The Boise citizen. (Boise, Idaho) 1906-1910, 1909-08-06
GREAT COMS7OCK LODE
GRAPHIC HISTORY OF GOLD DISCOVERY AND Of
A BLUFF THAT WORKED

lode in Nevada and great celebration be held Virginia C
TO commemorate the which will be attended by many
survivors of the historic day Of gold The following thu
discovery from the pen of Dan De Que who with Mark Twain
was reporter the early days 1t from his book THE Grea
Bonanza the best and accurate history of early Nevada
IN the spring Of 1859 Peter ORiey and Pat Mel aughn set c
work we'll up at head of Six Mile canyon Hill They
used rockers and found small pay They continued work this
point until June 1859 gradually extending their operations the
Slope hill They had started little trench and
washing the dirt taken from this IN their rockers Before they
started the they making only from $50 81 per day.
the their pay less They becoming discouraged
thinking of going to Walker river to try their luck but
cluded to work where they few days longer
Having but small of water became necessary for
them to dig holeas reservoir which collect for
in their rockers They to work short distance abve make the
waterhole and depth of about four feet struck into stratum
of decoposed OF the Opr mine and OF the world
famous Comstock silver lode What they fund not geng
native silver great bed of black upuret of svera decom
Dosed ore of silver filled spanges of gold This go
however was allowed with to such that
the color silver than of gold The gold dug the pacennes OF
California is worth from SIG to S19 per ounce whereas the gold
taken from groupings OF the Costoc worth than
$40 or S12
When the discovers struck oddlooing black dirt they
only thought sudden and rather singular change from
yeloWh gravel and clay in which they had been digging AS
any change welcome they concluded try some OF the
urous-ookng stuff in their rockers The result aonded them
Before they had only been taking out dollar or two per day but
now bottoms the rockers covered with gold as soon
as few buckets dirt had been washed They found that
they were literally taking gold by the pound However as the
gold they getting much lighter IN color and weight ha
any they had found below the canyon or even on the surface IN
their cut they that all right lhe thought
that after ALL what they had found nigh be some sort OF bogus
stuff base metal of and strange kind 1t IS not strange
mpecunious miners tnkerng away there on the sde Vi
lone saeecovered mountain with their rockers should have et
little alarmed of the great quantity OF god ty were
getting as in few weeks after the discovery had been made they
were taking gold the of $1,000 day This they were
doing with rockers Taking the harder Jumps left on the screens
able pound out gold at the rate OF qloo PEI "y III
common hand-mortar.
In the evening of the day which the grand discovery was
by ORiey and Mclaughlin T. Comstock made MS aP
peance pon the scene "Od Pancake who was then looking
after his Gold Hill mines which beginning to yield largely
had soed norhward up the mountain toward evening IN
mustang pony that he had prospecting Tor living among W
hills He had found his pony mounted him. and with his long
legs dragging the the agebrush came rdnS up just
lucky miners making the last cleanup OF tnl e -? tb
Comstock who had eye for all that was gong On III W
way of mining place he might visit saw at gaee w M
usual quantity of gold that in sight he was on e @ @ " J nd
pony instant and down in the thick OF al! u -
running his fingers through the god and picking INTO ana Ps
the of strangeooking stuff exposed Cones i al D.
that wonderful discovery of kind had been made Cu
cake Strengthened himself up critical examination OF e
the cut and cooy proceeded to inform ne e @ & I
working on ground that belonged to him he asserted n
had time before taken up 100 acres OF land at m Po m
lanh; also that he owned the water they were s III ]
being from the Caldwell spring in what was aIter"u
Spanish ravine. ,I ,r,artz
Supecting that they working in decomposed q; ]
vein Mclaughlin and Riley had written out ana Po'e f up h @
calling for claim Of 300 # for each and third claim io ue us
coyerT which extra claim, they were entitled under the mining
laws Having soon ascertaned all this from the mne Deo m m
Comstock would have none of it He boseouSg I
they should work there at all unless they Woua az In case
and his friend Nanny (Emmanue) Penrod IN the Gd tr
he and Penrod were given an interest t the dscoyerers
trouble about the ground After consulting tosetei ~ ,ev
concluded that rather than have great about the @
would put the of Comstock and Penrod III tHel de-
ton. This being arranged his satisfaction Sons aud
that 100 of ground the lead should be
given Pelrod and himself for the right to the Wae G %
unghe stouy asserting that he not only owned m m land thew
the water and as hey had recognized his right to the d
could not consistently ignore claim the water flowing
In short he talked loudly and much about .nsnded his | 100
afterwaId became the Spanish or Mexican mine and yedeo
millions of dollars. td ,,,at he
Comoc would probably not SO easily nave ooa.D Of
demanded had the men who made the discovery been uy ny
ITS great value They however did not know that W @ ae
uphuet lver) which they had dug no was 81 90! u as
good dea1 ~ 81 80 cs4 Id nrobahy at time posted