The Seattle post-intelligencer. [volume] (Seattle, Wash. Terr. [Wash.]) 1888-1914, 1900-01-21


began with the discovery of
gold. in the early sixties. Most of those
who came across the plains then carried
with them strong prejudices for or against
the war for the preservation of the Union.
These broke out In occasional emeutes.
and the desperate struggle for gold and
the quarrels growing out of 1t did not
tend to placate the feelings of these stern
characters. Then the millions that were
taken out of the placer beds and hidden
In cabins and indiscriminate places until
the owners should seize the first favor
able opportunity to depart for the states,
aroused the cupidty of the lawless ele-
ment among the fortune seekers. Plum
mer. the sheriff, duly installed by the
rough modes of the miners. became the
secret leader of this lawless element As
sheriff he was intrusted with the secrets
of the prosperous; he knew when they pro-
posed to depart with their treasure, and
by what route. As the leader of the OUT
laws, this information was promptly dis
seminated amongst his band, and Plum
mer. the sheriff, plotting the unsuspecting
victims with their treasure through dan
gerous passes. gave the secret signal that
brought about the little party dozen
highwaymen, who promptly relieved Plum
mer's proteges of the gold dust that had
taken months and years to accumulate
One-half Of the population OF Alder snlch
were working day and night like bees in
q hive to gather the gold that should take
them back to the states and to affluence.
the other half gambled and whiled away
the time until the harvest was gathered,
and then swept down, vulture-like. upon
the treasure.
Then the better element organized and
formed a vigilance committee. Col. w. F.
Sanders, former United States senator
from Montana. was elected as public pros
ecutor. The miscreants were given pub
Tic trial In the open air, beneath the sky
before n jury of the entire populace. and
the price Of hemp went up.
Hangings were not confined to Friday.
Then peace reigned for a while.
Next came the feud between the Irish
and the Missourians. These factions were
both Democratic. and what few residents
Of the territory were not partisans of
either faction were naturally and logically
Republicans. The row between these fac
tons was transferred to politics, and they
could never be united except by the can
didacy of Col. Sanders whenever he
wanted to go to congress Sanders used
to say that he would not sacrifice an hon.
est expression of opinion for ali the
wealth OF the Goulds and vanderbilts
and by his classic phillipics from the stump
against both factions of the Democracy
always united them so closely that VIC
tory at the polls required no expenditure
Of Democratic campaign funds.
Montana's Great "BiG Four
At length the great wealth of Montana
brought forth four men, who became
known as the big Four" They were
Marcus DAILY and W. A. Clark, of Butte,
and Col. w. A. Broadwater and Sam
Hauser. of Helena. Daily and Clark had
their differences and Broadwater and
a<,f
the Rockies lies between Butte and Hell
ena. Across this range Daily and Broad
water formed an alliance offensive and
defensive against Clark and Hauser. Oc-
casionally the four got together and then
the arch of victory bowed the Democratic
sky But Broadwater died. and the finan-
cial world squeezed Hauser out of politi-
cal existence, leaving Clark and DAILY glar-
ing at one another.
In 1880 the Alice mining stock was the
leader of the New York mining exchange
The mine was owned principally by Walk
er Bros. of Salt Lake. Long before 1850
the property had declined and was almost
worthless. DAILY had drifted from Ire
land, tot had been an office boy in a
Wall stree. bank. and from there had
gone to New Orleans. where he worked
along the quays and finally worked his
way up into the mining regions of Me-
vada. He became common miner. but
with his keen intelligence discovered the
secrets of the earth and the ores, where
the other miners saw only dark walls and
wages. Steadily he advanced until he was
a mine superintendent and a practical
expert, whose opinion was mining law.
Those were not the days of school made
mining experts. and DAILY became lead
err in the great industry of the Rocky
mountain regions-quartz mining. Walk
er Bros. sent him to Butte to rehabilitate
the Alice. He took charge and the Alice
became a great dividend payer. Haggin
and Hearst asked him to take charge of
the Anaconda, then hole in the ground.
1t was supposed to be a silver mine, hut
DAILY opened 1t up on that extensive scale
that has characterized all his mining OPP
erations, and discovered the greatest vein
of copper the world has yet developed.
Clark had emigrated from Pennsylvania,
where he studied law, taught school and
dreamed of ambition, into the far West.
and located at Virginia City and Helena.
He opened store, bought and sold the
scant necessaries of the miners, and made
money. Then he went into the banking
business at Butte and Deer Lodge. He
was a shrewd banker, and In various ways
soon acquired title to valuable mining
claims. He began rapidly to accumulate
wealth, and to round out his education
by the study of French and German, and
by n course OF DrOau redulng ana Dy ex-
tensive travels upon the continent.
Beginning of the Clark-Daly Feud
Story after story has been told of the
inception of the Clark and DAILY feud: but
there are only two stories that the vera
cious chronicer will vouch for When
DAILY was superintendent of the Alice
mine. which crowns the hill that has made
Montana famous. Clark is said to have
written an extremely derogatory letter of
DAILY and his management OF the Alice
to Walker Bros. the owners Walker
Bros. had become millonaires through Da-
ly's management. and they promptly in
closed Clarks letter in another to DAILY,
expressing their absolute confidence in
him. Clark and DAILY were then friends,
hut the friendship ceased, and DAILY never
forgave this act of Clark's. Today. with
all Days marvellous success, others have
taken Clark's cue, and endeavored to
"hack-cap' DAILY; but he has grown too
DIG TO notice now, and never answers the
! storm OF criticism that sometimes envel-
i'm 10 FN--