The Birmingham age-herald., 1909-05-03
HUGE NUGGET HAS
 CURIOUS HISTORY Rock Worth More Than S5,000 Is Broken And Lost CASE TANGLED IN COURT Search for the Missing Nugget Marks Another Lively Chapter in the
 Events of Nevada Mining
 Camps.
From the Post Dispatch.

From the Post Dispatch.
 Remington Hill, Nevada county, in the early times was a big gold producer and was noted also for the large nuggets that were found in it's placers. A rather curious history was connected with one of these picked up In a hydraulic claim on the hill in 1858 It was in the shape of quartz powder, about one foot in diameter, but had been broken squarely in two through the center. so that only one-half the original rock remained. The fragment was immensely rich and when pounded up yielded s2,7Oo.
 Naturally the owners were elated at the find, but their pleasure was somewhat tempered by the thought that the other half was without question just as valua- ble, and that a most pesistent search failed to reveal it's whereabouts. The pile of debris was carefully looked over without success and at last the conclu sion was reached that it still remained buried in the channel or had been carried down by the rush of water into the river.
 Some two weeks after the find one of the men employed left the job, packed his blankets and started over the trail to Nevada City. There was something about his actions that excited the sus- picions of the owners, and they determin- ed to overtake and search him. which determination they carried out. and were rewarded by the discovery of the other half of the powder concealed in the roll of blankets. Of course, they confiscated it, and. after featuring the thief on the enormity of his prime and his liability to punishment, generously turned him loose. The recovered half was almost as valua ble as the other, yielding 2,1S3. Natur- ally they supposed that this would close the incident, but in this they were mis- taken.
 Tangle in the Courts.
 Some two weeks subsequent to this en- forced restitution the claim owners were surprised by visit from deputy sheriff and the service upon them of the papers in a suit for the recovery of a certain nugget, or it's value the plaintiff claim ing that it had been forcibly and unlaw- fully taken away from him, property to which they had no title. Plaintiff claim ed that he had picked if up outside the boundaries of the mining ground owned by the defendants. to wit, on the river bank belaw, and that the fact that 1t resemhlod fin appearance fragment on defendants claim gave them no right to II. They were very DtIteIb ONcE this changed aspect. They had taken 1t for granted that the miner had come across the nugget on their property and had appropriated 1t. and that they were justified in forcibly taking 1t away from the supposed peculator.
 Now they were not only confronted with a civil action for it's recovery, they werei threatened also with prosecution for high way robbery. In this dilemma they em- ployed Judge Mcconnell 8 leading legal light of pioneer times. and with much in- dignaton started their case. and with more consternation learned that, they were in a hole. Of course, they were morally certain that 1t had been their property but , did not have a particle of proof to bear it out They had crushed up both halves the first prior to finding the second, so there being nothing to establish a sim ilaritv. they could not swear that the sec- ond half had been recovered from their own ground. they had acted unlawfully in taking it by threats and force: In fact said the judge, F'you had a d--d bad case and if you take my advice you will compromise it on the best terms possible"
 4 Forced Compromise.
 'Resides" he continued, Bill Stewart is the plaintiffs lawyer and you know how strong he is with a miners jury Tells them how he was one of them and bow he used to stand up to his waist in the water and shovel dirt on Shady Creek Believe me. tell you to compromise"
 It was bitter dose but the owners were sensible men and saw that they had got off on the wrong foot, so they auth orized the judge to fix it up on the best terms possible. They got shock when they learned that Bills basis was the re- turn of s200N he would agree to throw