The Caldwell tribune. [volume] (Caldwell, Idaho Territory [Idaho]) 1883-1928, 1894-08-18
Rare Beautiful Gems in Great Album.
dance.
4 VERY DESOLATE COUNTRY
Prehistoric kelic-Thick Solitude The
Warm Sprfngs-SOme Rare
Thinking and Jack.
rabbits.

bee county. The camp is known as
Opaline and at one time created con-
siderable stampede from all parts OF
the country. THE TRIBUNE faculty is
not much Of an opal miner but in view
of the fact that valuable and extensive
deposits of those gems are found so near
to Caldwell, we propose to enter upon
an exhaustive study of the subject
some day after the weather tones down
few degrees. Mr.. Bailey is part
| owner in a 40 acre claim from which a
great many beautiful stones have been
taken and are still being mined. This
claim is not developed to a. great an
extent as some in the district, but it
gives every promise of being one of the
richest. Just now there is no great
amount Of activity around Opaline, ex-
cept among the jaokrabbits who are
mostly devoted to pursuing agriculture,
and obsequies. The hotel does not ap-
pear to be crowded and accommodations
are very reasonable, especially rooms.
That is a queer looking country around
Opaline and doesn't seem to have any
mission on earth unless it be to produce
opals and incidentally starve jackrab-
bits. 1t is the driest, barrenest, hottest
and unanimously the most hopeless
and forlorn looking country man ever
gazed on. The only visible products
are opals, rocks, sand, lizards, jack
rabbits and solitude The solitude is
rich and deep. There Is no question.
though, about the opals. They are
there in great abundance. The pity is
that so much of this beautiful world
had to be rendered, useless and forbid
ding simply to supply human vanity
with iridescent decoration. Not having
any opal fields to our own account, we
were mean enough to enjoy Mr.. Badley's
disappointment in not finding at the
mines the man he went there to see.
This materially curtailed our stay and
brought us down to tho Warm Springs
little after ten o'clock, A. M. Hav-
ing started at five o'clock, and break
tasted on a glass of milk and chew of
pepsin gum, things were not comfort
able about our stomach. Mrs. Givens.
OF the Warm Springs house, kindly
made matters right with fried chicken.
eggs and coffee and the country took
on happier aspect. The gentleman
Mr.. Bailey had been looking for turned
up about that time and together they
determined to return to Opaline. On
pretense of being an expert, scientific
fisherman, The TRIBUNE force was .x-
cused from revisiting the mines and
spent the day resting and thinking"
We can think with much less exertion
and about as much success as we can
Eish. We tried fishing for about 20 |
minutes without visibly depicting the
river and then composed ourself to
think. Mighty thoughts surge through !
ones mind while stretched out fiat of
MS back in the shade. One of those
thoughts was that we would like to be
bandit and have rendezvous at
Warm Springs. We would kidnap the
hired girl, scalp the balance of the
household, rob the ferry boat and be-
'ome q holy terror. Then we thought
hat Warm Springs would make a
amOus resort for health and pleas
ire seekers and the idea of pur-
hasing it was in contemplation. Its
ISOLATION would peculiarly fit it for
mother Monte Carlo or Baden Baden
nd blue bloods from England aud
udes from New York would come out
play roulette and shoot craps. We
'ould hire some opal miners with still
ttos and brickbats to do the act on the
Inside. It is truly remarkable what
rand and eleyating thoughts one can
link when he gets down and makes a
asiness of it. In exchange for Mr..
adley's kindness we shall sometime
vite him out with us for a whole
eek to do nothing of consequence but
ink and then we will discover to him