The Iola register. [volume] (Iola, Allen County, Kansas) 1875-1902, 1889-12-20

through 1t he became acquainted with the
blacksmith, and that blacksmith was Andy
HelGrum. At the grade, in turn, as he
packed back the tools, he made many
other friends, among them Gus Dietleif and
Albert Lang, . couple OF Germans, who,
having bad luck on farms in Nebraska, had
come West to make their fortunes. They
were working for three or four dollars a
day; fairly comfortable wages, it is true;
but their dreams were of nuggets Of gold
and mountains Of silver, and into their
ready ears john Robinson poured Turing
tales Of the wonderful Red Mountain coun-
try just over the range; where no trails had
yet penetrated; where scarce a prospect
pole showed its black head on mountain
side, but where the precious metals lay
rich, to be had for the taxing. Then he re-
peated the stories at the other end CT his
trail while he waited for the blacksmith to
perform the endless sharpening.
The Germans grew wild; they begged
John to lead them to the Eldorado
he described, and, throwing down
their implements of labor, declared
themselves ready to start at an
hours notice. But there came the rub; they
had no means, and Robinson, why, like
every other old prospector, he was always
money he tried to see how quickly he could
"blow it init did not take long-and he
had not nickel with which TO equip pros
pecting expedition. So. right here, he
played his big trump, he asked Andy Mel
drum to grub-stake the party.
Andy consented. He purchased the side
meat and -four and Robinson and the two
Germans climbed over the steep San Juan
range into the magnificent Red Mountain
valley and that fall located three claims,
the Robinson, named for Johnny, the Gus
tav, for Gus Dietleif, and the Elnora, for
Lang's sweetheart.
There was game in the Red Mountain
country in those days; the explosion of
dynamite and giant powder had not fright
ened all the wild creatures from
their ancestral haunts, and the deer,
antelope and dangerous bear fur
nished important additions to the log
cabin men. Consequently the hunting ex-
petitions were of no small interest
Dietleif and Robinson started out one day,
being short of meat. The game was I'M
accountably shy. Up the sides c. gulches,
down precipitOus cliffs, along the beds of
the mountain torrents, the hungry CON-
pany travelled, at last getting up to small
buck Robinson fired but missed; Die.leif
followed with shot that brought the
creature down. He went after the carcass
and returned to find Robinson reclining on
the ground exhausted and ill. The long,
hard tramp had proved too much for him.
Dietleif waited some little tine for his COM
rade's recovery, but he grew worse instead
of better.
you'd better go on, Gus" Robinson
SAID, at length; 81 can stay here all night
and the other boys want the meat"
So Dietleif proceeded with his venison
toward the cabin, leaving poor Robinson to
battle alone as best he could. 1t would not
have been the first time that he had lain
with but the chill mountain air for a cover
ing through all the long, dreary, lonely
night.
But as he lay stretched out, helpless and
suffering, the hand that he threw out list
lessly fell on small fragment of rock. He
lifted 1t mechanically, with the instinct of a
prospector, and noticed that it was un-
usually heavy. He broke it on the rocky |
bed on which he lay, and then sprang in ex.
element to his feet, his illness entirely for |
gotten, for that bit of rock was q piece of |
solid Galena, rich with silver. He exam
ined the spot where it lay and found it to be |
q great mass, ten feet square, like the small |
piece he had broken.
sGod bless my Yankee grill" exclaimed |
Robinson "How she will be pleased when !
she hears that have succeeded at last"
And so the mine was christened.
Robinson dragged himself to the cabin, |
but scarcely to sleep. The Lext morning he |
came back AID staked out the claim. When |
the NINE was started it was cut, floor,
breast and sides, out Of solid Galena. 1t was
a paying mine from the grass roots.
The news flew. No one could tell how 1t |
went, but it caused at once the greatest ex-
ever known in Western Colorado.
Men came from East and " est, from North
and South, even from Mexico. The tents of
two or three thousand prospectors were
pitched in the Red Mountain valley. George
an agent for Pittsburgh con-
Germ, paid the four lucky owners Of the new
find a fivethousand- dollar bonus and started
East with UNDERGROUND lump Of the
ore. Within thirty days he returned,
paid the price placed on the
by the discoveries, Sc, 900, and
the wonderful yankee Grip Mine became
the property, virtually, Of the Standard Oil
Company. Then each of the four fortunate
pocketed his 81, $50 and went
back East
D,etlsif started for Germany to see his
parents. On the ship going over he made
the acquaintance Of . pretty German frau
lein. When the fatherland was reached the
twain were made one, and Gus soon re-
turned with his bride TO Pueblo, where he