, 1883-09-01


As far back in antiquity as we have
any record of gold has been men
toned rs existing and was always
held as a valuable and precious met
al, and on down through the cycle Of
ages to the present day have men
striven for the drOss. Gold has been
declared "the root of all evil" and
from the recorded history of the
earth it is evident that the trite say
ing is very applicable, although the
fact does not cool the ardOr Of the
masses in their endeavOrs to accumu-
late some of the "rOOt." Barbarians
have massacreed for it semi-civil-
lied nations have mttled for it and
the most enlightened people have
cast their lives in the scale in the
struggle to possess it. 1t has beenan
object for men to lust after for CEN
turtles, and that avariciousness that
pertains to man has been found as
prominently marked in the sceptered-
sovereign as the lowest peasant. Gold
has been directly the cause OF an i'm
measurable amount of crime, and will
continue to be as long as the world
exists. For it man will undergo the
most prOdigiOus torture. He will
tempt providence in ten thousand
ways, and failure Of success, as a rule,
is only7an incentive for further exer-
tions. Miners who have spent the
best years of their lives prospecting,
always living on the hopes of the
morrow, will revive and manifest
just as much interest as a novice upon
the discovery Of a new gold field.
1t has been ever thus. With the
prospects of the yellow dust before
their eyes, men will brave the dangers
of the burning sands Of the desert,
the frigid atmosphere Of the most
rigorous winters, the threatening raw
ages of Indians, flood, famine and
pestilence. 1t was the longing for
gold that constituted one OF the
nerving stimulants that induced the
mighty navigator and his few bold
followers to launch forth into an I'M
known eXpanse Of water, and leaving
home and kindred behind, trust to
the mercy Of remorseless sea in
order to find passage to an imagin-
ary country that was purported to be
fabulously rich in precious metals,
stones and fabrics. After the discov-
cry Of this continent the hopes Of
unearthing ineXhaustible treasure
was a greater incentive to the colon
ist than the building up Of a western
empire. The history Of the red
handed Pizarro, who we could never
respect, but might admire for his
bOldness, were II not known that he
practiced atrocities upon an inoffen-
sive and far advanced race just for
the expectation Of a golden reward,
Is but one Of the many bloody pages
in the annals Of the PAST wherein gold
was the sole and only motive that
prompted to deeds Of violence. So
might we follow down the chronicles
to the present day.
1t was the feverish excitement Gre
ated by the news Of gold discovery
that turned the faces of tens Of thOus-
ands Of people toward California
thirty-five years ago, and it was
followed by the load-stOne that at
tracted a host Of adventures to the
wilds Of Australia, and at later day
TO the sterile land of South Africa, and
Arizona, 50 much nearer home. The
present generation is cOnversant with
the hardships endured by the early
miners of the Golden State. What
trials, and vicissitudes, and dangers
they faced, led on by the golden
mirage. The trails were marked by
the bones Of those who fell by the
wayside on that dark voyage. Some
died with the first fever fast upon
them ; others succumbed when but
half way on their way; while still
others learned the vanity Of earthly
desires when on the verge Of the land
Of promise and when they thought
riches were within their very grasp.
Who can ever write history of the
sufferings and the obstacles overcome
by that band Of pioneers who, cut
away from all that was dear to them,
bravely dashed into an unknown and
uncertain path, where everywhere
lay ambushed death and disaster,
lured on by the one dream Of gold !
gold goldl
AS it has been in the past so will II
ever be in the future. The cupidity
Of man and the desire for riches are
as great to-day as 1t was thousands Of
years ago, and whenever a new
mining field is opened up, whether