Sierra County advocate. [volume] (Kingston, N.M.) 1884-1960, 1885-05-09
OUR "TRAMP" ABROAD.
He Visits the Las Animas Mining Dis.
trict, and See Many things to Write
About.


PLAcIERs, N. M. May 8, 1885.
In straight line, Las Anlmas
mining district lies about four miles
northwest of Hillsboro, four miles
south of the Animas and four miles
north Of tile Percha rivers. The
district embraces all the country
lying between those points and
covers an area of about twenty miles
of gold and silver bearing territory.
The Typography of the country is
broken by hills, high peaks and val
leys, some of the peaks rising to a
magnificent altitude of several
thousand feet. | might especially
mention the Animas peak and the
Black peak, whose feet are washed
by the waters of Grayback gulch
at the placers, as being quite
natural curioSities III the way OF
heights and sharpness. The -
gulches lie parallel to each other
at the distance Of half mile. The
Oldest placier mines are in Gray
back gulch, which were discovered
in 1878. Work was prosecuted
vigorously and the news of the
rich gold discoveries soon brought
hardy race Of pioneer miners to
the new field which spread out In
other gulches and new, and in many
instances, richer placiers were
found. Among these were Wells
and Greenhorn gulches, lying west
of the first discovery. In 1879 Goo.
Wells located claim of 7xl40 feet
III the gulch leaving his name. The
success with which he met in TAX
ing out gold nuggets is almost fab
ulCus, but in the short space OF
Il year he had Cleaned up $50, 900,
and the richness of his mine hay
ing attracted tine attention OF min
ing capitalists, he readily sold out
: sor $4,000. a few hundred yards
further west, is the Greenhorn
gulch. Considerable gold has been
taken from this claim and Is now
being worked by about ten miners.
Early last Monday morning we
walked from Mr.. Brooks store, III
Greenhorn gulch, where l had
spent the night, with Mr.. L. I.
Childers, who is mining in the
Greenhorn. On Slapjock hill, be-
fore entering the decline to Green
horn, we came to the entrance OF
the fine gold bearing tunnel made
by Tom Moore and Mr.. Ross.
STOPPING and creeping our way
through the darkness, to the dis
tance of about fifty feet, we came
upon a single miner with lighted
candle. This was Mr.. Mosey, the
only man working in the tunnel.
MIR. Mosey is having fair success,
but nothing to be compared with
the success of his predecessors,
but still he is doing we'll. Holding
his candle near the contact on
which he was TT work, he says,
"Look here" we did so, and saw sew.
eral pieces of fine nugget gold still
sticking in the wall, not unusually
large, but sufficiently. large enough
to be seen from the light of a single
cane .. Mr.. Childers and | were,
ia ken the full extent of the tunnel
about 100 feet Both to the right
and left, are numerous drifts from
which pay dirt has been found.
Going back to near the mouth OF
the tunnel, we were taken INTO what
Mr.. Mosey calls the "Bridal Cham
ber" This is very beautiful place
and has panned out large quantities
of pay dirt to the workers. This tun-
mel was started for the purpose of
cutting clear through the Slapjack
hill, to Wells gulch, but the own
ers, before mentioned, changed
their minds, and Mr.. Ross has en-
gagged in the stock and ranch busl-
ness, and Mr.. Moore has gone to
other parts. At the foot of the hill,
and right III the bottom of the
gulch, Mr.. Childers showed me his
claim. Although dame fortune has
not smiled propitiously on
Mr. Childers. yet he has taken out
enough of the wherewith to con-