Evening star. [volume] (Washington, D.C.) 1854-1972, 1899-09-26
wORLD-FAMOUS NUGGETS.
Chunks of Gold That Have Raised
Great Excitement.
From Leslie's Weekly.

From LeslieS Weekly.
There is nothing so fascinating to a
miner or prospector as the discovery of a
placer mine that yields some $40 and up
ward of gold to the pan, unless 1t is the
accidental unearthng of nugget of the
precious metal. Gold nuggets are scarce
even in the Klondike; but when the miners
begin to search the mountain sides and rip
up the rocky basins of the rivers and
brooks, stories of rich finds of nuggets will
undoubtedly be added to those already cir
culated concerning the wonderful placer
yields. A nugget of gold that contains a
small fortune in itself is a rare sight, and
it is little wonder that men have lost their
minds in discovering them: but nature has
buried quite Il number of them at odd and
unexpected places in the earth. The past
record of mining shows that wherever gold
is found in large quantities nuggets of
more or less large size are apt to be found.
Daniel Hill was one of the unluckiest
miners of the Pacific coast back IN the sos,
but one of the luckiest for picking up mug
gets of gold. He made two rich finds in
chunks of yellow metal that should have
prepared a better fate for MINI He died
of delirium tremens in Los Angeles only a
few years ago. In 1866 he dug up lump
of gold in the Ruby Belle claim. north of
Pumas. which he sold for $4,000 cash.
This was the largest amount of money he
ever owned, and he lived high on 1t long
as it lasted. Again, in 1871, when down to
his last dollar, he made another lucky
strike, unearthng a nugget of gold and
quartz in Dutch Flats that sold for S14 200
in San Francisco This money went like
the first, and the miner was poor once
more in less than a year, but he never
found the third nugget, which he constant
ly looked for up to the time of his death.
on August "A, 1853 a nugget that weigh
ed fifty-tive pounds. and was worth $1,000
was found at Magalia. Butte county, by
Ira A. Willard. Another was unearthed
near Columbia which weighed fifty pounds
and sold for $500. Not far from this, in
the same county, q nugget was picked up
in 1919 that sold for s716S, although 1t
weighed only twenty-eight pounds. A
10000 nugget was washed out in 1855 at
French Ravine. Sierra county. Two years
later second from this same place was
found that sold for $1,000
Four and five thousand dollar nuggets
were found in considerable numbers in Cal
ifornia in the sos. COS and 'Ios. I'll Do
RADIO county produced one that SOLD TOT
81 700, another valued at 5000, thlrd
worth s5625 a fourth worth 5000 and a
fifth valued at $500. Sierra county, be-
sides the big chunks already mentioned, Is
famous for producing nuggets or lesser
size. Some dozen or more, ranging from
81 900 TO $1,000 in value. have been found IN
this county. Plumas county has been one
of the richest mining sections of the state,
but only three large nuggets have been
found there. The largest weighed Az
ounces and was worth S6.ID.
To offset these large and small nuggets,
Australia in addition to the first one men
toned comes to the front with nuggets
that are Justly famed throughout the world.
The Welcome Stranger nugget was
found at Dunolly. Victoria. in 1862 and
weighed = $50 ounces gross. The Welcome"
lump was found ten years before this in
the mines at Ballarat Victoria. and weigh
ed 2.21I ounces.
After these two big chunks came the
blanche Barkly," found at Hangover. Vic
tcria, in 1851. weighing a trife over LIS
ounces gross The Precious" weighed 1,G2l
! ounces and was washed out at the Berlin
diggings in 1871. The Berlin diggings a'so
produced the ''Viscount Canterbury and
the ''Viscountess Canterbury and the
KUN Tow" The first of these nuggets
weighed | .105 ounces, the second SS4, and
the third us. Balarat produced, besides the
| Welcome" the great lump known as
Lady Hotham," in 1871; weight, lit
ounces; and the "A. NJ weight, 1919
ounces. A mass of gold and quartz was
found at Burrangdong. New South Wales.
| in 1858 which weighed 1.2S6 ounces, and
i another near aBthurst in 1851 with gross
| weight of LIP.
Outside of Australia and the United
States large nuggets of gold have rarely
| been discovered One noted exception should
| be mentioned In 1912 mass was found
at MASK, in the Ural mountains, which
weighed !, LOS ounces.