The Daily times. [volume] (Richmond, Va.) 1886-1889, 1888-01-28
MINERS ODD BELIEFS.
SOME OF THE STRANGE STORIES
TOLD IN THE CAMPS.

|
| pearance OF a Bowlder-Fortune Tellers'
Advice Sought by Owners of Claims
Naming Mines.
Miners are superstitious. Men who labor
underground are always so, and especially
those who court tickle fortune, hunting Tor
gold and silver veins in the mountains. Often
Won will hear miners say that rocks are more
apt t. fell at midnight than at any other
time
4 friend vi mine was once working in the
| Bull Domingo mine, and saved his life
through presentment or ssperstitious feel
inc. lie was working in the night sniff, and
J late in tue afternoon was awakened IRON his
slurnber and notified by the foreman to get
ready for work In telling me the story
| afterward he said that something seemed to
be warning him not to work that night.
| Bat he threw off the feeling, ate his supper,
put Oh his miners suit and started toward
the shaft house. He had gone about half the
| distance. when the same superstitious feeling
! possessed him and, stopping a moment, lie
| thought the matter over and, returning tc
the boarding house near by, hired man in
his place
! There was an accident That night and the
man who had taken his place was killed.
/ The shift was sinking the main shaft deeper,
| preparatory 10 running lower levels. The
water was Troublesome and the cage had
| beea lowered with barrel, which was filed
| with water When the cage began to ascend
/ three Of the men stepped out from under 1t,
| but the fourth stood in the center Of the
| shaft leaning on his shovel When up about
100 feet piece OF machinery broke and
! down came the cage, crushing the poor fel-
| low 10 death The young man who refused
TO work that night. in telling ME of the Incl
dent aftorward said: Something seemed to
bo almost pulling me back that night ana
saving, Don't 60 down the shaft, donS 60
down the shaft and | didn't go | don't
know how % account for IL and never will,
but it saved my life.
\ STRANGE STORY.
One evening. while sitting around the stove
/ in one Of the hotels in the camp man
named Fletcher hailing from Ohio, told
| strangc. weird story lie was a quiet kind
/ OF q follow, and not given up % springing
Will sJoric7 Re and his partner, 50 his story
/ ran. had been working claim above the
| Verde bill. in tue Sangre de Cristo range.
The were prospecting for a gray copper
vein \ shaft had bccn sunk about forty feet
and then a drill was started on the vein
| tbs drift was within twenty feet rom the
| shaft, and The last day they had worked the
| claim BOWLER about two feet i'm diameter
was blown ont Of the vein It was about
time to quit. said llr Fletcher, " and we
concluded t. wiadlass out what loose work
there was and popshoot the bowlder the next
morning. belo.e leaving We placed our
mining tools aud bucket in a corner Of the
shaft and then went - our cabin IL Was a
cold night aud considerable snow fol- The
next morning about 8 O'clock We returned 10
| the shaft t. resume our work for the day !
| lowered my partner down and was preparing
10 descend myself when heard him call out,
! Fletcher, hoist away | asked him what
was the matter, but be would give me no
definite answer, and In rather husky voice
repeated his request That | haul him out,
which did. After steprn, on the platform,
he said You know that bowlderf Yes
replied but what Of it, 1t Is gone, he said
Gomez 'Ie', gone
II refused 70 believe him, although OBJ
served that his face was a little pale and he
/ seemed quite nervous | had him lower Inc
down the shaft and. sure enough, that large
J bowler, two feet IL diameter, was gone
| The tools had not been dlsrurbed, and no one
/ else could have possibly gone down that shaft
| since We left il the night before The snow
/ hal fallen. cnt there was not the least signof
a track leading 10 or from the shaft"
did tie mine ever pan out anything after
ward e asked one Of the interested group Of
listeners
Pan cut No have been unable to get
M partner down in that shaft since And
orc thing I DO l.now-the bowlder sc had
IL. that night Vas COMO the next morning
and neither Of Us ever knew what became
of it,"
THE FORTUNE TELLER
Some men use fortune teiers in searching
fog mines and Developing them The diyin
/ Ing rod has been uAed on many mountain
side, and IL inlicat ons followed. recently
visited we'll known fortune teller in Den
yer tor the purpose Of learning something
I definite as 10 stories circulated that some
mining operators seek this class to have them
| forctell or advise them how 10 seek for the
precious metals.
Certainly they do, said the old woman
In a weird manner, shutting the cards.
\ Nov, YOU keep out Of the mines, she said,
| speaking TO me- your fortune Is on top Of
the ground, yes, on top OF the ground. The
cards ana the white OF this egg have broken
show no veins OF mineral for you
! There IS superstition among some about
naming mines, and many seem 10 think that
| il is good luck 70 name a mine Tor baby
! Why 40 one knows a prospector once
named a claim for certain Pullman car,
which was afterward smashed in wreck
| He changed tue name for fear Of an accident
| 70 the mine. Another changed the name Of
| his claim because the person be had named il
/ for died The finding Of a vein on the ami
yersary OF your birthday, or the anniversary
OF the wedding OF your parents, is supposed
10 bring good luck. There are a thousand
and one little superstitions connected with
the delving in mother earth, searching for
| tha buried treasures there New York