The Daily Ardmoreite. [volume] (Ardmore, Okla.) 1893-current, 1896-10-08
MINING On THE sARIMA.


Worked With snno@aM
When / discovered that the only
way of obtaining employment on .
placer was TO own one. in the fall OF
1894 I joined fortur Q with another
miner and started for the Barima
river. We arranged 60 stay two or
three months. and our provisions
for that time cost $3.50. Taking pas
sage on a steamer, we entered the
Barima through the Moro passage
and Rt Mount Everard were taken
into boat which. propelled by pad
dies, was carrying provisions and
men 10 placer mine near Araknkn,
the English government station.
eight or nine days up
On the way up the river noticed
mud reefscrossing the Barima every
few miles and ranging In width
from few feet 20 90. prospected
some of them and found q few
speoks Of fine gold. which miners
called eyes" think these reefs
indicate fssure veins. We passed by
several placer mines. bat visited
none until we came 10 tae Waremha
syndicate. about four miles below
Arakaka and the same distnnce In
from the river on the west bank.
While prospecting inland we lost
ourselves In one of the swamps
which abolnd In that region. On
our search for camp we crossed nc
least 20 times a creek running
through the swamp and finally
came to a gigantic cypress tree.
which served rs n landmark. Each
attempt that we made 70 get out of
the swamp brought rs back 20 the
Cypress tree. Finally we succeeded
in reaching higher ground. whore
we found an old limo cut through
the underrrowth In the manner of
marking a mining claim. BY follow
ing this we succeeded In getting out
10 Ii impossible to travel through
the thick nndergrowth Of that re-
Rion without q compass. and. as in
this instance, even q compass pro res
to be almost useless.
AT our camp near Arakaka we
hewed n boat out Of q tree and pad
died rs miles up the stream TO tine
first rapids. There was taken III
with dysentery. which was preva-
lent thareabout, and was compelled
to return TO the hospital at Araka-
ka. While there visited the Ara
kaka Development oUmpany . mines.
under the management Of Mr.. Ow-
ems, an American. This company
was working both quartz and placer
claims which were very rich.
The region Is of volcanic forTna-
tion. The quartz ledges are not so
well defined as on the Cuyuni. but
eventually, ! think. the Barima win
abound in quartz mines. The ledges
run invariably from the northeast
TO the southwest
The Arakaka Development CON-
pany owns GO placer claims- may
explain that placer claims are To-
Gated on water conrsss and are sou
feet wide by /. 500 in length. The
method of working them IL simple.
The ground IL cleared of brush, and
the first covering Of clay Is removed
until the gold bearing gravel Is ex.
posed. This Is called stripping q
pit" on the creek. Then . sluios IL
pot in, to which the water Of the
creek Is confined. Men are stationed
on each side of the sluice 20 shovel
in the gravel This In washed by thu
water. and the gold Is caught by the
} quicksilver in the rifles At the bot
tom of the sluioe. A "olean up" GO.
ours every night. and therefore the
miners know just what they are
making from day to day. A section
of the sluice is moved forward a
they advance mp the Greek.-'Ths
Goldfelds of Guiana. by Thomas
/ DAlgieish. in Century