Weekly independent. [volume] (Elko, Nev.) 1887-1914, 1906-12-28
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With The passing or the great cattle
ranges Of the west md The rapid popu.
lation OF the plains. most Of the pictur.
esque types Of westerp life have passed
away. Tho old.time scout. with his
history OF Indian warfare aud the track.
ing Of the desolnte wastes OF desert and
mountain. is almost a thing of the pasi,
seldom to be found except MS the hero
Of novel or short story. The same is al
most as true Of the old-time cowboy and
the cattle hing who 4roamed the range
as a king Of his empire" until within the
past few years. There Is, However. que
character Of western life still occupying
the stage Of human activity today, who
Ii Just III picturrequ rs ever, aud with
etory Of comedy, of farce and tragedy as
great and as inter esiing ns that q fifty
years ago. lie has received scant at,
tention in the popular literature Of the
day. while deser wing much. He has
ranged the desert places Of Nevada.
since the early sixties; he can tell, il he
will, OF Indian tighte, Of massacres by
night. OF arrow wounds; his face is
scanned and tanned by the fierce heat Of
the desert sun aud the deadly cold OF the
mountain camp. He has lived in the
open for forty years. his bed has beeu
the sand and perhaps the Pine and cedar
branch has formed his couch. He has
dug. with pick and shovel and with
powder, into the bowels OF the earth.
In the tragedy OF lonliness the bones of
his fellows lie unmarked amid the sweep
OF boundless waste; he has known the
tragedy Of disappointment, OF hunger.
OF thirst. OF hope deferred; his shoulders
are bowed under the weight of years
md the burdens they have carried; HE
tracks cross and recross desert and
mountain. Ills story is the 81 Org Of tile
rise and fall of Virgrpis City, with it's
Comstock, OF old Belmont, with its greut
mines where tlnnr and lumber and ggus
and all the scan I necessities OF his exist
ence we're freighted sou miles By TT
team; the story Of great fortunes maie
and lost again; the story OF the building
OF great cities, like San Francisco,
built from the wenlth of the desert
places Of the earth; OF the building OF
railroads, OF mills, Of mines. OF gold, ind
II one ehonld ask him why he has given
up his life to the search he would answer,
"a we all must answer in whnte Yer walk
OF lie we are found, that he has been
trying to better his condition.
Nevada Inns teep Il desert with scant
population; it is still a desert, while it's
sister statee have been made TO blossom
as the rose and have been growIng rich
in men aud women, in homes and all
that goes to make life ENJOYABLE.
Through it all the tragedy c; the desert
has hung OYER the silver state. Blu,
Nevada Is coming into her OWN; nc
longer is she the silver state alone, but
Ia rapidly climbing to the top OF the list
OF gold = producing statea. Touopal
first, a great camp; Goldlield next. {
greater camp; then Manhattan; will
Bullfrog, Rhyolite. Searcblighi. Blair
Silver Peak and II dozen others begin,
ming to loom up in the distance. Nc.
vnda's population has grown to live fold
il as many years. 10 aid the good
work the national government ut Wash.
inRton has undertaken t0 make OF the
desert Il garden, and grent irrigation on
terprises are under way to reclaim bun
dreds OF thousands of acres OF desert
lands. Virginia City, Belmont and
other great silver md gold camps Of the
sixties and seventies, campa which pro.
duced hundreds Of millions IN tI, il
hist glory, IRE waking up from their
sleep OF n quarter OF a century and are
beginning to ponr their wealth again in.
to the lap Of the American public. San
Francisco is to he rebuilt, AZ il was
built, by the gold OF Nevada. Tie
tragedy OF the desert is ended and the
subjugation has begun.-Fred p. Jayne
in Salt Like Mining Review.