Grand Rapids morning telegram., 1885-01-16
A LOST NINE.
Anticipating a Big SILVER Strike iD
the Far North.
pas ssofy = tnfwaakss Haa Tsxts-Unsobd
Treasures Waiting Ia the Bow
ri. of the Earth For tks
Lucky EtndsK.
pIiIwauks. Wisconsin,

firm Of Leopold & Austrian, owners Of the
steamer lines plying between Ailwaukes,
Chicago and Lake Superior ports, beside his
marine interests Is large invester
ia Lake Superior mining properties.
Ii was his good luck TO be one of the men
who held Calumet and Hecla stock before
the Agassz IsOcsss for reducing copper
ore was discovered, which discovery in
creased the value OF copper mine stocks
five hundred fold, and made Calumet and
Hecla the greatest wealth producing
shafts ever dug into mother earth. Sue
cess in this and like ventures has made
Mr.. Leopold a warm, not TO say SAN
guine, believer in the mineral possibilities
OF the Northwest, and there are few pros
pecting schemes on the North shore" 10
which he has not been "A contributor.
In conversation with reporter day or
two ago. he told the following fascinating
story: Cooper is undoubtedly "a good
thing. No man who was lucky enough TO
get into some OF the Michigan mines on the
ground floor can gainsay that, but silver is
a better thing, for all that, and as sure as
my name is Leopold, some time or other
there will be one of the biggest strikes Of
silver made on the north shore OF Lake Su-
perior ever made in America. 1t will out
do the Rocky Mountain finds, just as our
copper gets away with the Arizona mines.
OF course, you know that where copper oc-
ours, silver is likely to be also found, and
that this is more than theory the frequent
discovery of silver in Northern Michigan,
and especially on the north shore, proves
You know there is an island on Lake
Superior called Silver Island, on which
silver is very profitably mhaed. Did you
never hear the story of the lost Silver
Miner"
"Never," said the reporter.
"Well, it is good enough TO print" said
Mr.. Leopold. 1T is a current tradition at
Ontonagon, Hancock, Houghton, and espe
cially at Duluth, and while you can hear
it good many ways, | have looked into it
very often, and believe you will find this
is about the truth of it, About sixty
years ago all Of the country north of
Duluth was a wilderness. There were a
few Hudson Bay Company's posts scat
tered about the rivers and lakes up there,
and the rest of that part of British Amer
ica was the home of rowing Indians and
nobody else. The story was current then
that somewhere down along the northern
shore of the lake there was a mine where
virgin silver was to be found in Jumps. One
day party of Indians-this is the cold
truth, which you can find on record in
books printed years ago-One day party
of Indians came into port on Lake. Winni- =
peg to trade, but instead of furs they had
solid ngots of silver. Every one of the
party were provided with bricks worth
hundreds of dollars. You may be-
lieve this caused sensation. 1t
proved that the rumors current SC
long had some foundation. The Indians
were strangers at the post. They belonged
to a different tribe from any ever seen
there before, and they pointed out vaguely
in southeasterly direction, when asked
whence they had come. OF course they
had the usual carouse, and at lasJ they
loaded up with guns, calcoes, beads and
whisky and started for home. Two
Frenchmen, who were at the post, tracked
/ them across the wilderness, ,sh Allowing them
like pair of detectives, and after going
about 100 miles further than from st. Louis
to ago-through Incredible hardships
and suff erin IS. they at last tracked them tC
earth. According to the story the home o.
these Indians was in the range OF hills be-
tween Crooked Lake and Superior, south
of PIGEON River, in what is now the Stat,
OF Minnesota. They did more than this
they found the Indian mine and its wealth
was beyond all the stories told of it. In
grotto of rotten rock the virgin silver wa
to be seen veinng the sid 3 in every direc
tion. The two men marked down the po
sition of the mine as closely as could be
taking a number of land marks, 81
that there could be no mistake. The min
stood at the head of a long serpentin
ravne which trended southeast. Thel
thew loaded up with all the silver the,
could carry and star ted back. All thi
time the Indians knew nothing of thei
visits. Well, they toiled along for day
and davs. borne down by the weight o
metal and at last one of them sickene,
and died on the road. Winter was comin
on and the remaining explorer struggle
onward after burying his companion, an
now and then stopping and cacheing som
Of the silver. until at last he got back {
the post. The work and the exposur
were too much for him, however, and in
couple Of days he, too, sickened and dieC
He gave the most explicit ins ructions {
his companions at the Ios as TO how tn
mine was to be reached, and YOU may be
lieve that the search made the next sum
mer was an exhaustive one. The body
the other explorer was found, as was ais
the silver hidden on the road, but the min
itself was not come upon. There is an ol
Canadian that every body calls Leon. VIII
il occasionally to be seen in Duluth, wher
he comes to buy stores. who is the son
one of the men that were at th
post when the survivor Of the tw
first finders got back. Thi
} Leon has done nothing all his life but hul
for that mine. He has got old papers d,
scribing It's location as closely as poss bl
! bat he has never found il. although the'
Is not a ravine in those hills that b hs
not examined. tie will keep mp the har
until he dies OF course. and IA may fad
; stranger things have happened"
"D0 You believe ths story
4 I 4 a