Daily inter mountain. [volume] (Butte, Mont.) 1881-1901, 1900-02-10

complete m~.sconception, because there 1
no evidence whatever Of glacial action
and all the facts point to a local eourc
Of the gold. As placer gold can onl!
move down-hill from its sources in til,
parent rock, it is evident that the sourc,
OF the gold In the creeks and gulches mus
De sought In their drainage basins. W.
DO not wish to imply that m.neralizet
veins OF commercial value must neces,
sarly be found in the vicinity of the rio
placers. Such has not been proved ths
case in many other placer regions. The
gold of the parent rock may not be in a
sufficiently concentrated form, or the cos!
of mining. because of local conditions
may be too great for profitable %exploita-
ton. A very important consideration,
moreover. in regard to the richness OF
placers is that they have often derived
their gold from immense masses Of rock,
The agents Of erosion are constantly at
tackinS the bed rock Of any given area,
reducing 1t to gravel, sand and mud,
which streams carry seward the re-
deposit in various forms. A heavy SUBJ
stance like gold which may have been
disseminated throughout the rock is con-
centrated during this process by the
sorting action of water and h placers
are formed. The richness of a placer.
therefore. may quite as likely point to a
preV.ou erosion of great masses of bed
rock as to rich and large individual
veins. Rich placers cannot be considered.
then. as conclusive evidence of the pres
ence of great gold veins in the region.
The life history of a gold nugget in this
region IS something as follows: When
1t IS freed from the parent rock by the
disintegrating agencies it has an angular
form. 1t is washed down to the gulchas
ana gradually becomes surrounded. BY
Cnnln n nniInn ~ 80 -, ~.
may be disturbed and the nugget. again
moved and still further reduced in size,
fnds its way to the tundra deposits. By
the shifting of the shore line. it may sub
sequently be exposed to wave action.
ground down still smaller n eventual
~ borne to sea as fake or f1our gold.
We expand this elementary idea as TO the
origin Of the gold deposits because of a
mlsconception among some of the miners
in the Nome region that the sea has
washed up the gold and deposited it in
the beach. 1t is wen asserted by some
that tbs waves are constantly adding gold
70 these placers by bringing it from the
depths of the ocean.
The striking feature of the Nome re-
glon is the absence of timber. The tun-
dra is a fiat, treeless. moss-coyerei
waste. In this it differs little from the
barren plains of the Arctic coast. The
nearest approach to anything like tim
- 40 AC lColOil . SIy SluHlpu
alder and willow, but this brushwood
rarely attains more than four feet in
height and seldom three inches in dia-
meter. 1t occurs principally along the
edges OF some of the valleys, and in the
creeks and gulches along the lower
reaches OF the mountains, and is some
times found crouched in fringes closely
hugging the strealn-beds in the tundra
1t is unsuitable for camping and wholly
for c~abin-building and min
Ing purposes. This absence of timber is
assigned by Professor F. v. Coville, the
of the agricultural department
70 the rigors OF an Arctic climate.
Though the Nome region grows no tim.
Der, there is another source of fuel sup |
Ply on this bleak coast. 1t consists Of
me draftwood or timber cast ashore by
Inc sea. Here 1t has bean left in a great
extending almost continuously
along the beach, while in the estuaries
ana tidal lagoOns the accumulation often
covers many acres. The timber is prin-
clpally Alaskan spruce, though other
are reported. 1t has come from
distant shores. often remote, some logs |
bearing the brand of Puget sound saw
mills are reported to lave been found. |
The value of this driftwood to the pros
pector during the last season. both a..
'ablns, can hardly be over-est.mated. Fer
so great a population, as at Nome, how
ever, the supply is necessarily limited
80 that little or no reliance should be
placed upon it for future use.
The principal and almost universal
vegetation IN the nome region is the
moss. 1t covers with a dense growth
the entire Nome tundra, and in many To-
calities extends we'll up into the mount
aims. In the Nome region and on most
OF the Seward peninsula game of almost
every kind is scarce. The principal in
land quadruped is probably the
hare or white fox. Some lynx
are also found, n occasionally a Carl
bou or bear may be seen. OF the
feathered tribe the ptarmigan, grouse
and Arctic owl are all Indigenous ana
Fishing is carried on in a
smaller way by the natives along the
greater part of the coast. The principal
fish is the salmon. Salmon trout are
also common, and fine rock-cod occur as
far north as Cape Prince of Aales. A
species of large crab, very delicious and
much used as food, is also found as far
north as this cape. The hair seal is
along the coast, and is a very
important animal to the native in its
of meat, oil, and especially the
skin for clothing, footwear and sundry
uses. The seal are taken in both win
ter and summer. In winter the natives
go out on the sea ice six or eight miles
from shore, where a few seal are pro-
cured at the edge of the open sea. The
natives are also reported to take a whale
Or W along tine coast almost every
year. They sell the bones, while the
carcass is appropriated for food.
RED BLUFF MINE