The Worthington advance. [volume] (Worthington, Minn.) 1874-1908, 1906-04-20
(continued.)

lgS XlOflOuSly bright sunlight anu pure
air. For years it remained village
and it's business men merely shopkeep
ers and resident ranch owners but ar
it's fame spread families Of wealth and
social position in the east began to set
tie along the bank of the Bear and to
!! build homes into which the sunlight
streamed with healing magic, and the
men of these families began to look
about for business and for Investment
and not few Of them, were in the
mood to listen when rough bearded
men began to plod down the trail from
Bozle Creek bringing sacks Of promis'
Ing ore. 49,
Returns from these samples, sent
away to be assayed, started fight OF
golden eagles east and west. Again the
adventurous youth, the skilled pros.
pector, the gambler and all the uneasy
and shifting elements that follow such
lures poured into the valley and toiled
over the trail to the grassy hills of
Bozle
} At first, though short Of breath by
reason Of the altitude, two full miles
above the sea, some of these incomers
laughed and some were angry. "Gold!
In these grassy hills? 1mpossiblew And
they went away again with bitter
words. 1t was Mount Horeb repeated
on large scale.
y, But the assayers, the men Of learn
Ing, persisted and in their little NOR
tars brayed the ore and in tiny porta-
BILE furnaces smelted for many stur-
|edy miner minute buttons Of shining
metal. The gold was there, and at
last even the most skeptical believed.
! Then the inflow began in earnest.
The trail was beaten smooth by
swarming feet. 1t became stage
road. A great railroad sent survey
ors toiling up each of the deep and
winding canyons in the attempt to
reach the mighty camp whose fame
was beginning to shine throughout
the world. The beautiful grassy hills
were blotched with eruptions of red
earth. Paths appeared leading from
burrow to burrow like .runways in
town Of prairie dogs. ,-s
The main street of Bozle was 10000
feet above the sea, but at last, on the
top Of Pine mountain, vein Of ore
running $4,000 to the ton was discov-
cred, and another town arose-full H.
600 feet above sea level-the highest
town in all America, and this became
at once celebrated above all others
and was called Skytown.
In the end Skytown dominated the
whole camp and gave name to it. b.
lie, Grass Mountain, Pin Gulch, Hoff-
man, all were subordinate in fame as
they were geographically, :. and the
press alluded to the region as the Sky
town mining district. =
In those days the barroom of the
Mountain House in Bozle was the Gen.
trail stock exchange Of theNhole camp.
1t swarmedsiof an evening with bust
ness men from Denver, Kansas City,
Chicago, Salt Lake City, San Francis
Co and New York. Every great news
paper had It's representative there,
alert and indefatigable, seeking the
latest word of strikes and sales.
Attic time when Raymond entered
it 6kytown was the busiest, most vital
and in some ways the most pictur-
esque mining district in the world. 1t
was at its height as poor mans
camp. New territory was being open
ed up each day. Each evening brought
stories Of strikes-scores of them.
The streets of Bozle were graceless
and grassless, but Valley Springs was
a bower OF trees and growing vines.
The houses Of the peak were tents, slab
shacks and cabins Of aspen poles, and
remained SO, while splendid stone pal.
aces had already appeared in the val.
ley, and every comfort and nearly ey:
cry luxury of the east was obtainable,
almost common.
Skytown was the cup0la of Sky
camp. It surveyed the whole field,
only by the glittering crest
# Mogalyon, which rose nearly 1000
'eet higher into the thin and fleckless
lir. Bozle and Hoffman and Indian
Creek and Eureka and half dozen |
|tLer villages lay below.
mis- was the town, the camp: toward |
which Raymond had been gazing in
onging and irresolution for two years
nd to which he directed his steps a.
oon az, he. was able to- walk with
Of his old. time vigor.
For q week he did nothing but stroll
lowly up and down the streets Of Bo-
le, studying his surroundings, listen
ng to an that was said and asking
earching questions Of every man who
eemed to know anything Of mining
1atters. The altitude at first troubled
i'm greatly, but he ate well and slept
7efl, and day by day his strength and
alive resolution expanded within him,
nd he began to definitely seek place
thereon to try his hands at labor.
One night as he sat toasting his shins
efore the big fire in the hotel he be-
anne immensely interested in the grand
hysical proportions and easy, unstud-
ID grace. of a middle aged miner who
TODD with his back to the fire replying
}, the rapid questions of young re-
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