, 1885-02-15
A LOST GOLD MINE.
The Romantic Story of a Wind
River Mountain Secret.
A Deserted Cabin Surrounded BY
Skeletons and Gold.
A Long Ssarch and a Discovery
Of Valuable Ore.


latest Intelligence from Rawlins, promise
to make the feature Of the gold mining
excitement of the coming season. The
Lost Cabin stands in the mountains Of
Fremont county, in this territory. near
Wind River canyon, andn not far from Hoo
Doc creek. It is a dismal looking affair,
made of roughly hewn timber, with port
holes for windows, and bearing evidences
Of border warfare. Who built it was
never known, and its very locality was,
until last fall, one Of the mysteries which
scores of hardy mountineers and gold
hunters sought yainly to unrayel It has
only recently been learned that the cabin
was found last fall by a lucky prospector,
and the strange story of the place is now
on eyerybody's tongue.
Twenty-Five years ago a party Of Sioux
Indians on a hunting expedition stopped
near the head of the canyon of the Big
Horn to shoot fish, and while there dis
covered a mineral which they believed 10
be gold. Several of them were busy
picking out the stuff with their knives,
when they were discovered by a party Of
Grows and driven away.
The Sioux carried with them three or
four nuggek of great value. and on re-
turning to their agency disposed of them
to the whites, who tried, without success.
to learn where they were found. As hos
tile Indians were plentiful in that locality
no great effort was made to discover the
mines until after the Black Hills were
opened to settlement. Then dozens of
adventurous parties started out for the
Big Horn range, and many Of them were
never heard Of afferward.
Some time in 1877 a man came into
Fort Washakie. and reported that he and
several COMPANIONS. had been mining up
in the mountains, near Wind river canyon,
and that all but he had been killed BY
Indians. He was not very bright. and
no great attention was paid to him. al
though he had a long story to tell about
the richness of the mines. and the fact
that he and his comrades had built a
cabin. which could easily be found. if any
one dared make the effort He disap-
peared after awhile. and, as the Indians
were troublesome. nothing more was
thought of the matter for the time. AZ
ter a little, interest in the matter was re-
viyed, and several parties started ont in
search Of the cabin. When they aband-
oned the search Others took it up, and at
length the lost cabin became everybody's
quest. Interest in the mine was kept at
fever heat, because the Indians in that
vicinity frequently brought gold to Fort
Washakie, hut refused to tell where they
found il
The red men have been exceedingly !
jealous Of the whites. and though it is
now discovered hat the mines are not on
the reservation at all, the Indians have
always insisted that the white mans bust
ness was to attend to cattle and leave the
gold to them. The search for the cabin
had been well nigh given up, when it was
announced a little while ago that it had
been found in the place above described,
and that its DISCOVERIES were already in
possession of the much sought mines,
and making preparations Tor work in the
spring.
The cabin was found in this way: Dur
ing the Big Horn excitement of 1877 a