Daily globe. [volume] (St. Paul, Minn.) 1878-1884, 1882-01-08
GOLD GALORE.


as Zig a Thing as the Sutr0 Tunnes-d
Project to Reach the hidden Health of
Feather Ricer.
The San Francisco Mining Press of
December II says:
1t has been known for many years, and
the fact is substantiated beyond doubt,
that Butte county contains some of the
richest auriferous deposits in the world.
Feather river and its tributaries have
added many millions to the worlds vol
ume of gold coin, and wherever the beds
of the streams have been mined, or in
places where mining operations are now
being carried on, the returns have
been and are very generous. A
notable instance was that of the "Cape
claim" situated about one and half
| miles above Oroville, on the Feather river,
in Butte county In the year 1857 party
| of miners organized company; at cost
of $4,000 built two dams across the
river, 3.400 feet apart, with fume of
sufficient capacity to carry the whole
| body of water in the river past both dams,
and discharging into the river below the
lower dam. When the water of the river
bed between these dams was exhausted,
men were set to work sluicing in the
most primitive manner, yet the returns
were simply enormous; then an uneX-
pected rise in the river carried away the
entire works in single night, and the
books of the famous "Cape claim" were
closed.
1t is now proposed TO get at these
riches in a systematic way, and to over
come the existing obstacles by engineer
ing science, and a company has been
formed to turn the waters of the north
fork of the Feather river, known as Big
Bend, little above Whisky Bar, by
means of tunnel, into tributary of the
west branch. A great many people have
thought something of this kind could be
done, but it was only within year that
the project began to assume shape, and
was seriously Investigated by Col. Logan,
of Oakland, Cal, and Maj. Mclaughlin,
of New York These gentlemen
took up some thirteen miles of
the rlver-bed, and got it covered by
United States patent. 1t happened to be
On unsurveyed government lauds, and SO
could be taken up without consideration
of the legal subdivisions, This patent,
by the way, is the largest ever issued by
the United States government, and the
surveys cost over $4,000. Hon. r. V.
Pierce, of Buffalo, and W. Alistrom, of
Chicago, also associated themselves with
the gentlemen mentioned. Roads and
houses are being. built, and it is intended
| to begin work on two faces Of the tunnel
itself in April next
The tunnel begins nearly half mile
above Whisky Bar, at place where the
river is deeply incaved between the banks,
and where the stream has very little fall.
1t is proposed to establish the bottom of
the tunnel four feet below the lowest
portion of the stream, in order to give
impetus to the waters, taking greater
velocity than they had in the stream.
This Big Bend tunnel will be II, 800 feet
long, 251a feet wide, 2l14 feet high, and
the excavation will cost about 81 per
cubic yard. At the entrance of the tunnel
will be permanent dam across and up to
the level of the bed of the stream. On
this can be erected dam, on the Bayot
plan, as used in the Cher and Loire rivers,
that can be thrown down and erected
again in short time, or temporary con-
struction can be built each year.
Mr.. Barry, the engineer in charge,
makes two estimates of cost-one for
155,037 cubic yards at 81, which, with
machinery, compressors, tools, buildings,
roads, wires, sluice gates, ventilating bore
holes, engineering expenses, etc. amounts
to $500, 200; the other, with the same ex-
penses, except that 207,2 cubic yards
are to be excavated, amounts to $1,000
600. Some Of the water may be utilized
for irrigating purposes.
Mr.. Barry says that experienced miners
who have been in the neighborhood since
1850, estimate the value of gold in the
river bed around Big bend at from $780,
100000 to s150,0O0,0O
All the bars in the Big bend have the
reputation of having paid WELL 1t is
claimed that over S1,00O,00O was taken
from Toland bar in the seasons of 1856
and 1857, and it has been worked every
year since. All the tributaries of the
North fork have been very rich.
TIE Speaker and the Congressional Conn
mittees.
[St. Louis Republican,
There is great deal of justice and good
sense IN the proposition of Congressman
Orth, referred to in our Washington dis
patches this morning, to change the
method Of selecting committees of the
house. It is we'll known that there prob
ably never was so much dissatisfaction
with the composition of the house COM
mittees as that which has followed Speak
er Keifer's appointments. Mr.. Orth
alludes to the personal injustice
done to him, and scores of other men,
bers, might properly make the same
complaint; but the studied and COM
plicated processes of the presiding officer
reach much further than mere individual
pride; they affect the political and bust
ness concerns Of the whole country. The
action of Speaker Keifer has not only
been that Of the small partisan, seeking
advantages for his party by intrigue and
trickery, but has plainly exhibited de-
termination to control the legislation of
the country in the interest of those Sec
tions represented by the com
bination which elected him. Com
! ment has been made upon the
way in which the committees
of elections, of ways and means and of
appropriations were made up. What
shall we say of Mr.. Keifer's committee
on commerce, which holds not single
Missouri member, although we have
three congressional districts, one partly
and the other two wholly, within the