Elmore bulletin. [volume] (Rocky Bar, Idaho) 1889-1906, 1892-07-17
BELOW THE SURFACE
LIFE THOUSANDS or FEET IN rAE
BOWELS OF The EARTH

boings In n Great subierrauoan CI,x
with Hundreds Of Miles of street.
Whore work Never Ceases.
Very different Is the life led by the |
miner OF the Comstock lode when ON |
duty from that of the old California |
gold washer The scene Of his labora /. !
hundreds OF feet beneath the earth in |
snoterranean regions to which no raw Of
sunlight ever penetrates DIR. ouiIe
says OF the Comstock miner that when
ne descends the great shaft, going down
aud still down from 900 TO !. 900 feet
he leaves behind all the grand unnar
world, So broadly and beautifully lighted
up by the sun When landed nj bis an.
ton trom the car (cagel Of his vertical
cable road he steps forth into quite a
different world-a world hewn ont Inv
the hand OF man in the realms of eternal
darhhess which. Just beneath the sur
'aee crust everywhere enwraps our
planet
All is not dark and dismal in this arti.
hcial world On the contrary, the great
stations, the main working drifts and
crosscuts and the large chambers Of nh
the principal levels are lighted up with
lamps and candles In one Of our great
mines there Is neither day nor night; II
Is always candle light. Absolute pitch
darkness prevails only in some tar away
aud little frequented drifts in distant
\ parts Of n mine
when landed at the station OF his
level dinner bucket IN hand the miner
Z trudges away along narrow subter.
ranean road To soine drift or chamber in
which lies his work When on duty in
the depths he knows not whether IL ia
day or night IN the world above. whether
II II cold OF warm there calm or tenn
pestuous
/ The miner Of the Comstock lode NAV
oe sad to live and labor IN city be-
meath city There are streets and
crosscuts through which he may travel
miles and miles at points from 900 to
1000 feet beneath the cities on the sur.
face - Virginia and Gold Hill The
great underground city-in which is suf.
iicient lumber to build twenty towns
each OF b.OOO people, has its busy places
as well rs its lonely and silent hooks
and sections AT the stations OF the
great hosting shafts. where many men
iiiiir;II2sed on the several levels. cars
loaded with ore are seen arriving -aRint rid
departing
~ THE DEPTHS
Great lamps with garing refectors
tsimilar to the headlight of a locomotiyel
light mp the station which Is an under
ground hall large enough for a first class
oall room, and the main drifts radiat-
ing from the station To different parts OF
the level also have their lights. the line
OF which extends so far away that the
most distant seen seems mere spark or
point or light, like the most distant star
visible IN the heavens-a mere pulsinO
twinkler
The station has much the appearance
OF the store or lumber room of some big
factory OF the surface world Along the
door against the side walls are seen
coils OF rope boxes of candles. tools and
many sinall lots OF various other arti-
cies required on the level A so IA the
station Is seen huge cask of ice water
water IN which several small lcebergs
are tioating and against the side of the
cask hangs "A big TIN dippcr; that is, il
80 hangs when u has moments rest
but II is almost constantly.in the hands |
OF some thirsty soul
AT each level generally about 100 feet
down the shaft from the point where
ore Is first encounteredl there Is such a
station rs have described Il Is the
center OF life on each level though at
several points on the level there may be
at.work III the ore breast considerable T
squads OF men. From such sections of
the mime ai certain times come the
D0nis OF blasts, sounding like distant
'annonade When one IL IN a drift in
he vicinity of the spot where one of the
Dig dynamite blasts Is fired one feels
more than hears IT. The concusslon of
he air In the narrow drift painfully
trains the drum OF the ear and even at
distance the sensation is disagreeable
HIoH TEMPERATURE
The mines of the Comstock are now
much better ventilated than before
Ir1fts connected the several mann shafts
md WINES of the many levels Still the ,
work OF the miner Ii often IN "A hot and
titiing atmosphere Very frequently
is work Ii. al the face of long pros
Pecting DRIFT. where the only air he has .
breathe Is the scant supply pumped
own to him through a pipe from the
nrface as though he were pearl diver
hthonls beneath the sea The place in I
fhich ne works at times shows tenn q
erature OF from lOU to 10 degs., or !
ven ~ high as l20 degs In such places !
G Ia stripped of all clothing but a
reech clnut theavy shoes protect his
set and he wears "a cap 10 keep the sand
rom the shaking rock ont of his hair).
et persplration streams from every
ore OF ms body Bnt for the gallons q
q gallons OF ice water he swallows he b
ould be baked in his skin like a potato b
the very life blood would be dried in e
Is veins q
Though sweltering and gasping the a
liner must ss;!. swing hts pick OF sledge b
Iusi still handle shovel or crowbar for II
certain length Of time-tili the end of 8,
Is pass tot fifteen To twenty minutesl !,
hen ne can rlss out Of the drift to the !.
'oling OH station aud send IN his part !,
sr to work his pass
For the dangers miner must brave y
nd all tha suffering he must endure q
ON heat and bad AIR Insufficient or
tiatedl four dollars day Is by no p
cans too large sum to offer him for q
ght hours work IN the sweltering low q
levels Simply 10 remain eight hours
hzz af,t taf |