The morning news. [volume] (Savannah, Ga.) 1887-1900, 1891-06-29
WONDERFUL Ell DORADO
MILLIONS IN GOLD AND GEMS TN
NORTH CAROLINA MOUNTAINS

Gold and Many Rare Minerals Found
in Marvellous Muddy Creek Valley
Where Gold Dust is the Everyday
Currency-Four Men Take $4,000
in a Notwithstanding a Mouster
Diamond on an Anvil to Test it-A
Tweniy-eight Pound Nugget.
From the Neso York sun.
Get into Pullman car in Jersev Civ al
4:9O o'clock some afternoon and leave the
same car the next afternoon at Marion. the
county seat of Mcdowell county, in West
ern North Carolina. The town is abont
fifty miles east Of AshevilIe, theInew moun-
tain resort where Vanderbilt is building bis
magnificent country mansion. LISA town
in process Of Transformation lust now ia
Marion. It is enjoying boom, and soecu.
lOtion in town lots is rife. The splendid
scenery and climatic advantages and the
completion of new railroad are the reasons
for the burst OF prosperity, and not the
mineral wealth hidden near by.
A San reporter, who had reached Marion
by the afternoon train from the north a
few days ago, went into one of the village
stores to make small purchase. BendiSe
over opposite sides of the counter were the
snopkeeper and customer, a tall bronzed
rough-dressed countryman who apparently
had just come in from his farm wagon. Re.
tween the two was small pair Of jewelers.
balances. In one pan were several small
weights, and in the other little bean Of
bright yellow grains and dust.
II can allow you only IS cents a penny
weight for that dust" the shopkeeper was
saying.
a nugget thatll weigh four pennyweirhts
purer tnan coin, aud worth more'n 81 a
weight"
"But it isn't clean dust. 1t won't average
over S5 cents"
The customer had picked ont the goods he
wanted, and after more hagging a bargain
was struck. Then the shopkeeper went To
his safe and brought out an ordinary pIass
tumbler almost filed with gold dust and
nuggets. On top was rough, porous
appearing lump about as large as a pecan
nut The shopkeeper said it was worth
about Sl5. The tumberful of gold weighed
rather more than three pounds. and was
worth about $1,000. 1t had been
nearly six weeks In accommodating
and the owner intended sending il to the
mint in few days to be coined. according
to his usual custom. A large part of his
out-of-town trade. he said, was carried on
with native gold as the medium Of exchange.
He had become so expert in handling the
dust that he could tell almost at glance
where 1t had come from. Its color varied
considerably. Some of it was a very light
straw color, as though there was silver in It.
while other was much darker and more
coppery.
Gold is found in North Carolina in Iocali-
ties too numerous to mention, from the CEN
tral portion Of the state almost to the Ten
nessee boundary. The yield with primitive
slave labor for twenty-five years before the
war was sufficient to keep employed mint
at Charlotte, where more than S5,000,-
GOO was coined. Yet little has been
done, with improved methods and
machinery to develop the hidden riches
of wide extent of territory. Deposits
have been discovered recently and tested
With results which. if told Of some newly
explored corner of the Pacific coast, would
start fresh gold fever through the coun~
try. 1t need not be said that the field will
be no longer neglected. Already the most
valuable properties have been bought by
strong holders, and late Corners must make
new discoveries for themselves, for no known
rich mining lands are on the market In any
shape.
For several months the fame Of a little
valley III the southern part of Mcdowell
county has been spreading among geolo-
gists. Prominent experts from college
faculties and from abroad have visited it
and have been amazed at what they have
seen there. Their interest has been aroused
not by the value of mineral wealth dis
played, but by the wonderful variety of
rare geological treasures profusely ex-
posed. 1t is said that there is but
orsother spot in the world. aud
that in Australia, where 80 great q
variety Of geological riches has been
brought to light in so small space. 1t is
an opening Of the earth's richest treasure
house at point where neither glaciers nor
great cyclic changes have succeeded In con-
cealing the secret. The precious metals oc-
cupy an unimportant space in scientific
estimation in the long list of rare things that
are found there. Diamonds and other gems
are included among them. It is not
surprising that when man walked
into Titfany's in Union square last winter
with diamond weighing 516 Karats, which
ne said had been found Ia spring in North
Carolina, the great jewellers politely ex-
pressed doubts about the truth of the story.
But they believed it after their expert had
visited the spot and investigated the whole
matter, and since then Tiffany e. Co. have
bought good many precious stones from
the same North Carolina valley.
Muddy Creek Valley is the name Of this
spot of many marvels. 1t is a winding,
irregular valley. averaging less than half a
mile wide and about ten miles long. 1t was
a spot rather difficult to reach until about
month ago. Now the Charleston, Cincin-
natl and Chicago read runs within about
III miles of it.
Already there have been taken from this
same little valley rubes, sapphires. beryl
moonstones, jasper, garnets, zircon, gold
HlOO0,OO0o or mcre), silver, copper, plati-
NUN, lead, iron, mica, kaoline, besides the
rare and unfamiliar minerals, no less than
hfty-six on the list thus far. 1t ia little
wonder that enthusiastic college professors
who have gone there to stay day or two
have remained month and then gone away
filled with amazement by the successive sur
prises of their visit.
Gold was discovered in the vicinity of
Muddy Creek Valley in 1927, according to
the most reliable local records. Few peo-
pie, whlteo or black, lived in what was then
an almost untouched wilderness. Settlers
came in small numbers and began to wash
the gravel over which the mountain streams
ran. They got good returns with even the
crude manual methods which they en-
ployed. For years they used only
the shovel and pan. -Four or five
pounds of earth were put into broad,
shallow pan and shaken and washed, grad
ually letting the earth escape over the edges
until less than teaspoonful remained.
The gold, If any there was. would be found
IN these dregs, kept there by its greater
specific gravity. A single speck of the
precious metal is called 'oolor,' several
Specks savara1 taolors TINY pup0afa