The Idaho recorder. [volume] (Salmon City, Idaho) 1886-1927, 1907-08-29
PIONEER MINER IN COUNTRY.
Zoe Lewis d Pioneer Miner in the Salmon River
Country, Writes for Montpelier Examiner.

While at Salmon City we decided to
ross the divide ON foot, each one to
Rrry "A blanket and one to carry what
'ttle proivisons we would need until
5e reached the diggings. 1t fell to
Sy lot to carry the gold pan, my com.
bnions bringing up the rear with
lex, shovel and provisions. In many
|aces the trail had been shoveled
through great drifts of snow in order
bat the pack animals could get
brougb, as that was the only way to
et anything into the Basin. We
*ere pretty well worn out when we
kacbed the halfway house on the
mmit. There we bad to pay the
bll keeper so cents each for the dis
bmfort we experienced in travelling
Ter such trail, bnt we consoled
brselves with the thought that the
|ay Of the transgressor is hard and
we must dance we must pay the
kldler. Having rested too long at
be halfway house we did not reach
eesburg that night, but camped in
b old pine wickiup and slept on top
about four feet and half of snow
e arrived in the town the next day.
here were two rival towns being
arted, one named Grantsville, after
en. Grant, and the other Leesburg,
tier Gen. Lee. A number OF the
ldiers who had served under both
mmanders had alreadv found their
BY here and were engaged in min
& in the hope of lettering their
nditions, working side by side for
e upbuilding Of tile West. While
Leesburg two of our party OBJ
lined work, running bedrock drain
Napias creek.
My other companion and myself
nceived the idea of going out to
e Salmon river and putting in a
b trap, and if successful in making
|tch, to pack the fish back to min
camps and selling them, for. they
re bringing good prices, Well, we
Int out and worked six weeks put
BIZ traps in a channel that was sep
hted from the main stream by an
and Our traps completed, We an
ipated soon making stake. The
xt morning | visited the trap
light and early, but all We had was
e good-sized sucker. Billy, my
rtner, said, ''Joe wait until the
eshet comes and I'll bet that we'll
tch them by the buShel." Well
e freshet came that night and the
xt morning when l went to the
yer got there just in time to see
r traps go floating down the
eam, and our six weeks work was
it. What to do we did not know,
/ finally concluded to give the
beme up as we were nearly out ol
lb and both were dead broke. The
St day / took ny old shot gun anc
ent up into the mountains. In
hster of pine trees / sighted about
bozen grouse. | blazed away anc
Ought down two. The Others die
i fly away and l kept shooting un
| got all of them. | kept or
hitting until nearly evening ano
cceeded in bagging IL grouse. l li'
/ for camp with all could carry
wing hung the balance up in tree
hen | arrived in camp and tolt
Mutton Billy what luck | bad, h'
Is about the happiest fellow l ha(
Ter seen, for the birds were wortl
piece at the boarding house IL
lmon City. l wanted to cook ont
ht it was no go. "By Goa, Joe, III
Id, we can't afford it, flour is to-
gh." Flour at thai time was sell
X for S24 a hundred. The next da.
dressed the birds as best we could
ht them in sacks and started TO
hlmon City. We sold the bird
lere all right and paid sl2 for 8
bunds OF tlour and spent the othe
for coffee, bacon and sugar at th
llowing fancy prices; Sugar zoe
flee 60c and bacon 75c pound
e camped on the river for a fe'
Tvs and was about to start when
erman, known as ''Whipsaw Char
;" came along. lie had his hors
lcked to the limit, with a whl
W ON top. lie was in want OF part
ers to help him work claim on
seek afterwards known as Wood
eek. He offered US third interes
the discovery claim, we two I
faw lots to see which one Shout
i've the first claim above his, I'd
ser to have the second claim above
E told us that we could get 80 cent
the pan so we decided to 10 wit
inn. We had hard time getting |
b. gulch. In some places the ira
as so dim we conl1 scarcely see u
hd at one place just as we tuIne
bound a ledge OF rocks the pack an
al lost his footing and away b
|ent down the side of the mountain
Bling over and over. While 1T wa
serious affair | could not bel
ughiug. "By God. it's nothing
lugh az said Charlie. Il haN