Sacramento daily record-union. [volume] (Sacramento [Calif.]) 1875-1891, 1881-12-02

slope lies the ridge of gravel deposits which
have been mined. At the base of this ridge
flows Canyon creek. The ridge has been
largely mined out large excavations and ver-
tical banks are visible Evidently the body
or center of the ridge has been taken out
The gravel deposits still show on the sides.
The excavations extended two and halt
miles long and from one-quarter to ons-haf
mile in width. Canyon creek, below the
mining. has very steep sides above l could
not judge of it. One side OF the ridge slopes
to Canyon creek, and the sides of it are cut
by smaller canyons. The slope to the creek
was broken somewhat. The base of the
ridge is right in the creek, but the slope is
not unbroken. Il is q steep slope, varying.
The canyon at the place OF the mining along
the ridge is, generally, where I saw it on the
way into the mines, abrupt, steep and rocky.
Where the ridgehad been, from its top down to
the creek, it is several hundred feet. Did not
90 up and down the creek. Noticed that the
creek has great fall. Didn't estimate the fall !;
in places it would be LOCO feet per mile, If it
continued at that pitch. / examined the de-
fendant mining company's ground, and made
such survey as was necessary. Here is a
rough map based On the surveys made in the
pit Of the defendant-Indiana claim.
/ Marked "Exhibit l, GrunskY."] The sx-
cavations Of defendant consist Of one main
Dit mo. u. Around it are four smaller ones
ines. g. 8, and 81. No. 2 lies southeast of the
main pit Nos and are east No. north,
or slightly northeast. The entire surface has
the appearance Of having previously been
mined off to a certain depth.
THE MAIN PIT
Has depth of from 40 to 120 feet from the
surface level. The amount of excavation in
that pit was 8, 925, 790 cubic yards. The gen.
eral length of the main pit is /, 200 feet, and
width 1,150 feet. The excavations Of the
other pits in cubic yards are as follows: Pit
No. 2, PA $40; No. 8. 81, 260; No. 4, 26, 100 /;
No. 5, 314, ,610. The last four pits are all
surface washings. These estimates are all
approximate. l had to restore in my mind
the original surface or the plane of the sur
designated by Mr.. Gould. In the bottom of
the pits were cuts or ground sluices, through
which the materials washed were conveyed to
the tunnel, the mouth of which lies in about
the center of pit No. l. By this they are
carried to Canyon creek, and thence TO the
American river. In looking into the excava-
tion you will see, near the surface of the
ground that it is red, and near the bedrock
it is blue or slaty. These hard and soft rocks
are cemented. Near the surface there is less
cement, and the material is lighter in char
ac.er. The deep mining pit (No. y had a
rim extending up to the level of the original
surface mining. Above it was another rim
about 400 feet above the bottom of the pit.
I saw no other means of discharge than I de-
scribed The deepest portion of the main
pit was below the surface of the rim, and
SO no material washed therein could
60 elsewhere than out by the tunnel.
At the mouth of Canyon creek the river
flows in narrow channel with rocky sides
and bottom, with large cobbles and small
bowlders up to the size of one foot or one
and a half feet, and even larger. With these
finer materials are mixed in moderate quanti-
ties. Immediately above the bed deposits
are about the same.
SAW NO DEPOSIT
Below the mouth of Canyon creek in the
river Saw no deposits in the creek. The
descent of the creek is almost vertical over
bedrock I explored down the bed Of the
channel Of the North Fork of the American
river on horseback. I found in the first Sec
ton, from Canyon creek to Iowa Hill trail
II refer from my notes made at the time and
Immediately after my return to Sacramento)
which section is two miles long, deposits
which extend from side to side Of the chan
mel, and water-washed rock in the bed. The
river has apparently uniform slope. The
deposits consist of gravel and sand, such as
NAV be expected tc be found in bends Of the
river or below large projecting rocks. In
some places are bars of large cobbles, which
appear to have been placed there by the
water before mining was commenced. The
deposit in this section contains 1856 600 cubic
yards. The next section il three and seven.
tenth miles in length, and the river bed is
composed of gravel and small cobbles. In
this section / estimate the deposit to contain
l, 266 600 cubic yards. The average greatest
depth is fifteen feet. From Stevens to Rice's
bridge, one and eighteenth miles. it becomes
shallower. Here the water flows smoother
and rifles disappear. The deposit in this Sec
tion has a maximum depth of twelve feet,
and the deposit is about 436, 600 cubic ysrds
I Judge of the depth of these deposits from
those places where there was little or no de-
posit. l estimated distances by the length of
time it took to travel from point to point
and judged of the width by the eye.
Below Rice's the river flows through COM
paratively steep, rocky canyon that is, it is
sleeper than above it. This canyon begins
about 800 feet below Rice's bridge In this
canyon this river flows over a rocky bottom,
sometimes in rifles and sometimes IN pools.
The distance to the foot of the canyon is two
and half miles. Deposits from mining are
very slight, and were not estimated. Section
No. s. about two miles from the last canyon
to the
SHIRT TAIL CANYON,
Has at its upper end no filling, but it begins
and increases near the lower end, and at
at the very edge of the gravel bars. Saw
trees imbedded in recent deposits and ap.
psaring as if they had grown through them
but they were dead-had been killed by ris.
ing of the bed. Recent filing OF the channel
for this section l estimated to be Is feet
deep and 800 feet wide, and the deposit is
sos, ,O00 cubic yards Section No. embraces
distance of nine and five-tenths miles. The
recent filling decreases near the lower end.
The filing is so graded that the river
flows steadily. Bars near the lower end are
frequently seen, and water.washed rocks.
Maximum depth Of deposit, seventeen feet;
average width. go feet; deposit, 4, 437, 600
cubic yards. The next section opens With
Rocky Canyon No. Its sides are bedrock,
forming gorges, at different points narrowing
it in, and again widening and forming pools.
At some places the sides narrow to forty feet.
The filing here is not greater than to be ex-
pscted if no mining existed Deposits there
are small. Average width of stream at low
water, seventy.fve feet. What little filing
Is seen is in the nature of quicksand. This
section is l 4 miles. Section No. s is from
this canyon to the Middle Fork of the Amer
ican river, is miles. In this section the river
bed is wider. Deposits not extensive, except
at the junction. Sand and gravel bar above
the junction has hight of fifteen or twenty
feet. estimate that this portion of the river
has a total deposit of "A, coo cubic yards.
From the Middle Fork to a point 81 miles
below the junction the river flows between
bedrock sides. Tops of large powders can be
seen projecting in the river bed. The depth
of deposit in
THIS ENTIRE SECTION
Will not average very large figure. The
material behind broken dam in this
section has the appearance of being
clean gravel. The North Fork dam is
thrown across the river in this section. The
width of the river on the crest of the dam is
$50 feet. The deposit between the Middle
Fork and the new North Fork dam is esti-
mated at 469, 900 cubic yards. This deposit
is supposed to extend two miles above the old
dam at an average depth OF ten feet. Next
section, No. 10, extends to Rattlesnake Bar,
q distance of tsn miles. In this section very
little more filing is found than might be ex-
pected if the supply above were not as great
as at present. The sides are bedrock. Slate
was generally the bedrock at points above.
In this section the bedrock is mostly granite,
with occasional lodges of slate. About one
and half miles below the North Fork dam,
between the water-worn powders, are depos-
its of fine gravel. Here at this point an ex-
cavation for mining had been made TO a
depth of fifteen or twenty feet; but width of
deposit here is not great. About half q
mile further down it flows between bed
rock Of granite, and the width of :he river
is only about forty feet, and no deposit at