Custer chronicle. [volume] (Custer City, Black Hills, D.T. [S.D.]) 1880-1890, 1888-02-11
A Newsy Letter.

Spring Valley, who is well known and
highly respected in this community
will be perused by CHRONICLE readers
here and elsewhere with deep and
lively interest:
CUSTER Cry, Jan. %, 'SS.
Last Tuesday left Rapid City at i
o'clock for Il brief trip through the
Southern Hills, with genial Mart Dodge
as guide and companion.
The day was perfect with June-like
air, only SO bracing that it was a JOY to
| hve-and as we passed over hill and
through dale, forests of stately pine and
beautiful parks fringed with oak,
thought no country SO charming, and
no climate 50 perfect as ours, even III
mid d-winter. At ) p. IN. we arrived at
the Eta tin mine, the headquarters oi
the Harney Peak Tin Mining company
and received such welcome as only q
man with SO large heart as Major
Willsie, gen! supt. or the company, can
give. After greetings came "A splendid
dinner, which our ride of twenty-three
miles gave Us appetites to fully appreci-
ate. Then with cigars and pleasant chat
I
| time passed pleasantly until 8 O'Clock,
when game OF whist was PROPOSED and
| was thoroughly enjoyed until bed time.
From Major Wiisie | learn that the
Harvey company own and control two
| hundred and seventy tin locations, be-
sides many valuable water rights and
other franchises, all of which will be
needed in the near future unless all
f, signs are at fault.
During the month of December the
company boxed and shipped to London
tortytwo tons of tin ore, which arrived
safely two weeks ago, This ore was
taken from seventy-one different mines,
much of it running from 20 to as high as
| 10 per cent in black tin. In the lot was
one crystal weighing thirty-four pounds,
the largest ever found III any country.
Surely such evidences Of the value OF
our tin interests ought 10 satisfy the
most skeptlcai that the Black Hills con-
tains tin in paying quantities in spite OF
the statements OF such men as Tom
| White.
We were kindly shown through the
splendid mill at the Eta mine. 1t is a
model of beauty and convenience and
| when it starts up again, as it surely will
our children Will be grey before it stops
| for want of ore, for there are simply
mountains of tin ore within mile Of
the mill of proven Richness and which
increases in value as depth is attained.
A ride of twelve miles through coun.
try unsurpassed for beautiful scenery
with overcoats or coats of any kind q
burden, and We are at Hill City. Tn.
entire distance from the Eta seems to
be a succession of tin mines. That Hill
Oily is destined to be place of no meal
in portance Ill the near future is as Ger
tain as that tin in large quantities exists
in that locality.
a good nights rest and a mornin,
drive of fifteen miles, and all the way
through a tin bearing region, the evi
dence Of which can be seen on ahun
dred dumps, and we are at Custer City
and receive a hearty greeting from tn,
| bows" we knew there nearly twelv,
wears ago. These old timers with whom
we ate salt in the long ago, when salt
was worth something, and human life
was not counted of much value, seemed
like meeting brothers. 1t is more thar
ten years since We last visited Custer
The same beautiful location and charm
ing surroundings meet the eye, all els'
has changed. A splendid brick cour
house, large, two-story brick schoo
building costly nestled in grove o
pine. good churches and many nea
residences are Ii pleasant contrast tC
the old time town.
Here everything is tin, morning, moor
and night. In store, hotei, shop, salooI
and bank, and piled upon the sid. walks
You can almost feel It in the air. AnC
one gentleman in whose judgn ent
nave great respect for in such matters
stated that he thought he could taste i
in the whisky--but added, in whisper
it IS villa:n0ua enough witho iniectin,
Tin into it. Here as at Hill City, tin i
found IN seemingly inexbaustible guam
latter place. The reduction works nea
this place are a success. The best evi
, dence being that the company has de
/ cided to nearly treble the capacity 0
their works at once, and they will shi
this coming week 24,000 pounds Of con
centrates to Chicago, to be there run int
pig tin, and we will soon have on tn
, market tin cups, pans and kettles from
, American tin, discovered, mined an,
miled in the Black Hills, at profit.
In addition to tin, valuable mines Q
gold and silver are found in the vicinit
: of Custer, and the recent discovery c
, coal bids fair to prove of scarce les
value In fact will prove inyalnable,
as is claimed, the find proves to be goo
;, coking coal. The vein is full four fee
$ thick, and covers a large area Of country
I The b. & NJ. railroad company has su,
!. veyed its line through these coal field
, and is now at work surveying a lin
! north from Custer.
9 Mr. Gillette, the engineer in charg'
told me they had run a number Of pre-
liminary lines north toward Hill Cit,
any Of which were practicable, but tha
he wanted to find the best there was
The future Of Custer and the centrs
e and southern Hills seem very brigh
< The men who, through good aud ev
q report, have pinned their faith 10 thos
portions of the Hills, never do, btin
the wealth that lay hidden in the
:, mountains, may well feel jubilaa: ov;
n the outlook, and with prophetic iool
r and smiling faces exclaim, Il told 70
;, So" And when in the very near futul
= a chain Of tin reduction works shall e,
: te nd from Niger Hill on the north
It Warren's gulch on the south, sandwiche
s by the great mills at Lead and tho,
;, that will be built at the Carbonate an
/, Ruby camps, for the reduction Of GO
u and silver, and at Sheridan for the r
4 r. Ill L. r A