, 1886-03-26
OUR LANDER LETTER.
Finding Mineral Worth Two Thousand
4 Five Hundred Dollars a Pound.

aho HhAhtfa oftu hWO luOuha nu
- Five Hundred Dollars a Pound.
Special Correspondence OF THE LEADER.
LANDER, March 22.-Last year in a
mountain gorge of the Big Horn a COW
boy stumbled upon. an old deserted mine.
The shaft, twenty feet in depth, bore evi-
dence of at least twenty years idleness.
On the old dump was a mass of dark col
ored substance in Jumps varying in SIZE.
On examination the substance was found
to be smooth of surface and almost plastic
TO the touch. The cowboy maryeled
greatly over his curious discovery, and
after range work was over in the fall, he
he'd him with pick and spade to the old
mine. Here he worked for some time,
finding that there was an immense lead of
the queer stuff" as he called it. The
scene Of his labors was near the Bonanza
oil district. and one day he rode over to
the oil men camp and showed them the
g%reenish black product OF the deserted
mine. They were, too, at a loss, though
certain that oil was the base of the sub
stance. A. A. Conant, of the oil district,
was telling a party of friends here last
night of the circumstance, and described
the stuff" Capt. j. A. McAvoy, who
has just returned from a visit to the East
ern oil fields, drew a small black looking
object from his pocket and asked Conant
fit was anything like that. Like III"
says Conant, why, it is the very thing
itself" That rejoined the captain,
lis ozocerite, and is worth -, 500 a ton.
The captain then went on to say that
while in Marietta, o., he bad met an old
friend, just returned from the oil fields of
old Mexico. On comparing oil notes it
appeared that the black Mexican oil, and
the oil Of the Big Horn basin had many
similar qualities, and McAvoy's friend
asked him if any ozccerite had yet been
found. On being answered in the mega
tive, he produced a specimen and said
that for a long time the operators Of the
Mexican oil wells were ignorant of the
character of the light black mass through
which they we're boring. The oily. char
acter of the stuff finally attracted atten-
ton. 1t was submitted to the analysis of
a German chemist, who at once pro-
nounced it ozocerite, and gave its value.
Since, large quantities of the 50, 500 a ton
product have been shipped to Boston,
Mass. 1t is used in the manufacture offs
costly varnish, and is also said to be in
demand for telegraph insulators. Fur
Their, azocerite has a medicinal value,
being largely used in certain skin diseases.
It is found in limited quantities in Aus
tria and Turkey. Up to the time of the
old Mexico find, azocerite has been sup
posed to exist only in isolated and narrow
veins. The mass in the Big Horn coun-
try is apparently inexhaustible.
Indications point to the existence of
ozocerite in more than one place in the
Wyoming mountains. Two years ago a
man brought in a specimen from the
Green River mountains to Rawlins. 1t
was examined by Il mining expert, who
pronounced it ozocerite but Of an inferior
quality. 1t was, however, only a surface
specimen.
The personality and fate of those who
located and worked the old mine can only
be conjectured. They were probably
killed by the Indians. The singular part
Of their digging is that the ozocerite was
whatrhey wanted, as it was carefully piled
on the dump.
The Lander stock meeting took place
yesterday, arranging for three round up
districts. James Burroughs was APP
pointed foreman for Upper Wind river,
Henry Farlow for the immediate Lander
round up, and John Gatlin for the Musk
rat district The latter begins on the 9Th
Of May.
Deputy Sheriff Yedal has Just received
a letter from the proprietor of the insane
asylum announcing the death of William
Miller. confined there from this county.
Mr.. Miller was a young stock man of the
Big Horn country. He was hopelessly in
sane.