The morning news. [volume] (Savannah, Ga.) 1887-1900, 1897-12-15

STUMBLED ON A BIG FORTUNE.
He Left His Companions and Ran
Across "a Rich Gold Mine.

He Left His Companions and Ran
Across "a Rich Gold Mine.
From the Philadelphia Times.
An old prospector tells a story of the
first days of mining in Idaho which sounds
like a romance, but which he vouches for
as being strictly true, and which agrees
with the story frequently told by the late
Judge Craig, of Douglas county, who was
one of the party that staked off the first
claims in Idaho. 1.-THE first find of placer
gold in Idaho,' said the old pioneers vas
made early in 1862 by Jim Warren. pros
pector, who put in the time when not en-
gagged in the field in patronlzing the gam
ing table. A little camp had been estab-
lished at Florence, but the diggings were
poor and there was so little to be made
that the men drifted away in little squads
to find better pay. Warren and four others
started out together, but soon afterward
a disagreement arose, and Warren left the
party to go it alone. After two or three
days he camped one evening on the stream
now known as Warren creek, and, there
being fair indications, the next day was
spent in prospecting.
Planning seven pans of dirt, he saved
the proceeds, and, taking samples of the
quartz, went back TO Florence. where the
gold was weighed and found to be worth
20 cents, or 10 cents to the pan. This was
not a big thing for those days but it led
to the expectation of better strikes, and
an expedition of sixteen men was organiz
ed to investigate the new find.
ION their way to Warren creek they
came across Warren's four companions,
from whom he had parted several days
previously. They were "tin-horns, and
poor prospectors, and had been unsuccess-
full Seeing Warren with the crowd they
concluded that he had made strike, and
followed him. Warren and his friends,
not caring to share the discovery with the
four men, resorted to a ruse TO throw
them off the scent, and spent several days
on Secesh creek, so called from the war
of secession which had then been recent
ly heard of. The four gamblers, being
nearly out of provisions, were frozen out
and compelled to return to FLORENCE. The
expedition then fastened to Warren creek
and staked out the Warren Meadows for
themselves and their friends. Eight men
were sent back to Florence for provisions,
the rest remaining to work the claims.
While the eight men We're gone some of
those who remained discovered better dig
gings at Summit Flat, obtaining from 50
to 81 to the pan.
THE claims at Warren Meadows were
abandoned and new claims staked out on
from Florence with the-p provisions they
We're followed by about 500 miners, who
suspected that rich dirt had been found
and swarmed along Warren creek and its
tributaries, making rich finds everywhere.
The original oCa ters were extremely for
tunate in the Summit Flat diggings Two
men, named Besse and OsgoOd. worked to-
gether and rocked out 100 ounces the first
day and 40 ounces during the next fore
noon. The assay Office had. just been es-
tablished at Boise and these 140 ounces of
dust were the first receipts of the office
The gold was found to the worth $14 an
ounce, the net returns of the two men
for day and half being 81 800: In three
weeks that party of sixteen men had taken
out from their claims on Summit Flat
$4,000 ounces of gold. Before the close of
the season 100000 ounces were taken out,
and the original members of the eXpe-
dition had enough money to keep them
comfortably for life. About as much more
was taken out during the next season be
fore the bar was exhausted.
The honesty Of the miners In those pio-
neer days was illustrated by an incident
which occurred during this stampede from
Florence. In the crowd Of 500 that followed
the eight men sent back to Florence after
provisions was a man nicknamed Boston. ,
of thrifty turn, who bought two barrels
of whisky and a wagon hauled by a pair
OF mules his knowledge of the average
pfospeclor leadlng nun TO the conclusion
that the crowd, limited to water as a bev-
erage. would soon begin to suffer from the
pangs of thirst. on he way 10 the dig
gings one Nandeventer offered him a hand
some advance on the frst cost of the
whisky, and the offer being accepted the
| whisky was turned over to Nandeventer,
who sat the barrels on end under a tree.
took out the heads, hung a tin dipper on
the side Of each barrel, fixed a conribu-
| ton box up against tree, with a slot
in the closed lid and went on with the
crowd, leaving the improysed saloon to
take care Of itself. The miners passing to