Cherry County independent. (Valentine, Cherry Co., Neb.) 18??-1896, 1896-03-05

noticed the alteration in the chracter
of the stuff he was sending up. Do you
recall that fine-twisted wire gold eXhib-
tied at the Worlds Fair? Much Of that
was what SOuther and l took out of
that shaft. I called to Jim to stand
from under, for l aimed to come down
| and see him awhile. l broke the news
to him and then we began to figure out
how we stood. AS nearly as we could
decide we had pocket or chamber Of
this stuff extending into the side of the
shaft about eight feet. We could reach
in and get out handfuls of finespun
gold that looked like it came from un-
der red-headed girls hat. But we
couldn't stand in the shaft and admire
it all day. There was at least $4,000
worth of the stuff. The metal that
was not free could easily enough be
separated from the rest of the ore. 1t
was inclosed in decomposed quartz and
required nothing but rubbing between
the fingers to get it. We decided to
raise it all that night-that is unless it
turned out a bigger find than we
thought. We figured it best not to go
about beating the drum to advertise our
strike, but hoist the ore and do OUR talk
ing later.
Jim stayed in the mine and 1 went
back on the winch. Then my tempta-
ton came to me. There was good
big piece of money there for one man,
and just half as much each for two. /
have read somewhere that every man
has his price if you keep on bidding you
can reach him sure at some spot. Since
that day l have shuddered to think how
cheap 1 am. A measly $4,000 in ore
came near getting me. 1t all came to
me as if it were printed in big letters
and held before my face. 1 could call
to Jim and get him out Of the drift into
the bottom of the shaft and let go the
windlass. There wouldn't be a kick
left in a man who had been smashed
on the head with a seventy-fye-pound
bucket, with 200 pounds Of ore in it,
after a fifty-foot fall.
"The first time 1 called I couldn't
raise my voice over whisper. 1t re-
minded me Of the time had the pneu-
monia my first year in the mountains,
and Jim nursed me out of it. He
walked twenty miles over the hills in a
snowstorm to get medicine for me, and
it's the surest thing in the world 1
wouldn't have been hoisting pure gold
out of a Farncomb Hill shaft if Jim
Souther hadn't sat UP with me day and
night for week four years before. 1
thought of all this while 1 was Timber
ing up my voice for the second try at
calling him. That time did it.
"'What is 1t, Bill% he hollers back
1 could see his candle flicker as 1
looked down the shaft ready to let go
the winch, when had him placed right.
What's eating of you now? he keeps
on. We amt got any time for merry
making or visiting if we get this spend
ing money out to-day he says. Make
your talk quick, Bill
II had to try three times again be-
fore 1 could make a noise. Shake a
bush' says Jim, if you can't speak,
81 want you to come up and work
the WINCH yells back. I don't like
to be so far away from the stuff4
"'All right he hollers UP, if you
prefer it. But you know you can't
stand it down here as well as 1 can,
and I'm some afraid you'll get the
worst Of it.
$50 Jim came up and took his place.
When l was going down the shaft he |
says:
"'You look like you had seen dead |
friend, Bill. think another strike like
this would give you heart failure
'What did the find do? We took out |