Vermont phÅ“nix. [volume] (Brattleboro, Vt.) 1834-1955, 1879-05-02

California Gulch in which or on which the
new town of Leadvilo is growing up, lies ut
right angles to the Arkansas valley, aud about
twelve miles from the head waters of the
Arkansas River. II was wild gulch, its
sides grown thick with spruce forests, and
little snow-fed creek making its way down
among them. But the waters of the creek
held gold and men soon found it out, cut
down the sprtce forests, and began placer
mining all along the sides Of the gulch. They
are torn up and riddled, to-day, as if au earth
quake had shaken them violently. All this
while, in the stony mountains at the head Of
the gulch, lay stores untold of solid silver, Of
which the miners lower down working for
gold sands by the handful, never so much as
dreamed. 1t is the old story of treasure bid
ing the time Of the man who knows its secret.
One day man who knew one stone from an
other picked up bit of mineral and handed
it slyly and significantly to his comrade, say
ing nothing. The comrade experienced in
the ways Of mines took it, saying nothing and
pockcted it. The gulch was full Of men
there were those working by their side to
whom one word might be a hint. Later,
alone, the two comrades conversed with each
other on the subject Of this bit Of stone.
They took cautious and secret rambles over
the mountain side. They said not one word
to anybody for two years, but quietly pos
one mine which these two men own, you may
see, it is said, six million dollars worth Of
silver; not infer it. trust, hope, believe it,
from the dip" or bearing" or ''vein," as
is usually the case in silver mines, but see it
the walls of the galleries are it The miners
simply chop the walls down, foot by foot, and
wheel out the orc in barrows.
And the whole range is believed to be full
of the precious metal. 1t is the western slope
Of the mountains lying back Of Fair Play, on
who's, eastern slopes many profitable mines
have been worked for years. 1t is odd that
miners did not at once think that if one side
Of mountain were made Of silver, the other
was likely to be-. But they did not; and so
the T. aadyille silver bid,d It's time.
The town is u marvel. In six months
tract Of dense spruce forest has been convert
ed into a hustling village To be sure. the
upturncd roots and the freshly hacked stuinps
of many of the sprIce-trtes arc still IN the
streets Of the town fallen spruce-trees, too,
on which you can sit down to rest, and here
and there clumps of superb tall ones standing,
which afford a most grateful protection from
COlorado's hot May sun, the sun which made
the mud | spoke of at the top of Westons
Pass Great spaces of scorehed sage brush
are to be seen, its gray stalks looking As twist
ed as if they had been wrung out wet and
thrown down to dry. Great spaces covered
with chips also nobody had time to pick up
his chips, and they are handy to burn the
houses are all log cabins, or else plain, un-
painted board sEauties. Some Of the cabins
seem to burrow in the ground Others are set
up on posts, like rooted bedsteads Tents
wigwams of boughs wigwams of bare poles,
with a blackened spot in front, whore some
body slept last night, but will never sleep
again cabins wcdged i'll between stumps
cabins built on stumps cabins with chimneys
made Of flower pots or bits Of stove pipe,-I
am not sure but out of old hats; cabins half
rooted cabins with sail. cloth roofs cabins
with no roof at this represents the arch
itecture Of the Leadville homes The
Leadylla places of business are another
thing there is one compact, straight street,
running east and west, in the centre OF
this medley of sage brush, spruce stumps,
cabins, and shanties. Here are shops, res
taurants, billiard rooms, dance halls, banks,
lawyers offices, hotels, livery stables, all
that a town needs There are fairly-built
wooden houses principally of the battlemt mt
front style, and one story high,-a few of
them two stories high, and not without
some pretonse of finish the platforms and
steps in front Of them make one continuous
iiuo Of Longing grounds for Leadvillc men.
counted forty-siX at one time in a short dis
tancc men either leaning against door posts,
or sitting with their elbows on their knees.
The middle Of the street was always filed
with groups Of men talking.
Wagons were driven up and down ns fast as
if the street were clear. 1t looked all the
time as if there had been a fire and the
people were just about dispensing, or as if
town-meeting were just over, Everybody
was talking, nearly everybody gesticuiatng.
An faces looked restless, eager, fierce. 1t was
Monaco gambling room emptied into a
Colorado spruce clearing. II. IL. = May
Atlantic