Idaho County free press. [volume] (Grangeville, Idaho Territory) 1886-current, 1886-07-09
LIBERTY DISTRICT.
The New Mining Camp on Sal
mon Rivera New Town Laid
out, Prospects. Etc, Etc.

the new Liberty district on Salmon
river. The camp is about three and
one-half miles from John Byrom's place
at the head of Rocky canyon, with a
good trail all thes way. The rain was
falling heavily and the trail was very
slippery. but we made the distance to
the river in fifty minutes. The grass
in the ravines sloping towards the
Salmon is knee high and the ground is
always wet with moisture oozing from
the countless springs in the hill sides.
From one point on the trail an excellent
view of the up stream canyon can be
had, and at that eminence the river
looks like a silver riband. placid as
mill-pond with not ripple TO break its |
quiet surface, but on a nearer approach |
she develops into the same old noun
tain torrent with which we are all
familiar. We arrived in camp just in
time for supper, and partook of the bill
of fare under the shelter of a mountain
mahogany which shed the rain in fine
Styio. Inc uuaVCus'Ouieu uoFeiIy W
eating from tin plates in the open air
gave us ravenous appetites. and we went
for everything in sight in the shape of
grub not cakes and such truck, but
just pork and beans, bread and coffee,
and lots of it.
After supper we took look at the
surroundings. The lodges are located
on the hil-sides which enclose what is
known as "Shorty's bar" tract of
forty acres of level land about midway
between the mouths of White Bird and
Rocky canyon. Some mining was done
on the bar in the early days and the
remains of ditch bringing water from
an adjacent creek are still visible. The
bar was located in the early sixty's by
party who afterwards left for the
Caribou mines. Later on it was worked
by Cinnamon, until the death of one
of their number and his burial there.
caused the superstitious heathens to
abandon it. The grave still stands, and
the platters although broken are not
otherwise disturbed. At the lower end
of the bar Is the remains of a rock
cabin with the roof caved in. Across
the river lives half crazed old French
man known AZ shorty" after whom
the bar is named, and adjoining is one
of the only two spots on the river where
coarse gold is found. We washed several
pans of dirt from the bar and always
got color, while IN the enclosure where
the stone cabin stands We got a good
prospect.
Next in orderwas an examination o!
the quartz lodges, and so we were soon
climbing up the slippery walls of tn
canyon, fly fashion. The main ledge
is the Grand Chief" and the point at
which the boys are working it is about
five hundred feet above the level OF
the bar. The ledge matter is porphyry-
tic quartz enclosed in porphyry dyke
which is in its tnrn enclosed in walls
of gray granite on the south and black
slate on the north. The comb in which
the vein is situated is marked with
bold out-croppings. The ledge matter
is largely impregnated with the pyrites
sulphurets and manganese of iron. The
surface rock has been subjected 10
igneous action, and this combined with
atmospheric exposure has served tc
oxidise the rock and release the gold
The course of the vein Is nearly north
east and southwest and dips at good
degree of inclination into the hill. The
primary formation is covered with q
basaltic cap, the line of contact beins
strongly marked by the line of brush
which springs from the moisture flow-
ing out from the contact assures. The
rain ceased towards evening and We
climbed the mountain to the benche.
on the summit. The heavens were still
overcast with heavy clouds, but The
setting sun shone through rift in the
vapors and cast great floods of COLDER
light upon the face of nature, and 4.
the great luminary descended it bathet
he submits of the western hills il
sensuous splendor.
Next morning We climbed to create
attitudes and took a closer view of til,
network of veins radiating from tn,
Grand Chief" They intersect thu
main lode transversey from both sides
and as is usual in such cases, the or
bodies are composed of altogethe
r different minerals. Copper largel,
predominates with considerable iron il
one. Gray copper with traces of tn
9 bromide of silver are visible in another
and in third we detected likely indica
tions of silver carbonates. 1t is possibl
that the rich assays of the surface roc
are owing to the dissolution of tn
: mineral constituents by the agencies G
r fire and al atmosphere operating throug