Daily Kennebec journal. [microfilm reel] (Augusta, Me.) 1870-1975, 1897-08-03
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| of today. as the story is told to them
| by their parents, to whom il was re
lated by their parents, many years ago.
| This big hole covers several acres. ana
| is the result Of years of hard labor and
the expenditure of many thousands If
/ dollars. 1t Is said that three genera
tions piled their pick and shovel in this
| immense excavation. The story runs
| that they were hunting for gold, but
when none of any amount was founi
the story was told that they were
searching for Capt. Kids treasure
| boxes. Very little gold was ever taken
out, and many are of the opinion that
what was taken out was not deposited
there by nature Old people living IN
| that vicinity say their parents told
| them that the digging began over 20
| years ago by two men by the name Of
| Ames and Holman. who came from
| Franklin county. One was a revoiu-
| tionary soldier They either dreamed
or had presentiment that gold would
1 be found in that particular spot. and
| they came and squatted there. staying
some 10 years. No one knows whether
they ever found any gold there soon
! after they vacated the place five or six
other men from the same vicinity came
and began work After digging fpf
several years they hired friends OF
theirs, and at one time there were be-
tween 40 and 80 men hunting diligently
for the hidden treasure. Barring short
intervals they dug there for g years.
and the excavation extended over some
three acres, At one time a shaft over
50 feet deep was sunk large timbers
being used TO keep the earth from fail
| ing in This was kept up by others for
several years after. and was finally
abandoned.
About the time gold was discovered
in California word came from the up
per Kennebec. near Moscow, that gold
had been discovered there A hundred
men started from Augusta with their
picks and shovels. There was no rail-
road above Augusta then. The dis
lance was about 60 miles. and nearly
all walked the whole distance. Many
of the merchants closed their stores ~
as to get in ION the ground floor"
After digging for about two weeks and
| not finding amy gold they decided that
the mine" had been sailed, and they
all returned home. Several of those
who engaged in the expedition are liv-
ing here today. The big hole in the
side of the mountain was never filed
up, and the main road now runs within
few rods of the scene of the great
excitement. The hole is pointed out to
travellers by the stage drivers as
Names great gold mine
There have been, and occasionally
are now. other gold crazes in Maine.
but most of the gold taken from the
| soil in this STATE comes in various dis
! guises. But in the end it is pure gold
all the same.
This is proving a great season for
new papers in Maine. Perhaps like
weeds and ducks they thrive in
wet weather. Several new publications
| have appeared this summer. and the
| very newest of them is The Ashland
Reporter, a promising weekly fresh
! from the flower bed of Names garden
region. The first number appeared.
/ July 20. 1t deserves hearty welcome
! prosperous and live to a ripe old age
/ If the expression on a pug dogs
! countenance means anything it indi
/ Gates that he has trouble enough Of
| his own. But now there is another
| burden added to his conscience. over
/ in Auburn the physicians have declar-
/ ed that the scarlet fever has been trans
| mitted in several cases by a pug dog
| which had slept with a scarlet fever
| patient.
! Talk about April showers. ever
an April fearful upon slighter provo
cation than August thus far?
Apples from the South. as well as
pears and peaches have begun to arrive
| in our market. The apples are small
| but very good though it takes about
/ two dollars to buy bushel of them.
/ Our own apple crop will bring prices
not so very far from that figure, for
| fruit of the best quality. Last year, it
Will be remembered, apples We're so
4 plenty that farmers could hardly give
| them away, in fact the barrel was often
worth as much as the profit on the ap-
pies it contained. This year apples
will be scarce and the farmer will make
/ as much on a scanty supply as he did
/ last year on an overplus of stock
1 Prices will be higher and the consumer
| will not eat apples so freely as he did
last season. In some parts of the
country. however, it is reported that
/ there will be a fair crop.
| Every day at the Portland Union
station at this season of the year forty
two trains come rolling into the echo
i ing train shed and forty-three go puff
| ing away, a total of eighty-five trains
/ This is the clearing house where the
summer visitors are sorted and sent
on their way to the pleasure grounds
I of the Pine Tree state.
Sixtyseven years is a long time to