Idaho Springs siftings., 1903-01-10

ions being done, cut up the sheep,
cooked the pieces over the fire and
feasted.
1.-The herd of sheep came down
to the soda springs next day. A
mountain lion crawled in and killed
one of them, which caused the
whole band to scatter. On the 4th
of January 1 explored the main
Vasques fork for four or five miles,
getting back to my camp after dark.
During my absence one of those
goldarned lions had slipped i'll and
stolen all my sheep meat, so had
to go supperless to bed. Next
morning 1 got up before daylight
and set out for a new supply of
grub; killed sheep and wounded
lion, who, like myself, was out
for breakfast.
FINDS GOLD.
"That day I moved my camp
over onto what we will now, for
convenience, call Jackson's bar, To-
eating under a big fir tree. Cold?
You bet it was cold, but soon
gathered lot of logs and brush
and lit a fire. This thawed out the
snow, leaving the ground bare and
exposing what looked to me like
mighty good gravel, the kind l
used to get gold out of in Califor-
mia. The ground was frozen solid,
and having no pick with me 1 used
my hunting knives to dig with.
Having no prospecting pan l used
my tin drinking cup panned out
two cups, got some gold, but it was
very fine. This, mind you, was on
the 5th of January, 1889. 1 kept a
brief diary of each days doings.
Here it is and you can read it for
yourself. Cussed bad writing, but
my hands were cold.
PRETTY TOUGH FIGHT.
Next day was clear and pleas
ant. Believing l had struck a
pretty good bar and determined to
prospect it as we'll as | could with
the rude implements mentioned, l
built big fire on the rim rock and
let it blaze up high to thaw the
gravel and kept it up all day. The
unusual sight attracted the atten-
ton of the wild animals, 50 they
came over to see about it. A cor
cajou came right into camp. The
dogs pitched into him, they had a
hi of a fight and finally killed
him, but in the scrimmage he man
aged to leave the marks of his teeth
on Drum and Kit, both of whom
were badly torn up.
'"The 9TH was clear, but cold.
The fire having put the ground in
condition for digging, l knitted out
about twenty cupfulls and panned
them i'll the creek after breaking
the ice. Between times l doctored
my poor dogs, who moaned with
pain, and incidentally, as they
couldn't swear, l cussed that infer
nal corcajou. Up to the ninth cup
full of sand 1 got nothing but fine
colors, lots of them, to be sure, but
fine. The ninth panning, however,
brought lot of course gold with a
good-sized nugget or two"
A PRoSPECToR' DREAM.
"Then you knew you had struck
it. How did you feel?"
well, I jumped up and down
and told myself the story l would
tell Tom Golden and Black Hawk
when 1 got back to our camp under
Table mountain. After a good sup
per of meat-bread and coffee all
gone-I went to bed and dreamed
of riches galore in that bar. If 1
only had pick and pan instead of
a hunting knife and tin cup l could
dig out sack full of yellow stuff
and carry it down to the boys. My
mind ran upon it all night long I
dreamed all sorts of things, in which
a fine house and good clothes, car
riage and horses, travel, what I
would do to the folks down in old
Missouri and everything one can
think of figured. 1 had struck it
rich. There was millions in it.
Next day l dug until my hunt
ing knife was all worn out. 1 had
panned out about half an ounce of
fina briubf 1ooIyipo cold 1o-o