The San Francisco call. [volume] (San Francisco [Calif.]) 1895-1913, 1895-07-01
FOUND IN The FURR0W.
Rich Discovery of a Farmland
While Flowing in ColuSa
County.
Two Thousand Dollars Worth of
Gold Dust That Had Been
Buried in Early Days.

'Gold is being found by poor men yet in
California" said S. ]. Smith, a well-known
jeweler of Williams, Colusa County. Mr..
Smith is down on visit.
THAT at least was the experience of a
farmland up our way last week." added
Mr. Smith, ''and man who did not before
the find have S. which he could call his
own now has at least $4,000. 1t happened
on ranch belonging to Mr.. Miller some
distance from Williams. The mans name
is Andrew Harden.
Harden has disappeared, and there are
but few people in the neighborhood who
have even heard of his luck yet. 1t appears
that Harden was ploughing in the field one
day. think it was week ago Friday-when
he noticed in the furrow streak of yellow
stun which was quite conspicuous in the black
soil. AT hrst he TOOK but little notice OF ii, but
finally out OF curiosity stopped his team and
examined it.
You can imagine his surprise when he dis
covered that the yellow streak was nothing
more or less than tiny particles of metal. II
could be nothing else than gold, and ploughing
lost all interest for him. He gathered up
handfuls of the soil, and began to sift out the
metal. AS last as he got the metal and the dust
separated he placed the former in the side
pocket OF his jumper. Among the golden
particles he found pieces of rotten cloth which
showed thatthe gold had at one time been in a
sack or bag. and in being turned over by the
plow the rotten bag had burst apart, and the
yellow metal had been drawn along the fur
row. When he had gathered up ali the parti-
Giles Harden eagerly dug in the dirt and struck
another bag of the gold. 1t was of rotten
canvas and Harden had 10 gather up the
particles by the handful. Some of the gold in
this bag consisted OF little nuggets the size of
marbles.
Harden had the gold fever now and put in
another hour searching for more gold. He had
an idea that he had found an fnexhaustible
mine, but although he dug and dug, and even
ploughed around the spot, he found no more.
He did not continue ploughing that day, but
drove his team in from the field and an ounced
that he was going to leave. He did not tell
Miller nor any one at the time of his find
Within two days, however, he had informed q
friend of his at Williams, and after that he
disappeared. No one seemed to know where
he had gone. Before going away his friend
brought him to me and without then giving
me any particulars asked me the value of the
gold dust. He then had it in a pouch attached
to a belt around his waist.
1t was frst-quality gold, and the lot was
worth $1,000. understood then that this
friend was going away with him, but Harden
evidently thought it best to keep to himself,
and he disappeared without saying good-by to
any one. 1t was after this that his friend told
of the discovery, and learned how it was that
the man came by the gold dust which he asked
me the value Of. The gold dust was evidently
relic of some prospector's find in early DAYS.
The owner had buried it, and how it had re-
manned lis the mystery which will never be
solved.