The Anderson intelligencer. [volume] (Anderson Court House, S.C.) 1860-1914, 1879-10-16
Denver Later in s.. Paul Pioneer Press.

Denver Letter in 81. Paul Pioneer Press.
The mineral wealth stored away in the
vast mountain ranges passing through
the central and western portion of Colo
rado is certainly very great--great, judg-
Ing from indications upon the surface, far
beyond the power of man 10 Compre-
hend. n2n .
Commencing in the north, the rich
Diacers and gold,bearing veins of Boulder
aud Central, with great fssure veins of
Georgetown, the silver queens, resources
ere to be found that viii produce work
for the present and future generations, as
nothing short of centuries Of hard labor
can remove the precious metals stored
away in the clefts of the flint-like rocks
of these mountains.
Passing on TO Leadville and vicinity.
those vast deposits Of carbonate of lead
are found which are 80 rich in silver. and
which, If they do not extend indefinitely
into the earth as the fissure veins do, at
least spread out over vast surfaces. From
Leadvilie down the Arkansas valley in
dications could not be better, and the
names of Cleora and Poncho Springs, as
mining localities, are heard on all sides.
! Passing still farther down the valley to
| Custer county, that great mining camp
of recent date is found, which is second
only TO. Leadville in the excitement it
caused and which 1t resembles somewhat
in the nature of its mineral formation.
This camp, Silver Cliff by name, 80 noted
for its mineral found sticking even TO the
grass.roots, ia situated in the beautiful
| Wet Mountain valley, and surrounded
by thriving farms and stock ranches
presents great contrast to other mining
! tnwna, which are usually exrcseet5! assT
the tops Of black and barren mountain
ralges.
West and southwest Of Silver Cliff,
over the range, are to be found the world
renowned Gunnision and San Juan
countries, filled with their immense fis-
sure veins, which will furnish work for
untold generations of eager fortune
hunters.
It ;s Iio wonder That, with these vast
| exposures of mineral wealth, backed by
the marvellous stories from,the assnyers,
ofhundreds and even thousands of dollars
to the ton, fist can be taken from this
dirt" that men lose their senses, lose
their power of calculating, and spend
years of their lives and thousands of
their accumulated capital, to reap?-
whaI fortune much greater than the
one put in9 Not by legitimate business,
excepting in very few cases..
Let us zee, judging by the only criteri-.
on we have-the past-what the relative
chances for small capitalists and labor
ing men are in mining as compared with
other occupations.
1t is estimated that there are at least
100000 men prospecting in Colorado
this summer. These men do not waste
their time, but work hard from early
morning until late at night climbing and
tramping over tho toughest Of country,
Led on and on by the widest of enthusi-
asm from one place to another, now in
one locality where o rich strike is re-
ported-then over the mountains to the
| next place, where fortune is sure for
any one that comes--but it turns out
about the same in each case it is disap.
pointment everywhere.
Come with us along the Chicago creak
near Idaho, with your trout.rod /;
fishing has BEEN good, and as black
and stormy evening approaches we will
60 back to o good shelter and comfor-
table night. But IS we struggle along
over the rough ways of the canon, let us
stop moment to view but one of the
many prospectors scattered over tie
kockys. He is sitting on q rock beside
the prospect hole in the hard ground which
has cost him days of exnausting work
to hollow out, his head elightly turned
TO ono side, id resting upon the hand,
which in turn ia supported by the handle
of his pick. The long white beard.
flowing over the rough miners coat be.
longs to q face with a discouraged and
tired out look, while the eyes with their
far away expression as if they were gnz.
ing into the distant past, show plainly
enough that he has not struck "pay dirt"
This lone man as he sits there in the ap.
preaching darkness appears to be In
every way in sympathy with surrounding
nature. The black and ragged rocks rise
thousands of feet upon either side, while,
scattered over them, the scrub pines
hauging iroln every crevice give out their
mournfuil wall in chorus with the rush
ing waters IF the creek. In the back.
ground, up the canon, is su impenetra.
Bile blackness, while over Lead from ridge
to ridge tho threatening clouds are arched.
With one exception the scene is one
which Ruskinso aptly calls mountain
side of the gorge brilliantly illuminated
by tho setting sun, and from which il
thrown. single stream Of light across
tho valley, touching the hair and fore.
head of the miner, and bringing out his
features in strong relief Let us hope
the miners gloom has an invisible stream
of light across its dark track in the ahape
Of some pleasant memory of the past.
The old man probably knows there is but
one bonanza for ten thousand prospec.
tors. Still, with that fascination which
leads on the gambler, and against far
more fearful odds, he will try it again.
Tomorrow he, will perhaps cross over
the mountains to Leadville, Ind as the
chances are ninety-nine to one that he
will not strike, he will either get out of
the mountains, add one more to the $50
silent sisePeTs, not covered l ~ the sod,
resting in tho carbonate camps CITY of
the dead, or, if he has friends, be one of
the scores shipped East for a final resting
place.
One hundred thousand prospectors in
the morntains, one-quaster of them in and
around Leadville and Ten Mile; thou
sands upon thousandsof prospect holes,
and less than fifty paying mines In this
locality; thousands Of holes around
Silver Cliff, and half dozen paying
mines--thase are facts the prospector
di0es not aPPTeoiiitt0 unttiii ;i is TOO iate.
In the first place the vein is to te'
found. That may be comparatively easy,
but will it pay to work II? is the impcr.
tant question. lift will pay, has the
miner che capital to develOn st9 Ruu.