Durango semi-weekly herald., 1904-07-04

lion, ana as IL measures ABOUT elSnt
columns. a portion Of it will be printed
each day. Those who do not want TO
read the story from day TO day may
save the papers until they have 1t
completed. and then read 1t all to-
gether.-Editor.)
We had been working several days
ON one OF the many little creeks How
ing into Whaling river, and found few
er colors with each inch of depth.
AT bedrock we found just CLINT OF
yellow to reward us for our labor, and
we gathered our tools at 4 In the
afternoon 10 tramp back to camp for
supper.
few days before | had left a
sheath knife of mine on another creek
where we had been working. and as
we intended to leave that side of the
river and move over to the location
Ed had selected during our long
night trip. | shouldered my tools and
struck ont for the place had left my
knife found It all right and then
started across the tundra for camp.
The afternoon sun was warm, and
plodding along over plains of niger
heads induced perspiration. When
reached camp Ed was cooking supper
and had a pot of beans over the oil
stove.
was hot and sticky with sweat,
and when / went to the river for
drink of water | noticed that the wa
ter was several degrees warmer than
usual owing to the long summer days
sunshine, We were camped at the
head of a pool, at the bottom of
long shallow crossing, where the sun
had a good chance at the running wa
ter as 1t glided over the bars. The
water felt so pleasant 10 my face and
hands that | decided for plunge.
Running back 10 the tent, got soap.
towels and change OF clothing and
was soon splashing in the pool. while
Ed SHE'D boulders at me to splash
water in my eyes. After good rub
bing with the coarse towels, and dry
clean clothes. felt up to de limit.
free times winner" as Chimmie Fad
den puts 1t, and ate my supper with
relish and turned into my blankets
for the refreshing sleep that comes to
the great outdoors.
We were up betimes in the morning
and with packs on our backs were
soon under way for the creek across
the river. where ED had great hopes
of striking pay dirt. If any We're to be
found in the country. We made three
trips during the day, carrying over
such things as we would need for our
camp.
To cover in detail our work there
would be monotonous. We planned
the work on IA larger scale than any
we had yet undertaken: we sank to
bed rock, which we struck sooner
than we anticipated. and then cross
cut the stream from bank to bank, but
our efforts were without profit. and at
the conclusion we were convinced
that there was no gold to be found on
that creek. We made a trip one day
to the mountains. AS 1t was mostly
granite. Ed did not think favorable.
As our supplies We're getting low we
decided to return down the river to
Whalen, and make trip from there
overland to the station for the pur-
pose OF getting more supplies and
getting word If possible from the 9TH
er miners.
One day down the river brought us
to the entrance of the lagoon and we
found the camp of the crowd with
whom we had visited our first night.
We put up our tent alongside of
theirs. and as they cordially insisted
on MS eating supper with them. we did
so. exchanging experiences as we
smoked our evening pipes. Like our
selves, they had found colors in many
places, but nowhere pay dirt. They
We're working on nearby creek,
more from a conscientious desire to
he thorough than from any real hope
OF finding gold They had been turn
ing their attention to the quartz and
there was good outcropping of white
quartz streaked with red, with green
traces of arsenical iron.
To be In fashion Ed and | staked
alongside, though | had no faith in it,
as quartz mining in Siberia would be
an expensive proposition. Samples of
the quartz which afterwards had as
sayed showed six-tenths of an ounce
in gold.
This decomposed white quartz,
streaked with Iron, Is to be found all
over the section we had prospected,
and great ledge of 1t must have eN-
tended across the peninsula at one
time. Its destruction by the elements
may possibly account for the fine
flour gold in minute particles or col
ors in all of the creeks.
Mr.. l.. c. B. Nadeau. the Canadian
and Alaskan trapper and guide who
WAS the leader of the party we were
with. had been In the country for over
a year. having come over from Nome
the summer before. and he and his
party / found to be hardy, practical
miners who had used all the
time the weather permitted in their
efforts to find gold. They had about
given up, though to be on the sate
side had made a number of locations
and had collected number OF speci'
mems that showed traces OF various
the most common being iron