The Mankato free press. [volume] (Mankato, Blue Earth County, Minn.) 1879-1924, 1883-07-27
THE GOLD HUNTERS LIFE.
The Wearisome, Fascinating, Never Salts.
flying Search for The Color" in
Early California Times.
MORNING.

We got ont of our blankets heavily.
Lees and back We're apt to be a little
StiIr in the morning. Or if not stiff, they
lacked action. Working all the day
previous. possibly in the wafer. or with
it splasiIing all about. tu"ging at heavy
bow lGrrs. shouldering wet sluices, to
say nothing OF the regular pick-and-
shovel exercise, would make itself felt
even when the limbs and blood were
younger than now. Dressing was q
short job. y pair of damp overalls, a
pair OF socks, Il pair OF shoes, or possibly
the heavy ruibcr mining boots. Elan.
nj shirts we slept in. a face-swabbing
with cold water in the tin basin outside
and - lick and Il promise for the haii
with the comb. That WAS about all fol
week drys. Vanity of apparel there
was little for the wOrkin" miner. Who
was there 10 dress for? Womenp Tie
nearest was half mile, 80 years of age
ant married. TEen breakfast. The fir,
klndlcd in the contrary little stove. Pos
S.hly it was necessary 10 attack with al
ny that dried old stump near by and
hack oil ii fcw chi S To cool; with. The
miners wood pile WAS generally small.
il, got in f,icl on rainy days, or at tn,
odd Intervals To be spared from work
You put on the worn tin teapot, lower
ed The @anze-coyered meat safe from the
tree. cut IA steak from the chunk OF bull
mahogany within called beef, slung Il
dab oi lard in the frying pan, put there
III TIE meat and let it siZZle. Two or
three boiled potatoes might be sliced,
fried more or less brown in the gravy,
and this. with bread and tea, formed the
breakfast, The bread was the bread of
Your own labpriouS baking. the loaf OF
an irregular shape, the crust very hard
and thick, the color often pied, being
black where it had burned, brown where
it had baked and of Il pallid whiteness
where i, had not baked at all. Within
the loaf mi"ai be close. heavy, and in
color cithe: Il creamy or canary yel.
low. in proportion to the improper
| amount of yeast-powder used.
BEGINNING THE DAY.
The table is II broad shelf against the
| wall There is no tablc-cloth. You did
| not always wash up after breakfast. for
| the dishes. rs they stood, were all in
place for dinner. Some fastidiOus min
crs washed their dishes aftereach meal;
most of us did not. 1t was too much to
| expect of hard-worked humanity. The
cabin door is open while you eat, and
from il YOU look forth on the claim.
| There LAYS the bank of red earth rs YOU
left il Yesterday after the cave There
| is the reservoir full of cOilee-cOlore,l
ditch water which had run in during
| II l. .c, H.. ,,,,I frp him
in dozen claims up country" Then
You draw on those damp, clammy rub
Der boots. either to the knee or hip high,
the outside splashcd with the dried red.
dish mud, and smelling disagreeably OF
rubber us you pulled them on. and smell.
inc worse rs you became heated and
pcrspiring. In these you waddle to the
claim. forgot. Breakfast over. ono
of the most important acts Of the day
was next on the programme. That was
the filling. lighting and smoking of youl
pipe. Nothing could hurry You through
this performances. The first puff rose
in the air rs incense to the early morn
and smoking. thus You wad'lled in your
big boots To the claim. There you me-
your three partners, all likewise smok
| ILL.,. iutN VII
looking into the ground-sluice. There
is no good morning" or other greet
ing; if anything. grunts. There lay thu
tools-shovels, picks. crowbarand sluice
fork-helplcssly about, as left last eve
ming. A little muddy water trickle
through the line of sluiccS. One of u
goes TO the reservoir, u few hundred
yards off, and turns on the water. An
other goes to the tail of the sluices will
the sluicc-iork. Then is heard the click
ing of the pick and the grating of TIN
shovel against the red dirt; down come
the muddy water over the bank and TIN
days work has fairly commenced.
WORKING THE STREAK.
:, We stand in u row, allowing suilicien
room between each for swinging TIN
, pick. We are undermining the bank
the water running at our feet and be
tween us and the bottom of the bank
Each chunk of red dirt dislOdged by tn
pick falls into the running water, an,
if it be hard and will not readily dissolv
il must be broken up by pick or shove
. to keep the stream clear and unimpeded
The large powders are picked out b
, hand and thrown behind us-nOt in dis
ordered fashion, either. Room in tn
cut is scarce and must be economical
SO the eyer-accumulating bowlder pill
is ''faced up with neat wall. lai