The morning news. [volume] (Savannah, Ga.) 1887-1900, 1897-04-11

IN his drift mine near Butcher ranch,
twelve miles from Auburn, found a mug
get of gold and quartz that weighed TWEEN
~ pounds. Eight pounds of this he sold
at SIC an ounce, of $1.526. while the remain
ing twelve pounds were sold for $12 an
ounce, or sites making $3246 FOR the mug
get. The same man, many years later,
discovered in the same mine another very
valuable nugget. 1t was ten inches long,
from three 70 seventeen inches wide and
over an inch thick. The gold was imbed-
ded IN mass of crystallized quartz, with
clear-cut corners, the sides of which shone
with great brillancy. When thoroughly
cleaned it weighed AT ounces, and was
sent TO the San Francisco mint, where it
brought &,S52 In 1864, near Michigan
Bluff, a nugget of pure gold weighing 226
ounces and valued at S4,204 was found. In
july, 1876 j. 3. Colgrove Of Dutch Flat
round a white quartz bowlder in the Polar
star mine which contained IS, 100 worth of
god.
Among the exhibits in the mining de-
partments at the worlds fair was a mug
get of pure gold that was found in AL
pine county by young woman. The his
tory of the discovery of this chunk is
unique In mining, and Is cherished by ev-
cry woman in the gold mining regions in
California. Harry Z. Ellis and his wife
came to this state in 1874 from Philadel-
phia, because of the formers serious lung
trouble. They went to live up in the
mountains of Alpine county, remote from
civilization and several miles from any
neighbor The couple got their livelihood
by hunting, and cultivating a few acres
of land about their lonely cabin. Grizzled
old gold miners with their jackasses
laden with grimy camp outfit and blan-
kets came by the Ellis cabin frequently.
One of the men lay i'll there for several
weeks, while he was nursed to health and
vigor by Mr.. and Mrs. Ellis. The miner
rewarded them for their kindness by stat
ing how they might find recreation and
profit in hunting through the canyons and
foothills in that region for pay dirt" He
showed them where he believed there
were indication of gold-bearing gravel,
that he himself would work, but that he
had better prospects hundred miles fur
Their up the coast. For days at a time
the young husband and wife tramped up
and down the gulches in Alpine county
looking for specks of gold but all with
out avail. They abandoned seeking riches
in the placers and confined their atten-
ton to their little ranch.
One afternoon as Mrs. Ellis was driving
home the family COW she was seeking
stones to throw for the amusement of the
dog. She saw in the coarse gravel a dark
dull yellow stone and picked it up. Il
knew, from the moment 1 picked it up
says she, that / had found gold, be-
cause it was so heavy, but as I had never
seen a real nugget, l was afraid my hus-
band would laugh at me-" The nugget
has never been utilized in gold working,
and is still kept for exhibition purposes.
1t is phenomenaly clear. The chunk was
the size of a croquet ball. but very rough
and battered by rolling and tumbling in
water for ages. Mrs. Ellis got $2,250 for
that find. She and her husband lost no
time in looking for more mineral treasure
in Alpine county, but such luck comes but
once to ninety-nine people out of one hun
dred.
In Ell Dorado county in 1853 a 1O5-ounce
nugget of gold was discovered that was
valued at 81, 800. Another was found near
Kelsey, in the same county, which sold
for $4,000. In 1867 at Pilot hill a bowlder
of gold quartz was found, which yielded
$1,000. This with several smaller nuggets
was taken from the Boulder Gravel claim,
near the Pilot Hill postoffice. Several
large and valuable gold nuggets were dis
covered in Tuolumne county. In 1853 a
mass of gold weighing $50 ounces was
found at Columbus. This was valued at
S,625. At Gold HILL in the same county.
Mr.. Virgin found one weighing $50
ounces and valued at IS 500. A Frenchman
in Spring gulch, near Columbia, In the
same county, found one of almost pure
gold, which was worth 5000. The rich
mass of gold rendered the miner insane
on the following day, and he was sent TO
the Stockton asylum. The nugget was
sold and the money for 1t was sent to
his family in France
In the last decade several nuggets have
been found In the mining regions of Cali
fornia that have brought over $1,000 each.
In October, 1889, two men, who were
tramping up the coast, were put off a
Southern Pacific freight train at the little
station of Caliente, and started off TO
walk to Bakersfield. Two days later they
came back to Caliente with a lump of
gold and crystallized quartz They were
suspected of having robbed a mining camp
and even Of having murdered a miner to
get their gold. They, however. proved
that while going about in the dry bed of
an ancient stream of water two miles
from the Bealeville placer mining camp,
for fagots for fire, they had stumbled
upon their lucky find. They had offered
the gold for sale to a railroad man at
Caliente for $40, but he, suspecting fraud
would not bargain with the strangers.
Subsequently the nugget was sold at Los
Angeles for $3.50 1t weighed 216 ounces.
In less than a week after the find there
were over 100 men from all parts of
Southern California, hunting daily up and
down that old river bed for gold nuggets.
but beyond few SO or 81 finds, there was
nothing worthy the search. In January.
Ao"At hNS5tt VI pure BOlQ IUdL Wel&neQ
l40 ounces was found in a drift of coarse
gravel in the Goler district, north of the
Mojave desert The very next day an
other nugget of pure gold about the size
of gooses egg was found. Both were
bought by manufacturing jeweler in
Pomona. The former brought $2,l2O and
the latter 1915
Several months ago a nugget that sold
for about 81, 400 was brought into San
Diego by poor, weak consumptive from
New Jersey, who had been roughlng il up
in the mountains with some sheep ranch
men. In his long daily walks for health
and exercise he amused himself in look
ing for Indian relics in a canyon. He
found the nugget among lot OF rocks one
day after heavy rain storm had washed
down immenses masses of gravel and
earth from the side of the canyon. There
was no more astonished a person than he
at the value placed upon his find when
he offered 1t for sale In San Diego. Ex-
perienced gold miners visited the place
where the chunk was picked up, but none
of them has yet found another sign OF
gold there. It is one OF the perplexities
and aggrayations of hunting for new gold
fields
The largest nugget ever found in North