Lewiston teller. [volume] (Lewiston, North Idaho) 1878-1900, 1899-05-27
Central Idaho Gold Bet.

Buffalo Hump is but the name Of one
locality in vast gold-bearing mineral
zone in central Idaho, says Col. w. S.
Bracket to an Anaconda Standard re-
porter, which, in the early years of the
twentieth century, is destined to out
klondike the Klondike. -Four weeks 8
observation of this region and many in
| terviews with old timers, experienced
prospectors and we'll known mining ex-
perts, now in that section, confirm my
belief that vast area, bounded on the
north by the North Fork Of the Clear
| water river and the Lolo trail, on the east
by the Bitter Root range, on the south
by line running parallel to and about
fifty miles south of Salmon river, and on
the west by the 10th meridian, will soon
astonish the world by the multitude of
its immense well defined and producing
gold-bearing quartz lodges. The old
placer camps of the early sixties which
produced over a hundred million dollars
of gold are there. They are known as
Pierce City and Orc Fino on the north,
| Elk City in the center, Florence on the
southwest, and the famous old camp of
Warrens on the south, below Salmon
river. Old timers of Bannock, Virginia
City and Alder Gulch know all about
these once phenominal placers, which
were worked out in the sixties.
The vast gold-bearing ledges Of the
Buffalo Hump were only discovered late
last fall-prospectors had seen them for
years, but thought them big "bull"
ledges barren of geld. They are now
found to be rich in gold values of i'm
mense extent-the accidental discovery
last August by Robbins and Rigley, two
dead broke prospectors, that the Big
Buffalo ledge carried high values in gold
all through the extent of its enormous
outcrop, was at once wired and cabled to
| Big Buffalo and two claims on the exten-
sion of it sold lately for S7oo, 900. These
were mere prospects, il is true, but the
enormous outcrop OF the ledge, thirty feet
wide and 1000 feet long, standing like a
church in that wilderness, enabled ex-
perts to measure it and its values as if il
were developed ore body in mine.
| Nothing like it has been found in this
country since the discovery of the Com
stock lode in Nevada, except the vast
copper deposits Of Butte.
The vast region I have mentioned is
ribbed and streaked over its immense
area by these great well defined aurifer-
GUS lodges. They are the matrices of the
rich placers Of the sixties, worked out by
thousands OF men at Florence and Elk
City and Oro Fino. No placers in Cali
fornia were ever found as rich as those a,
Florence. Old timers will remember the
| famous Baboon Gulch placer near Flor
ence, which produced 50 600 in gold dust
| in one day, then owned by a man named
| Weiser, after whom the town of Weisei
| was named.
4 Buffalo Hump is a rugged sierra madrs
lying about twenty five miles southeast
of Grangeville. The railway now run.
from Spokane to Lewiston, and from
there it is seventy miles to Grangevillt
by stage. Shows lie deep and long IL
the Hump district. The season is 81,
weeks backward this year and the snow.
will not disappear and disclose the grea,
quartz ledges cropping out in the district
until early in July. The Hump is Sooe
feet above sea level.
Now, am coming to my main point
that this vast treasure field should bt
made tributary to Montana, at least from
the east. Spokane and Lewiston are tn,
gateways to this region from the west
The Northern Pacific Railway company
with its customary push and energy, i
now building two branch lines from Lew
iston into the Hump country as fast a
men can lay ties and rails. One brancl
runs up the south fork of the Clearwater
and the other branch runs up Lapwa
creek, both from points near Lewiston.
| w. b. Martin and family are in tn
! city from Nezperce prairie.