Arizona republican., 1900-09-26
KING sOLoMONs MINES.
Speculation as to Their Discovery and
 Richness.

This is Q story quite on the modern
 literary lires. for it ends with a note
 of Interrogation.
 It beginz with the scene of Dr. Carl Peters, the German explorer, rummag-
 ing about in an old German castle few years back
 Tn this ancient Teutonic schloss Dr. Peters came upon a mUsty volume. to- gether wi h a quaint old map, puh Iisned in France in 1719 CT thereabodt. This work and map, according to one of Dr Carl Peters associates, q alt with the Goirgs of the Portuguese zoo
 years earlier, iu the country bordering
 on the Zambesi, and are to form the
 key to the wker abouts f gold mines in t-e heart of Africa The course of tn Zambesi was shown on the map rough lv. but accurately and on the south bank of the river appeared Mount Eura. Now. concerning Mount Fura, thirst for science aud a thirst for gold had already bred in the good d,ctor certain suspicious.
 90 ne set to work, it is recorded. in systematic fashion to get all the works he could find on the subject. He IS 1 credited with posse ssirg . wonderful memory. and of being capable Cf recol- ! lecting minute details for years after ward. Some Of the old writings thus hunted up went taCil t0 the sevente= nth ! century. and for two years was the 1 trail followed up, says an admiring 1 crrcniclar. through the dim and dust I strewn req Inns Of Centuries-o!d book land.
 ! The recent works Were studied, too ] and at the end of two years, in July, i 1898. the Gerua1 v5Ier promoted in ! London q ccrnpany-the pr. Carl Pet 1 ere Estates an5 Exploration Com D ny. LiInited-fOr the purpose of pur- chasing properties and rights which lad becn acquired by him in southeast orn and central Africa. and for the con duct by Dr. Peters Of a well eluippei , and carefully selected expedition to the | district where he hop5d to discover ] Mount Fura, and to test his surmis s
 about that mysterious locality l The vendors took 75,OoO q sharss in . part payment, and the expenses of this ] expedition and sufficient working capi- i tel would be provided. said the pros
 pectUs, by the issue of E5.000 shares.
 Well, the expedition, with Dr. Peters
 Ht it's head. and the clues afforded by 1 the old writings and the old map ln : constant use. duly discovered tho , mountain of Fura, by the middle Of 1 1899, and Dr. Peters was convinced his ] csc-ished hopes were well founded.
 Those hopes Were nothing more nor less
 than that Fura was Ophir the Biblical
 land of gold. the source or Solomon 's
 fa abulouz riches.
 Fura, the good doctor con ended, Was the native corruption of the word AiCr.
 h. which name the Arabs of the six tcenth century knew he dis rict. AfIr 1 was the S5b7s2n. or South Arab!an,
 fo--7 2t the Hebrew name Oph;r. As
 Dr. T-t5.s fte-ward assured a repre-
 s~'s..-a f Rcuter's Agency, for he
 i----rctia1 of the world at large. he
 h-5 c~0Tle prccf ,hat the Fura which
 his expedition had discovered and rX-
 plored in the summer of 1899 was the
 Ophir of th7 Old TestameHt-the Opair , wh2se ilcalcu'abIe wealth is referred
 10 in the first Book of Kings, in both
 Books Of Chronicles, in Job. in the Psalms and in Isaiah.
 l 4 chief. the doctor sad. gave him variable information regar ling the po-
 si-iou of ancient ruins and workings, 1 which he at once investigated. Going
 to the spot indicated he found ancient
 ruins of undouoJed Semitic type. Fura
 itself he found to possess formation { of qu1rtzitic slate and diorite. betw en
 which gold reefs were running. The i ancient workings w1ich he found were
 not only surface workings. but there | were also. he dec.as ed. shafts and roads | hewn into ,he rock.
 How the shlTeho,dsrs must haVf
 palpitated when they. read, in report i Dr. Peters pres -rted to the oiractqrs' 1 that when the Portuguese arrived in