The Worcester spy. [volume] (Worcester, Mass.) 1898-1904, 1899-04-24
COLD and SILVER.
A Great Deal Of It
Still in Colorado
Mines.
FORTUNES
And Something Of the Men
Who Have Made
Them.


aroused an interest in mining opera
lions everywhere, which has scarcely
been equalled since the rush to Cali
furnia in the early "fifties." But while
many Worcester men were caught by
the glamor of the sensational stories
from the Klondike, it is only recently
that they have been led to turn their
attention to the vastly richer mining
fields of Colorado. Recently, how
ever. number of Worcester men visit
ed some of the mining districts of Col
orado. and the good reports they
brought back have since interested
many more.
Knowing this, and learning that s..
G.. Collins, who has recently become
resident of this city, was well acquaint-
ed with the various mining districts of
Colorado, by reason of his many years
residence there, a representative of
The Spy sought an interview with him.
Mr.. Collins has an office in the State
Mutual building, and with his family
has taken up his residence at the Au-
rora on Main street Mr.. Collins readi-
ly consented to talk about mining in
Colorado. and when asked, by way of
preface, to relate some of his early ex
perience in that section, said:
Il went from Philadelphia to Denver
in 1868, when l was about 10 years old,
and secured employment in Kountze
Bros bank, where 1 remained for sew
eral years. I was engaged in bank
ing business up to January, 1879, when
l went to Leadyille and engaged in
mining enterprises with which 1 have
been more or less identified ever since.
l know the district thoroughly, and al
though l came east five years ago and
took up my residence in Boston, where
I made my home until came to Wor-
cester to live, | made frequent trips
to Colorado, and 1 passed last Deem
Der and January at Leadville and Grip
pie Creek"
"Of course Leadville was in it's in
fancy when you first went there?"
Yes; operations began there in the
winter of 1S77-7S, barely a year before.
Among the pioneers in the camp at that
time were August r. Meyer, now presi-
dent and manager of the Argentine
smelling works at Kansas City, and of
the Arkansas Valley Smelling Com
pany of Leadville, together with Will
liam Loker and others, representing
the ST. Louis Smelling and Refining
Company of ST. Louis. These gentle
men named the city of LeadVille, which
had first been called Harrison in honor
of William Harrison, the president of
the ST Louis Smelling Company, but
which was later changed because of the
great richness of the deposits of car
Donate of lead (silver ore) which were
discovered there. The st. Louis people
established furnaces which were called
the Harrison reduction works, and the
plant is still standing"
There were hundreds of prospectors
in that section long before Leadville
70 ni7aar
was H. A. w. Tabor, afterwards
United States senator, and a man who
died recently, after a most checkered
career. About 1860 Tabor opened a
store at Ore city a little settlement in
California gulch, a few miles from the
present site of Leadville, where he
sold groceries and other supplies to the
miners. In 1860 and 1861 California
gulch produced more than $1,000 900 in
gold dust, and it had continued to yield
in smaller quantities up to the latter
'70s. Tabor used to supply the miners
with groceries in exchange for gold
dust, which he was in the habit of TAX
ing to Denver from time to time and
selling to bankers there. Some time in
the fall Of 1878, Tabor according to his
custom, grub staked a number Of pros
pectors. Among them were August
Richie and George F. Hook, shoe MAX
ers fom Fairplay. Tabor fitted them
out with provisions, and it was agreed
that he should have one-third inter-
est in whatever they struck in the way
Of gold or silver.
"At that time silver in the form of
carbonate of lead was unknown, and
the prospectors were all looking for
gold and silver in other forms with
which they were familiar, and such as
is found in other sections of Colorado.
Richie and Hook located a claim call
ed the Little Pittsburg," on Fryer
hill, where they sunk a shaft about 25
feet. They did not strike a fissure
vein of ore as they had expected and
were getting discouraged. They had
taken from the shaft considerable
rock of a peculiar color unlike any
thing they had ever seen, and this
was thrown upon the dumps as waste.
Many other prospectors in that vicini-
ty were doing the same thing. One
day Hook picked up a piece of this
stone and said to his partner that he
thought he would have it assayed and
see what it really was. He did so and
found to run about three hundred
ounces of silver to the ton, together
with about 40 per cent of lead. OF
course this discovery caused the
greatest excitement. The Little Fitch
burg mine made Hook, Richie and
Tabor all wealthy. 1t was afterwards
taken up by D. H. Moffat. His part
rer, Senator J. 3. Chaffee, stocked and
placed it on the New York Market and
it was the beginning of Moffat's pres
emit immense fortune. 1t eventually
produced more than $7,000,000 worth of
ore.
1.-THE news spread rapidly, and min
ers and Adventures were attracted
from all over the world. In the sum-
mer and fall Of 1879 there were fully
$4,000 men in camp at Leadville, and
an immense amount of capital was ia
ken there for investment. One small
bank, with a capital of $4,000 had de-
posits amounting to $1,200,000. Peo-
pie went with money to buy proper
ties. no one expecting to get option on
ANYTHING for longer than a few hours
Such excitement and wild speculation
were never known before or since, and
probably never win be again. Since
that time and up to last January, that
district has added more than $3.50 000,-
900 to the mineral wealth of the world.
conditions have changed greatly
since those early days, and Leadville
IS now a city of 5000 people with
handsome business buildings and resi-
dences. electric lights and all modern
improvements
How about the difference in mining
methods then and now2
"ITp to 1893. when silver was worth a
dollar an ounce or more. Leadville peO-
ple were content to mine for the sill
yer and lead alone, but when in that
year silver became so cheap, it was
determined to seek for the gold which
the world was crying for. The ores
in I.eadville are not found as in other
mining districts in what are known as