The Goldfield news. [volume] (Goldfield, Nev.) 1904-1911, 1908-01-25

NtotDt VI AtatCt6s W liz
substantially all the miners of that
country belong. When we arrived there.
there was a strike in effect, and the
mine operators had publicly announced
tina they would no longer recognize or
employ the Western Federation of Min
ers and feeling was rather ct a high
point.
I'VE found a most excellen. little
hotel there. and were very comfortable.
although the prices of ordinary articles
OF food were at first sight rather
startling. until one remembered the fact
that one was 200 miles into the desert.
General Funston and his aide, Major
Bethel, were staying at the hotel. and
treated us with great courtesy. and gave
us valuable assistance. The federal
troops. about 400 men. were quartered
in two camps on the outskirts of the
town under the immediate command OF
Colonel Reynolds. whom we also saw
frequently. The town is probably an
extreme type of the frontier mining
camp. in its rough human nature and at
the same time has had a surprisingly
rapid development in certain ways. in
the matter of schools, streets. buildings
and other facilities. There are several
brick buildings there. and a number of
frame houses. although a great many
of the miners live in tents. The price
for everything is very high. I was told
that rent for a two room shack had
been about $40 a month: board of a
very ordinary kind $35 a month, water
1 cent q gallon, and coal last winter had
gone as high as $50 a ton. and one In
dignant old lady informed me that she
had paid $50 a cord for wood, and after
she had got 1t. 1t was so green she
wore the lot out" trying to split 1t up.
1.-The pay of the miners up to the
present strike had been practically IS
a day, but one of their grievances con-
sisted of the fact that the mine owners
had established a new schedule of
wages. reducing them to about - a
day. In one respect, the situation OF
the town was quite unique. In that 1t
gets all its electric power and light by
a single power line from a point In the
California Sierras about eighty miles
away. and this power is also used for
pumping water from the deep-driven
wells. SO that the water supply of the
town is also dependent very largely
mon this power line-a point of con-
siderable akin should any serious
QlSOIueI dIlSC III 49,
were there the lights went out one
night. and there was considerable ex-
element about it. until next day 1t was
discovered that the trouble was caused
by heavy SHOWS in the mountains.
1--WE devoted most Of our time to as
certaining the facts bearing on the dis
orders in the past and the possibilities
OF future disorder Shout | the tro ops be
---zx nn ~ raftlrn IN WAShtnEtOn
we made a report on this subject to the
president. I am not at liberty, II
course, to discuss this side of the mat
ter. Meeting all sides, we naturally OBJ
tanned the most interesting view of the
p~ersonal characteristics of the men of
the place, the mine operators. the union
miners and the business men. The
rooney %stringency seemed to have pei
meated to this remote point also. and
much of the business xas done with a
sort Of scrip issued by one Of the banks.
Almost always when l offered cash In
payment of a bill. 1 got the surprised
comment of Hello! Real money! the
scrip being called. / found, Christian
Science money 1t seemed to
however, pretty freely with certain ex-
ceptions.
The climate seeHicu " q
to be quite pleasant, but we quickly as
certained that this was somewhat de-
ceptive. There is a large number OF
deaths from pneumonia in the winter
months. The alka,i dust getting into
the throat seems to ~'rritate 1T, it GER
tainly did with us. and exposure to q
draft in that very dry keen air was ex-
ceptionally dangerous. the altitude bs-
ing about 5000 feet.
by way of relaxation on our way
back. we stu ped OR at the Graho
Canon of the Colorado for two days anu
had a most pleasant stay there. We
reached Washington December 20, hav-
ing travelled about 500 miles In three
weeks