The Barre daily times. (Barre, Vt.) 1897-1959, 1908-12-14
The Rugged
PrOSpectOrs.


keep soul and body together till spring
except to 80 into the mountains aud Gu
wood
"And freeze our fingers and our
noses and our feet. We may as well
starve to death"
ut won't be long. This is the early
part Of January. The spring n bt
along in couple of months, and We
can go to prospecting again.
'Prospecting7 How many years
have l been digging holes In the
ground for nothing. tell You. Trim
mer, I'm through with prospecting,
and as soon as can get regular job
I'm going to take it."
"But you can't get Job just now,
and we've nothing to eat. Come, cheer
up. It's always darkest before day"
The two ragged, discouraged men
climbed the mountains of Calaveras
county, Cal. There was chance Of
their making some thirty or forty dol
lars month. on which they could
easily live and buy some clothes, but
It was q sad come-down from the
roseate dreams with which they had
begun to hunt for a fortune. They
found an old abandoned miners cabin,
In which they made their home, a
dispiriting place In which to live, for
1t was a perpetual reminder of an
others failure. But they were not hunt
ing for gold in this region; they were
keeping themselves alive.
Every morning as soon as II was
light the sound Of their axes rang in
the wood and continued till the early
winter twilight came on. Cord after
cord was stacked up. each cord repre-
senting days Of hard labor. Meanwhile
a snowstorm came down on them and
covered the ground to a depth Of two
feet. The prediction as to frozen
mombers was not verified, for there
was plenty Of wood to keep up fire.
We've got such pile Of brush here
from chopped Off branches" said Trim
mer to his partner one afternoon, that
we'd better get rid of it,
So they touched fame to 1t, and II
was soon roaring and cracking, send
ing out pleasant heat. 1t melted the
snow beneath It and left an area of
hot ground,
Here's good chance for a roast"
said Becker. 'I'm going to make an
oven In this hot earth, and wen cook
our deer meat"
"A good idea" replied Trimmer. 1--WE
haven't any currant jelly, but the
haunch viii taste pretty good without
It."
So Becker began to dig hole for the
baking. At the depth of two feet he
struck bed Of rock.
"Gocdp he exclaimed. "It's hot stone
and win keep its heat Give me the
meat"
The venison was brought in a bak-
ing pan, and Trimmer was about to
place 1t in the hole when Becker stop
ped him.
"Hold on till chip off piece Of the
stone to see what it's like" he said.
'I thought you were through with
prospecting" Trimmer remarked satir.
ically.
$50 / am. This isn't prospecting;
it's only yielGing to habit. Any man
who has been hunting in the earth as
Ang as we have will want to see
everything he takes OUT
He broke Off a bit of his oven bed,
the venison was placed in the hole and
covered over, and the two men listened
to the welcome sound Of it's sizzling.
Becker took the piece Of rock into bis
cabin, where he lighted a candle, for
it was now dark and the brush had
burned to cinders. Trimmer was over
the oven basting the venison when he
heard his partner call.
"Cone here, Trim"
Trimmer went to the cabin where |
Becker was holding the chipping Of
rock to the candle.
"What do xou think Of that?' asked |
Becker, his eyes standing out Of his |
head as big as butter plates.
"What do l think of I'll! Why, great |
Scott, man; it's live rockF
That's what it is" replied Becker:
nothing more nor ss-that is, If |
know live rock when see 1t, and
think / do
shaker shouted Trimmer. "We've
struck It, and struck 1t big"
1t was supper Of another kind from
roasted venison that the partners par
took OLA probable realization of their
vanished wild dreams. The meat was
sayory, but their minds were not on II,
They were laying plans. Experience
had taught them what to do They
would keep their secret. They would
pre- empt their claim. They would
learn the dip angle and the length and
breadth Of their newly discovered
ledge.
Spring came, and the partners were
till ostensibly cutting wood, while
hey were really gathering informa
|son. One day Becker went down into
lhn valley, appeared at an assay Office,
BANDED in the chip OF rock he had bro
Ten from the floor of his improyised
1ven and left it to have it assayed. she
vent back to the assayers the next
Iay, got his report and started up the
mountain. Trimmer saw him coming,
but so cautious were the men In guard
ng their secret that he withheld iu-
suiry till both were in the cabin and
ne door closed
nWelIY' he asked impatiently.
"Six hundred dollars to the ton"
"Rich, by thunder!'
Such is the story OF the discovery Of
he famous Trojan mine. Within