Mineral Point tribune. (Mineral Point, Wis.) 1869-1938, 1880-09-16
A Buried hlp-Marvelous Discovery
Made by the Miners In Colorado
ELeadyille Chronicle. ]

near ked Gin, made O discovery so mar
velous and astonishing as 10 seem more
like tale from the "Arsbisn Nights"
than sober nineteenth century reality.
Imagination never pictured wilder or
more desolate spot than the western slope
OF Red Gift. The ragged rocks and pine.
clad gorgeS arc In as native solitude as if
the eye of man had never looked on Them
and the tortuous streams, the steep de
scent, torn by some fierce upheaval of ma
ture, and the granite hills combine to
form a scene behind which the wierdest
imagery of Dore would fall far short. 1t
was IN this place that two miners, grub
staked by q Denver Spectator, found
their way. The names OF these men were
Jacob Cahee and Louis Adams, the latter
a resident Of Leadvile, and the former
from some locality in Southern Colorado,
We believe near Alamosa. Both were
mining experts, and finding favorable in
oications on wide plain, 81 the foot of
quite steep hill, began to sink shaft,
first passing through thirty feet of wash
and then striking lime formation stained
with iron aud evidently moi in place
They were on the point OF stopping work
In despair, but thus encouraged pushed
on their digging with renewed activity,
until at a depth of fifteen feet hollow
sound responding to the blows of their
picks gave warning that they were near
ing some subterranean passage or gallery.
Unwilling to give up what appeared to be
so fine prospect, they secured themselves
from the top by ropes, and proceeded
very cautiously with their work. After
days digging, the bottom, which had been
constantly growing thinner, gave way
with a crash, and the two adventurous
miners found themselves suspended mid.
way in what appeared 10 be large, irreg.
ular cave, some 240 feet long and about
1870 feet wide at the broadcast point. They
had pierced the cavern in its extremity,
and had no difficulty in swinging them.
selves against sort of natural stairway
of granite boulders heaped against the
sides.
Down this they scrambled, impeled by
curiosity and spirit OF adventure, holds
ing their miners lamps above taeir heads,
ana soon stood upon 4 tolerably level
sanded floor, with here and there huge
crystal of quartz. while from the root,
which arched overhead at q distance oil
about fifty feet, enormous stalactites de
pended like icicles, and catching the
feeble rays of light, threw them back in
myriad OF rainbow hues. The cave seem
ed at first empty, but as their eyes grad
uslly became accustomed to the deep
gloom, the men saw in the further ex
tremity huge black object, which, not
without some trepidatlon, they APP
preached.
As they nesred 1t, to their unbounded
they made out the outlines of
some sort Of sailing craft, but the idea of
q ship fity feet under ground was so pre-.
posterous that they thought il some IAN
tastc mass of rocks, and not until they
fairly touched the timbers would they
believe the evidence of their own senses
A ship ii plainly was or had been, but a
ship different from any that the eyes of
the astonished miners had ever looked
upon. II was, as nearly as they could
Judge, about sixty feet long by some thir.
W feet wide, and lay tilted forward at an
angle of about fifteen degrees over
rough pile of stone. The body of the
craft was built OF short lengths OF some
dark and very porous wood, resembling
our black walnut, if 1t could be imagined
with the grain pulled apart like sponge or
a piece Of bread, and made perfectly
square. Both ends Gt was evidently in.
tended tor sailing either way were turn.
ed abruptly up like The toe of = peaked
Moorish slipper. The planking was sp.
parently double.riveted on with nails of
extremely hard copper, only slightly rust
eaten, and with the heads cut or filed in
sn octagonal shape, while along the up.
per edge OF the ship eleven large rings of
The same metal, and evidently for the Sc
curing OF rigging, were counted. At the
bottom edges OF the craft, and running its
entire length, were two keels some four
and halt feet deep and six inches thick,
hung on metallic hinges, and al the ends
we're fastened rough copper rods, extend
Ing upward and bent over so as to attach
10 two masts rising from the utter edges.
II the cross OF an inverted letter Y be
conceived TO represent the deck lines, the
.wo stems are at about the angle and DO.
sitions OF the masls. These were upward
)i twenty feet long, aud, as evidence that
. sale WAS at one time stretched across,
some ragged remnants OF what appeared
10 be cordlng were found clinging to the
inner ejges. The ends of the masis were
secured in piyots, and II WAS evident that
n tscElng one could be moved forward
nd the other back, thus bringing the
'ail at an angle with the body OF the ship
an idea which II might not be bad for
)ur modern Davigators to emulate This,
. is believed, also explains the COPPER
'ocs which moved the keels 80 as recipro
,ate the positions OF the masts. While
he whole ship was intact, the wood crum.
)led like dust beneath the finger touch,
md fearful of trspfalls the two pros
1ectors did not venture 10 explore the In.
erior. Lying on the ground near by,
however, WAS discovered q good instra.
nent bearing rude resemblance to the /
extant OF the present day and possibly I!
1sed TO calculate the longitude. No trace