The Wichita daily eagle. [volume] (Wichita, Kan.) 1890-1906, 1891-03-06
AVERYS START IN LIFE.

Making my fortune at mining had beer
the waking dream OF my not very happy
boyhood in which l had been kept busy il
my fathers store, by terms attending schoo
and working out my mathematics at edo
hours until l was able to enter college
where took the engineering course. much
to the surprise Of MY father and his wife
who in consequence gave me but slight
help; but persevered and by hard strug
gle won my degree and Immediately start
ed west
While vet on the outward bound train
near the great Rockies, there was a delay
caused By the wreck OF freight train, and
]. fresh from the lecture room of a master
mind IN the science of engineering, was
able to make some suggestions which
proved Of practical value, and attracted
the attention of one of the solid looking
passengers who was also travelling west.
found he was interested in my history, and
l soon told him who and what [ was, and
what hoped to accomplish, first hoping to
secure employment as civil engineer in
some railway company, and then strike for
the mines.
found was talking TO a practical civil
engineer, who had been in the employ OF
the Union Pacific railway when it was be-
ing built. and he related anecdote after an
ecdote of the early days as the train rat
tied over the boundless plains.
On the limbs Of d certain tree he had
seen victim of Judge Lynch swinging in
the breeze. There he had witnessed rail
road construction gang, consisting of three
hundred men, imprison contractor in a
railroad tie pen and keep him in the hot
sun, on bread and water, until lie had
signed their pay checks.
Parks Fort was celebrated as the scene Of
the Parks massacre; the three Parks
brothers found dead in their ''dugout, -
while dead Indian pony and pools OF gore
on the ground outside showed how dearly
they had sold their lives.
AS we sat in the smoking car that even
ing MI Thompson told me many tale Of
camp life, and finished his sketches by a
thrilling tale of how be made his fortune.
Il had" he said, done very well at my
profession as civil engineer, and after
some years took to mining to make a
speedy fortune. / worked hard only to
find that / had planted all my savings,
spme fifteen thousand dollars, in wild cat
this time l received my little inheritance
and was made guardian to my young sis
ter Her small fund, two thousand dol
lars, invested in small tenement houses
carefully secured to herself, and /, having
an opportunity to buy cattle ranch at
about half its value, entered upon the cat
tleman's business and tried to forget that
fortunes are sometimes made at mining
loo I l,of "a lose oil loJ
again.
However, / found l was considered to
be quite an authority on mining matters
and engineering, report, with it's usual
accuracy, investing me with an imaginary
fortune made at those pursuits, and was
often consulted by amateurs and looked
up to as an authority upon those topics.
zone day Frank Cotton, who had been
my first instrument man in engineering
days, but was now a miner, came to me
with bit of ore, which he handed to me
with the question, What do you think of
that, Mr.. Thompson
"'It is the finest bit of ore I have seen
since / came to Colorado replied, with
enthusiasm. Where did you get it%
"'From the Mascot mine. l own the
hole. and this is a sample of what have
struck
eff there is more of the same mineral,
and enough of it, you are in for fortune
l wish you luck, my boy said l.
Yes, but 1 need money to go on with
Come out and see what it looks like in the
bed
1.-The next morning Frank and mounted
couple of bronchos and set forth Some
six or seven miles from town we turned off
abruptly TO the right, followed a narrow
trail up short gulch across beautiful
little park, up a narrow winding canyon,
and over the crest OF a hill. Nestled among
the cedars stood a low cabin.
Here is my cabin, and yonder is the
mine said Frank, pointing to a windlass
over hole in the ground some two hun.
dred feet distant But let us have some
grub before we go further. Walk in and
make yourself at home
'The interior of the cabin was dark,
dirty and forbidding, and uninviting as
place of human abode There was one
pane OF glass set into the wall for lighting
the domicil, and a good big fireplace. A
rough table, two or three benches and
some rude berths fastened to the wall com.
pleted the furniture. Help yourself to
pot luck, professor said Frank Fat
bacon, hot biscuit and untrimmed black
coffee served on tin dishes made meal for
hungry man, quickly served and hastily
eaten.
After dinner we went out and inspected
the mine. We Investigated the pile of ore
on the dump and then climbed down the
ladder m the manway The main shaft
was over hundred feet deep At depth
OF forty feet and again at eighty feet cross
cuts had been run and connected by a
Wine. From the bottom of the shaft
drift had been carried some twenty feet 10
the south. Here some fine ore had been
exposed Having thoroughly explored all
the workings we came to the surface
This old fashioned within can hardly
serve your purpose, Frank said /: YOU
need steam holster for that depth OF shaft
and quality of ore, should think.
Y es, sn; that is where the trouble lies
If had steam to depend on I'd ask no
odds Of Gould, for that mine is sure
bonanza; but it costs all it's worth right
here TO hoist that ore with whim.'
ut was too late for ME to think OF re-
turning that night, so we spent the few
hours of daylight in looking for mining
timber water, and then at the prosn>r,
generally. Supper fare was repetition
of dinner fare, as was the breakfast next
morning.
Certain golden dreams were iostino
before my mental vision, for / knew ~
parties who would take hold Of the enter.
prise if the outlook for rich find was ia.
yorable.
Prank Cotton confided his exact posi-
ton 20 me on our way back. He had 70 sell
within the next two weeks or lose his
mine. as he had given lien on the prop
erty for 5000 His creditors were extreme
by anxious TO secure the mine, so Frank
would accept any terms that would satisfy