The Seattle post-intelligencer. [volume] (Seattle, Wash. Terr. [Wash.]) 1888-1914, 1893-04-30

UUO annually OUT OF MINING. ~ 10 oho
of the queerest cities have ever visited.
If you could sail UP into :sise air mile
above the sea level you wcsld be within
GOO feet OF tho altitude a. which these
people live the year round. The town Is
located right up in The mountains, and on
all sides great peaks rise ups ard and the
sides of the hills are lined with vast smelt-
ing furnaces, which pour out day and
night a s1lphurous smoke. 4 large part
OF the production here is csinper, and the
copper ore has TO be roasted IN order TO get
the sui phur out of ii in its rfilction. The
result is that the sis is tiliSa with brim-
stone, and though the city 10 as close to
heaven as any other in tie Union it
has more of the Surroundings Of hell.
These sulphurous fumes ate 80 strong
that they destroy the vegetation.
The grass never grows here. The
flowers never blossom nri tho trees
have long since shed :heir leaves for good.
Until few years ago nc one supposed
that Butte would be q permanent city.
and the people built homes only with the
idea of leaving them when the mines were
played out. OF late, however, il has be-
come evident that this w... always be a
great mining center. The 4 haconda mines,
the largest copper veins of the world. have
enough ore in sight to last for ninety
years, and the other corpcr and silver
mines here seem inexhauetible. The re-
suit is that Butte City is row founded on
a substantial basis. 1t has a population
OF about 5000 people, and il has substan-
tial business blocks whicE isay q better in
terest on their investment than the aver.
age of business property anywhere in the
United States. tents are high in
Butte. and business b.,isdings bring
in from Is to % and 40 per
cent. on the investment. There is proba-
bly, no city in the L nited States that does
so large a business in proportion to its
population as Butte, arr! there is none
which has so big a pag roll. Nearly
100000 in wages is paid here every
month, and the low est wages are g so .
day for eight hours work, The smelters
turn out about $50. Cs)0. 900 s'erth of ore in
ayear. and day ana night. seek day and
Sunday. the streets are jas,;n with peo-
pie. The majority of them are miners,
but you see many well-drassed men and
fine looking women. Bgjsse has q very
cultured society, rs wels As decidedly
wicked one, and there ase churches and
Sunday schools. literary societies ana
heiis, dance halls and all Of the mining
accomplishments OF vice.
lou see the vicious el"faent first, for
this is the most prominent. The main
streets OF the city have gambling .hel,s
sandwiched betwe banks and stores, and
gambling is licensed by Jaw. 1 asked
leading citizen whether he dad not hope to
get rid of this sooD. He reolied that the
first step would Re to ts'hke q law that
there should be a. gamt'lag on the first
floor, and after that the:s hoped to get
rid OF the gain blers eatirely. This
will, however, be a long time hence.
Miners take naturally TO gambling,
and the big wages lind .hsir way to the
faro tables. Other forms pt vice are lust
as open. and there are streets of little one
story houses occupied by somen of Ques-
tionable reputation, eaCa of whom has
her first name painted al the door and
who usually leans out of the ground floor
window soliciting custor.. These women
are of oil races AMI colors. Chinese, Japa-
nese, African ana America, and they are
the lowest OF the low. Scgas OF the saloons
make you think of the Nowery of New
York and others " ould u 1t be out Of place
in Five Points.
These places of vice ars, however, de.
ereasng every year. All Montana will
eventually come down 10 solid business
basis. The mines are randly going into
WIG VA Hilus
ing could he done by pny one, and the
millions that were taken out Of the state
IN the latter part Ct the sixties and in the
seventies were LARGELY paHred out of placer
digging. Righ; here al s3itte City about
100000 was tasrn out ia this way be-
fore they began 30 work tie quartz, and
one CLAIM which sold Tor 500 Melted
the purchaser s. 0.o0 Another claim
near this produced Sl.oo1 a day for a long
time. and one man foun,& = nugget which
was worth $3.50. At tbs time water was
very scarce in some Of tf;e claims and for
tunes were made IN selling water. talked
with an old miner yesteit5ey who said that
he had 10 give np mice because IL cost
him $40 day for wat,s to work il, and
though II eventually par2ci out well he
could not AFFORD To wai,. Another man
told me that lie used 81 get s. dav for
working in the IN ne az S.t,s time and that
he thought he ~as d.vTC we'll until he
found he had to pay p, dollar apiece for
eggs and Slup for a sack :. nour. Most OF
the placer mining OF LAY is done by
Cinnamon. and ,ou huE these yellow
skinned mortals u asains, gold eYerywh here
You so. They herd toys: iher In little cot
tages, and eye-F one - these Rocky
mountain Towns ias rs s. :1lucse quarter
There are aboIE loo :, Helena sud
great number ia butte (atr. While | was
IN Great Falls ~ atte l,,ud to enter the
town ana vas IIt out be mob.
The chief MN ng n y. done is quartz
mining, aud Il taxes 4, .Ftune 70 deyelon
the mines. The result = that the best
mines are oN neil rs weilIy men or hy
large corpoFaii"D-. and :, ming is as svs-
tcma.iCaay dole here -. anv great hlis-
ness ot the East The Ivy lest OF ma
ch'nery aai tie most : II Y - used. and
every tDi;te has 81 He'd e@!t.sts connected
With e. High v ages --e vaii. ami Won
NIL md = Hp.tt