Frostburg mining journal. [volume] (Frostburg, Md.) 1871-1913, 1880-04-24

would tax the credulity of the listen
er., Nearly all the working Of these
various placer-claims has been stop
ped by the "Collinson management"
as it is here termed, the history Of
v hich had better lie told in eonnec-
tion with Maxwell's career. 4 aail
On the way however, tangible
proofs of the truth of Mr.. Lynch's sto-
ry were visible in the person ofsquata
ters who, with shovel, and barrow,
and pm, and a trickling mountain
rilI to supply the water, were washing
SIS to$l0 q day. At one of there litg
lie sluice- boxes, which we passed, the
owner hsd just been cleaning up his
previous days work, and it WAS
bought by Mr.. Sherwin and present
ed to me as relic of our ride. Since
coming TO town have had it weigh
ed, and find it to be $9.75 in gold
dust. "2 . q hH i
When just above "timber-line,"
which is about 10000 feet above the
level of the sea, we left our painting
horses to rest and made detour to
visit
THE COPPER MINE,
which is open and has been success
fully worked. Here we found tun.
mel in not very good repair, but drift
ing in about one hundred and fifty
feet upon splendid vein of copper,
which, however, owing to the rich
ness of the placer and quartz dig
gings, has never been more than
"prospected," the transportation.
question having overshadowed the
development of the mine.
Having eaten our lunch, we pro-
ceeded down the east side of the
mountain into the Ute valley,--the
scenery by the way being the grand
est and most inspiring I have ever
seen. As we zigzagged our way down
the steep mountain side, the sure
footed horses fairly clinging to the
almost perpendicular path, and walk
ing with calm del. beration most ex-
asperatirg to.a timid tourist, on the
very edge of thousand-foot preci-
pice,--I clung to the high pommel
OF the saddle, and trusted to Provi-
dence and my horse for safe deliv-
cry of my person in the valley be-
meath. The views, however, made
one quite forget the danger, for al
each turn, stretching away before me,
was Il plain and mountain country
vIsi le fer two hun lred miles, thai
provoked constant exclaEations OF
delight, and made me teel qnite cer-
tain that we were in the identical
spot where Satan took our Lord when
he tempted Him, for with such
prospect, it would require surerhu-
man strength to resist snch an offer OF
possession and clear title. Particu-
larly when We knew that right at oul
feet lay
THE AZTEC MINE,
IN simply prospecting which over one
and a half million dollars worth OF
gold was taken ont. The history Of
this historic mine, as told ms by its
diaceverers, in brief, is as follws: In
the spring Of 1868, Lynch, with his
"pardners," Dougherty and Fosley,
were "grub-staked' by Maxwell and
while prospecting in the Ute valley,
found some float" quartz unusually
rich in gid, which they traced to
slide on the mountain-side, which was
slightly depressed and showed on the
surface to he partly filled with de-
composed vein-matter. They worked
come of this material, and found it
'panned" So to So; that is out Of
about every twenty pounds of sell
they took So to $3 in gold. They
worked carefully up this "slide" un-
til they finally struck the lode, near
ly on the summit of the hill. On
this 10 they sunk their shaft, ten
by seven feet, and one hundred feet
deep, with two drifts at a depth Of
thirty-fve feet, that ran in opposite
directions along the river. All the
way along these drifts, Mr.. Lynch
says clearly defined veins of very rich
ore came running into the lode. the
veins varying from six inches to two
feet. These veins have never been
"prospected," because they were anx
ious to develop the possibilities of
the main shaft and lode, which thoy
were doing when stopped by the lili.
cation growing out of the Collinson
management, already referred to. /, In
nnrcL asinp the Maxwall nrorarl,.