Elk City mining news. (Elk City, Idaho) 1903-1913, 1906-04-14

started In anu put up uanuy iOS Cdpli'
We had a whipsaw and cut enough
lumber to finish it nicely; also, some for
sluice boxes for our placer mining.
Cup back of the cabin short dis
lance big hot spring boiled out of the
rocks. We made bathing pool there
and tell you it was great. We took
to drinking the water. My! but it was
nasty. Rotten eggs weren't in it, or
rather they were, .by the taste.
1--WE made the sluice boxes and went
to washing out the gold. We kept at it
steady for good while and had about
everything in camp that was fit, full.
lone day Lew and were shoveling
away, when he pitched his'shovel upon
the bank and Strengthened up. He took
off his hat and wiping the sweat from
his forehead said: I'm tired of this,
what the helPs the use anyway? We've
got enough pow to load pretty re-
spectacle pack train, and it's right here
when we want more, I'm weary of
looking at the stuff. It's too common
altogether. Let's prospect for dia-
monds. Who ever Thought that I'd
get disgusted looking at land handling
gold,, but am. 1t makessme sick!'
well hadn't thought much about
lit, but when ! did it seemed foolish
enough. So, we, took our tools down to
camp and went over to the pool and
went in bathing,'
There wasn't thing to do. We
had all the meat and fish we wanted
right at the dobr We hunted up way
fora trail out, for as Lew said he didn't
believe that either one of us wanted
any, more of the river.
1T wasn't very easy to find place
whare we coul ID get out, ourselves let
alone take horses. But we finally
found a game trail where, by using
powder, we could get fair switch
back grade.
1--WE talked things over generally
and came to the conclusion that we
ought to get to civilization and buy
some horses and pack outfits and bring
them in, so that when we wanted to go
out in the fall we could take out cargo
of gold. But when it came to show
down ueither one of us wanted to go.
Here we were in a regular garden
of Eden, we had everything we wanted
and no need to worry about the future.
l had no one to look out for, and Lew
said that he was in the same fix, so we
concluded that we'd stay until along
towards fall anyway.
'.'Well, we just naturally lazied the
summer through. Our garden was fine
and there were lots of berries of all
kinds.
Gin the latter part of the summer
Lew got off his feed and moped around.
Said he guessed it was the laziness
striking in. We had few simple
medicines and doped him with every
thing that seemed likely to do any good.
But nothing seemed to help any and
he kept getting weaker and thinner,
and put in most of his time on the bunk
in the cabin, or out under the trees in q
hammock which l had made out of g
piece of canvass.
"By the time we should have started
out he wasn't able to travel. wanted
to make flying trip and get doctor
l knew l could get one to come be-
cause we could pay him anything he
asked Load him down with gold. But
he wouldn't listen too it. Said that
he'd be all right after while. The
weather was beginning to get cooler
and it would be best not to let anyone
know about the place anyway. At any
rate he couldn't stand it to be lef
alone. But he didn't get any better
Got to having fever and getting out O.
his head. Then he'd talk continual.
about the gold. He imagined it wa
that which caused his illness.
"Said he had the yellow fever. Sal,
there was molten gold in his veins ir
stead of blood and that it was mucl
cheaper than blood anyway. Wante'
me to catch the bald eagles which wer
so numerous and fasten them on tn
nuggets, then we could use them TO
! twenty dollar pieces. All sorts of stut
!, like that.
at vas along in the fall, and th
tamaracks upon ire mountains wer
following in the frost, when the en-
( came. He was quite himself an
E realized that he dwas going over tn
divide. He said that some way h
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