Idaho Springs siftings., 1903-05-09
METEOR IN RICH ORE.
Years OF Hard Labor Will
Be Rewarded.

most deserving miners are unally 10 De
richly paid for their long years of faith
and work on their property on Chesa-
peake mountain in the opening of rich
vein of ore in the Meteor tunnel, at St.
Mary's lake. The Meteor is now showing
two-foot streak of ore that is made
very attractive to the owners BY small
specks of free gold showing in the quartz
from the size of a needle point to the
head of a pin. This streak of ore is
accompanied by good size streak of
mill dirt that old miners estimate from
pan showings will run $40 per ton on the
plates The value of the high grade
streak can only be guessed as no tests
have been made. The strike was made
this week in the tunnel drift on the vein,
the portal being on the west bank at St.
Mary's, where the vein is plainly seen
running up the rugged granite walls; and
in about two hundred feet from the
mouth of the tunnel. An incident that
might be mentioned in connection with
the finding of this undoubtedly rich
shoot of bonanza ore is that when start
ing this tunnel four years ago one of the
owners planted a stake over the spot with
the remark that "here we will come into
our first shoot of ORE" though there was
nothing on the surface to indicate that
such would be the case.
The Meteor is owned by Messrs. Fred
Lamont and W. f. Pritchard. 1t was
located eight years ago and the working
of the prospect since would give a good
base for a romance as interesting as
Monte Cristo with the finale to come to
pass. AT least it shows the strong will
power of two earnest men, born with
the stubborn faith of the prospector, to
meet ever encouragement with another
plan of reaching the end in view. 1t tells
of long and hard trials; it tells of faithful
work; its tells of true royalty between
man and man.
Nine long years ago Mr.. Lamont was
contracting rigger in Denver, and Mr..
Pritchard was employed in large dry
goods emporium as a window dresser.
They became close friends, and when Mr..
Lamont decided to try his fortune min
ing Mr.. Pritchard offered to grub stake
him. The offer was accepted and has
ever since been in force and honored by
royalty by both, through the agreement
has had its trials on both sides.
Mr.. Lamont first started shaft on the
apex of the mountain and sunk it to a
depth of forty feet on the vein, working
| 1t Ill o&,l Il.
to fill and hoist and empty each bucket
of rock until the water made it impossi-
BILE for him to work longer in this way,
and being unable to employ help the
shaft necessarily had to be abandoned.
Mr.. Lamont, however, had proven that
the Meteor vein was a valuable one. and
farther confirmed SO by prospecting on
the surface. The owners then decided to
run "a tunnel In on the vein from st.
Mary's lake, and spent considerable time
and money putting up buildings and
other Improvements, and after having
driven their tunnel in some eighty feet
and gotten their vein located, snow slide
carried away their buildings and second
olAuO NONCANd bAClA WOAk " q uCpln VI
fifty feet. Mr.. Lamont undoubtedly
would have been caught in this slide had
h not been in Denver at the time. Again
their workings had to be abandoned after
FIVE years of saving and toil-hopes DASH
ed against the rock of fate and bruised
almost unto death.
The capitalist would have forsaken the
camp with the word failure" The busi-
ness man would have abandoned the
! work with the phase mot practical. :"
Not so to these two friends who already
began to feel hardships and want on ac-
count Of carrying on their work. But
only they could see the bright day shin
ing for them through the storm. They
located cross-cut tunnel in safe place
from slides and three years ago Mr.. La
mont started in to drive $50 feet through
solid wall of granite to his vein after
rebuilding a blacksmith shop, alone.
!, Two years more at least of hard living
and hard work was pictured to him as he
lifted his pick for the first blow before
he could again reach even his vein.
There are none but what will breath a
: true word of thanks that these two men
. for so long royal to each other are at last
to be rewarded, no matter what selfish
| | ness NAV control their inner natures,