The Winslow mail., 1899-04-15
IN BCRYfNG A DOG.
How a Rich Idaho Copper Mine
Was Found.
An Unpublished story of the Original
Discovery of the Deposit-Sup-
posed tn Be of Recent
Origin,

Several of the owners of the big cop
per mine eight miles from Moose lake
lately spent their vacation in Butte.
One OF them told friend an unpub-
Lshed story in connection with the first
discovery of the big lead 25 years ago.
1t is supposed by many that the mine
was discovered only two years ago.
10 all intents and purposes it was, for
the original discOyererS are now out
OF the state and have been for years,
and none of the recent discoyerers
knew anything about the lead until
they accidentally ran across it two
years ago next May. The story of
the original discovery they learned only
a few months ago and this is how it is
told:
"In the fall of 1873 or 1874 Con Cor
coran and Joe Featherly left Philips
burg for the Salmon river country in
Idaho. They had two pack mules and
4 riding horse each. They travelled by
Easy stages, hunting and fishing along
he route. They camped for a week
at Moose lake and probably killed the
drst moose that ever fell into the
hands of white man in that beau
tiful basin. Aquarter of mile below
the lake is large tree, which the set
tiers have named moose pine 1t is
'aid that the moose Featherly killed
was hung up on that tree and dressed.
The men proceeded on their jour
ney up the middle fork Of Rock creek
and camped for several days among the
craggy peaks of the main range Of the
Rockies, which tower majestically
above the timbered mountains sur
rounding them, their SUBMITS contin-
ually covered with snow This is in
1isputably one of the widest and
grandest mountain scenes in the state.
Its grandeur is indescribable. Noun
tain lion, bear and deer used to abound
there. Now only an occasional black
bear is seen playing tag with chip
rnunk and chasing woodchuck. Grouse
are not to be found where once they
made the hunters heart glad.
Roaming over the high passes in that
district the men found deer tracks, and
with the instinct inherent in them
they followed them. Towser, the
pet setter, was right on the spot
and as eager as any of them
TO find the object of the search. In
some way unexplained Corcoran's gun
was discharged; and poor Towser was
a corpse. The men agreed to give the
dog a decent funeral, and forthwith set
about digging hole in the loose rock
and earth, using sharp sticks and
sharp slabs of rock as tools. The first
rock they loosened was broken, and it
looked like mineral-bearing ore. Still
another was removed, and more the
men became convinced that they were
digging in rich groupings. The dog
was buried in hole about two feet
deep, after which the men returned &c
carcp carrying the pieces of the strange
locking ore. By their crude process OF
assaying the men reduced the samples
and were convinced that. while gold
did not predominant, the rock contained
q large per cent. of copper.
'fThe guns were stacked and the pick
and shovel put into active service. y
shaft 12 feet deep was dug, after which
the men returned to the burg. The ore
was assayed and prepara tons made to
return 10 the mine. ABOUT that time
placer gold excitement attracted the
wealthy hunters TO anpther part of the
state, and Corcoran and Featherly
joined the stampede and never returned
to Moose lake.
Last summer Dorland and johnson,
so The recent story goes, found the skel-
eton of the dog near the tunnel they
are driving. Dorland suggested that
they name the tunnel Dog tunnel
and now when the boys speak Of that
tunnel they refer to it as the dog hole.
These copper deposits are said to
be rich, and while the owners do not
say much about them, it is inferred that
they have great confidence in their
property. Last year a large mining
company of Butte sent its agent there
to inspect the mines. and the result of
mis- visit, it is believed. will bring the
district into prominence. Anaconda
Standard.