The Seattle post-intelligencer. [volume] (Seattle, Wash. Terr. [Wash.]) 1888-1914, 1897-08-08

The placer system, many Of them would hv
10 means be enlightened That IL Just the
plan, however. The placer system is .he
only one generally available. where the
hand % old Winter has so Arm q grasp 40
IN the Cion6yke region.
BY placer mining Is meant shss system
which Involves the separation OF ,he virgin
gold from the earth by means % water.
In other words. Il II washed cut. X Is
really psnning gold on huge scale. Tia
other system OF gold mining f. known as
quartz mining In this latter case tire gold
Is found Embedded In quartz and * taken
from the mines TO stamp mills where the
quart. Is stamped or crushed and thus put
IN such a condition that TIRE geld ard
quartz can be separated bv a process
which ts 50 technical that 20 Nc thoroughly
understood Il needs 10 be seen.
When CtondySe prosnecter has stakaa
oas his claim. which must he az near
water rs possible. and generally aSoaf 20
feet IN length. re makes an experimental
panrsng as a test OF the claim This may
show very little AT first. bat when * IS
considered that scent dirt that IS.
ground that washes or pans out ( cents
worth OF gold 10 the pan-is paving prop
erty, Il may De seen that the miners
standard Ii NOT so very high Many cases
have lately been reported from the Cion-
dyke. where the dirt has washed out so
To the pan. With claim OF scent dirt.
the miner II he Is industrious. may be
reSonabiy sure of SD day. With So dirt.
he is a millionaire. II his claim is OF any
considerable extent
The testing OF a claim Is, however only
the beginning. After II has been proved TO
be worth working. II Is necessary TO pre-
pare for more extensive operations. The
first thing Is TO make the siuce boxes. In
the Ciordyke. lumber Is a scarce and very
expensive article. provided it is purchased
all ready for sluice purposes. II the miner
Is industrious he will fell enough trees
frcm the thousands that cover the rugged
lands about him 10 make all the sluice box
lumber that he will reed. II is much more
economical for him 10 pat in the time and
la Dor necessary TO do this than 20 buy the
humber ready made.
When the lumber is ready II Is converted
into siuice boxes Of whatever length the
miner may deem advisable. Tha boxes are
then placed in position and all is In readi-
ness for the washing process. Now comes
the necessity for getting the dirt into the
boxes. II Is always tie case that pay dirt
dirt containing soid-lies next 10 rock.
This being the case II is necessary 10 clear
away the gravel that lies between the sur
face and the pay dirt 1t is a laborious
task in any event, but when one has to
face Clondyke seasons. 1t is still more diff
ficult.
Sometimes II happens that as much as
twenty-five feet of gravel must be re-
moved before pay dirt Is reached. and
when the most of this has 20 be done with
in sixty days. besides washing out the pay
dirt the necessity for hard work is appar-
ent. As a rule, the depth of the surface
gravel Is ABOUT eight feet. and at this
depth II is possible for "a miner TO get hts
pay dirt and wash "a good bit Of II inone
season Many OF those who are on their
way 10 the Ciondyke today cherish the be-
lief that all the miners do when they pan
out gold Is to dig ont surface lode and
make all the money they want to- On the
contrary IL Is often necessary for a miner
TO spend an entire season clearing away
the surface gravel from the pay dirt Of
his claim.
The statements often made that II is I'm
possible TO do any work during the winter
season are erroneous. Nearly all the tun-
neling Is accomplished at that time OF
year. Fire Is the agent by r,eans of which
the tunneling is done. There Is plenty OF
wood 10 be obtained and so the miner
builds a roaring fire next 10 the gravel
through which he wishes to tunnel Nat
urally this meIts the frost out OF the
gravel. which is then shoveled out. This
method does not prove successful with sur
face gravel.
Occasionally IL happens that claim Is
too far from water, and In such cases sew
eral fortunes have been rocked out-that
is. rockers have been used, The rocker is
just what its name indicates. The dirt IS
placed within II and II is rocked until dirt
and gold have been thoroughly shaken
apart. This system is used only on rare
occasions for. as rule, water Is sufiic-
iently plentiful 10 make the ordinary meth
DDS of placer mining available.
\ curious fact that the placer mining Of
the Clondyke region has developed Is that
these mines are nearer the original sources
continent The California mines were
never traceshle biologists say. but these
latest discoveries give distinct evidence Of
BEING near the source from which they
originally camc. Placer mines are In real
ity glacial deposits The ice which formed
the glaciers. mixed with great stones. NJ
sorre time or another wrenched from the
original gold deposits fragments Of the
riches there located by nature. These
fragments. swept along by the huge rivers
OF Ice. have found resting places at vari-
ems points. forming what we know as
placer mines.
The biologists who have examined the
Clondyke mines say that the original gold
fields are not far distant from Ciondyke.
II Ia therefore quite possible that the
stories fron the North about still richer
fnds are true ard that the real E!dorado
Is by no means reached as yet.
Ono phase ~ the ciondyke gold fever
which PEOPLE have rot considered IS that
the women have become violently interest
Ell. They have followed the example %
the stronger sex in a fashion that they
seldom adopt. and nearly every expedition
which leaves here for the CIondyke has
many requests made Of it, members from
women who arc very anxious to accom-
pany them.
u IS from the thoroughly respecta0ls
class 81 people that these women come.
t,Sr- H. - y. RI vi
ing employees % shops and stores WHO feel
that nature has gifted them with sufficient
physique 20 withstand the rigor o. the
British Columbia climate Doubtless many
OF them have at idea-as one confessed
that II there Is not geld there for them
there are a. lesSt plenty ~ men who have
gold bat no wives and t1a, A home and
competence thus awaits them.
The 6'iondyke has net been destitute ~
women ~ any means. The first woman 20
reach there Was Mrs. Thomas Lippy. Of
Seattle
When Mrs Ilpuy was in the Clondyke.
near Dawson city. a. first there ware 10
members q her SIX r. that section % the
sorld 81 ali. with the exception - a few
Indian sQnsWs Tire fAppy camp vas on
what was called Flforsdo creek A trthu-
taTy y the C}on8yke Until the log cabin
which Ey tre aay. was che FIRST one in
The pfac@-was Nulls the hardy couple lived
AZ t~A*t AS sttS tss-a4fN tktfs fAat& -
made by Mr.. L3ppy ard theiY onsy food was
that which was canned Mrs Lipry dsa
70 mining herself. b8t attended 10 the
camp ard made her husband 50 comfort
able aa4 enabled rim 20 rest 40 thoroughly
that he accom- plsshs6 far more than falls
- TIRE average lot % the miner.
AtEsr w5iie ssother woman carue into
tn~ country. Mrs. Charles Kerry who has
enormously hs~n credited With being the
FIRST white woman 81 fhs CioaeYss region
There was tsrge u ror7anre ahnift Mrs