Sacramento daily record-union. [volume] (Sacramento [Calif.]) 1875-1891, 1882-01-11
DEBRIS.
THIRTY-EIGHra DAY OF THE sLICKEEs
CASE II COURT.
Interesting Evidence Given by Miners
Who Came to California
in 1879.


Temple presiding.
j. FL. Keown sworn ito Mr.. j. K. Byrne)
Il reside at Michigan Bluff, and am engaged
in mining. am at present part owner and
Superintendent of the Centennial quartz
mine. I came to California in 1919. | came
up the river to Sacramento in 1850 on q scow.
I was almost ten days in making the trip.
la December. 1850, L made a second trip
from San Francisco to Sacramento, and was
twenty days in making the voyage, during
the food of 1S4e and 1850. The whole valley
clear up to Marysville was covered with
water. at point between the Hook farm
and Bear river found steamer stranded,
lying high and dry. l think it was the
steamer Fashion, and she was foated of dur
ing the high water of the succeeding winter.
Ihs Feather river at that time was full of
shifting sand-bars. During the dry season
the river was very low. The river was full
in some places Of sunken trees and snags
[ went to Iowa Hill in 1854, and
remained there until 1858. From there
went to Blue Canyon, and remained there for
year and a half. travelled over the Sec
ton commonly known as the Forest and Iowa
Hill divides a great deal. Tie principal
mines in operation at Iowa Hill, in 1854, were
the Jameson, Hazel Green, Wisconsin, North
Star and Sailor Union. [ constructed the
first hydraulic that was used 10 that section,
in 1855 or 1856. Witness described the ex-
tent of the early mining at those points and
in the neigiborhood of Todd's valley The
natural wash of that section is very great.
There is an immense watershed and our win
ter rains are very heavy. The constructing
of roads, grazing of sheep, and other causes,
contribute largely to the natural wash. The
upper portions of this watershed during the
summer is. filed with immense herds of cat
tie, horses and sheep. All of this country is
owned by stock-raisers, and constitute what
they call ranges. | do not know the number
of stock herded in this county. but it is many
thousands. There is about 400 miles of road
in that section. There are great many log
roads, and, in most of them, they are cue up
into dust foot deep during the summer or
dry season, and this fine material is washed
out and into the water courses during
the heavy rains. These roads, where
the grade is considerable, have washed
out TO depth of from ons to four feet. The
natural wash on that divide il very much
more than that washed out by the by
draulie miners. Il is at least three
times as great. The natural wash is
a lighter material - is carried off in
suspension, and is deposited at much
greater distance than the heavier material
discharged from the mines. The heavy ma
terial from he hydraulic mines is generally
permanently lodged near their dumps. In
1850 the steamer McKim and OTHERS had
difficulty in crossing the Hogs Back. They
frequently had to lay up at Colliusy.lle and
wait fer the tide, before they could cross that
bar. The existing litigation has depressed
the value of hydraulic mines Of this State.
think we are on the richest gravel deposit in
the State. Over S25, 600, coo has already
been taken out, and comparatively small
proportion of il is worked. This channel has
been traced in length more than sixty miles,
and it varies in width frcm thirty to six hun
dred feet. They have drifted at Damascus
over half mile, and in other localities
equally as much. From the extent of the
workings of this channel and the richness of
the deposit, estitnats thai there remains in
this channel yet to be mined upwards of
$500, 900 coo.
Cross-sxamination 10Y Attorney General
Hart)-There was no considerable hydraulic
mining in that section prior to 1879. wit
ness described both the drift and hydraulic
processes Of mining.] The Dsrdanelies, near
Forest Hill, is hydraulic miGe. The prin-
cipal mining at Forest Hill has been drift.
The average depth Of the Dardanelles Is
about eighty feet. and perhaps forty acres
have been washed out. There have been
nifty or Sixty acres WSsaed Oh az 1odn V al
ley, to q considerable depth. There was per-
haps more than forty acres washed Of
at Michigan Bluffs. The mines at the
Bluffs were formerly owned by nu-
merous parties, but they all, at the
present time, belong to one company.
[ visited tie Dar1anelles mine last summer.
They were drifting at the time | was there.
/ have visise Wheeler & Brescs's mine whea
it WAS IN operation. The cement in the Oar
u - H. 1rh 0f,,s
100 fest. \ great portion Ct the mining at
Todd's Valley was shallow surface not more
than from four to six feet deep. The Hidden
Treasure and Damascus mines are worked by
the drifting process. ! do not know the
amount of material in cubic yards taken
froIa those miUes. | consider that the sedi-
mentary deposit IN this valley is wholly at
tributr5le to natural wash. I4oug experience
in these mountains. and thought, Is the basis
upon which found my judgment as TO the
relative proportions OF the natural and min
ing wash. [ am not hydraulic miner. l
think this prosecution is very unjust one.
You are prosecuting an industry that has
done much for this State, for the whole
Union and the entire world. The Big Mead
ows ere situated on the headwsteTs of the
Middle Fork. In passing Rice's bridge, a
few days since, l was surprised TO see the
very slight amount of debris in the river at
that point. Abovs that point tie taillngs be-
gin TO accumulate very fast.
Redirect examination (by j. K. Byrne)-
There are. two kinds of lava in those old
river channels. One is a sedimen5ary de-
post, the other an igHeous formation.
z. Il. EvENs
Sworn. Direct examination (by A. B. DID,
ble)-I came to California in 1S49, and at
present reside in Placerville. l came to this
city 10 1S49 to get provisions. at that time
I was located ct old Weber town, in Ell
Dorado county. l worked at various other
points in the surfaces minos. Witness de-
scribed the early mining.l In 1850 and 1851
I worked on both the South and Middle
Forks of the American river. At that time,
the South Fork from Chile Ear, above Coloma,
was muddy. TIE Middle Fork was a clearer
stream. The rivers would be tolerably clear
in the morning. but the mining during the
day would discolor the water. The work at
that time was principally done with cradles.
In 1852 | ilamed the river just below kelseY's
Bar. That year we did not get into the river
until the mouth of September, and worked
until about the q tn of October. The depth
of the gravel in the bed Of the river, where
I worked, varied from one foot to twelve.
The average depth of gravel in the rivers
as far as my obssrv etinn { oes, was about five
feet, aud composed of powders. gravel and
sand. A very large proportion of the gravel
deposit in the bottom of the streams was
sand. WITNESS described the formation of
the banks and bars of the American river
forks.l In the floods of 1861 and 1862
the material deposited prior to that time
by the miners into the channels of those
rivers was carried down stream. The dis
placement of material by the miners prior to
1862 was very much greater than that dis
placed since that date more than fifty time 8
as much. This is owing to various causes.
In early days there were twenty men engaged
In mining to where there is one now. The
gold was found in the grass roots and shallow
alluvial soil. Those mines were easily worked,
and the displacement was very large. The
mines worked now are in entirely different
material. They are on the blue lead, and
the gravel formations are mostly composed of
rock. I estimate that there was more
displacement in the first three years after the
discovery of gold in 1S4S than there has been
since. 1 should judge that the amount of
gold that has been taken out of the mines in
III Dorado county to exceed S50,o00 eco. 1
estimate thst the gold remaining in the gravel
beds of the county exceeds in value 500, 0O0,-
600. WITNESS described the extent and
capacity of the various water canals and
reservoirs within the county, All of those
canals and reservoirs were constructed for the
purpose of furnishing the various mines with
water, The storing Of this water In those