.
Enormous lies are constantly circulat
ed, reporting immense yields never real
lied and heavy sales never perfected, il
ever contemplated The world is ovel
stocked with liars. Some OF them can
write, and are hired to write up
wonderful mineral discoveries" There
are whole regiments of them in Colora.
do who lie by contract, often in the EN-.
plOy of men who make a business OF
making discoveries" founding new
mining camps" or cities, "laying OUT
towns, and then laying out" purchas,
ers. A trifiing show of mineral is pro
claimed as wonderful discovery" and
its locality is destined to become great
camp" The pioneer dance,hOuse with
its faded beauties and chain lightning
Is opened, to welcome the incoming
suckers with all the luxuries of the
season, and a poster called a newspaper
is started to disseminate the virtues,
spiritual and temporal, of the Camp
when the spectators are ready for bust
ness and "bites" There are several such
places in Colorado. Let contemplating
investors look out, or as the placards
say, "bewarc of pick-pockets" AS to
the expense of mining it costs about
81 900 to sink shaft 100 feet, when, if
ore be reached, as much more to prepare
to work it, and every stage is attended
with such innumerable uncertainties as
to make it n most precariOuS business
for men of limited means Let any who
| wishes 10 embark in il first count the cost.