Yorkville enquirer. [volume] (Yorkville, S.C.) 1855-2006, 1912-02-06

there came TO tnelr camp delTy COTl-
stock, who, with matchless effrontery,
charged them with trespassing upon
his land, and talked them into con-
ceding his claims.
1T was a case Of Aladdin's cave
and 1915 in gold to the ton. Then
realized" said George L. Smith Of
Chicago, who has lately come home
from an inspection Of mining proper
ties at Tonopah and Goldfeld. THE
Comstock lode was staked In 1859 and
by 1862 forty-nine companies were
digging holes in Mt. Davidson. One
of these, bought from Its original
owners for an old horse, a bottle OF
whisky, some blankets and s2,5O0 In
cash, was four years after the pur-
chase valued at s7.sOQ.Qoo.. The Com
stock properties. however, passed
through a period of great gloom. 1t
was at the time Of the civil war. and
capital to work them, rich as they
were known to be, was so hard to Sc
cure that in the early seventies many
persons at Virginia City believed them
on the verge Of bankruptcy. Then 1t
was that John w. Mackay and John
w. Fair appeared and bought one
mine after another. They were join
ed a little later by James c. Flood
and William O'Brien Of San Francis
CO, and the four purchased the Vir-
ginia Consolidated, into which half a
dozen properties had been united. for
$4,000. They expended 100000 go
ing deeper in a search which outsid-
ers regarded as a wild goose chase,
and the quartet admitted that they
were on the brink Of ruin.
1T was in October. 1873. that they
struck the bonanza ledge of silver. It
was cut at a point 1,167 feet below
the surface. again at the 1900 foot
level, and at 1900 feet 1t was so rich
that the fancy Of the coolest brains
ran wild. This marvellous silver sat-
urated rock yielded s3,000.000 a
month for three years Mr.. Mackay
took out s6,000.0 900 in 1875 to make
an exhibit at the Philadelphia centen-
nal exposition.
There is still standing in Virginia
City a building in which $125.00o
worth Of bullion was melted daily
for more than 1000 days, and from
which was shipped in a single night
for San Francisco 100000 UP to
1899 the Consolidated Virginia had
yielded 2,5000,OO0. more than half
Of which passed into the hands Of
Backay. Fair, Flood and O'Brien as
profits.
To-day Virginia City is shorn Of Its
glory. The old mills. once humming
with life, are silent, and machinery
rusts in the rotting shaft houses.
Patrick Mclaughlin, after life Of
continued misfortune and hard work
died in a hospital, a pauper; Peter
O'Riley fell and so manned himself
digging single-handed into a barren
hillside of the Sierras that he was
carried off to an asylum and perished
there. and Henry Comstock. still fan
eying himself the owner Of the en-
tire Comstock lode and the cities
roundabout, ended his inglorious ca
reer with a self-infiicted revolver shot
and lies in a nameless grave in the
wastes Of Montana"
Mark Twain was at Virginia City in
1868 and 1864, and in conjunction
with two friends struck blind lead
and was a potential millionaire. AS a
result Of an unfortunate misunder-
standing all three partners absented
themselves from the claims. each
thinking that the other two would do
the work necessary to keep the prop
erty In their possession. When. at
the end Of nine days, they became
aware Of their danger. two of. them
hurried back, to find that they were
just a few minutes too late, and that
eager onlookers had used their rights
to relocate and Jump" the claims.
I'VE would have been millionaires.
said Twain. "if We had only worked
with pick and spade one little day on
our property, and so secured our own
ership."
It was at about the time Of the
Twain incident that Nevada, anxious
to give aid to civil war sufferers.
started a plan which resulted in the
raising of a great sum Of money in
an odd way. At Austin sack Of -four
was put up at auction. the proceeds
to 60 to the fund, and knocked down
at $4,000. It was bid up to s6.5S7 at
Gold Hill. and to s13.515 at Virginia
City. Thence 1t was carried over the
Sierras to San Francisco and finally
added s150,000 to the war fund.
price which will no doubt be a rec
ord for a single sack Of -four as long
as the world stands.-Chicago News.