Arizona weekly journal-miner., 1897-07-14
HOOKING BACKWARD
Are The Famous Adams Diggings to Again Stampede the Gold Seske's of the West and Eleclriiy
 People as They Did
 in Days 6Ones
First Authentic Account Published of the Here of the Three kuttes aud Other Data ofa Remark
 able Experience.

The recent report sent out of the successful uncoveriug of the famous Adams diggings, on the Navajo ln- dian reservation, iS not only attract ing the attention ol the sntiro west, and exercising an influence oH ths timid investors of the east in Ari- zona mines and mining, but 1t like wise revives tale of old in frontier life that is bewildering and fasci- hating. Unfortunately m one sonse for Arizona and other southwestern divisions of the union, expedition after expedition has been hurrlediy formed to venture to the field whero "Nigger Ben." "Pegleg," "LoSt Freuchman" or an Adams Dig gings" were located, but ih each anu every instance the willing aud in. trepid pioneers rstraced their steps sooner or later, chagrined hut not discouraged. But notwithstanding the privations encountered. the sus- pense that follows human greed for gain, the perils to face one from many of the elements, the search has gone on aud on for nearly half a century, and today is still as diii- gently prosecuted as though the first tidings given wore but Of Ses- terday. The defeat which has met and shattered hundreds of neu m their ambition in the past serves. it would seem. as a thread for others to grasp and follow to the end to- day. As time wears away and lntef- est warns up in the mythica! tales of old and Of gold, it would seem. then, that the Adams Diggings with all tLeir fabulous wealth, along also with the other socalled Fl D1rados, would eventually become so we'll established in the line of foolhardy and forlorn propositions as to war rant the discounlsnancing ot any scheme or enterprise formed for that purpose. But such IS not the case. There are just at many men today in this ripe age of mining eX- perience who are ss eager to devote . few more years of their life in following the traditions of the past as there were when Niza gazed upon the Seven Cities of CibOla m l6OO m Northern Arizona, but never reach ed them nor their riches. Hartly . year passes but what the restless are moved again in connection with tho flash light of fame and fortuae as it's breaks overhead in this or that sphere, but as one gradually awak- ems and the fiery zeal of the human stampede wavers snd finally col lapses m despair, the same old. old story is universally associated to it. For this reason it would seem to Le we'll established that the Authen + cated Adams Diggings were Of no more legitimate concern than the rest of them, but a we'll linked chain of circumstances, together with in- ldisputable data, closing with the tragical death of the hero Of this untouched wealth, lives, neverthe- less today in the memory of many, and through it may possibly be that the sun has at last penetrated through the dark and heavy cloud that has been hanging over and guarding it's treasure for hall a cen tury. Of all the mining enterprise: organized to search for vast deposits of the yellow metal, and of all men who have followed this phase ol rainbow mining all pale into moth, ing when compared to Adams and his Diggings All of the others were of immense riches, but the Adams were richer. So wik aud rampant did the fever afillct many sections that it extended naturally to th' mining element of Prescott, and it 1877 a gathering of over thirty souls left this city, their destination be
 ing to the identical spot where thii latest ind is reported. Ths ATizon' contingent fared uo better than th' : others, aud one by one they, too
 took the back track. Before anC
 after this Colorado and New Mexic' each took hand and played in thu game, but lost. Since then. or ul
 to the present era, the search hA 9 beep conducted more on the orde !. of an individual than an organizes
 effort, which is probably due tO th'
 fact that the long caravans tha !. have gone balore still ghmmer q
 recollection of the folly in this da l. of seliishness to find bonanza sulh Ii ciently big enough to go round satis
 fsctofily Co all. It may be interest s ing then to our readers to know tn
 history Of this Adams 6ud, in vie' !, of the notoriety there is attached | ! the recently reported discovery of | = and in connection therewith 1t ma ii, also be proper to state that of a Ss the "big things" the west has ehel
 ished in its golden era, the Adams
 the cleaEest and cleanest cut of theI
 all.
 As the story runs and as related n the writer over fifteen years ago b p an attaehe of the San Carlos India - reservation, and also by an old res
 dent of Tucson who was personal ID acduainted with Mir, Adams, th R story from which he has becom famed ID the mining column,
 briefly told over again.
 In 1855 Adams was engaged
 running frontier trading post at
 point near Las Cruces, New Mex
 co. He was located on the mai road to Tucson, and carried nece
 saIily a large supply of goods ada
 ted to the trade, owing to the Ia,
 that months elapsed before he cou S replenish from the nearest supp sI- point, which was by bull trains fro .As the Missouri river. In the line . .o. patrons he secured the entire lndi'
 trade, giving in return for gclddu'