Gold Hill daily news. [volume] (Gold Hill, N.T. [Nev.]) 1863-1882, 1881-01-28
THE WATER QUESTION.
Seine Strange Facts Cs.csruisg shs
. Flew Aleag She Csmsteek - h
she Eiesd In Jacket and Alta
she Damsf

Last week the News suggested that
the great food In Alta. which broke In
from the footwall Of the vein - crosscut
No. ] was pushed east on the 1850 level.
might have been caused by the raise In
Jacket and connecting mines and DO
consequent upon the increased head thus
accumulated. Later Investigations,
while they do not mako this theory
untenable, certainly initiate strongly
against 1t.
Tho theory wa advanced on account
Of some wsll.known facts which might
lead up to Il quite nationally. unless the
situstion was more fully understood
than II generally 10. Fer instance. when
Exchequer struck its dow Of ten miners'
inches on the 1910 level. certain accun.
latious In depth half q mile further
north Immediately commenced settling
away. When In running south In
| Bslcher ON the 5000 level o little later.
another and heavier fow was sncouu.
tered, those aceumulations increased
their ate OF disappearance from nine
inches to thirty inches per day. The
| 5000 level Of Belchsr 10 800 feet east Of
the Yellow Jacket shaft.
From the foregoing and knowing the
bend to the east Of the southern portion
Of the Comstock. II Was but uatural that
the conclusion should fellow that this
food in Alta might be the same a. that
which was thus proved to extend 20 lar
north OF the Belcher workings on the
5000 level.
initiating against this theory 10 the
fact that when the drill In crosscut No.
I Alta struck tho water the dow was
stronger than was generally supposed
and forced $50 feet OF rod out OF the
hole. It IL doubtful. therefore. II there
was an increase at that point between
the time OF running the drill and the
flooding OF the crossout.
Then, saying nothing OF the distance
south from the Bslchsr 5000 workings
Of the Alta crosscut. the water vein cut
In Alta wa much further east than was
supposed. The Alta shaft itself IL 1000
feet ~longitudinally east OF the Bslcher
workings ON the 5000 level. The Alta.
Benton incline from the l65O.level to
the 1850 level makes On casting OF 7l0
feet, and the water was struck 1856 feet
east OF the lateral drift on the 2O6O level.
This would make the water. when on.
countersd, 2075 feet east OF the 5000
workings in Belchsr.
II may reasonably be questioned,
therefore, in the light Of the foregoing.
whether there 10 any connection between
the two courses OF water. n~otwithstsnd.
ing the fact that the Belcher Hood
reaches so far north.
Sill 1t Is possible for this southern
connection to exist. Deep explorations
into the mysteries Of the Comstock have
in many places shown remarkable de-
psrtures OF its walls from the normal
trend Of the vein itself. It 10 possible
that one OF this kind south from Bslchsr
may spread out 30 far to tho eastward a.
to bring the Alta strike into the same
w~ater-course az that Of the Belchsr. aud
allow it to participate in the Jacket
accumulation.
Whatever may be the facts In the case.
investigation into the water courses Of
the Comstock are full OF interest. and
nothing Ia ever lost by advancing q
theory. although It may subsequently, be
shown to be untenable.