The Ketchum keystone. [volume] (Ketchum, Idaho) 1885-1899, 1897-01-16
DOES GOLD CROW
Some Veteran Miners Who Pretend to
Believe that It Does.

blazers, who had led the march of
civilization into the mountains, and
as they toasted their shins by the
big stove in Lon Pickett's hotel oar
at Melrose their conversation wan
dered from the recent election and
the departed glories of other days
to the latest discoveries in science,
John Helehan had just quit reading
from a mining journal about Prot
Emmons' discovery of the method
of transmitting silver into gold.
II think Emmons is humbug,'
said old Judge Lonely, California
Argonaut. "The old alchemists,
you know, tried that, but they might
as we'll have tried to make an apple
seed. Nature holds the germ, and
all the scientists who initiate her
can do is to quicken its growth"
"I've heard tell of gold growing"
remarked Will Robbins.
$50 have l." said the Judge, shut
you have never seen it grow. have
you? don't believe all the yarns
these experts spin, anyhow"
"Boys," spoke up John Treanor,
perhaps I have got some queer old
notions slowed away under this
diggin' hat of mine, but for thirty
years, man and boy, I've been a
prospector, and l have been dom
some thinking. And tell you
now that 1 believe gold does grow.
Twenty years ago struck the Lo-
Gust and sank shaft 1t was silver
ore, and after diggin' for awhile l
gave it up in disgust. Then | wan.
dered over to the other side of the
range and located the Banner, a
copper mine now in the possession
of the Anaconda company. l mo-
seyed around for awhile, and eight
years ago / went back to my old
love, the Locust. Hang me if l
could believe my eyes, boys, when
found the pre,tiest ledge of gold
ore right where the silver ledge was:
1t was as pretty as picture, and l
kept right on diggin' and have been
diggin' in that hole ever since. II
seemed to me that in the places
where the water struck it it grew
richer. / run in three tunnels at
the bottom, but found the gold was
| not yet ripe, so ! just closed up the
tunnels and let them rest for few
years"
Blame me, if l don't think Hank
Stebbins does the same thing" said
Jack Flee. flank lives up in
Soap Gulch, and has claim he
calls the Belcher. He discovered
it thirty years ago when Wssh Sta
! pleton was making bullets in his
lead mine to kill Indians with. Il
is in funny formation for that part
of the country. 1t is in reef Of
sand lying between the lime forma
ton that borders on the Melrose
Valley and the stratified gneiss for
nation that runs from that point
to the base of Red Mountain
Thirty years ago Hank discovered
| that there were globules of silver
in the sand, and located it, but
| there wasn't enough mineral to pay
and he abandoned it. Ten years
ago he went back to the old mine
and began turning over the sand
He began to find chunks Of colo
instead of silver. He has q gooo
thing Of it now. He mines it like
the Mexicans used to mine it years
ago. He cuts stairs in the Sane
and takes the rock up in candl,
box and sorts it over. Now, al
be has got to do when he wants t.
make stake is to 60 down to the
sand pile and wiggle a crowba
for a few minutes, when up comes
a piece of shining gold. Severa
capitalists have attempted to ge
hold of the mine, and one of Heinze''
agents made him a good offer for it
but Hank won't sell, for be is SUR
he has fortune if the gold keeps or
growing."-Butte Inter Mountain
|