The New York herald., 1879-09-24
COLORADO TREASURE.
Peculiarities of Leadville
and Its Inhabitants.
A CAMP OF WORKERS.
Statistics OF the Precious Metals
Already Sent to Market.

LEADvrLLz. Sept. Is. 1872
Corral tho men OF this camp and assay them and
you will surely get bigger return of activity.
shrewdness. intelligence and common sense than
from any 10000 men who happen to live together
anywhere No one can appreciate the character of
the wealth. the life and the people of this region till
he comes here and sees for himself To get
idea of the place imagine yourself two miles straight
up in the air above New York city, in valley sur
rounded by mountains. some of which three
quarters OF mile higher. Tho air is light and
pure that at first the visitor experiences great trouble
in breathing. There is sort of oppression about
the chest and gasping for breath. especially
with the exertion OF mounting one flight
of stairs or walking block. 1t affects
some stout people SO that they bleed at the nose
as they register their names ut the hotel. Thin
people get along very WE'LL unless their lungs are
weak. The place is q temperance lecture because
the drunkard is surc to meet untmely death from
pneumonia. There is enough stimulant in the at
mosphere to dispel every taste for liquor Yet there
is good deal of drunkenness. especially on Saturday
nights. when the miners como into camp. You wear
all the heavy winter clothing you have and have fire
in the stove morning. noon and night every day Of
the year. 1t showed last week. All around on the
mountain sides is never disappearing snow. and as
you climb the Mosquito Pass to get here you come
through snow and ice in one place. where it was cut
thirty feet to make the road The frigid substance
either side of the wagon is very suggestive when
you consider the distress from hot weather and
fever at Memphis aud the violent heat at st. Louis
and all over the East.
Competition is SO great in the stores that nearly
everything here is sold at New York prices, with
freight. which. of COURSE is very heavy. added.
speak Of textile fabrics. hardware mining imple-
and ervfh hiuO hut f0Od In Eo
instance. champagne is s5 per bottle. beer rs cents
and 80 cents boot backing 25 cents. even by the
boys on the street; hair cutting IS cents shaving
rs cents, drink of brandy 80 cents whiskey &C.. 25
cents Vegetables have to be brought here The al
tltude is too great to raise anything except human
beings and animals. Hay is cents por pound, oats
4 cents, corn ccnts.
The people here are nearly all dressed in tho
roughest of clothing but you believe that
underneath their carbonate soed coats, hats and
pantaloons they wear clean bodies cool heads and
determined energy of purpose There no loafers
around except the gamblers. and they generally
known by their good clothing and big diamonds
There is need for anybody to be out of work
here. Anybody who can and will work can get So
per day at mining, wood chopping team driving and
other such work. The skilled miner especially is in
demand right along at So per day. and he board
for 80 cents per day, or So SO per week.
Some of the miners who have been very successful
have staked out claims and worked them as long as
their money held out. then worked by the day till
they got grub stake and kept till they struck
the mineral. Miners generally go in couples. They
get what they call burro. jack little animal
like donkey. They put pack saddle on tine little
fellow and he trudges up and down the mountain
with the tents. covering picks and shovels and all
supplies a week. weighing. perhaps. 25o pounds.
ryo
faithful. Even now one is passing my window with
three small children on it, and the children vainly
kick him to make him 90 faster. I saw this morn
ing ten Of these jacks each with 200 pounds of ore
on his back. taking 1t from away up the mountain
where wagon could not so, to the smelters.
MINES FOR SALE.
Everybody seems to have mine to sell. But the
trouble about that is that the prices placed at
fabulous rates. Capital is rendered in great abun-
dance. but there is chance to make it available
The reason of this is that several have struck
it very rich in the hills around the place. and the
probabilities that there Is not claim that can
now be taken up within fifteen miles of Leadvie.
All the land Is staked off, On Freyer, Carbonate and
Iron hills some new mine touches the contact and
the mineral nearly every day. Some of them miss
fortune to others who have money The specu-
laive tendency of the people here is heightened by
the fact that there has been more money already
taken out of the ground within radius OF twenty
miles from here than has been spent in digging tho
thousands Of unproductve holes in the ground;
Some of tho productive shafts have reached
ore, but it has been OF such low grade
that it would not pay to send it to tho
who was here week trying to buy mine was
showing his this morning. and said the samplos
were from all around the mine. and did exagger-
ate the yield. He told day ago that he was
going home the next morning He had the samples
sssayed, and the result was silver none; lead
thirty per cent; small quantity of iron. There Is
hardly large specuator In the East whose means
have not boen looking this way. Mr.. Keene aud his
Cliff property. which ~ in course of development.
Senator Jones. commanding at least Sl.0o0,000; cx-
Senator Dorsey. commanding S25O.000 OF his own.
and more than that OF other peoples money; Hallet
Kibourn, OF Washington representing large capitals
Rufus Hatch. whose efforts to buy the Iron Mine
the best property hcre. probably. excepting the
Pittsburg Conbination-showed that he represented
large capital. and number of others have recently
been here and gone away without investing cent
because the owners OF mines place their figures
altogether too high. Even where the ore hodies
plainly In sight and tho mine asks half mill
ion for his property. there is telling what mo-
ment the foot wall may be struck and the mine prove
a pocket. to DO exhausted before more than few
Thousand dollars is taken out. Still, 1t might pan
out millions; but the whole thing Is lottery from
the beginning.
visitor to this country is apt to go down into
number of mines, because the mineral is found
The New Discovery Mine, of the Pittsburg Combi-
nation, is the best one to visit on Fryer HILL 1t Is
iao feet down win lot OF leads IN d1neren. airec
there are wonderfully large. One block in sight was
measured and tho calculation OF experts placed its
value at S1300.000. The Annie Mine, nearly adjoin-
ing Is equally rich and Is the Little Chief which
splits the pittsburg property. The Climax next to
the Annie, Is also rich and promising mine on that
formation. Over Iron Hill you go down tunnel
to the Iron Mine. owned by Field Setter, OF Chi |
cago. There are five levels to the mine, reaching |
under ground four miles. Here there IL any quantity
Of rich ore. They are developing it gradually, |
not being hurried by the demands Of company OF |
stockholders clamoring for dividends. There arc |
several productive mines on Iron Hill. The super
intendent OF this mine says that under the recent
decision Of Judge Miller of the Supreme Court. they
working their lend XlcreYer II in the dip.