Democratic Northwest. [volume] (Napoleon, Ohio) 1869-1894, 1890-06-12
MILLIONS Upon MILLIONS
OF HIDDEN WEALTH AWAITING A
LUCKY DISCOVERY.

The Wonderful and Gigantic Mining
Works Of vanished Psople-The Ina
mense Mineral Wealth Of Michigan
An Exhibition OF Rare Interest and Of
Great Value to the Country-It May
Be Worth . Fortune to You to See II.
Among the unso1ved mysteries Of the
American continent not even the strange
Ancient Mound Builders are so extra
ordinary or SO puzzling to arch@ologists as
The ancient mines discovered in various
sections of the country, but most fire.
quently and on the most gigantic scale in
the state of Michigan. When the first
white men visited this continent they
found that the Indian races of Mexico
and Peru included workers in gold and
silver. These metal working arts were
confined to . small class of peculiar
srtizans, closely related to the priesthood.
The art of working copper, though not
Of smelling 1t, was also partially practiced
In Mexico. But copper was not mined in
Mexico, and the small pieces Of native
copper used then came from regions un-
known to the Mexican people,
Both in North and South America were
found gold and silver mines that were
worked. Cinnebar (quicksilver) mines
were also worked; but not for the metal,
whose reduction was not understood, but
for the ore only, which was used for paint.
An extensive
I PREHISTORIC MINING WORK
Twas discovered in North Carolina Inas-
Imuch as mica was unknown among the
Indians, and the mine workings exhibited
signs Of vast antiquity, conjecture is lost
in imagining the race and the civilization
that excavated these mysterious works.
There are unquestionable evidences also of
slight workings of some of our lead mines.
The most immense prehistoric mining
works Of America are the ancient copper
mines of Michigan. So immense was the
work done by the long vanished ancient
race Of miners that 1t is doubtful IL .
hundred years Of mining by the white
race, with all the skill and machinery Of
the nineteenth century will excavate
more tons of rock or leave upon the face
Of the earth vaster traces. All the
evidences lead to the conclusion that these
ancient and unknown miners must have
been at work in the Michigan copper
mines not merely hundreds, but thousands
Of years. Not only are their
VAST AND STRANGE EXCAVATIONS
left but their abandoned works-over
which the debris and vegetation Of lost
centuries has grown-yield upon examine
tion many Of their rude ancient tools, and
plain Indications of most Of tneirs mining
processes. Some mysteries remain, as
their lost art of tempering copper like
steel, which'is attested BY a few specimens
only, showing that IL was probably rarely
practiced BY few experts. &.
Michigan is remarkable however. not
only for the vast extent of Its ancient
coppeF mines. but also because there exist
traces Of greater variety Of ancient min
ing than 10 known elsewhere Michigan
mines produce iron, copper, silver, gold
. and mica Until recently the silver and
gQld mines were not discovered; but, to
\ tie astonishment Of arch@ologists, faint
but significant traces have, been found
Indicating that these siiffcultly discovered
veins. were known and explorad Ia