Deseret evening news. [volume] (Great Salt Lake City [Utah]) 1867-1920, 1897-07-16
ALASKAN GOLCONDA.

That report OF q fabulous gold dig
covery In Alaska may be true, and 1t
may not. Nearly all OF us eau bear
witness to the fact that treasure trovs
stories, unlike msst things 10 nature,
lose nothing through repeated usage,
but rather gain at rapid rate until
punctured, when they subaide as
rapidly ss they grew up. II may be
true as relates 10 the discovery so far
made, and the reports be utterly at sea
as to the conjectures and estimates re-
garding its Dimensions and probable
duration. Were 1t otherwise the
world would have another California,
less climate aud accessibility, opened
up to 1t, and in such cases history Ia
not prone to repeating Itself.
Speaking OF California brings up
| vividly q circumstan CO in connection
with modern mining II not with min
log in all ages, as showing how even
| ly and equitabiy nature has arranged
| things geologicaIiy. SO far as histor y
goes, the discovery OF Suffers mill In
1913 opened up field Of gold
en- wealth under circumstances
which made California head the
list for nil previous times and
perhaps for all limes to come. /. ia
recognized rule that valuable IA last
ing discoveries arc not made on the
banks OF babbiing brooke, where ma.
lures verdure gree,s the eye from
shady groves, lnxuriant underground
and grassy plats, while the sturdy
blows and strokes Of tho miner are &C.
companied by the chirruping and
chanting of birds of gorgeou, plumage
amid u day OF equsbls temperature,
and rest az night is soo!hed with tbs
plnintive carols OF the whippOorwill
and the turtle dove. Instead OF iuch
a semi-Arcadia,t the locale Of a rich find
is more likely to be a grensswood plain
whitewnshed from end to end and
from center 10 circumference with q
dirt-s,reaked and rankly poisonous
crust which 10 not strong enough t.
bear one's weight and too strong to let
him down with uniform ease; no
water except in low marshes, anu one
swallow of 1t would cure the gold or
any other fever instanter. Some
thing like this, or else u preeipitous
rauge which defiesthe efforts made TO
scale 1t by interpreting not only Its
own steepness but breastwoIk after
breastwork and countersc,rp upon
oounterscarp OF frownlng, ginning,
sbarpened, jagged rock, pientifuily
hanked with pigmy pine, rnnty
cedar aud stubby underground, the
rays OF the scorching sun In summer
and high winds escaliopod with
borean pillows c,pering madly over
all but impossible fields OF snow III
winter. In come such place. and
amid similar or worse conditions the
practical miner, controlled in his
judgment no. altogether by supersii-
ton but largely by bitter, prolonged
experience, prefers to look for "pay
rock" in goodly quantity.
California reversed all this Ant
came pretty close TO tho first OF the
foregoing presentations in the matter
OF surroundings and conditions, W lille
forging away ahead Of anything pa
vIously dreamed OF as to productive
nesf. Notwithstanding the countless mill
Lions that have been extracted from her
soil, there is an abundance YET. Ii IN
Alaskan finds are as reported, or any
where near II, and remain for few
yaars without perceptible depletion,
the Golden State VIII have something
OF rival In the matter OF quantity,
but still remain queen OF the fold In
all other respects. Let II first be con-
sldered, however, that million dollars
worth OF god nuggets containsd with
in limited area, easy to gel at, weuld
be an enorm Gus thing these days and
make several men comparatively
wealthy; IL might also be equal to 3
complete realization Of al tho claims
set up regarding the Alaskan discov-
cries; and yet /, would scarcely amount
to drop in tho bucket compared with
California.