The Wheeling daily intelligencer. [volume] (Wheeling, W. Va.) 1865-1903, 1881-08-15
EDIIONIAl. 1ORRtbPOADENUE,

FIESI ImpFeASIOBs Ia ksHaFd 10 Colorado.
Abe hInts, the RAllEOsds and Ihe Fs0-
pIe-PsIAOEAl A0Ies-LIfs In LeAdViIie'
An OId btImII IIOm bATnt SViIIe, ohio.
A Brooke CV0nIy Landscape repre-
dueed IN the R0ehy Mountains.
:|RcLLISsvlLLR, COLORADO, August 8.
Next to the vast heights and depths Of
the mountains that tr verse Colorado from
north to south, and their wonderful min
eral resources, nothing has impressed me
more than the rapid extension Of her rail-
road system, During the last W weeks
have journeyed back and forth between
several OF the principal points OF the State,
nearly all Of them in the mountains, and
vet | have not Travelled fifteen miles out.
side Of a railroad car. l have gone up
grades Of 272 feet to the mile, and crossed
river where the bridge was partially
suspended by iron rGtIerS imbedded on
each side Of the narrow pass in the flint
rock that rose almost perpendlcularly 5000
feet above US, and have rounded the
sharpeat curves at attitudes OF ten and
eleven thousand feet, and yet have realized
no discomfort or special sense OF appre'
hension. The narrow gauge system OIL
rallway ia seen In all lie glory out here, II
has deAed every obstacle to railway pro-
Rress, and has laid and Is laying lie tracks
through all the dedles Of the Rocky Noun
tAlns,
This State is only FIVE years old, In
1870 1t had less than 10000 people and
o dy about $50 miles Of railway. Now It
has 200 900 people and about 1900 miles
Of railway. And in no state Of the Union
is the building Of railways going on more
vigorously. Those already built are reach
irg out arms to the mining camps east and
Wess, north and south throughout The
STATE, The Denver & Rio Ora de 10 the
Peunsy lvAniR railroad OF the State, 1t Is
the "biggast little" railroad In the world. IL
represents The perfection OF the narrow
Psupe system. II hiss already built 800
miles OF track aud IL going on cOLquerinv
and to conquer. have travelled over II
with great fspidity- frequently at the rAte
OF forty miles per hour-and could per.
eeiye no jrring or sw lying that | have
mot generally Realised on the standard
gauge |, deed it Ii IN oil respects One I
the best built and hest equipped roads Of
the country.
You would he surprised at the extent Of
railroad lIavel and transportation over the
railroads Of this state. For instance,
aLnsn .n IN,. coda hat a,aan has IA at,I
Leadville, the Rio Gtande and the Denver
4 South Park, each running two trains Of
several coaches to the train, and yet they
are always full and ~fIlquently crowded.
This too, Notwithstanding rates are very
high In this country, RANGING from y to 10
cents per mile. II costs 81 10 to ship Q key
OF nails from Denver TO LsHdville, by the
short line, a distance Of ITO miles, The
passage rate 10 Sl5, and SO for q sleeping
berth on the night train.
The people out here do not seem to pay
much attention to rates for anything. The
fashion OF the country Is high prices for
everything. A very Indifferent hotel In
LoAdville charges 81 90 per day. Any
WheeliI 6 hotel would give you better
accommodations for half the money. La.
borsrB in the mines get IS 90 per day, and
outsidea laborers 81 so There is 4 { great
demand for labor. l noticed advertise
msnts In the ChiCSgo papers for railroad
LRnds, Offering 81 so per day. These rail.
road labOrers pay s. 00Hnd 80 90 per week
for board IN the contractors. Hired girls
get from $40 TO $50 per month. A very
Indifferent girl gets $40 and an extra one
$35 Two yesrs ago they got from $50 10
$40 per mooIh Mt LeadvilIe. Tbs stores
there cell everything at nearly twice the
price asked In Wheeling. Money is plenty
and the people spend II freely. LeadvilIe
is a wonderful place. It is a three old
city and contains from 10000 to 10000
people.
lspent several days there and tried 10
take In its most prominent features. The
city is on q plain between two gulChes,
and the principal mines ave oil the side
OF q slope leading up eastward from the
city. How many ahatts have been sunk
on thlR slope 1t would be impossible 10
say. The Hill IL covered with prospect
holes. The whole area Of the "Camp"
comprises cay a thoueand ceres. In this
area are some OF the most famous mines
OF Colorado. Their united bullion yield
last year was Sl2. 0OO, 900. Some OF them
are WORKED by incline SHAFTS and others by
vertical shafts. l went Into the Carbonate
mine seven hundred feet, crossing ten
different workable levels. Il reminded me
very much Of our coal mines. The rooms
are propptd up The same way. The amount
OF lumber Necessary to timber obeo Of these
miheB is immense. Colorado consumes q
vast quantity Of nails, especially
large nails, In these mines. | priced
nails In one house that buys a 1000
kegs at q time. The price ID SO for tens.
This 10 not extravagant when | state that
the Height from Wheeling 10 81 so per
key.
Nearly all the LeAdville mines are what
10 known 90 carbonate mines. The ore ia
q mixture Of earth, silica, lead and silver,
and runs from 20 10 400 ounces OF silver
to. the ton. AT the smelling mills
1t is reduced 10 plgs Of mixed lead and ell.
yer, aud these pigs are largely shipped
Esst to be refined. The railroads do a
heavy AID profit bic freight business In
carrying this bullion. II
Gsnnot hope 10 convey an adequate
impression Of Lesdville 10 you. II 10 O
community sui gt1SriS II 10 the most COS
mopOlitan town II lts siEs l ever 'slfuck."
C"eLtuck' is the word In use out hefe)
All nations, all paris Of the United States,
allcl.sses aud all Cteeds are fully fSptesen
ted, y s q fegula' bee hive Of activity. The
almighty dollar is shat every man, woman
. child Is alter. This Ia what brought
them 10 Lsadvllle. And yet there Ia cnl
tute Snd education TO be met .on eyery |
hand. You can not judge a family In
LesdVille by the house they live H.. The
Town 10 q Cn,ioue mosaic In respect ts
houses OF brick, but t%catcsly q dwelling
Log houses are numerous, but mostly Tia
dwellings are one story frame houses, In
these houses are people Of the highest "a.
fintmeht. They live we'll, some II them
lu1ntiously, although living 10 txpensIvs
In Leadville. All over Colorado every.
thing is sold by the pound, Potatoes N;e
sold ~ 81 cents per pound, which would
be 50 10 per buthel. Tomatoes sell in