Hot Springs weekly star. (Hot Springs, S.D.) 1892-1917, 1897-11-19
WHAT NOBLE THINKS
Burlin.:tun's Travelling Passenger Agent
Talks About the Future Orthe Hills
f.,,. NnSt V.,nr


| Prospects for Next Year.
y. b. Noble, the genial trayelin,
passenger agent of the Burlington was
in the city Saturday. He was OH his
way back to Iowa from the upper Hills
where he had conducted Il large party
of eastern capitalists to the Two Bit
and other mining districts
"The Klondike boom has been the
best thing that ever happened the
Hills" said Mr.. Noble. sit has created
a widespread interest in mining and
there is IL continually increasing de-
mand from every part of the United
States for Information about the Black
Hills. The ideas of the majority of
the inquirers about the country are
vague. They have heard that it is a
gold producing country, but when you
give them the figures of Il years out
put of gold they are astounded and
say that's a good enough Klondike for
me- Most of them imagine the Black
Hills to be bleak. dreary region with
only one town in it-and they've all
heard of that and think of men for
breakfast, revolvers and ropes dangling
from limbs of trees with loops at the
end-Deadwood. They think that all
the gold is mined at Deadwood and
that civilization was never heard of or
forgotten and are much surprised and
often incredulous when presented the
facts. It's queer what notions people
haze of the country. | suppose it is
because those who have paying mines
listen to the sound of their stamps
and let the world wag on. paying no
attention to what other people say or
think. When I get a party coralled
SO can tell them what there really is
out here in the way of resources it gen.
orally ends in their making up their
minds to come out and see for them
selves. OF the siXty-four known min
erals sixty two have been found in the
Hills. you know, and experts think
they have discovered another one re-
Gently. Sometimes when I'm travelling
and see Il chance to do business pull
piece of ore out of my pocket with
the gold sticking out of it and pass it
around the car for inspection. That's
what catches them. They cluster
around me like bees. asking all sorts
of questions. If Il few good samples of
this kind could be placed on exhibition
in eastern cities it would do a great
leal toward interesting the people in
the mineral resources of the Hills.
The next five years will bring. in my
opinion. an enormous amount of capi-
tai into this section for investment
and in ten years it will be the most
densely populated part of the United
States"
Speaking about the prospects of "A
good year for Hot Springs next year
Mr.. Noble said it depended much on
the advertising. "The railroad is doing
all it can. but with the help of the
various towns of the Hills more might
be done in q general way. 1t occurs to
me that if geological map of the
country We're printed with a short de
scription of the mineralsand the coun-
try in general. followed by anything of
il specific nature each town cared to
advertise. it would result very material
ly for the Hills and ultimately for Hot
Springs. We will distribute them on
our trains and where they will do the
most good. During the exposition we
could bring the Black Hills exhibit
into prominence by distributing these
pamphlets among the people before
they got there and afterwards. so THAT
when our excursions up here are on
they can come up and see for them
selves. We're going to do what we can
in any event and hope to bring lot
of people to YOU"