Devils Lake inter-ocean. (Devils Lake, Ramsey Co., Dakota [N.D.]) 1884-1905, 1886-04-03
the trail of quartz yet in this land. When
they do therell be a bigger whoop up than

the trail of quartz yet in this land. When
they do therell be q bigger whoop up than
ever"
"You see" continued Broener, II hap
pened to get whatever education has been
filtered into me at a German university.
Mineralogy was my favorite study. There
became acquainted with Madame Quartz
the matrix, in fact mother, of gold-am mother
who has a good deal to answer for in bring
ing so much of the root of oil evil into the
world. So soon as I arrived in these mines I
knew that the gold which has through
ages drifted into all these rivers, creeks and
gulches, must have tumbled some time or
other out of this kind of rock, and wherever
the rock was, there was the chance Of find
ing gold in the original package So I
hunted and / found it ut last, and here are
more Of the original packages."s
He turned up q flat bowlder as he spoke,
and underneath, in q cavity, lay q pile Of
the yellow-fecked white rock. Pieces were
there varying in size from a potato to q
human skull. Some seemed half gold. I
picked up the biggest, and was astonished
at its weight.
''That's a hundred ouncer," said Broener,
'outside the rock it carries. Seventeen hun
bred dollars more than the whole crowd on
the bar below will get out in a day. It makes
me laugh to think of those poor devils hump
ing themselves down there, and fighting over
sardines of thirty-three feet claims to the
man, when there's enough up here to send
them all to the old boy. For there's where most
of 'em would go if they struck it."
And he laid back and had his laugh out in
an expansive, silent grin, whose heartiness
seemed to pervade his whole being. "Singu-
lar" he remarked, ''how circumstances alter
cases. Rich US ! am, IScan't afford to laugh
aloud, lest the poems below hear ME. They
alone can enjoy that luxury"
"But where does this quartz come from2" ]
asked.
He arose. went forward a few steps to the
base Of the precipice where it Joined the
shelf, and turned over a few bushes care.
lessly laid against tho rock. There, low
down near the ground, was a streak Of
white quartz. Then l observed on closer in
spection that it had been dug into here and
there to the depth of a few feet. Looking
closer still I saw the yellow metal, and in
places where ruptured by the pick it shone
with a CLINT like gilt-very different from
the duller color Of the 'river wash" gold or
that of Shank diggings."
eyes, there's the bank" said Broener.
"The Bank Of California; and if I wasn't a
man Of more than ordinary strength of mind
I'd worry myself to death nights fearing lest
some other quartz learned reptile came crawl.
ing up here and worming himself into my
pile. AS it is, I have fits Of such fear al
times, but when I find them coming on I say;
BE off, We devils.' Because all fears art
devils-devils of the mind. Hard to be put
out if once let in, md bound to kill if you
can't drive 'em out"
"How do you get the gold out of the rockF
I asked.
Pound the gold out of tho bigger lumps
with mortar and pestle," he, replied, "but
most of it I carry to San Francisco to be
treated such as that piece you threw down
just now. It looks worthless. You can't sec
any gold in it, yet it's full, full of dust gold
fine as four-yes, flner-flne as the dust on
the butterly's wing. I take that to the
assayer. How the mint officials opened Their
eyes at them. First they ever saw. Wanted
to know where I dug them and how and all
about it. Of course I told them. I located
my diggings in the farthest possible country
from This, and fired volleys Of lies otherwise
at them. A man must protect himself, you
know, and cut and run from truth just as
a ship in an opel roadstcad with a gale sud.
denly coming on must cut and run from her
best bower. I half believe they didn't quite
accept my story, aud suspect sometimes they
set a watch on me to see which way 1 trav.
eled. No knowing, you know, what some
learned worm of the dust at. the mint might
do. Because such a one would know what
this rock meant, and he would yearn, yea
seek, for it diligently, and do-just as
might do under the same sore trial"
Continued mcrl Mcck.)