Richmond dispatch. [volume] (Richmond, Va.) 1884-1903, 1895-09-29

In the square sets when. ln iS-i-.j-i6-'T.
the Bic Bonanza was WORK 3D.. fut Wien
they 9 ifned some years later '' r. Fprk
the Bonanza, instead 81 teiDg H. .c1es,
the tlmbers were about -four ~
width. because. while they hal r ~
Ing on the lower ley@i o.. fl. M he
mountain had been ~ l.H. r
cepublY, Of course, b.f fU
subfrquent comparison ~
OF the first drift shgvei.
When the miners left ffs squar o.
on the ll00-foo, level lu ISL, many Of
these SD galleries had been completely
fillel in with heavy timber. In order TO
make SOLID the resistance against he
encrOaching se sht. AS result. these
little TUNES. instead OF being filed with
the original ofe which had been takeh
out. were solid masses OF timber. IRE
proportionate streng IA OF the timber and
the ore was plainly shown IN that the
timber was crushed TO consistency
which made 1t lose all semb.ance OF wood
and take on the appearance of stone or
onyx. and IL there had not been sur
rounding this big body of ore the dreaded
creeping clay" the chances are that the
side OF the mountain would have remained
dectntly still.
All OF the miners talk OF the late Sena-
tor Fair as Jim Fair" and 1t Is said
that there Is line OF compressed timber
In the Consolidated mine on the Com
stock .ode that Is Indicative of Fairs I'M
falling memory, lie had run ix3-fOot
lead at about the l,ie-foOt Level, ana
neavlly timbered IT. Some time after
ward a miner named Jim Rule concluded
that from the main shaft he would DRIFT
or In the direction where he.'presupposed
the existence OF "A large body or ore.
He spoke 10 Fair about, who replied
"AU right: YOU - and drift over that
way. hut you won't find anything but an
Old drift that ! made some years ago
Rule GrirteG over. and never found any
thing, except that at just about the place
Fair told him ne would find a tunnel
he found n kind of assure about or !
inches Wide. and until he remembered
what Fair had said he could not account
for it. This was all that was left II
Fairs tunnel or drift. The heavily tim
bered 7X5-foOt tunnel had by the acton
Of the earth been practically squeezed out
Of existence. and instead Of heavy timbers
there was nothing but "A substance M
looked like stone. and the "creepilg
clay and the slide of the mountain were
the cause.
II IS generally believed that this awful
mower of moving earth has been notice
able I'm the entire Comstock lode, primer
pally because the lode Is volcanic Ms
sure. and not quartz bed. In many
cases. even around the compressed TIM
hers. there has been found deposit OF
nuartz. showing that nature Is stil AT
work on this same lode, but the Know
ledge Of the direction Of her labors wouli
mean a fortune 10 any man.
II costs thousands Of dollars TO TIMBER
Il mine and millions OF feet Of lumber:
owing 10 the aggrava.ns persistehcy OF
the side Of the mountain where the com
stock lode Is situated. the mines tnefe
require more than usually heavy t1ihD'r-
ing. and in nearly all cases where tne
heavy thinkers have been necessary 10
preyent the encroaching Of the creeping
clay" IT has been found afterward that
the wood has been subjected to so severe
pressure that IT looks more IKE stone
than wood.