Western liberal. (Lordsburg, N.M.) 1887-1919, 1891-07-17
oOPPERoUBEN

/ ally known, but Of which more OF pub
/ lie interest might be written regard
ing its wealth as copper producing
region than Bisbee, Warren district,
Cochise county. Though but one
company, known as the Copper Queen
Mining Co., is working or In fact ever
has to any large extent operated the
mines OF this district, the output OF
pig copper last year was greater than
that Of any other district in the terri
tory
Bat II IS not concerning the details
OF the Queen company's mining opera
tions thatI shall have much now to
speak of further than that everything
is conducted on a gigantic and most
systematic plan. The eeepest shafts
are in the neighborhood Of 500 feet,
and there are over twentY-three miles
Of tunnels. About 600 men are in the
employ Of this company at Bisbee
wages $500 der day. producing an ay-
crage of thirty-nye tons Of bullion
daily.
IL was to grasify my curiosity to
view The wonderful caves lately dis
covered in the Queen Copper mine
that / sought and secured permission
Of Superintendent Ben. Williams to
descend the shaft on the 30th Of June.
Geo. Douglass kindly oiici2ted as
guide. At the entrance of the tun-
mel that leads to the cave we found
the door locked to prevent yadalism,
which had already been perpetrated
within the lapse Of the few weeks
Since It's discovery. Being provided
with key we entered without diff
Guilty and an advance Of 100 feet over
alternate layersof lava and huge bould-
ers brought us to great open spaces,
surrounded By Irregular walls Of crys-
taiized limestone, and enclosed with
magnificent dolnes OF like formation,
layishly decorated with hangings Of
every conceivable shape and shade,
the beauty cfwhich is more easily i'm
aglned than described. Descending
aad ascending over an uneYcn surface
.of ciys;alized rocks, turning now to
the right and then to the left for half
ah hour, some times crawling upon
our hands and knees head foremost.
at ether times with toes IN The Vs.
SIC at INST reach another apartment of
georgceus architecture, at one end Of
which is the Inost natural vessel re-
sembiirg q white porcelain bath tub,
and called "the bath" TO peer iato
it there does not appearany escape ex-
cept by the entrance; but followed
the eSanpic Of my gu!d7 I lay myself
on the bottom, and to my surprise, l
espied small crevice through which
The guide had disappeared, and which
could he9senoniy IL reclining posi-
uon on account ofa Singular wAll pro-
iecting downward on the rear side.
Through th,s small aportlre / craSi-
ed with candle In hand anI wa again
confronted with another large open
Ing similar to others we had gone
through. Passing Cape Horn and
descendingsome I'll sht', which isAou'd
not recomiaend nervous people TO at
tempt, and we were standing on the.
edge ofa beautiful pool, $50 feet be-
low the earth'ssurface, called Aloastro
Lake-yey properly 50 named-as the
marble-ll6e bottom is clearly discer-
nible, the water being Of crystal purity
and excellent to drink, as ! am ahun-
dainty able from experience to test
ify, Proceeding through another,
passage way with surprises at every
turn and ever Increasing admiration,
we lnally enter the most unique and
the grAndest aparcman5 l had seen
and which much abler pene than mine
mus. fail TO properly depict, This
part is we'll named "The Grotto," aud
from 10 a1 least "a ton of elegant spccl-
mems, it issald, has been brought to
the surface after having been carefully
packed In boxes with cotton, and this
without apparently diminishing the
beauty and grandeurof the scene. Tie