The Seattle post-intelligencer. [volume] (Seattle, Wash. Terr. [Wash.]) 1888-1914, 1900-03-25
STORIES OF LOST MINES.
Legend Of the blue Bucket DIG.
Sings'-"The Lost Basin"
in the Bitter Root
Mountains.

N+At1 VI AUt AftNlt West N
| have ever read I saw IN the sun
day sun the other day" said John Haw-
kins, a mining man from Spokane AT a
Pttiseurg hotel last week The article
covered all but two Of the legends of lost
mines that l know OF any these two ara
famous all over the Northwest MANY "A
prospector has outfittei at Spokane FOR A
search for the Lost Basin and the fSluo
bucket mines. propositions that have hith-
erto eluded all efforts 70 find them Tho
Rue Bucket mine lies someg'asre In ore
son, on line drawn from the big bend
OF the snake river whore Il sweeps nor,h-
ward on It's way 60 the Columbia, ana ex-
tending to Yreka. Cal
1T was sometime In 1850 l believe. that
a party OF homescckers struck OF in tho
foothills Of the Rockies on the oregon
tran for the Northwest. intending 10 work
down into Northern California They vera
farmers, pure and simple, and the news
OF the discovery OF gold IN California had
never reached them They had left tho
bend OF the Snake river some days-~un-
fortunately the story Is not definite as TO
the number OF days-hehind them aud they
chmped one evening on the hanks OF a
stream. where they rested their oxen and
horses for a couple Of days. While the
men Of the party hunted the surrounding
country for fresh meat and the women
spent the time In washing clothes the
children wandered about In the vicinity OF
the camp picking berries carrying with
them, as the story has II. one OF those
old-fashioned blue buckets Oidtsmars
say that the blue bucket was an important
part OF the arEonaut's outft in tnose days.
zone day at noon the children hurried
into camp. two OF them struggling with
the weight of their bucket. the bottom COW
cred with number Of pieces OF yellow
metal They said they had tried TO dig
out of the ground some deep rooted bush
bearing a flower that pleased them, intend
ing to plant " in the bucket ana take IL
along. and they had found the pieces ~
metal In the ground, Everybody gathered
about the find, and nobody could maze any
thing OF a. The metal couldn't be brass.
OF course. they knew. but IL might be some
kind of native copper, as IL could be beat
en- out Nat with ease The pieces varied
from the size OF a pumpkin seed TO an
esq.
The arronnuts had no use for single
| pound OF useless weight and when the par
| ~ started of all the metal was thrown
| away. but few pieces, which the children
| were allowed to keep for paokatones and
| heavy jsckstones they were too. of
| course when Yreka was reached The play
| things were recognized as gold, Then
| there was stampede over the Oregon
| lava heds for tho blue Bucket mine, but
| snow aad fallen east OF the Cascade range
| and the track was lost Two or three OF
1 the party spent their lives looking for tho
los; placer ground and died IN poverty.
| the others settled down "a farming and
| succeeded az u. Every few years aoma
| prospector takes notion 70 make HIS for
| tune by finding the Blue Bucket mine hut
| no gold has since ever been discovered In
! that whole stretch Of Southern Oregon
THE Lost Rasin is q legendary quarts
proposition, hidden In heau.iful basin
| IN the Bitter Root mountains Of southern
idaho. A packer who was employed by
| one Of the expeditions that made a pre-
iininary survey Of the taian Pacinn rail-
| way made the discovery IN the romantic
| Way that IL Characteristic % the ftndng
~ all these lost mines Several males
| got away ono night tn The widest Part IL
that mountain range, and Ge0ras Harvey.
| that vas she packers name was detailed
| 90 lnd them having first been suppiiFd
| with a horse 70 carry hls bedding and
| grub. He was instructed 70 HURRY along
| AS eoon he had found tho rGi.a. IS the
engineers IN charge az The expedition had
| decided that AZ ihe country vaa tnprae.
ueahle for railroad, they woaia lose no
| time in pushing westward 70 the ma n
camp where this v0fiaus surveying parties
we're To meet.
Harvey started back en- the trail early
IN the morning ~ tho breaking up ~ Tho
| camp. and found the fnuies ~ a iittse val.
| icy grazing. iIe secured ihsfa withput
| truatie and decided 10 camp as fiigas had
amen IN t1f NlurnfHE Ne lNnkef around.
| a peculiar rock formation. twenty feet
wide. pfatfgdinR from the ground .s focs.
| snd extending so yards - The sdFe ~ q
stream arrested his attention The rock
was soft and Harvey chopped up yard
Or more ~ ihe surface yellow CLINT
caught his eye and he picked no q 'strin9'
| u pure gold foot long. ard NaiKHtnF !
haif pound There Waa plenty r-ore - Tho
! valuable metal in tha, spot. and AFTER
| chopplng up the surface sf various places
on me rock Harvey satisfsa himself that
~ hs8 discovered gfsai free milling rpih
| ledge. biK enough 10 make sim million
| aifs several times ever
f'CcncaHIing several pounds ~ gold about
| hls person. BE- moved oui - tbs valley,
after ifnpfefslng tho narroH enfrancs upon
Rte mind Hf sDgu found TIE surveying
PARTY hnd hurried sion3 20 fasf thar hey
had &cft m fnarhs. hlaess On ifeea pf
Otherwise. 20 Indicate the way hey bad
,aknn. and Ms hs bad 70 depend IN tAs
intelligence ~ his horse ar1 tae uialrS %
ana tho gay - dssrfxsrfed All ihe ianf-
marks lie 3naliY arrived az The main
emmp. saying nothing shout hls discovery.
ard WORKING ~ his "a antA ne usxt
mlmNar
sFlnany ~ made a cannAaHt q ora
jim fien8sFs0a whose eyes ts1seA wAeH
De saw the evidence IN pssre g9lf x Hof~
ssy+s discovery f}afh men pnt 'hrif agy-
fnEs sogsthsr-fkev we're affald % to -
1israae * HRFysya gold "a then the seeFst
W1uiA base besn rfefs ~ longer fagf~
rhsaad an a0fat ara started Tor fhe basin
~ valley Cf course they DsYeF 'gaad ~
gpeks aad rssska ard streams wsEe no
ianamasks 90 Harvey. fpF ne hal uexisc'ed
10 notice them on his former hagfin8 TRIP
20 sha nafn camp. Tns I've wandered
shrsaeh fhs mountains all gafnfuer aud
came nuf - winter - Ia ~ sha s9files
meat WARE the reurishjnE tOTn ~ Af7is
now ~ they tsok others into i1fif conQ-
asnre yha we're convinced ~ the u1ta
~ HMrveyss staTy by a siEl8 81 ire GOD
ahieh Ne sigi kept Many an expedition
zas orEanIxs6 buf Sc basin VA i9sf Ter
good. apparently. Even TODAY ~ peea-
rfaual sros pector makes search f2g tna
LIS. Basin"