Phillipsburg herald. [volume] (Phillipsburg, Kan.) 1882-1905, 1889-07-05

Ascension, we saw about a dozen natives
working by this method, which is as old as
that mentioned in the Bible, The rich ore,
showing probably $3.50 to the ton has been
pried out of the vein with crOwbars and
rough blasting and then brought to the
town on the backs of burrOs. Here the
huge rocks were broken at first with siedge-
hammers until they We're reduced to a size
about as big as ones fist, so that they could
be handled and broken by smaller hand
hammers until it was almost as fine as sand.
1t was reduced to a complete powder by
beng beaten IN coarse leatneru bags. 1t Was
then taken and mixed with water ard
thrown into an arasbra, which is a cross
between 2 cofee-miIl and a quartz crusher:
in short it is four stones tied to a revolving
mll-bar drawn by the inevitable mule IF
This makes paste rich in granulated
silver, which is mixed with salt and boiled
In a little pot. as if they were making apple
family winter use, instead of working one
OF the richest veins OF silver in county
celebrated for its valuable silver mines.
This resulting mass is washed out in a pan
like a prospective miner washes for signs
OF gold IN the sand and gravel Of a mountain
stream, with the exception that quicksilver
is put in to form an amalgam with the nOB
liberated silver. This is pressed out with
the hand, and the little ball of amalgam, az
bright as silver itself has the mercury
driven on by a furnace big enough to frB
the eggs Tor party OF two, and the pure
silver ball, gllstening like boar frost in the
morning sun, is beaten down to the size Of
condition from breaking to pieces. It is
eXaSperating in the extreme to see such
diaboIcal works Of man applied to the rich
O1erlngs OF nature. In my first 200 miles
Of travel I passed half as many silver
prospects that would pay well If a rail-
road ran within days easy haul Of them
that are now idle, and that will remain so
until AngiO-SaXon blood. muscle and ma
chinery get into these parts to change the
present sluggish course Of affairs.
My trip Of over two hundred miles down
the eastern slope of the Sierra Madre Noun
talns, from the boundary between the two
countries, coupled with the information
had gained en- route, showed me that
could undoubtedly do better by attempting
to make my way through the great range
from the westward, SO the remainder of the
article details our change Of base from the
State Of Chihuahua to that Of Sonora to d,
the westward, preparatory to piercing th g
Sierra Madres at the most available line for
the best interests of the expedition. There
was but very little out of routine travel for
a day or two, until we came to the third
crossing Of the Casas Grandes River, at a
point SO near It's mouth or where it emptied
into Laguna Guzman, that we felt sure we
would have little trouble in crossing It, for,
as have already explained, most of the
rivers in this country arc the larger the
nearer they get to their head. There had
been no rains TO swell the streams. and our
surprise can therefore be imagined when
we reached the river to ind it a raging tor
rent. It was over the backs Of our smallest
horses ana over the tops Of all the wagon
beds, 50 the prospect was not very encOur-
dry condition.
A long experience in frontier field service
had taught me that It was seldom wise TO
await the falling Of a swollen river If it could
be crossed at all and so we set to work to
get over the ObstrepsroUs stream. The
artist in tAe illustration has no doubt de-
scrIDed 1t better than can possibly do but
there We're 50 many phases that / viii try
to give some OF them. The loads were piled
above the beds and this made them ton
heavy, the great empty beds acting like SO q
many boats as they dashed into the river
whole thing unstable. One driver, a
Mexican, by the name Of Chayes. had the.
worst time Of 1t IN a low light wagon
drawn by two small pinto bronehos.
The Hood swept him down stream under
an overhanging clUmp Of willows, despite a
rope tied to the tongue or the wagon and
another held firmly by a half dozen persons
at the head as at his feet, although he was
knee deep in the ice-Water of the river as
ne stood upright In the Wagon-bed. A mo-
menT waiting to allow the horses to regain
their beW1ldered senses, and Chaves swan
them upstream to the crossing. and the
WHo46 a4zlE on shore looking Like drowned
rats tied to q dripping cigar box. We were
three hours and quarter getting over the
river Wnlch was finished just az nIghttalis
but we felt as If we could have lynched the 9
man who wrote that Mexico was vast
Wateriess rracb Of country. We saw enough
water that day TO have supplied Bourbon
County kentucky, for a full century. a
good system OF conserving the water supply
here would allow thirty Caucasians to live
on Of the soil to where one Mexican IS now
found.
A BAN never thinks OF the good
III