The San Francisco call., 1898-01-10
Return of EX-POlice Ser geant Johns From
 Peru.
He Says That Some Tales Told About the Mines Are
 Untrue.
Many People Have Been Lured There in the False Hope of Find
 ing Gold.

EX-Police Sergeant Josiah Johns, who went to Peru at the head of prospect ing party and who was reported to have died there, arrived here Friday on the steamer City of Sydney. His expectation of acquiring a fortune in the mines was not realized. He says that some stories told of the richness of the gold fields of Peru arc untrue and he advises all those contemplating trip to that country to remain at home.
 When read the Eastern accounts of the rich finds being made in Peru,
 said Johns yesterday, T determined to try my fortune. In company with E. B. Hagans, J. H. Livermore, F. A. Bo- finger, John P. Stafford. R. Boone, Geo. Glennie and J. c. Dawson I left here on March 20th last. We went to Pan anna on the City of Sydney and from there on a sailing vessel to MOllendo. From Mollendo we travelled by rail to Arequipa and there our troubles com menced. The railroad system of Peru is entirely different from what we have in America. The trains only run in the day time. and then at a snail-like rate of speed. Our first stopping place was at Juliaco and there we had the good fortune of becoming ac- quainted with Patrick Hawley, an American, who is a division superin- tendent of the line. He offered us every assistance in reaching Tirapata, where the Inca Mining Company has large warehouse. We were com pelled to remain at Tirapata sixteen days before we could get mules and | liamas to carry us and our provisions | over the mountains. During the time we were in Tirapata we occupied a box car kindly furnished us by Flaw | ley. The pack animals we secured aft | CT considerable negotiating from J. | Zamora, a rich Peruvian, who lives about seventeen miles from Tirapata. | When we reached the summit of the l mountain it was showing heavily and you can imagine how comfortable we | felt in q tent, at an altitude of 16,- 800 feet. The following day we started down the Atlantic side of the Cordil- | lera mountains and after a rough tramp of over twenty miles we reached Limbani, where the Inca Mining Com pany has another storehouse. The In l dianS who accompanied us from Tira- pata refused to go any further with our party and we were compelled to again look about for guides and pack | animals. We spent over two weeks in getting them and there our party sep arated. Stafford, Boone, Glennie and | Dawson set out for the Sandia dis | trict, while myself and the other three l started for the mines. The other party met with poor luck in the Sandia dis i trict and after prospecting for over a month without result started back for San Francisco. They arrived here sev- eral months ago. Our party reached the Inca Mining Company's property
 about the middle of June and soon found that we had toiled and labored over almost impossible mountains ir vain. l would not attempt to describe the perilS or hardships of the trip. We were nicely treated by the people al the mine and they assisted us in every way. A small creek runs past the mine and we negotiated with the mine-own-
 CTS for the privilege of prospecting along the banks. HaganS and myself
 formed a partnership and worked to- gether. I secured place in the quartz
 mill of the mine and in addition tC
 boarding myself was able to engage four Indians to assist Hagans with his
 work on the creek banks. Hagans
 found color but that was all. After
 a month spent in prospecting he ar rived at the conclusion that there was
 nothing along the creek. We then fel
 in with a Peruvian who said that he knew of a small river about forty miles
 from the mine which was rich in gold
 Hagans went with him, while I re-
 mained at the quartz mill. Three
 weeks later Hagans and the Peruvian
 came back They had failed to find
 the river or the gold. Livermore be-
 came tired of life in Peru about that
 time and started home. Hagans and
 myself remained at the mine until No
 vember and then concluded hat we