Butte semi-weekly miner. [volume] (Butte, Mont.) 1886-1890, 1889-02-13

The Dead Bodies of Eight Murdered Mext
scrns Found at a Wyoming Gold Mine
A Strange Story, Rivaling the Tales oi
Search for Captain Kidd's Treasures-A
Supposed Mine Two Hundred Years
,Old-A Chart Traced i'm Blood.
CHEYENNE, Wyo., February 9.-It ie
reported that eight Mexican prospectors,
who had succeeded by means of an ancient
chart, in locating gold mine which was
worked by Spaniards, over two hundred
years ago, have been murdered by Ameri-
can iutruders. The latter secured the
chart, after desperate fight, in which the
Mexicaus were killed.
PARTICULARS OF THE STRANGE STORY.
CHEYENNE, February 9.-The discovery
OF the bodies OF eight Mexican prospectors
at the mouth of the abandoned San Saliva
dor mine in the northern part OF Wyoming,
has brought to light a romantic story,
rivaling all the tales about seekers for
Captain Kidd's buried treasures.
Miguel Martinez, at the head OF party
of his countrymen, was here last fell, for
two days. He confided to a Mexican
gambler tnat they were in search OF an
abandoned gold mine which they believed
to be rich in metal and were going to de-
velop 1t. Martinez carried q chart traced on
parchment, which, he said, was 200 years
old, and was made by an ancestor OF his in
the 18th century. The chart had been lost,
but recently turned up and at once
PARTY WAS ORGANIZED.
The story that HIS run through the |
family for generations was that Martinez |
the elder, was at the head of a band OF
Spanish gold hunters, who were working a |
rich gold mine somewhere in this country. /
The miners quarreled and finally fought, /
and their division resulted ia the abandon.
ment of the mine, though it was very rich
Martinez was wounded, and died on his
way home. With his blood he traced a
chart which was to bs rich legacy to his
children. Faithful friends delivered the
document WHICH soon afterward was lost,
and was only recently discovered.
The Martinez descendants we're told OF
two mines up north that mineralogists had
declared were worked by Spaniards hun
dreds of years ago.
The recent Martinez party was not heard
of again until to-day, when q hunter
named Keller reported that his party had
discovered their bodies.
ALL THE MExIcANs HAD BEEN SHOT,
and were somewhat cut up by knives,
showing that the struggle was q hand-to-
hand one. There were evidences that the
victorious party lost three or four men,
and they had made hasty departure,
carrying Their dead and wounded with
them.
What surprised the hunters most was to c
find that the mine had recently been I
worked. 1t was not known that pickaxe r
had touched it since two men had starved
TO death there in 1877, 10
There is reason TO think that the San o
Salvador was not the mine described on E
the chart, and that the murderers have O
taken the map and gone off u
TO LOCATE THE ANCIENT NINE.
The fact that the Mexican horses and !,
tools we're taken and that their jewelry and a
some Of the money were not removed from a
their bodies, seems to prove this. Keller .
says there was every indication that the '"
San Salvatore mine was paying, and he
believes that the mine sought for by the Mexi-
cans is not far from the other, and is known
TO the party who is at work. Ioi
No one here knows who the murderous NJ
were. AS the region in which the :.
event occurred is almost inaccessible, it is =. :.
not likely anyone will start to work the ~
old mine and bury the Mexcans before M N
spring, 10y