The Madisonian. (Virginia City, Mont.) 1873-1915, 1896-03-21

may have been on one side of his ma
ture, on the other side he was a fiend
incarnate.
We stayed but a short time at Ban
mack. At that time everybody we're
focking to the newly discovered Dig
gings in Alder gulch, so early in july
we were caught in the current, and
joined the general stampede to the lat
ter place.
AT the time of IL coming, Alder
gulch had been discovered about two
months, but in this time a population
of 1000 or $500 had gatherd from ev
erywhere, and was composed of all
sorts. They were living in tents and
dugouts scattered along the gulch from
Nevada to Summit, a distance of ten
miles. Several cabins were being
built at Virginia and Nevada. but I
think that hone of them were entirely
completed.
At this time all the bar claims had
been located, but there were still claims
in the middle of the gulch to be taken
up. l first took up n in the gulch
about midway between Virginia and
Nevada, but the bed rock was deep.
and its successful working would re-
quire an expensive drain ditch which I
was unable to construct. so abandoned
it, though it afterwards proved very
rich. | afterward worked on claims in
Bachelor gulch, at Summit and in the
Highland district.
While | was at Summit | met Geo.
Ives, afterward hanged by the Wig
ilantes for a road agent. He had
come up from Virginia to look around,
and made himself very agreeable. He
inquired especially as to who had rich
claims at Summit, and who were ex-
pecting to leave for the states soon. |
did not think strange of it at the time.
but a few months later when | stood
guard over him the night before he
was hung, it all came back to my mind.
Ives invited me to visit his ranch and
said he would show me how to lasso an
antelope, and boosted that there was
not another man in Idaho who could do
it. | was afterward assured that Ives
could actually perform this feat.
1t is not strange that the passions OF
the civil var which was raging in the
states, made themselves felt in Alder
gulch. My sympathies were with the
union. while my partner at summit
had been a lieutenant in Prices army.
We had to agree not to talk politics.
During my stay in Highland district
occurred an incident which illustrated
the workings of political sympathy, as
well as the kind of justice melted out by
the miners meeting. We were sum
mOned to a miners meeting one night.
and when we arrived we found that a
woman was petitioning the miners for
a separation from her husband. AS
there was no civil court at that time,
the miners in their meeting had to take
jurisdiction of ali sorts Of actions. The
oma complained of his habitual
drunkenness and cruelty: she complain
ed that he ~squandered in whiskey all
the money that she took in by washing.
She showed us the bruises and marks
of violence upon her person. The sym
pathies of the miners were aroused and
Il verdict was almost unanimously
against the husband.
As we had no iails, and there We're
only two methods within our power of
furnishing a man, first by hanging, and
second by Punishment, We chose the
lighter punishment. Our judgment
was that he should leave Alder gulch
for a year or receive forty lasheS.
am not sure that our Judgment Was
right. | have since very seriously
questioned its wisdom, but | am now