The sun. [volume] (New York [N.Y.]) 1833-1916, 1899-11-26
HERE is A CAVE OF GOLD.
HOLE IN THE CASCADE RANCE
RICHER THAN GOLCONDI.
Its Roof. Floor and Bac't Composed OF Orc
Worth From $40 to $4,000 Ton
Mountain Climbing In Washington
Rock slides Instead of AyslaucheS.


Rock slides Instead Of Ayslauches.
pAsco, wash, Nov 20.--Haye you, gentle
reader, ever walked six miles over q skid road in
the Cascade Range Of mountains In the State OF
Washington? II you have, | am sure 1t must
have been long years ago, because otherwise you
would not be gentle but wild. for walking over a
skid road in the Cascades has tendency to make
a sucking dove wilder than a hen with fourteen
chickens.
DO you know what skid road is? Not an ordi-
nary skid rood but Cascade Range skid road
No? We'll. let me explain. A skid by the die.
tionary definition, is a log or timber laid length
wise on which heavy articles may be Transported
CT IS ,ddcd," III the yernacular and II skid road
should therefore be one somewhat similar in elect
10 an ordinary railroad but Cascade Range skid
roads are not constructed according TO other plans
and the logs arc laid crOssways of the road and at
intervals Of say, 3 or g feet The roadbcd is un-
aduItcra ed mud and the legs, from 10 10 II inches
IN diameter, sink into this, about 6 inches. 50
that the horses dragging the usual skid sleds, long
slender, low runncrcd affairs may step between
them and keep the mud thoroughly soft and well
churncd Tn u new road, that is, one made III viz
gin soil this process usually csta blishcs de- til
OF from 10 10 IL inches uf mud and as II rains
OF less every month in the western Cascades,
this mud never has the water sufficiently squeezed
ther TO the pedestrians pleasure, the sklds are al
ways kept well creased 10 facilitate the passage
Of tho sleds, aud u the walker can keep his i'et
under him. when he most needs them there, then
indeed he is an expert Why not ride on tho sleds,
you ask Well, II you should Zee wne 81 tn, 20
elcds gliding from one side 81 the ed 10 the other
and switching around like the cracker 81 u whip,
you would not ask the quest IN. We might have
gone On horseback, but there were II" horses cH-
Cept such We're Otherwise Cnga aged SuwC walked.
W rus 1000 IL in wal & 'hr six mi -, too.
that did not make uur task easier ur our bur
denS lighter but We were bound Tor n cave 81
gold in the mountains and who thinks "i "hort
with such dazzling, goal Gcforc hum
The trail. they call my kind Of . road trail
in this country except the railroad. lie through
such tremendous forests as are no, found any
where In the world except On the Pa life Coast
The great trees growing so clrscly together that
thee was not limb for TOO feet. rose as
straight az masts upward IT, the light their enor
nous trunks almost making n wooden wall along
] the trail. Here and there some ancient patri.
arch had fallen and ON it's recumbcnt trunk grew
giants 100 feet IN height Somewhere ~
! ling torrent over tie great bpuldcrs and a mile
above trees and torrents and 'kds and mud
lowered the gray rocked saw teeth and needles
Of the CAS- ad,s the toughest mountains on Garth
We reached the Golden Tunnel Camp in Sol.
mon Basin NJ II o'clock. after three hours 81 steady
but slippery gong. and There they sh"nHi Us
| close at hanl, aud FAR up the mountain.
Al the head "i the Basin, tiny black line across
! field 81 snow. which they told US was u part ~
, the trail leading to the cave oi gold itself ndS
! nnTuShahlC on the face 81 a gigantic Cliu which
seemed to rise straight up 10 the sky. But it
WAS the cave Of gold NC had come u sec for caves
OF & Id are scarce except in broNS u fairy tales.
! and W. Wee not to he deferred bv little thing
like an InlpoSsibillty. as S,'on We had eaten
we took our apenStnCks in our hands and began
To climb. For a half mile We followed a SKID
then ~ went square out uinn huge rock slide
and picked our way carefully across foo II .ATiy
: quarter # mile To- a tangled thckct, beyond
which were more rocks and then a field Of snow
| Let INC stop here long enuIgh IT, sav that thc~,
rock slides. while ordinarily sal" cnpr gh, are often
! the mosi serious danger ~ mountain climbing
] AS the name indicates. they are slides IT rock
! which de- not seem To- Cnmr from anywhere but
as II nature had made their particular location
her trck dump intending L. make C. fill across the
valley but never getting further than foot o.
/ the mountain These rocks On an incline # 81
B degrees will lie quietly rcpusug until an unwary
3 foot starts one rolling. or a gun sh" or even a
I t" the unucky climber who i out on the slide
for lie must I've active indeed to II hc escares bruis"'
, or broken inb from the bouldcrs which Cnm'
| bouncing and jumping aud Tying down upon
! him lhesr slides do not become moving masses
J rs arc hvalnnchcs sweeping every thing down
. with them; they are merely covered With luus'
J stones which cone rolling down IS iwoS ~ three
"r tens ~ scores aS the diStuthAnc" may lr nnt
also unlike the avalanche they may occur a hal
dozen times day, and are. a constant menace
Beyond tho rock came the snow and there wH'
n big crrvaSSc in II which ncc"ssihi'd trip dowt
IN" mountain tuRct around ~ aud then more rucL
and more snow and We struck the real climbing
Here, We stopped To- look down the valley upon
double line Of mountains clear cut against the SKY
, IN places again cutting IT," white clouds h,'
spea- points and presenting magnificent beauty
! oi mountain scenery NhlIh nave not Stsn ~
ccllcd outside # the Cascade Range.
! hr trail leading up from the snow WAS narrow
and soft. hedecd IN BY ,hickets whose limbs and
enough of il 10 make u. almost iorswcar tho gol,
standard and adopt free silver, or hay, ur oats
81 garden n s1 sS,. h we cane up , oyer roc
| stuck ON 70 the mountain side ut intervals VIII
no other apparent pI;tposc thrn To make ih'
~ the cave 81 gold. II was far above US in III,
face 81 the cIii bu; in plain sight, and We wen
on and on, up and M, III W. reached the tents q
the miners, hung There like the nests Of bird
Among .he pine trees that fsStcn their roots amorg
What tremendous climb il Was Three hours
Of constant going, and yet when We looked dowr
and down To the Cimn where "" had dinncr Il
seemed scarcely stones throw away. i'u
We were tendcri,rt and the Veterans who Crcetcc
us as W. stopped To take breath before the iina
ing 10 speak Of They told us, too 81 how only
the day before one Of ,hcir number weighing Isl
and eight II them had carried him down III" irai
W. had luSt com" over and dcIivrr"i MIN safely
IN the valley. But aitrrwarl, thusr who la,
carried him told us that IL was TIE most diiiiCul
aud trying mountain work they hHh ever under
taken and that The sui rnr Of thlr hclplcs,
burden was pitifui as they swung him around
| iutting crags, lifted him ny and down the cliil.
and slipped and fell with hun over the ruggcr
rocks and along III" steep incncs holding III,
| litter with one hand and cnglng 10 roots M
! branches with the Other,
Up the final crags We went at last. and lhcl
and locked outward intn the blue distance stretch
ing far away below Us and before Us upnn n whn
| world ready and willing and waiting Ia under
/ take any hazard. tu undergo any hardship II /
) may, Ia secure tho precious metal stored here b.
natures own hand, But the shin" Of the yellow
gold did not dazzle our eyes nor were We strucl
Specchlcss with amazcmcnt at the wundrou
wealth about US ON the contrary, we didn'
see anything much, but the peculiar geological
formation Of cave IN the face Of mountain no
otherwise cavcInouS and it Was jus, 49, dark IN
side rs caves usually are We looked about VI
for tangible proof 81 the tales that had been tulC
Ia us and VIC began Ia set aside the romance tina
, always hedges gold n divinity doth king, aud gc
at the practical side Of things what We had foun'
was cave seventy feet high ut its cntraucc an,
twenty odd feet wide. cxtcndng hack into III,
| darkness for hily feet or more It's sides wcr,
| the hard rock OF the mountain, but its roof IT
| floor and It's back was grayish white granulA
substance, cross IN appearance between fin
clay and spoiled cheese, and soft that pcl
| could hc stuck into II anywhere Chunks Ot /
had fallen down from tho roof and sides as If 10
| cay were far gone III its work Of dSintcgTation
| On the floor Of the cave this clay or rock, in th
| technical, had been crushed into n granular duS