Idaho semi-weekly world. [volume] (Idaho City, Idaho Territory) 1875-1908, 1890-04-04

| 40 per dozen; apples, 20 cents each; on.
| ions, 40 cents per pound; chickens, $36
per dozen, sugar, go and 70 cents per
pound; coffee, so and 65 cents; candles,
81 per pound women's kip shoes, 1886
| per pair; butter, 90 cents and 81; pota.
toes, 30 cents; dried apples, 40 cents
peaches, rs cents side bacon, so cents
| per pound; syrup SO per gallon; import
cd tea, So per pound; nails 40 cents; and
rice, 40 cents per pound These prices,
which were published on October O, 1868,
| 1ucmatcd enormously with the changes
in the supply and demand Groceries
were brought from Portland, Oregon, and
the freight by teams aud pack trains from
| Umatila, on the Columbia, was rs cents
per pound Whisky rctailed at so cents
per drink, and one would almost be safe in
war; anting tito kill on sight. Money was
weighed on scales, or balances, paper or
coin not being in use then In the placer
camps of the basin. and the weights were
so inexcusably heavy that n man starting
out with $50 to make several purchases
lcould not account for over $35 or $40 spent
when he would fiud that his purse was
empty. This means of fleeing the hard
working miner was headed off, however,
by the Idaho legislature, which passed a
law requiring every weight to be adjusted
by an officer appointed for that purpose,
and II. T." stamped on it. Many of the
old weights are still in existence, although
they have gone out of use, and nearly every
one has hole in the under side, which
was drilled by the officer to tighten it..
l have never seen one to which metal had
been added. Edward Angle, who was the
officer of weights and measures OF Boise
county, told me that some of the weights
were twenty five or thirty per cent. too
heavy, and that to obtain their production
! he often found it necessary to threaten
. business men with the penalties of the law.
On September 30, 1868, the Boise News,
the first Southern Idaho newspaper, made
its appearance, with L. j. and }. 5. Butler
: publishers. The former left Idaho in
q 1870, Immediately after being defeated
s for delegate to congress by Samuel A. Mer
Il ritt the democratic candidate. lie after
Z, wards became territorial treasurer of Ari
IONA Mr.. Merritt is now of the law firm
n of Roseborough ~ Merritt of Salt Lake
3, City, Utah. where he stands at the head OF
v his profession The Boise News was 6
u five.cclumn weekly, and the name after
a wards discarded for IDAHO WORLD, when
g. Henry G.. Street, now of HALEY, Idaho, be
came editor The politics then changed
n from republican to democratic.
IS In the spring of 1868, simultaneous will
h the great growth of Bannock, sprang vi
h the thriving towns of Pioneer DIETER know
y as Hog'em y, Centerville and Boston OF
'e Grimes creek, Granite Creek on IA creek o
+ the same name, Morestown, Buena Vista
d Bar and Last Chance on More creek
n Placervitle, on Boyles gulch, west side y
s. the basin, commenced building NJ ~ 1856
II with the first stampede.
e In this il will not be out of place to Civ
" a short description of Bannock, the princi
ID pal town of Boise basin and county seat o
al the county of Boise, then embracing all o
y the area of the present counties of Logan
Elmore, Alturas, Ada and Boise. Tn
a town, which has twice since been dies
RI troyed by fire, is at the confluence of Nor
s. and Elk creeks. Along these creeks WA
In the richest placer ground. During III
* first four years Of mining thousands of me-
Il worked on these creeks, and on East hill
IT. aud it was possible in the night to rea
&c, ordinary print By the light of the hur
e. dreds of pitch pine fires scattered up an
IN down the creeks and along the bars to tn
IT. southwest On the northwest side {
or More creek, half mile below the towr
n, was Buena Vista bar. Nothing now +,
M mains to mark the site of Il town which, |
rs 1865, cast over 1900 votes, but three {
III four residences of families and half do
ed en- old shanties occupied by Chinese
la Mining in the creeks was carried on
'p- the most primitive manner. The top dir
IL or loan and sand, which would not pa
or for working, was removed by wheelba
Id rows and day aud night could be see
TX, strings of men wheeling il along planl
Nv and dumping it in great piles The pa
he dirt gravel ON and near the bedrock) W,
he shoveled up seven or eight feet onto
us. platform, thence shoyeled still higher in
| III al, al fn.,t
sh- one deep, through which ran very sma
ac- head of water, Just below where the dl
ice was thrown in stood a man on the be
no. fork ing out the gravel. Below Il
ng 10 Ner end of the last box stood man
he the tan race shoveling out the failing
dy This man was indispensable, because, o
'ge ing to the latness OF the ground, there W
ew nowhere to dump"
rs On the bars hundreds of men could
~ seen, with long, heavy crowbars in the
on hands, standing on the very edges of {
hs high banks. With these instrumen
., which were then considered a necessity
'na bar mining, they would prize off the iii
u.s. which fell in the ground sluices belo
ny From the ground sluices the dirt and {
''e bris passed through boxes containing I
fies the same as the sluices in the ere
nth claims The top dirt of bar claims W
w not SFfppVu on, DSNdust IL todlu uc St
de down the ground suice at less expen
'ad Day and night week after week, and mon
md after month, the whole country WAS &C
the slant scene of activity. IL presented
rel appearance OF an ant bed disturbed-no
Ger moment of quietude, The strings OF m
md on the wheeling planks, carpenters
ion work, hundreds of men swinging pic
and and shovels, which glittered like the p
In ished arms of an army, presented spec
ied Gle of activity never to be forgotten L
| am going into diversion, and will
igh turn to the subject of this paragraph.
two The town of Bannock was construct
ons of pine lumber, with the exception of t
on or three brick buildings, and many of
out hotels and lodging houses were two a
had three stories high The streets were n
old row, and as the miners advanced tn
Iout work the buildings were propped up
inns standards, and atlerthe ground under tn
was mined the vacancies were filled
per with ,ailings. Houses that were C.
IAN structed before the location Of the grou
ssa were propped up at the expense of
ion miner, but for those that were built
$50 located ground the miner was not resp
3 to sible. Numerous dance houres and SEQ