The Donaldsonville chief. [volume] (Donaldsonville, La.) 1871-current, 1910-05-07


and from this vantage point he kept sharl
lookout for opportunities Also he conducted
better hotel than had ever before been fount
in a new mining camp. Leadville was wild
open. The click Of the poker chip, the whir
of the roulette wheel, the rattle of the die
never ceased. Miners who accumulated a litt
dust" scattered it quickly when they cam
into town and woke up in the morning broke
and discouraged. They soon ascertaned tina
Tom" Walsh was likely angel, Any reason
ably worthy prospector could get credit at tht
Grand Central. Not only that but he could ge
money. Walsh would willingly grub-stake him
That is, Walsh would furnish an outfit grut
and tools and advance ready money for an in
terest in the prospective strike" How many
profitless ventures he went into is not recorded
but they were not all of that sort Some of his
working partners did make strikes and the
profits were enormous Walsh appeared to have
unerring judgment when it came to buying a
mine. He studied mineralogy from the alphabet
up, secured fund of information about all
branches Of geology, knew more about the yari
GUS formations in the Colorado mountains and
hills than any expert in the business at that
time, and was well equipped to purchase or de
cline when property was offered. One day he
amused the mining folk by purchasing an old
mine dump" where the refuse had been thrown
He had theory that the process of extracting
the metal had been wasteful and that there was
plenty of gold left behind. Applying scientific
methods to the smelling of it, he managed to
clean up million dollars out of that supposedly
Valueless dump. He bought a prospect" from
a discouraged miner and found a number of
pockets" of virgin gold on it. From one "pock
et' alone he took 100000 He was rich now
and happy. But he had another theory about
gold mining that he was anxious to test The
carefully educated experts said that it was folly
to seek the precious metal in the tops of the
mountains near the present town of Ouray
Walsh thought otherwise. He made personal
investigation of some territory where prospec
tors had reported outcroppings of ore. As a
result Walsh quietly purchased tract in the
San Juan district. There were old abandoned
mines there-holes that had been left because
mining was difficult in those altitudes-because
frequent snowslides destroyed the houses and
the machinery and filed up the shafts. The
experts warned Walsh that he would lose any
money that he put into the property he had pur-
chased. He paid no attention to their warnings
but moved over to Ouray and started to work
From the very first hole that he dug he struck
ore that assayed startlingly high Then he
started force of men out after more property
and another force to do additional prospecting.
The result was far beyond his widest dreams
OF success. One morning a friendly little bird
hoped into the tent he was occupying and
Walsh hustled around to get some bread to
feed it, The bird stayed after that and fed
We'll call this Camp Bird" Walsh an
nounced. And from that day to this all these
mines in the San Juan district of Colorado have
been known as the Camp Bird group-one of
the richest groups Of gold mines in the world
Wealth literally rolled in on the lucky Walsh
He piled million upon million-how many is
matter of dispute. Some say that he made $50,
100000 in that district alone in addition to the
money he had made previously in the Black
hills and in Leadvil1e, Whatever the amount
it was sufficient for all his needs and left over
bit for spending money. From the time of the
first rich strike until 1902 Mr. Walsh continued
to take gold from the earth. Then an English
syndicate offered him $4,000, 600 for control.
ing interest in his properties, and to the spr-
prise of the mining world he sold, and the prop-
erty passed out of his hands. There was woe
n Ouray and throughout the mining district
when the announcement was made For of ali
he mine owners Of the west Thomas F. Walsh
enjoyed the love and confidence of his emploves
more than any other. He worked in unheard-of
ways. For instance, he built modern first |
lass hotel for the accommodation of his miners
ind superintendent hotel with baths and
'lean beds and reading rooms. The food was
rood and was well cooked and well served And
he charge for the accommodations was no |
greater than that of the ordinary mining-camp |
boarding house, where good digestion waits
N appetite" until appetite and the food fur