The San Francisco call., 1897-06-09
RICHES WAITING AT ITS
DESTINATION.
Miners in Quest of a Claim
Whose Owners We're Slain
by Indians.
WAS REDIsCOVERED BUT AGAIN
FORGOTTEN.
Ruins of Cabins in One Of Which q
Copy of 1.-The Call" of 1873
Was Found.

TACOMA, WASH, June 8.-A party of
prospsctors has started from Garfield,
Whitman County, to find a lost mine in
Idaho, from which thousands of dollars
were taken a quarter OF a century ago.
The mine was rediscovered seven years
ago, but because OF its inaccessibility it
was not worked.
Seven years ago Lille Hopkins, who is
one of the present party and another old
settler started from PaIouse on the trail
Of some horse thieves. They followed
them far into the solitude of the rugged
mountains of Northern Idaho, but finally
lost the trail and their bearings.
One evening, while fighting their way
through tRngle of brush and down
timber, they emerged into canyon sur
rounded on all sides by towering and al
most perpendicular mountains, the only
entrance being the one through which
they bad come. Here they were surprised
to find two weather beaten log cabins
which had partially gone to ruin, and near
by in the channel of stream that wound
its way through the canyon were found
rotten sluicebox
On the bank was a tightly closed tin
box. One of the men, out of curiosity,
the San Francisco CALL bearing a date
seventeen years prior to that time and
twcnty-four years ago now.
Neither of the men had had any expert
ence in mining or they would not have
lett without trying to find what was
there. 1t was growing late and tuey were
ANXIOUS TO make their way out before
dark. They made many plans to go back
q -,
happened to prevent. This season, how
ever, their interest was red oubied py learn
IN of tragedy in the Nez Perce war of
quarter of century ago that points
strongly in the direction of their dis
covery.
A year or two before the breaking out OF
the Nez Perce war five prospectors out
htteI at Lewiston and started into the
mountains Some months later two of
them returned with big sack of gold and
bought a large stock of supplies. Since
that time nothing more has been heard of
them. Several years after the war was
over the Nez Perce Indians told of five
miners being killed by their tribe in the
section OF the mountains in which this
canyon is located.
There is every probability that these
five victims were the prospectors and that
ii was their hands that fashioned the now
decayed sIuiceboxes and the tum ble-down
cabins.
The party now searching for the lost
mine consists of Lille Hopkins, John Pin
nell and Frank Kestner, OF Garfield, and
Francis Billows of Moscow, Idaho. Hop
kins believes he will nave no trouble in
locating the spot, as he feels certain that
he knows where the little creek that
trayerses the canyon empties, and he will
conduct the party up the stream.
The route lies over some almost i'm
penetrable thickets and fallen tim Der.
They expect to spend days in cutting their
way, progressing at the rate of one or two
miles day. 1t will take them several
weeks to reach their destination. They
expect then to work the old mine and feel
certain of large returns, for the Nez Perce
Indians have reported for years that from
this canyon gold was once taken in large
quantities.