New-York tribune. [volume] (New York [N.Y.]) 1866-1924, 1907-03-03
THE NEW ELD0RADO.
GOldfeld Has ITS Comforts as Wer
as ITS HardahiDs.


Bayard Taylor went to California drawn tbItb'
by the excitement that followed the discevo- u
gold in that State When he came back he -
a book about what he saw on the Paciac So
and called ii "EI Dorado"
II took him ffty-one DAYS to trave, iron, ~.
York 70 San Francisco. and then he was NOT go
at the mines. You may leave New Yor, +o-1a,- p
you Ike. and four days later alIght from a pm
man at Goldfeld in the heart ~ the Nevada Dec
All but the last twelve hours you nav accor,n,s
aboard limited trains, surrounded bv all re-, .ss-
which the railroad advertisements term the .r
Ttes Of modern travel" But once you are in csoi+
ned you viii rot be excessively annoyed nv -
form of luxury. 1
, Nothing but the prospect OF gold and a .o,5 -
OF it. would induce any thoroughly civilized -,
to spend any great length OF time In this 49,.
born town. As write these lines there ara No.
ably about 1900 persons in 1.-THE towus3aorlo -,
claim to 5000 Whatever the actual number i. g
at present the largest town in the state ~
years ego there was nothing there bur sarsh-rs5
alkah dust and coyotes. The sagehrush and a.
dust are stH there. but the coyotes have retir.a
to the hills. To GoIdfeId and her sister noi,I-
camps the State Of Nevada owes the fact that H.
population has doubled within SIX wears w.
could lose New England in Nevada but when 49,
last census was taken less than 5000 persons Iva
N ia smaller population than that OF Brockto,
the Massachusetts shoe city.
Ten years ago there was good reason "a IT,.
tn2t before long there would not be enough peoDI,
IN the State to support the government OF ~,
commonwealth. But the new mining boom, bo,
changed all that. and to-day Nevada has a poDn-
lation almost equal to that OF Albany when m.
legislature is IN session.
Inc houses. with few Iordy exceptions a-.
tenuoUs affairs with paper-thin walls aImos.
transparent partitions. and very often canvas
roofs. Only the artistocrats have cellars Las.
year a blizzard howled across the desert, and thu
thermometer much depressed. Not a pound ~
coal could be bought at any price. The last re-
corded sale had been made at the ratio of $50 ton
Wood quoted at $50 a cord
Goldfeld could not begin TO house the hundreds
that poured ins daily throughout the winter Iyn-
Der could not be had to build more houses ths
hotels" were packed TO the roofs. the guests often
slept three in q bed-aDd very gratefully too. To
add to the misery. the GoldfeId Hotel the biggest
hosiery In the place. caught fire and burned 10
the ground. In three-quarters OF an hour there
was nothing left Of it but ashes. In this emer-
sency the saloons became lodging houses The
saloons OF Goldheld have keys. and they are
never closed. Within them two hundred men tend
bar. and one hundred and fifty preside over various
games OF chance. counted nInety-four men
asleep night the floors OF five saloons. amid
surroundings that ought not 10 be described
Is it to be wondered that these men died IKE
flies? Pneumonia was the scOurge that carried
them Off. Two or three of them were shipped out
OF town every day. The rest had friends and
were planted in the drearest cemetery in the
world. with little more consideration or ceremony
that would be accorded 10 dead cattle.
Goldded has two cemeteries One OF these con-
tainns about two hundred graves and is located
almost IN the heart OF the town. Like almost
everything else IN the place. il Just grew there"
1t got It's start in curious way. The first man
who died in Goldheld came 10 his end as many do
in mining camp-sUddenIy. He had friends
and a committee appointed itself bury him
They chose spot some distance from the town
and gave S 70 an unemployed man 10 dig the
grave But they paid him too soon. He employed
the s. for the purpose OF internal Irrigation. Then
being weary walk to the spot selected hs
dug the grave right where he happened 90 ba
when languor overlook him.
"Of course" a member OF the burial committee
told me. we was some mad when we see what
Jake had done; but nobody had time bother
about it. so planted the stranger right there.
That how the first graveyard started"
Fire is the constant menace OF the camp Every
body knows that IL blaze got started UP wind
ward of the town when one Of those desert gales
was blowing. not all the fire departments in the
West could stop it. And that is why a fire alarm
will empty every house in Go!dheid with marvel-
lous speed.
There are private bath tubs in the place. 70 say
nothing OF those in the barber shops; but their
possessOrs are regarded a sybarites. When the
first one came 70 town il was proposed 10 form
parade. call out the town band. and 60 down TO
the station 10 il 70 it's future residence The
only thing that blocked this programme the
fact that that time there wasn't any band.
CoIdheld complains bitterly about IT'S postohlca
and with much reason Il does more than enough
business for an Office that should rank as first
class. but it cannot get into the first class because
the town has city charter In November last
the postal receipts were N26i5 o. In the preceding
November they were Only S15S5. In the bittereSt
OF the winter weather three lines Of people used to
stand waiting in front OF the delivery windows
These lines extended clear into the wind-swept
street. and il took three-quarters OF an hour 10
reach the windows
one man emerged from the crush after such
frosty. shivery pneumonia breeding wait with q
letter in his hand Eagerly he tore it open. II
from the local undertaken. informing him
that. should he be unfortunate die hts
mains could be promptly looked after. Tho
cipent OF the letter had something OF local rspu-
taton for Oratory, but his performance on this
occasion is said 10 have exceeded anything he had
previously accomplished
But crude. overgrown. invertebrate as GOlddeld
is it is yet modern No longer. as in the days Oe
Cripple Creeks youth. does the bad man rule the
mining camp. He Is In GoldheId. 10 be sure. but
he keeps in the background. deals faro. tends bar.
and spins the frictonless roulette wheel He boasts
more of the nOtches on his sun
The rulers OF GOldheld to-day are for the most
part quiet. reserved. unassuming men. business
like, systematic and reliable. Hundreds OF them
are from the East. and good many OF them
could show college diplomas II they wished. while
many others graduates of various schools OF
mines or other scientific institutions.
Goldheld has organized government. and as q
matter OF fact. Is practically ruled from the Nom
tezuma Club. whose rooms lust above the Brown
Palace saloon are OF the few comfortable places
in the camp. Here the leading spirits Of the town
congregate late IN the afternoon evening" and
here laid most OF the plans that are OF inpor-
lance to GOldfeld q town
Before the spring has fairly broken. the Lests-
lature OF Nevada viii have granted to GOldiad a
city charter and will have made II also the seat
feId win Behave. as It always has behaved during
ts three years Ok NE sI OGS ~ ~ Ss man ~