Los Angeles herald., 1908-02-17
ROMANCE OF
SOLDIER WHO
LOST A NINE
TWO ANGELEN0S MAKE RICH
ARIZONA FIND
ONE NUGGET OF GOLD WEIGHS
TWENTY-THREE OUNCES
Soldier Found the Mine Decades Ago
While Scouting but Lost All
Trace of Its Lo-
cation

PHOENIX, Feb. 16.-Charles Pick"
enback and G. w. Wick of Los Angeles
passed through Phoenix last week for
their home city with a couple of sacks
of gold totaling between rs and lOO
ounces of gold, as estimated by one
who saw it but had no opportunity TO
weigh it. This was not the product OF
a mill run, or anything else that had
a big reduction charge to subtract from
the net result. 1t was the real thing.
picked up by hand and with a gold
pan being therefore practically all
profit.
The gold came from the placer claims
owned by the Barbarosa Mining COM
pany, four miles from Troy camp. the
larger nugget looked about like
shredded wheat biscuit and weighs 70
ounces. 1t was credited with having
gold value of $3.50, but the owners have
been offered much more than that for
it. The other nugget is valued at $50,
and the rest of their gold Is smaller
nuggets and dust These nuggets were
found January 25 though the men had
been working the claims for some time
before that
The men named have organized the
company which owns the four claims
they hold. They say they are not seek
ing notoriety and have nothing to sell.
They do not want to start rush to
Indl country DtcduSc lucy uO tlOL Lliiiih
it would be the right thing to do. Hav-
ing secured their first claims they pro-
ceeded to prospect the adjoining coun-
try very thoroughly, and the four
claims taken in about the ground they
deem very valuable. If there had been
a wider field they would have taken
that in also, for there were no strings
on them Anybody who goes prospect
ing on adjoining ground will do so
with the knowledge in advance that it
has been worked over and discarded.
Messrs. Snider and Werner of the
Two Queens mine were on the train
when these gentlemen came in, and
like everybody else, they were much
enthused, especially Mr.. Werner, who
knew Pickenback and Wick as real
estate agents in Los Angeles. They
have no personal interest in this pros
pect, but they can't help exulting that
people can run over in that section
every once in a while and dig up gold
by the roots, and great hunks of it at
that. Moreover, they verify story
that has been heard before. as being
one of the generally accepted tradi-
tions of that section, and which indi-
Gates that the Barbarosa Cred Beard)
property is but the rediscovery of an
old find.
The story is that a generation ago,
when the country was hardly settled
at all between Fort Grant and Globe,
the soldiers passing from one of those
places to the other used a trail that
led over the hills at the head of the
Barbarosa guloh. An old soldier while
crossing this trail one day discovered
a ledge on the top of a mountain, from
which he broke off some specimens
rich in gold. This mountain is supposed
to be the one that overshadows the
Barbarosa claims. for the soldier said
that from the ledge he could look away
to the south and see Fort Grant The
mountain at the head of the Barbarosa
gulch affords about the only view that
answers this specification, and for that
reason the Los Angeles men expect
one of these days to find the Old Sol
dier's ledge, which they think will
prove to be the origin of their placer
gold.