Clarksville weekly chronicle. (Clarksville, Tenn.) 1873-1890, 1881-09-24
4 VISIT no cRO0KE's SMELLING
WORKS.


Col. Gerry, party of Louisiana
friends, and myself. Down the
long, stony gorge the water comes
flashing. One of Colorado's perfect
days spreads its smile over noun
tain, stream aud vale. For surely
no where else on Gods broad globe
does such blue sky hang oyer err
ring mortals as in this, the centen-
NAL state. The far off mountain
peaks wear a veil of blue mist, as
though Indian summer was settling
down upon us, and yet it seems no
nearer. Not only in these rugged
strongholds does wealth lie hidden,
but it is showered upon us daily,
a golden bath from natures treasu-
ry. | do not touch falsely when
paint the glorie5 of the season now
upon US. l could not do it justice
had | the coIors OF the rainbow,
mixed with light, and "the cunning
of Turner" Pioneers tell us that
September is the finest month of
the year and verify it is proven
We have no shadow of cloud from
day to day, but floods of sunshine
no fancy can measure.
But to return to our visit. We
are standing on the little bridge
that spans the restless water. III is
certainly little gem of a waterfall
rushing, roaring, racing down the
mountain side as if eager to reach
the hundred-foot fall. Not only is
this sparkling cascade beautiful to
the eye, but with its great strength
it governs the vast smelling works.
So we turn aside from its busy voice
and follow Col. Gerry into the
building. 1t were well just here to
add a word of our genial guide. He
isa Floridian by birth, but has for
some years made Colorado his
home. He is attorney for these
large smelling works, and also for
the Denver and Rio Grande rail-
road.
We follow him first into the
''Crusher," where the huge Jumps
of ore are ground into powder. The
whirling of the bands and the din
of the machinery at first dazed our
senses, but at length in quiet cor
ner we are able to watch the n1odets
0perd1di. The workmen have
damp sponges bound to their noses
to absorb the dust that is flying at
random. 1t was like an immense
beehive, save the legendary drone.
From there we pass into another
building where this crushed ore is
put into the crucible. We saw the
red hot lava pouring forth, and
with all the notifications of the
revised edition fresh in our minds,
it gave us an awful terror of future
punishment. On into a department
where the baser metals are separat-
ed from the pure. We peeked into
the boiling watts where a thousand
tender colors were simmering and
glowing from copper, arsenic and
iron. We were then conducted to
where the roasting was going on.
The roasters were, perhaps, four
teen feet wide, with man on
either side with long iron rods,
with Which they turned and
mingled the heated ore. We saw
iron wheelbarrows filled with glow
ing powder. We assembled the lad
der above the roasters to inhale the
odors, and, in fact, saw everything
there was to see.
"Now," says Col. Gerry, #" shall
show you the grandest sight" He
conducted us into the elegant Office,
and there on a counter lay silver
brick, just brought out that morn
ing. 1t weighed tifty-six pounds,
and was worth three thousand dol
lars. 1t lay there in its mute, white
splendor, unconscious that in few
days it would reach the mint, aud
there be ground out into dollars for
sordid mortals; its beautiful body
divided and scattered to the four
corners of the earth. Where
throughout all the vast and popu-
lous East can you find an industry
comparable to this?
Here this smelter is going always,
night and day. They keep night
and day shift, besides the number
employed at their mine. 1t affords
employment to perhaps an hundred
men. 1t is the bone and sineW of
Lake City, and is wonderful en-
terprise within itself. 1t has been
rumored for the past few days that
the mine and smelter was sold
passed into the hands of an English
company. Also. rumored that the
Ocean Wave mine and works were
sold. That being the case Lake
City viii have boom for the win
ter. The miners are much elated
with the prospects for 1882.
The silver-ribbed San Juan
country seems to be attracting
much attention abroad. Scotch and
English capitalists are taking hold
of the mines. Some representatives
of the Harper mining company re-
Gently visited Lake City, and / had
the pleasure of sharing my curiosi-
ties of the Rocky Mountains with |
them. it'd
Lake City has an almost constant
flow of visitors from England and
Germany, and instead of falling off
as the season draws to a close, it |
seems more brisk and Furnishing.
great aid is the close prox-
unity of the railroad camps.
The summer foliage on the noun
tains is already crimson and gold,
and | am wondering how the leaves
along the old, old Cumberland are
looking. 1t is the dearest and bon
NEST of streams to me still, with
L -, 80 Eo,.c, oVod most Y,,1.ci /