The Wichita daily eagle. [volume] (Wichita, Kan.) 1890-1906, 1894-09-11

Hardly year has since passed without
some new band of prospectors setting
out TO find the Lost Cabin mine, but its
location Is still a mystery and may re-
main so for many long year to come.
Equally strange and tragic Is the
story Of the Lost Gun Sight ledge In
the summer of 1854 q party Of irln1i-
grants reached Salt Lake City on their
way 70 California. Here they were per
suaded to follow what WAS known es
the southern route in preferences 10 the
then more frequented one farther
north. The route chosen took them
through southern Utah, across the
Colorado river and into the terrible
and then little known desert of the
same name Their stock was SO worn
and wasted that Il was with serious
nisgivings the immigrants essayed to
cross tho desert and in few days
reached the dreary waste OF Death VAL
ley. One by one as they went on their
worn horses and oxen fell by the way
side to rise no more, and one by one
they were forced to abandon their
wagons Then death and famine stole
In among the little band. and the
weaker ones, perishing in quick sue
cession, were buried where they
fell. Finally the survivors scant stores
were exhausted and no water could be
found. Within month the party was
reduced to four men, But there was
no chance for retreat, and though dy-
ing by inches, the survivors pressed on
toward the southwest. One night
while camping near a rocky ledge, one
of the men discovered that The sight
on the muzzle of his rife had been in
some way loOsened and lost Search
ing for something with which TO re-
place it. he noticed a whitish metallic
substance In the rock close at hand and
securing piece of it he speedily whit
tied out and fitted into his rife a clumsy
substitute for the lost sight The follow
ing morning, without particularly no
ticing the locality of the camp, the four
men resumed their journey. Two Of
them, falling by the way died during the
following week and only two survivors
OF a party numbering several hundred
souls finally reached a settlement
in the Los Angeles valley. Here thu
had carved in the desert attracted the
attention Of an old miner, who at once
pronounced it pure native silver, and
eagerly inquired where it had been
found The man told how il had como
into his possession, but aside from the
fact that there seemed to be an album
dance Of the ore, could give only scan
" information as to the locality Of the
ledge from which 1t had been taken
a careful computation OF the number
OF miles probably covered by the m
fortunate men, together with recl1-
oning of the number Of days they had
wandered after leaving the camp, enc
bled a general idea to be formed of the
probable location Of the ledge. a
prospecting party was at once organ
lied and a careful search made for
what has ever since been known as the
Gun Sight ledge, but failure attended
this FIRST effort as well as the numsr-
Gus ones which have since been made
10 locate the rich deposit, and the mys-
terry surrounding the Gun Sight ledge
is still as close and inscrutable as that
of the Lost Cabin mine
4 more ancient and still more per
picking mystery Is that OF the Three
Hills Of Gold Some sixty years ago
a party Of hunters led by d man bear
ing the name OF "Pegieg" Smith we're
trapping on the head waters Of the
Colorado -ivez. They made their way
down the Colorado 20 the mouth OF t.as
ella and then struck westward over
the Colorado desert, hoping 70 reach
Los Angeles On the third night after
leaving the CHA the hunters pitched
their camp near three small hills Ae-
rident or idle curiosity induced one % .
the hunters TO mount 70 the summit Of
one Of the hills lie found its top coz 1
cred with G mess OF dark-eolorsd I
broken rock. plentifuIly sp-inkled /
with shining yellow particles q vary /.
ing size. The presence Of gold u that I
section had not been 61eaned q, but Z
because Of it, singular appearance sev- I
sral pieces Of the rock were carried /
awav BY the hunters After the Dis .
cc~erv OF gold IN ISIS these specimens 4
were examined by al expert. who pro .
the yellow particles 20 =
pure gold. Smith 81 once organized .
an expe6i rior and attempted - r.
discover The han e. the bese Of which .