The Wheeling daily intelligencer. [volume] (Wheeling, W. Va.) 1865-1903, 1894-01-06
Correspondence Of Tic 1ntetitgeace,.

Spccial CORRESPONDENCE of the Intcui9tlcer.
CRIPPLE CREEK, COLORADO, IAN. 2.-As
j I promised You a letter from this part
OF the world before starting west will
now try to redeem that promise. This
the greatest gold camp now, perhaps,
on the continent, is situated eighteen
miles southwest on an air line from
Colorado Springs, in the foot hills OF
Pike'sP Peak. With its banks, churches,
schools, saloons, gambling houses,
dance halls, &c, it is only about two
years old and has a population OF eight
to ten thousand people. This young
but vigorous city is soon to have two
railroads.. One, the Midland Terminal,
is now within four miles Of the city,
and the Florence and Cripple Creek.
road is building in from the south and
will be completed by May 1. The town
has a good electric light plant and a
splendid water works giving the thirsty
soul mountain snow water. The town
is sadly lacking in hotel accommoda-
tons, but this is mainly due to the mar
velous increase OF traffic. 1t is situated
at an altitude of over $500 feet above
the sea level, and on all sides one sees
shaft houses, prospect holes, windlasseH,
steam hosting machines, &c.
THE MINES.
Every man you. meet expects to be a
millionaire next week. The goldin this
camp is mostly found id porphyry, a
rock peculiar to itself, and the extent of
territory SO far prospected is about five
miles in length from northeast to south
west and about three miles broad. The
face of tho camp looks like there had
been a general overflow here when this
part, of the countrywas in a liquid state.
Somegood mines are oundi in the gran
lite, but they are not as a rule as good
as those where the gold is found in the
%porphyry. The camp produced during
the month of December, 1898, over
S35O,OO0 in gold, and the output for 1894
is, estimated to go far beyond this aver
age per month, as many Of the mines
have. not been shipping out, owing to
the expense OF hauling ore to the rail
road, but are piling it up, awaiting the
completion of the roads.
q The Gold King n company in
Il which some few Wheeling people are
4 interested, is regarded as a fine prop
Il erty, as it assays a very high grade OF
ore, and is a patented claim of nineteen
acres. It is not being worked now ex-
8 cept to deyelope, as the owners here are
~ llltIcSbSu~1 u "a CAiN ~ ~
patented and are covered all over With
lnw suits (by the way, this claim jump
Hing is doing great injury to tho camp,
and each felloWis trying to make his
claim good.
RICH ORE.
Ore now going from. the "Gold King
is running as high as 800 to $130 per
ton. One other claim, the @Annie
- - - ,uJ,;ob ~ - - g. ~ roo tVhanlinr
people are interested, is now the best
shipper in the camp. We sent out
eight cars last week or about 100 tons,
. and have $50 tons on the dump. This
is a claim that this last year could
have boon bought for $4,000. Still an
s. other property. that Wheeling people
are interested in is the Strong" We
81 have in a steam hoist and are working
q forty-fve men in the mine, and as a
81 New5Year's gift we struck some OF the
best. ore in this mine yet found, but do
81 not know how much we have OF it. 1t
is not the richest ore that always pays
best, but a lower grade where they have
RI a large body of it.
THE DISCOVERY
The ground now SO thickly dotted
over by shaft-houses, &C., only a little
over two years ago was a cattle ranch
and the story goes that Robert Womack
was the first man to find gold bearing
4 rocks! He picked up a stone to cast at
an unruly steer and attracted by its
weight kept it and brought it down to
Colorado Springs, where he had it
assayed and found it carried gold. but
could not get any one interested in the
4 camp for time. At last two gentle
men took interest enough to go and see
what he had, and on Investigation they
staked off claims.
Such was the early history of this now
great gold camp. / think beyond q
doubt that this will prove the greatest
gold camp in the world. New strikes,
and rich ones, are being found every
day. The weather here is simply de-
lightful. New YEARS. day was like a
Il Jnnesday with: us, and day after day a
q cloudless sky greots your vision, and
you wonder how long it will5last, but
when told.by Colorado Springs people
4. that wo will have just such weather for
months, an old fog and SCOT consumer
s. OF Wheeling can hardly believe such a
story. N. B. $.
81 Il WEALTH OF GOLD.
q nloro About the Mines in Which Wheeling
81 s&& Geutlelnen Are Interested. S