The Neihart herald. [volume] (Neihart, Mont.) 1890-1901, 1896-11-14
MINING ON THE BARlMA.
4 Number Of Placer Claims Are Being
Worked with Success.


4 Number Of Placer Claims Are Being
Worked with Success.
When | discovered that the only
way of obtaining employment on a
placer was to own one, in the fall Of
1894 | joined fortur Q with another
miner and started for the Barima
river. We arranged to stay two or
three months, and our provisions
for that time cost $3.50. Taking pas.
sage on steamer, we entered the
Barima through the Moro passage
end at Mount Everard wore taken
into boat which, propelled by pad.
dies, was carrying provisions and
men to placer mine near Arakaka,
the English government station,
eight or nine days up.
On tho way up the river noticed
mud reefs crossing the Barima every
few miles and ranging in width
from few feet to 40. I prospected
some of them and found a few
specks of fine gold, which miners
called "eyes. l think these reefs
Indicate fissure veins. passed by
several placer mines, but visited
none until we came to the Warren ba
syndicate, about four miles below
Arakaka and the same distance in
from the river on the west bank.
While prospecting inland we lost
ourselves in one of the swamps
which abound in that region. On
our search for camp we crossed at
least 20 times creek running
through the swamp and finally
came to gigantic cypress tree,
which served as landmark. Each
attempt that we made to got out of
the swamp brought us back to the
Cypress tree. Finally we succeeded
in reaching higher ground, where
we found an old line out through
the underground in the manner of
marking a mining claim. By follow.
ing this we succeeded in getting out.
1t is impossible to travel through
the thick underground of that re-
gion without compass, and, as in
this instance, even a compass proves
to be almost useless.
At our camp near Arakaka we
hewed a boat out of tree and pad.
died rs miles up tho stream to the
first rapids. There / was taken i'll
with dysentery. which was preva-
lent thereaDout, and was compelled
to return to the hospital at Araka.
ka. While there I visited the Ara.
kaka Development oumpan 8 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 forma-
tion. The quartz ledges are not so
we'll defined as on the Cuyuni but
eventually, think, the Barima will
abound in quartz mines. The lodges
run invariably from the northeast
to the southwest.
The Arakaka Development com.
pany owns so placer claims. may
explain that placer claims are To-
GATED on water courses and are 500
feet wide by 1900 in length. The
method of working them is simple.
The ground is 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 sluice is
put in, to which the water of the
creek is confined. Men are stationed
on each side of the sluice to shovel
In the gravel. This is washed by the
water, and the gold is caught by the
quicksilver in the rifles at tho bot.
tom of the sluice. A "clean up oo-
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 as
they advance up the creek. 1.-The
Goldfields of Guiana" by Thomas
Dalgleish, in Century.