Feliciana sentinel. [volume] (St. Francisville, La.) 1877-1892, 1892-01-02
:, FRANc1sv11LE lap o. BAYOU sARA-sArURDAY JANUARY
HUNTING FOR COLO.

HUNTING FOR GOLD.
assdshIps OF thS N1eh who Risk kve<Ss
thing IN the search.
It Is scarcely to be wondered at thst
gold-hunters frequently become insane.
All classes of men join in the search
for the elusive yellow metal Deserters
from the army, men who have grown
tired of ranching, clerks, sailors and
reformed tramps. The number of enor-
mously rich mines that have been mys-
teriously lost in this more mysterious
desert is the incentive. Up and down
the desert do these men go, some Of
them well equipped with teams and
wagons, others riding mules. and there
are some foolhardy enough to essay the
perilous adventure on foot The fierce
heats of summer, nor the cool nights of
winter, do not deter them. They are
all eager. keen and suspicious. Brave,
they naturally must be. to penetrate
into the most iahospitable wilds in
search of a glittering shadow.
Nothing seems - to daunt them,
continual failure appears but to
provoke fresh courage, and when once
the passion has taken hold Of man to
discover q mine, nothing but death will
make him relinquish the attempt
These men are generally very one
sided. They have eyes, ears and UNDER
standing for nothing else but gold or
silver indications There is one pros
pector on the desert a notable excep.
tion, a man called Ed Holland, a poet,
philosopher, mine owner and store.
keeper Some strange allurement drew
him away from civilization, and since
the delirium OF mine-owning seized
him he takes only passing interest in
other matters.
Prospectors are difficult people to get
information from. They delight in the
mysterious and the mystifying. They
all have had hair-breadth escapes from
the Indians and woeful marches when
nssailed by thirst There is CHEEKY
feeling about them that they will one
day meet with sudden and painful
deaths on some exploring expedition,
but SO long as there are signs of the
existence of gold will the prospector
push on. There are several gallant
specimens of this class to be seen in
Yuma, who recuaserate there before
they start again on some perilous jour
ney. Their tales will always fetch
around them an audience, and with
back against the bar ani foot on rail
the trials and troubles of their weary
wandering are forgotten in the blaze
Of popularity. Nothing pleases the old
miner SO much as to speak OF past dan
gers and prospects of success.
"fou remem Der young k" one will
say; "well, he lived with the Injuns
down the Rio Grande, and got as thick
as thieves with them. Guess he doc
~Nf TO- hA o1 all @f
patent medicines with hfuI I1 soS Sv
Ill .'-~:- innenage purity we'll, and one
day one big lnju', says to him: Look
here, II you promise never to tell where
we take you and promise ne YER 70 Gonna
back again we will show you where
there are heaps of gold OF course K.
consented and the Indians took him a
journey OF several days, and he
gathered up thousands of dollars He
would never say where he got the coin,
but know he got it, for saw the cer-
ti6cate. Why didn't he come back?
Oh, because the Indians would kill him,
that is why"
Then another will tell the story Of
how a poor young fellow got lost on
the desert, and, seeing three hills, he
climbed one to observe. and down ut
his feet he saw huge Jumps of gold as
big as his head He empticd
his saddle bags of all superhuous
luggage and pilel away as much
gold as he could carry. He eventually
found his way to Los Angeles Though
he took most careful observations, yet
he was never able to re-discover this
wondrous mine.
Again, another white man who lived
with an Indian woman was told that
she would show him to very rich
mine, or, rather have a relative of hers
do SO. They iourneyed for three days,
| and then the women grew alarmed and
would go no further.
Then there is another mine due east
from Seven Palms called the Lost
Squaw," which has attracted many
prospectors, but she, too, has been a
coy mistress, and has so far concealed
herself from the pryiug gaze of hun.
dreds of seekers.
All these stories have but one ending.
"Well, one day some fellow who leas,
suspects it will stumble on this mine,
and then he will rank with the richest
men in the world. Chicago Ledger.