The morning news. [volume] (Savannah, Ga.) 1887-1900, 1897-08-15
MYTHICAL MINES.
Periodical Expeditions In search of
Mines That Probably Never Existed.


From the St. Louis Globe-Democrat.
Pomona, Cal.-The most remarkable fact
connected with the wild excitement and
zeal that animates the old miners and pros
pectors every time the news comes of the
finding of a new mine of precious metal is
that connected with the famous Peg Leg
mine-somewhere in the range of noun
tains that lie on the border between Cali
fornia and the Cocopah desert of Lower
California or Mexico. While there has
never been a large or very general STAN
pede Of restless, gold-hungry men for the
Peg Leg mine region, each summer season
for twenty-seven years, parties of men
have started out for the supposed locality
Of the mine. Probably no class of miners
have ever suffered such physical pain and
braved such insuperab.e odds az these
hunters for the Peg Leg. The mine is
unique in that il has never been developed
and no one but one or two men, who died
years ago, ever knew where the Peg Leg
mine was located. Nevertheless there is
no property mine on the Pacific coast more
talked about and familiar to peoples ears
than this somewhat mythical mine of I'M
told riches. This very season some fifty
men, each of whom believes he has had
a trip or secert Information as TO the loca-
ton Of the Peg Leg, are securing over the
mountains, toiiing across the burning
sand of the awful Colorado and Cocopah
deserts looking for this mine. Every year
there came back to the settlements along
the edge of deserts ta.es of how this or
that miner, jealous for sudden riches and
confident that he is on the right trail for
them, has riskcd travel across the burning
waste with an insufficient supply of drink
ing water or in too poor physical condition
TO stand the terrific solar heat, and has died
In the perennial search for the Peg Leg
Last July there were three deaths on the
desert among miners on their way on foot
TO the mountains nifty miles away.
The Peg Leg mine is the most famous
rich mine west of the Rockies. If IL can be
found and developed. the old miners say il
will yield from Sl,SOO TO 81. coo a ton, and will
make man as rich as Monte Cristo. a
gold miner John G. Smith who was known
all over the southern part of the state as
Peg Leg Smith, because of wooden
peg leg that he wore in place of a limb of
bone and muscle, which had been ampu-
tated, came into Los Angeles one day in
July of 1871 with his camp outfit and his
mules laden with several sacks of gold
ore. The rock was assayed by mining ex-
pcrts In the place ana the news quickly
spread that Peg Leg" Smith had ore that
ran all the way from $500 TO $500. OF
course, the whole country in and about
what was then a little town OF Los Angel
| the find OF a mine that yielded such ore.
Nothing like IL had ever been found south
| OF Amador county Peg Leg" smith was
| a curious. tacituTn kind OF fellow and II
was several weeks before he could be in
| duced to say "A word about where he got
| his ore. and the quantity there was of
such rock when at last he did say any
| thing about his discovered treasure he
| refused 90 give but a vague idea of where
| 90 was located. he said. however that il
was down across the colorado desert In
| the mountain range ia san Diego county,
and that until he knew whether this mine
was located ia the United states or Mexico
| no must keep that part "a strict secret 60
himself He said that he had spent five
months ln the locality OF this mine with
| two hnlf-hrccd Cocopah Indians. who had
guided him there lu payment FOR kindness
/ be- had rendered Thorn len their serious M
ness. ilc told again and again. and always
| with rare pNtctncss IN detail. the surface
| Indications OF hs mine. the direction aud
slant of the gold-bearing hedges. tho
surrounding geological ana mineral condl-
| lions and characteristics and the work ho
and his Indian assistants had done in dc.
| teE' said Dee was confident there was ns
much god ore 900 hls claim aa In Muekay.
/ tH|r lnd Floods Comstock hedges boz Ne
faa1, ana every miner who questioned and
| .rnsH-01or Toned him dHy after day made
/ ths Same estimate from the odd urospDc-
| tors statements cerihuly GBNU.uu or
$4,000 HN Wern boz tho mines Ear'y n son-
leuoer "lc8 beg smith turned up MISS