Gilpin observer., 1909-11-04
A LEGEND OF
THE GULCH
THE UNINITiATED ARRIVE IN
THE GULcH AND START To
DIG FOR A FoRTUNE-WILL BE
RICH, SOME DAY.

TlCu ore, OIL immense nuggets QlScOV-
cred, of fortunes made at particular
places. All are rehearsed to the no
vice, who, tenderfoot that he is, takes
1t all in, worries about it, loses sleep
and at last, to satisfy a craving for
the acquisition Of sudden fortune,
brave the aches and pains to which
a miner is heir.
Two men came into the section dur
ing the summer. One was an old-time
miner, who had been living in the
east till the craving to try it again"
thing to once more feel the thrill en-
gendered by coveted opulence. The
lure Of gold was strong within, SO
strong. he was willing to work for the
ways uppermost that some day-yes,
some day-by and by-he would
strike it.
The other was as badly affected
but slow to show how eager his quest
for the Elusive stuff His placer ma-
chine was soon out of business He
had helped to revolutionize mining.
A few days of hard labor showed
how impracticable were his ideas.
The third party was the real ten
derfoot- Upon first arrival a year ago,
he did know the difference between
gopher hole and shaft. 1t was
he that found the best pay dirt; 1t
was he that realized most on the
cleanup. He dominated everything.
His success lured the others to work
with him.
He was practical joker. Some of
his vagaries were serious enough
Nothing came of the terminals of
his stories of what would transpire
after so-and-so was accomplished. The
former two were willing victims, be-
cause he generally made good. Then
he was a hard worker and kindly
disposed to aid the uninitiated. He
had also acquired thorough exper
ience of mining for flour gold. The
dirt he shoveled into the box was to
result in the production of just so
much gold. He seldom failed in. his
representations.
The other tried the same spot. Mis-
erable returns were theirs OF course
the man who was there first" and
had acquired this knowledge and had
good returns for his efforts had the
idea, too, that sudden fortune would
be his. He stored away all the stories
OF lost mines and the like, until he
began to believe in most of them. He
would occasionally spring one of these
on the other two. They were skepti-
cal. They had been there before"
At last. one seemed PLAUSIBLE, as
1t entailed no sacrifice except that of
a little time and extra labor. They
would get their wages just the same.
Which was always a mere pittance
compared with the results attained
by the real tenderfoot
They would pool their issues on a
sche me suggested by the party OF
the first part. 1t was not such a won
derful story. Then, nothing venture,
nothing gained. Oh, yes. All right.
They would go into 1t. Things were
ripped apart a bit. For instance. the
machine and its accessories were lit.
orally rendered asunder to provide
material for the new venture which
was to return munificiently to all con
cerned.
The story ran something like this:
Years ago two men, brothers, worked
a placer claim down the gulch. They
had magnificent returns. AS much as
seven hundred dollars at a cleanup.
all In nuggets and coarse gold. Their
boxes were Of the large pattern with
block rifles. These two had already
acquired a competence when the dis
aster came. Having enough, a little
less than anticipated. or more than
expected made no difference in their
calculations.
Good returns were expected upon
the occasion. No one knows Just how
much. for none have ever attempted
to discover. Well, the rains poured
and the floods came and covered the
boxes with twelve feet Of wash. II
was at cleanup time. too. Men were
employed cleanig.up. Ere they could
make their way to safety the rush OF
waters caught them. washing them
the flume. coming out at the end. two
hundred feet or more from where
they started. They were unhurt. but