Cañon City record., 1910-06-02

One of the old settlers living on a
ranch in the foothills of Jefferson
county is H. B. Wilkins. Coming here
through mining gold in the vicinity
of Cherry creek. Then one year in
the early COS he lost 1t all through
investments which looked promising
and which so turned out to all of the
other investors but himself. Return
ing to eastern Kansas he acquired
another good sized fortune and again
he listened to the voice of the siren
and came west. After two weeks in
Denver he lost all he had and was
forced to borrow from friends.
He began to look with mistrust
on Denver and its population after
losing two fortunes here and in
81 he hired out as a freighter uE-
der Kit Carson, who was then op-
Grating wagon trains over the Santa
Fe trail. For three years he work
ed at this business and by 1870 had
again acquired considerable money.
Again the gold fields about Denver
began to lure him and every day he
heard wild tales OF the great strikes
to the west Once he was made an
alluring offer to drive an OK team
over the plains from Kansas City to
Denver. but he felt of his pocket
book twice and concluded to remain
with the company which had belong
ed TO Carson but which he himself
had bought out
But fate had so decreed that Will
kins was to return TO Denver. Just
as he was about to start out on a
trip across the prairie from Kansas
City early in June. 1878. a letter
came to him from Denver telling of
the death OF friend and the request
that wilkins come out and take the
After a three weeks trip down
through New Mexico and southern
Colorado he was ready to come
northward and made the trip up
through Pueblo and into Denver The
wife of his friend had died from
pneumonia some three days before
his arrival and had been buried in
Denver. The daughter was persua-
ded to return to Illinois. wilkins af-
terward met the girl often during the
days between trips when he was
stopping in Kansas City and finally
married her.
One day they started west with a
wagon load OF household goods in
cluding the first stove brought into
Denver and which by the way had
made three previous trips across the
plains. Everything went smoothly
for two years. Then again his mon
ey began to go through losing in
yestments and seven horses which he
had used on the wagon train died
Packing up all his belongings be
went into the Middle Park country
and settled on homestead there.
That was in 1874 and fillaly they
waited over the hills and found n
permanent home near Evergreen
where they still live. The old man
dislikes Denver 30 much that he has
been here only once In thirty-six
years and then he got out of town
as quickly as he could.
The Land OF Terrible Tales: Al
Denver man recently returned from
Alaska tells a great cook and bull
story of living mastodons on the head
of White river in that country. The
Stick Indians positively told him
that while hunting in that unknown
section he came across an immense
track sunk to a depth or several
inches In the moss and from the des-
cription as the Indian marked 1t out
to him in the sand IL much resem-
bled an elephants track and was
larger around than n barrel. Upon
striking In the Indian followed up
this curious trail. which to all ap-
from one immense stride to another
for distance OF some miles he came
in full view OF his game. The hunter
gave one look. then turned and fled
as though pursued by the evil one.
These Indians as a class are the
bravest OF hunters and with no
other weapons than spear viii at
tack and slay the St Elias grizzly.
But the immense proportions of this
new kind OF game both startled and
filled the hunter. brave as he was,
with great fear and he imagined his
only safety lay in swift and i'm
mediate flight He described 1t as
being larger than the post traders