The Salt Lake herald. [volume] (Salt Lake City [Utah]) 1870-1909, 1899-11-07
BETTER THAN KLoND1KE.
Rich Gravel Now Being Sluiced at
West Mountain Placer.

Superintendent Dan Clays of the
West Mountain placer at Bingham.
came in Sunday night and yesterday
morning reported at the company's Of
noes IN this city with gratifying reports
concerning the condition of affairs at
the property, as well as with several
ounces OF coarse gold dust washed from
the gravel. which, for the past six
Gays, mas been hoiSted from the shaft.
Just what values the gravel contains
cannon be definitely determined until
further work in the channel has baop
done. owing TO the great rush of water.
winch at present is carving awav
through the drift below the bedrock so
much of the gold as TO leave a great
zeal OF the gravel practically sluiced
before 1t is hoisted to the surface. AS
none Of the gold can get aWav the
). management is not at ali worried how
Ever, ana as soon as Superintendent
Gays gets farther into the channel this
leakage of values will be stopped.
speaking of the proposition yester
usy, MI Gays, who has been in charge
OF the mine for the past three weeks
SAID he had been placer and quartz
mining Tor thirty years, most of the
time at Bingham, and he had no hest
fancy IN declaring that the West Noun
tam placer, unless overtaken by some
uiiaVoddapie and unforeseen, disaster
would not be long in paying back the
thousands of dollars which ii had cost
70 open up the property and get the
water under control.
AS explained several weeks ago. the
west Mountain is being operated
through A shaft which was sunk in the
rim rock TO a depth of over 300 feet a
uf1ft was then run out something more
than seven ty-five feet under the he'd
rock of the lower gravel strata or
enamel, and when Mr. Claws took
charge the work of making an upraise
-6rA11Qn IL /.
menced, though the original intention !
nad Deen TO continue the drift tiU the !
Iim-rock on the opposite side of the /
channel had been reached. upraisa ar I
that point and then drift back through !
the gravel That scheme involved er.est [
expense ana more time and though the
elements of danger We're much erTeatay
ine diHerence IN cost and time deter
mined Mr. ClayS to continue the nm
raise through the bedrock and break
INTO the channel with as little delay as
possible. -
This work required no small amo,,pt
y nerve on the part of those engaged
II. for, as the channel was an
preached from below, the water began
2 come down in torrents and no one
VAS aDie 10 judge as to what 4Sould
happen when the gravel was ffnaIiY
broken into, as there was ONLY the ons
avenue through which to escane-tba
working shaft in which the pun1n vCas
tocateo- The outlook became so threat
ehlhs lnat one or two of the miners
seasoned men who were accustomed 10
face the ordinary dangers of n1ininoy
without a'quiver, finally refused to staS,
any longer. and went to the sIlrfaos |
superintendent Clays says he did MOI
Diane them, either, but as he had set !
out 20 enter the channel by that route
ne Went at 1t himself, and when he / !
broke through the rush of water. was !
SO great that he felt the roar of Mas
ara laiis would have seemed tame in :
COMPARISON However, the big Cornish 1
pump al work in the shaft took ND its c
extra. burden without any apnaranF &c
io-t, and the work of explorin1- +t-1 -
mas now commenced in earnest [
1t vas Dan Clays who denonSt,9+es5 [
70 the satisfaction CT Messrs No., q
Airs and others some three wears 40, I
that the West Mountain placer vvoS I
richly laden with the yellow metal onJ I
ne naturally feels some pride in ha,,irs. g
been finally selected to Subdue the ole,
nentS and overcome the natural difi
:uities standing in the way of rnalrin,
he ground yield up its treasures an9 I
iii of his oid-time friends win reioica
n the success with which he is meet
n.
He stated yesterday that one NJ tba n
irst things he proposed to do was 70 :,
lut she other shaft in shape 20 give /
he men employed below more than one c.
iyenCe Of escape in case of accident G
During the past two weeks a comfort e.
lele lodging house has been erected =
nd everything got in ship shape for an p
'ctive seasons work. Mr. Claws goes II
'ack TO the mine this morning. v