Green-Mountain freeman. [volume] (Montpelier, Vt.) 1844-1884, 1879-12-24
Minutes of a Western Trip,

salt Lake City in Utah. left Sacramento
October 20,h. went to Roxville Junction,
eighteen miles, via the overland railroad,
from there took the Oregon division to
Magysvilie. This is the county seat of
Yu5a county, situated on the north bank
OF the 1uba river, with a population of
five thousand. The business of the place
i; derived mostly from mining and lum-
berng. There are large number of
quartz and hydraulic companies in the
county. From here l took San Juan
stage for French Corral, it being one of
the principal hydraulic mining sections Ct
the state. Oar course is northeast, and
fJr some distance is near the Yuba river.
Here We see the dykes which extend up
and down the river as far as the eve can
see, thence up to Keep the river from over
flowing and inundating the surrounding
country with dirt and delves from the
mines above. These dykes or levees are
not confined to the Yuba river alone, for
they are found on all the rivers flowing
down from the mining mountain sides.
We soon leave the river to our left and
pass over rolling country on the foot
hills, and thence up into the mountain
region. We are now approaching the
mining section, and evidences are seen by
the swift-flowing streams that come down
from hillside and valley, bringing with
them the debris of the mines above, and
from the deep, broad excavations. washed
out OF the hills and mountains. Cinnamon
are seen scattered along the ravines and
hills,des, busy with their cradle-washers,
in search OF the precious ore.
At four o'clock in the afternoon we are
at French Corral distant from Marysville
thirty-tivc miles and from Sacramento
seventy-five miles. This is a mining town
AMI is the headquarters of Milton hydraul-
ic mining company. It is located in a
wild, mountainous region, with deep val
leys aad steep hillsides. One thing is
worthy Of noticc-that the resident miners
that lived in this mountain town, had by
the existence Of water and irrigation,
abundance of fruit, consisting of apples,
pears, peaches, grapes, FIGS, and often
other tropical fruits.
Mining in California is now owned and
controlled by sock companies. These
companies have bought and controlled all
the available water for mining purposes,
and have instituted system of hydraulic
mining on gigantic scale, which super
scdes all placer and hand-digging, except
what little may be done in that way by
Chinamen. The Milton company bring
the water for their mining sixty miles
from the mountains above. 1t is brought
in an aqIeduct, around on the mountain
sides, sometimes on high trestles when
crossing valleys and ravnes. In this case
the titude has been such that when the
aqucdac. was completed to near the mines
there was 4 head of two hundred and fifty
feet flom the base of operations. This
mine lies on Il large swell lying between
the Yuba and South Yuba rivers, about
two miles from the former and one and
one.half from the latter. These rivers
are said to be four thousand feet lower
than the base of the mine. The course Of
mining is what WAS once the bed of a
broad river. This river bed is rocks and
shows unmistakable evidence OF once being
the bel of some river. The land surface
above this river bed varies from one 10
two hundred feet. The gold is intermixed
in fine particles in these deposits, to OBJ
tain which this company, with the help of
their hydraulic machines. have already
WISHED and removed some three hundred
acres Of the surface down By the bed rock.
How these hundreds OF acres of dirt, rocks
and debris, which has been thrown upon
this once river bed by some earthquake,
volcanic eruption or some other unknown
cause, AMI washed into the river mile
and Il half away, with the gold cleared
out, was a matter OF interest. have be-
fore stated that tie river was four thousand
feet lower than the base Of the mine.
Between this river and the mine is high
hill, so that the company, in order to have
a channel 10 the river, were obliged to
tunnel through this mountain of rock four
thousand feet. Through this tunnel and
TO The base of operations is canal or
flume, bailt with much care and precision.
Il is, in fact, a hume within a hume. The
main enc is built of blocks of timber OF
uniform size, fifteen inches square and
twelve thick. The blocks are laid their
end, to the surface, and are uniform.
At the base of the mine are instruments
called monitors. They are twelve to fif-
teen feet in length and are erected with
machinery attachments SO that they can be
novel with ease in any direction. There
are iron pipes leading from the monitor
made of boiler plate, eighteen inches in
diameter, to the bulk-head Of the supply
water above. The water passes down
this pipe and through the monitor, which
has an eight.irch nozzle. with such a
power that the mountains and hillsides
tremble and melt away before its force.
Rocks and boulders are blasted and
broken down with sledges until they
are within the capacity of the water force
brought against them. Thus the material
composed of dirt. rocks and debris oil
every description 60 rushing down in this
long fume under the mountain, thence
down a series of water sheds to the river
thousands of feet below. To obtain the
cold fer which this outlay has been made,
the hume is strewn with quicksilver the
entire length; that being heavy, it rests in
the creyices and lower places in the flume.
A. the dirt, stone and water 60 flowing
and grinding along, the gold rqshes to the
bottom and by its affinity for the quleksll,
yer it adheres to it. 1t is supposed that
with this length of fume and the water
,heds which lead down the mountain side
10 the river. large share of the gold is