The record-union., 1898-11-24
The OLD FIGHT STILL ON.
OBSERVATION-DISCLOSURES
HYDRAULICKERs.
Manager Phipps Tells of What He
Found on a Visit to the
Hydraulic Mines.

At yesterdays meeting of the Exec
utive Committee of the Anti-Debris As
sooiation, presided over by j. NJ. Nor
Tlson, Chairman of the Board of Super
visors of this county. Manager W. T.
Phipps' monthly report was submitted.
The report is of unusual interest, deal
ing as 1t does with incidents connected
with recent visit of inspection py
Manager Phipps and Watchman NJ T..
Ramsay to certain hydraulic mines ana
dams
MANAGER PHIPPS' REPORT.
On the morning of the 10th we visited
the large debris dam Of James OBrien,
in Spanish Greek, near Spanish ranen,
behind which their mine has operated
for two seasons The dam is some 4O
feet high and 300 feet long, the first
~ or % feet being built in the form
of crib, while above that the dam IS
q single line of large logs held IN place
by tie logs reaching back into the tall
1ngs; the cracks between the logs are
supposed to be stopped by tagging or
thin slabs nailed up and down on the
upper side of the logs. On account OF
small openings between these slabs this
mine has from time to time evidently
allowed a good deal of fine material to
pass through their dam and we were
informed by one man who worked in
the mine that this had been allowed to
a large extent.
During the season since work ceased
the small openings near the top of the
dam have allowed a good deal of the
material to wash off of the top of the
settling pool. This dam is strong
enough TO stand ordinary winters un-
til 1t begins to decay; but, on account
of the heavy water shed above it, We
are satisfied that this dam would not
survive a severe winter; and, at the
best, it will go out by decay in a few
years; when nearly everything stored
behind it will be carried into Feather
River by the natural action of the
water.
We next visited the dams built by
O'Brien and White at Badger Hill mine,
east of Spanish ranch, which they have
not used for year or so; the lower of
these dams is log, which is begin
ming to settle and slip out of place by
decay; the next above is log, which has
already lost two or three of the top
logs, by some means; the next is brush.
which is rotting at the top and grad
ually being destroyed; then comes the
very large dam of gravel and earth,
which is protected from the action of
water by large board spillway; this
spillway is raised or lowered by plac-
ing heavy boards in a slot across the
spillway. After work ceased upon this
dam, if not before. these boards were
removed to a depth of three or four
feet lower than they should have been,
with the result that large channels are
now washed through that settling pool.
Without repair that spillway will, in
the course of one or two years more,
weaken by decay; and, as soon as the
water can. act directly on the dam a
large part of it, with the tailings be-
hind it, will wash out
A short distance east of this point are
couple of very small dams, behind
which one Jacks was permitted to op-
crate a monitor. I imagine from the
pools that they did not stop tenth
ofsrhe6 taiifngs he sent. out; but it has
served as an excuse for his being al
lowed to run
We then visited the Plumas imperial
AoAAis WHICH, We 1OA11Q DG11lS Td1SGQ anu
repaired for the coming seasons work.
This is a large log crib dam, and, as it
is built, the cribs are filled by hand
with broken rock; these cribs are about
twelve feet square and all the logs are
large and strong. There is no large
water shed behind this dam and the
probabilities are that will be a very
permanent affair. The operations be-
hind this dam were carried on too
long during the last water season, so
that the tailings, consisting Of sand
and very light material, had accumu-
lated behind the dam on so heavy a
grade, that the water has since cut a
large channel through these tailings to
the depth of two or three feet extend
ing back for half mile Otherwise,
this company seems to have taken care
of its tailings. conscientiously.
We then drove to Nelson's and had
dinner; from here we could see Met
calf's' dam and learned that he had
made no preparations for the coming
seasons work, but calculated to work.
nevertheless. 1t is probable that he
will make some preparations before he
begins
From there we drove to Onion Valley
and on our way found everything in
readiness for work in the mine oper-
ated by William Reese. who has no
permit and does not intend to ask for
one, as we are informed 1t looks as
If he intends to use a four or five-inch
monitor against an easy bank to work,
and will tail into a canyon tributary
to Nelson Greek, which flows into the
middle Feather
This mine, as are others in the neigh
borhood of Onion Valley, is at a, very
high elevation, and is rarely able to
work any until the snow begins to melt
in the early spring.
We spent the night at Onion Valley,
and on the morning of the 18th visited
Bowman's dams in Poor Mans Creek
several miles south of Onion Valley
We found his lower dam some several
feet higher than the tailings behind it
The lower dam is a log crib and in a
large steep canyon. It is we'll located
so that nothing but decay will take ii
out, apparently. 4 little water was
passing through the dam while we were
there at point below the level of the
settling pool, and had evidently car
ried out a large amount of tailings, as