, 1889-10-10
A MINING-CAMP NIGHT
Unconventional Scenes on Streets
Crowded by MincrH S'RrcA-
ing for Pies

lffom thc st. fnul IIohr'r lINffi
For two or three hours the locomotive
had painted rs it laboriously climbed the
heavy grades and dragged the train aitcr
IT, Then 1t reached a broad mesa, and,
as If pleased at the opportunity, 1t darted
oil at II high rate of speed, which 1T was
spur of the mountains. The track wound
around points and back in the gulchos
and canyons so that ut times, after tray
cling nearly mile, in point of latitude
or longitude, we were only n few hundred
feet in advance. The hillsidcs around
were perforated here and there with
holes that indicated the search of pros
pecting miners for gold in paying guam
titles. An occasional llume creeping
along mountain showed that attempts
had in some instances, been made TO
wash out the golden grains. Forest
fires had filed the air with smoke,
which, in the day hours, robbed the sun
of its ciiulgence and left him only "a
plain garment of rcd. a few charcoal
kilns in the valley far below added their
humble contributions to the general
murkiness, so that within the dimness
of twilight We seemed to be travelling
among clouds.
Finally down grade was reached, and
the train glided along without an oilorl'
Below the tall smoke stacks of the smelt-
crs were bclching out smoke and sulphur
Gus gases The gray dust, dry as powder,
seemed to rise of its own volition and
hang suspended in the air, making veil
through which the lights of mills and
smClters could be seen but dimly. The
depot is reached soon after passing these
smelling outposts, and we arc NJ one oil
the greatest mining camps in existence
The buildings hard by lack the dress
of paint which they obtain in more con.
ventional municipalities, but scattered
among them are elegant structures, ~
one will find mine owners mingling with
mine labOrcrS in such society as this.
The streets of tho business portion are
swarming with pedestrians, many OF
whom, for the sake OF comfort, take the
street itself, while here and there beyond
the curDstouCS urr gatherings when the
sidewalks would not accommodate. Ev-
cry other place of business seems to be
saloon, and the saloon which depends
alone for its attraction upon the
quality of its liquors is rare
exception. Faro luy-outs are every
where, sometimes so near the door that
they might us we'll be in the street
while the legend above, Licensed gam
bling" shows that the law protects the
participants. Poker tables make occa-
sional breaks in the monotonOus Sc
quence of faro banks. Doors are wide
open and there is no need to pause to
draw the latchstring of western hospital
ity. In one gin shop u rumshucklc or
rlIngtru iS numbering nInln1V Wlilp IA.
discrepit negro occupies the platform
and rattlcs the bones. In another II man
and his two little sons are singing, or
rather attempting to sing, popular songs.
In still another II band is playing vigor
ously, while the crowd scattered at Il
dozen different tables gu2Zles beer, The
faro tables heed not the babel in the
least The players silently make their
bets, the dealer quietly turns the cards,
pays the winners and rakcs in the chips
of the losers, pauscS u moment and re-
pents the operation. Spectators come
up, look over players shoulder for Il
while and depart. Occasionally an un-
fortunate who has played his limit and
lost, after sitting for awhile so that his
departure may not be marked. noise
lessly arises and disappears III the crowd.
Even more rarely some gambler who has
played in luck' puts his stacks OF chips
on the table, and silently pockets the
counts over to him. \ novice may ut
ter some bctraying explanation when he
fails to bet on the right card, but the vet
erun accepts winnings or losses with
equal outward impassvcncss.
Some wanderers from the Flowerv
kingdom watch the thrOngs with faces
full OF stolid satisfaction. Some wear
the garb of Western cut Willie others
cling to the loose robe of the cOOlie. In
their own quarters they tempt the tickle
goddess of chance with slip-like cards,
but they never mingle in the games OF
their whitc-iucod brethren, since the
losers among the latter are too prone to
ascribc their poor luck to their almond
eyed companions. and stigmatize the
latter as "hoodoos.'
Boarding n cable car, the presence of
which seems almost anaChronistic amid
the evidences of unconventional life of
old.timc mining camps, ride through
the gloom of night intensified by dust
and smoke up tine hillside where lights
twinkling dinly here and there denote
the location of some mine. Alighting
near one of these bcaCons, which proved
upon approach to be an electric light, /
enter the huge building and watch the
engineer rs hc obeys the bell rung by
rods that extend way down into the
he touches the lever and the
great cylinder allows the wire
band that hold, the cage to csrape. 4
stop and another signal. This time it is
the lowest level ana the cylinder allows
the band to run oil with frightfnl
rapidity. The bell rings again, and tho
rope is rolled up with almost equal
rapidity. Bang goes the trap which is
over the shaft for safety, a. the ascend
ing cage strikes it and carries it llp. 4
train filed with yellow-looking dust,
which is silver ore is pushed OF on tho
steel flooring and dumped, rolled back
upon the cage and'secureiy fastened. a
lever is touched and it flashes out of
sight as the safety trap door drops into
place with another thud. Perhaps YOU
would like to leave tho darkness above
modified by headlight placed on the
dusty rafters, for the darkness below
Then step on the cage, damp with tho
moisture of the lower levels grasp the
rods above, and stand steady, Down
you seem to drop into an abyss There
is II falling sensation that makes YOU
feel powcrloss. Every thing reels around
you. Eourt heart and stomach arc
determined to come up. You are Just
well ON the way to- recovery of Your
normal condition when you are at
the bottom, one-quartor of mile
below the earth's surface. The candles
glimmcring in the drifts show
the miners at work picking out the GOV.