Idaho County free press. [volume] (Grangeville, Idaho Territory) 1886-current, 1897-01-08
SOME IRREGULARITIES OF NATIVE GOLD
PUZZLES + TRAVELS AND DISTRIBUTION THE
LOW METAI4--FREAKs FORM AND COLOR PLACER
AND QUARTZ GOLD.

pIctty SURE W tIdCC ~ up anu LIN
in the bedrock the gap through
which the "overflow" came from
the dead ri,e r channel beneath the
mountain, then by means of a tun-
mel he goes in under the mountain
and finds the main lead which was
the source of the gold he found in
the ravine. This lead gold is some
times found mingled with the gold
of the more recent placers, one OF
the rivers of the modern system, or
a big canyon, having at some point
cut through a dead river channel
and carried down and re-deposited
much of the gold; but wherever it
is found it is known to have come
from one of the ancient rivers, as
it carries the earmafks of the blue
gravel.
ORIGIN OF THE CHILL DIGGTNGs.
The ancient river channels, in
most places covered with flows of
lava, are the oldest alluvial depos-
it's of auriferous material in Cali
fornia; the hydraulic or chill dig
gings," which was found upon the
slopes or along the base of the big
mountains are the secondary de-
posits, and they generally contain
more or less lead gold, "spewed
out" of the channels of the dead
rivers above in the mountains.
The bulk of the gold in these hill
diggings, however, is from the
more recent erosions of quartz
veins somewhere above in the dis
trict, and it is not so much worn
as the gold of the dead rivers,
which was probably torn from its
original matrix millions and mil
lions of years before the hill dig
gings began to be formed. 1 con-
slider the Chill diggings" to be the
result of the great lava flows, pri-
marily. When the mountains
belched forth their floods of lava,
the ancient rivers were filled with
it, and so damned up as to cause
great overhows in many places.
These outbursts from the ancient
rivers carried down much gold
: from their channels, which, being
redeposited below, formed the
nuclei about and upon which the
hill diggings were built up.
The placers in the foothills, in
q flats, on benches and in bars or
;, streams are the result for the mos
Il part of the still more recent decom
. position and erosion ofquartz veins
. and other auriferous rocks by thu
weather and the action of rivers
y creeks and mountain torrents
+ This process of placer formation i
y still in operation in places wher
4 not interfered with by the works o
u the miner. In these recent placer
; is found what the miners speak Q
> as CROUCH, scraggly" gold-gol
|; that shows but little sign of was
q or attrition. Such gold is know
u to have not long been exposed t
n the grinding action of stream
% to have come from any very dis
Is tant place. Even in these placer
J. will be found in some places
F.. small amount of the old 'lea
l. gold" washed out of the old hi
l. diggins by some rush of water an
). redeposited on some bar, bench G
oI fiat in the foothills.
SPECIMEN GOLD.
n In some of these placers whel
,e the rough, scraggly gold FREEDOM
m mates, unique and beautiful spec
N mems are found. Some of thes
a seem to be representations (
N leaves and plants, and others
h living things, as butterflies, birt
le and the like. In the early days
,r California such specimens
re brought great prices. Glasses
10 specimens were found in certai
ii diggings and localities which al
a peared to show that much of tn
le gold was from some particular lod
ir In the Kern river placers thel
le was much needle-shaped gold. l
at one place the gold would be vel
CO fine grains, and in another a
er would be in the shape of nugget
while again "scale gold" wou.
predominant. In Steep Hollow
Nevada county, all the gold W;
of in the shape of big nuggets, roue
J" and jagged. 1t was called by Il
G. miners ''big ugly gold"
~ THE FREAKS OF GRAVEL CHANNEL
Us In some diggings the charact
IN of the gravel showed that it
es came from a certain single localit
e; while in other diggings near by
ut was evidently from very ditfe
to ent place. l once had a mine
er the hill diggings the gravel al
he dirt in which was of deep r.
ac oolor on tho nOrthern half viii