Idaho County free press. [volume] (Grangeville, Idaho Territory) 1886-current, 1892-08-05
DINE MINING DISTRICT.
Many strong Lodges of Gold
Bearing quarts Seen by
the Editor.

In company with Gov. Deggett and
his son Ben, and NJ isses Annie Wood
and Helen II. Newman, the editor of
the FREE PRESS left Grangeville on the
afternoon of Friday, July %. 1892. The
party were domiciled for the night at
Clearwater station where excellent
meals and Accommodations are served to
the hungry and tired traveller at very
reasonable rates. An early start WAS
made Saturday morning and the editor,
acting as chief of the ex.
pedition. ex pected to cover the distance
OF As miles TO ELK City by four O'Clock
Saturday afternoon. But he had over
estimated the powers of endurance of
his fellow-travelers, and by the time the
old Neweome creek camp was reached
the party were worn out with the un-
sisual horseback exercise, and as the
hour was already late it was decided to
make the best of bad job and camp
there for the night. Newsone creek Is
cold amp at all times, and even on
this midsummer night it was intense
enough to form film of ice on standing
water. The party were equipped with
nothing but sweaty saddle blankets
for bedding. Pine leaves were cut to
r''fton the nsperities of the pine planks
of the old station house, but in spite OF
all thoroughly uncomfortable night
was spent; the gentlemen devoting their
energies to toting logs to keep rousing
fire, while the ladies slept as best they
could. The lunch provided at Clear
water was eli, ed out for lunch. supper
and breakfast hy trout caught in the
creek and cooked in an old tin pan
FURNISHED up for the occasion by sand
and canvas.
1t was tired, weary and hungry
party who boarded the hurricane deck
of their stitf-imbed caynses on that
frosty morning and pulled out for Elk
City, but the warm rays of the great
luminary soon thawed the ice from
their systems and by the time the love-
ly vale of Elk was reached the heat was
almost tropical in its intensity. BY
previous arrangement the company had
agreed to accept the hospitality Of Mr..
s. W. Smith, of the Buster mine, and
acre all hands were Accommodated with
nice spring beds and provisions of the
very best, including cream. milk and
butter Of the finest quality. the produc-
tions of their own dairy. Not content
with this display of generous hospitality
MIR. Smith the next day provided pack
horse with fine camp equipment and
adding himself and Mr. Samuel Myers
to the party the gentlemen under their
guidance proceeded to Dixie, 35 miles
beyond. The ladies were turned over
to the lady residents of the camp and
during their stay they enjoyed royal
good time fishing and hunting. One
day they caught 81 handsome trout, the
next night they ambushed at an "Elk
lick" on the Red river meadows and
succeeded in bageing a COW elk with her
calf. The next day two does and buck
fell before their skill with the rifle and
3. it seemed as il all the game in the val
ley knew of their advent and were eager
20 stand up and be shot at by their fair
visitors. Meanwhile days ride landed
us at the camp of Sampson Dillinger on
Rhett creek in the Dixie basin, in
bran new cabin with stove and plenty
of grub. aud here for the next two DAYS
we made our headquarters, putting in
the time examining the various quartz
properties and typographical features of
the district, and Smith, Myers and the
editor doing some incidental prospect
ing for themselves. Gov. Daggett's
original purpose in straying thus far
from his home in Siskiyou county, Cali
fornia. was to inspect the quartz loca-
lions owned by Mr.. Dillinger. These
embrace three prospects on three dis
tinct lodges. one of which he calls the
Sampson, the second the Sampsonian
and the third the Dillinger. The latter
is vein Is inches wide Of free gold
bearing white quartz and this is what
Gov. Dageett came to see He was,
zhoweyer, much disappointed to find the
claim so little developed, although the
quartz horned ont free gold at every
test. Mr.. Dillinger's other locations are
a red flinty, oxidized and iron sulphur
cited quartz, which also prospects we'll
by the horn process. The red ores are
very base and the gold seems to be con.
aained entirely in the iron. A milling
test OF one ton of this ore made by Mr.
Dillinger last fall realized $40 per ton.
The other lodges in the district are of
the same character generally, and the
uniformity Of the prospects obtained
from the groupings of the several lodges
is very striking.
Among the properties visited was the
Great Eastern, over the hill from the
Dillinger camp. This is owned by Will
hams q Long, and is developed by a
tunnel 100 feet long, which has not vet
cut the vein. These boys spent The
winter there and this spring they have
erected an arrastra aud at the time of
our visit were running through it some
of the slide rock which they encounter.
ed II the face of their tunnel and which
prospected well in gold. Mr.. Williams
is the discoverer of quartz in Dixie and
among his other locations be has a ten
foot ledge full OF sulphurets from wall
TO wall. This he calls the BIackfoot.
and it will undoubtedly make a good
prospect when developed. The Great
Eastern is located on branch of Crook.
ed creek and bias iine water power and
mill site close at hand.
a mammoth ledge of white Quartz
'oca'ed by the Buster crew and We editor
vas next visited and sample selected
indifferently by the editor horned ont
gold in amazing quantities. The dis
covery site is "blow out" on the sum-
NIT of Il gently rounded hill and it's sides
IN al directions are alive with great
oonlders, showing that the ledge must
have at one time had enormous out.
groupings and at the same time
making it difficult matter to determine
he width of the ledge. 1t is un fortunate
that more quartz was not brought from
this ledge, because if it only carries a
fraction of TIE gold obtained from our
prospect i, is million dollar propo-
sltion rs itstands, without lick being
struck on it. The quartz is white and
!lihty and extremely hard, and In any
other district would have been passed