, 1888-11-08

osity. From 1t. il seems that Prichar
spent long time prospecting before he u
length "struck it," Indeed Prichard wa
known by some of the older residents O
this place. and worked as logger severa
seasons for Hon. A. M. Cannon. He mad
Spokane Falls his headquarters. and from
this point took long excursions into th
the truthfulness of his epistolary declara
tions. As page OF the early history of th
C9ur d'Alenes this letter is quite interest
ing.
Mr.. Prichard, at the time when h,
made known this discovery, was quiet
undemonstrative, pleasant individual. Fl,
looked as though he had spent much of hi,
life in the solitude of the mountains. anc
showed signs of the hardships and disap
pointments that he had met with in his
oeaseless search for hidden treasures. A:
the letter shows he entertained an euto'
plan dream Of founding a city In which
the laws and reQulation0 should be of a
new and improved order. and that the
community therein should be benefited
through the fruits of his laborious exer-
tions.
HUNTING FOR THE PLACE.
1t is not out of place here to state that a
report was in circulation to the effect that
party of Californians and Montanians,
excited by his story of so vast and valu-
able find, made an appointment and
met Prichard before the snow disappeared
in the early spring of So He attempted
to pilot the party to the creek on which
he had washed out gold. He led them :.
merry dance for tso weeks,
up and down the most rugged
mountains. through almost inn
penetrabe forests, and at last was com
PEELED to admit that he could not find his
way. 1t is further alleged chat the
stormy tempered mountains, who were
not used TO calmly submitting to such i'm
positions, waxed exceedingly wrathy, and
vowed vengeance upon the unlucky
pleader.
TIKEATENED LYNCHtNG.
1t was tnen decided by the sanguinary
miners from Montana that Prichard was
fairly entitled to dangle for his failure to
exhibit his coal fields, and being proficient
in the practice of lynch law, we're about to
decorate pine tree with the attenuated
anatomy Of Mr.. Prichard, when the more
generous Californians interfered, and
after considerable moral persuasion, in.
duced the Montanians to accept their
views of the case which was that the 30.
called gold discoverer was cracked, and
upon that plea they permitted him to re.
tain foothold upon earth. The
party was thoroughly disgusted The
Montanians stole quietly away eastward,
while the Californlans passed through this
city, homeward bound, convinced that
there was no gold in the Cpur Alenes.
IL was from one OF this party that the let
ter was secured,
LOST OPPORTUNITY.
How mistaken these men were has since
been amply proven. 1t was during the
fall of 1888 that Mr.. Prichard came to
this city with large quantity of magni.
ficent gold nuggets, the result of his sum
mer's work. Soon it became known that
rich placers really existed in the Rulcnes
and on the creeks of the Cnur d'Alene |
The papers took it up and |
the find to the world. A stam-
pede followed in the dead of winter. CGur
'Alene was denounced far and wide by
those who were on the ground that winter |
and left without seeing scale of gold. 1t |
gave the couhtry o black eye from which it
last entirely reRained its standing among |
the mining districts of the world needs
only the rich mines now in existence |
and the very promising prospects TO prove.
Thousands upon thousands of dollars in |
gold have been washed out Of the soil, en-
riching many deserving prospectors, and |
there ia a vast amount of ground yet to |
work and yield up its rich reward to the
owners.
THE VALUE OF QUARTZ.
Vahably productive as its placers have
oeen the greatest wealth of the Cpur
A. lanoo roato IN bor cua ~, ,;ca. TIL,
feature of that district is yet in its infancy,
,ut promises to rival the best gold and sill.
'er properties of the Pacific coast.
The time is coming when the country
embracing that region, known rs the
J9ur d'Alene, will have a vast out
'ut Of precious metals, supporting
arge numbers of people and
# the country. In the future as in the
,ast, this mining district will contribute
argely towards the building up of Spo-
'ane Falls. The prosperity of the mines
means additional prosperity to Spokane
falls. The two are mutually interested in
ach others welfare. and for many years
# the other.
THE LETTERS CONTENTS.
But let us call halt to this erratic
lodging of the main point of this article,
he letter promised, and which has been
taved off from paragraph to par.
graph. 1t is simple in its Ian
Iuage. the writer earnest in his own
,rand object. There is nothing of value In
t TO the public, anymore than the exhibi-
ion of eccentricity on the part of an old
miner, his desire to contribute aid to true
believers Of certain faith, and the first
public announcement of the wealth of
ocality that time has demonstrated to be
ar richer than even the old man dreamed