The Lambertville record. [volume] (Lambertville, N.J.) 1872-1968, 1912-11-15
The LURE OF COLD
Romance and Tragedy of the Old
Bonanza Trail.
A ROAD TO WEALTH AND CRIME

II Led to the Richest Deposits of Gold,
In a Relatively Small Territory, Ever
Discovered-Days Of Strenuous Life
and Frenzied Lawlessness.
The Bonanza trail began at Fort
Laramie, Wyo. 1t ran east of the Owl
Creek mountains, west Of the Big
Horn mountains, in northwest direc-
ton to Livingston and Bozeman, then
forklng to the present Helena and Vir-
ginla City. In war and Indian depart
ment annals it Is known as the Boze
man trail. Immediately, however, II
was given the more romantic name
and for the best Of reasons 1t led te
what were the richest deposits of gold
in relatively small territory, that the
world had ever seen.
out of Alder gulch and Last Chance
guch, within 200 miles of each other
In Montana, was taken, in ten short
years, considerably more than $780,
100000 in pure gold. 1t was anybody's
fortune, and the wonderful luck of the
California gold diggers a few years be
fore reused men to brave every hard
ship for these prizes.
1t did not matter at all that these
gulches were 1000 miles from the
nearest railroad and that other gold
fields were far easier to reach. Here
was the great lei Dorado, and with
Bn rpI1 enalrnres httPrinU
into the unknown territory, defying
Red Cloud and every other Indian, out
law, renegade and holdup man.
How many lives were sacrificed alont
this trail to wealth will never he
known. All that IS certain is tina
there never was another chapter in thu
worlds history like this. The lonl
road into the mysterious country ant
the settlements of mining camps grew
up almost In single night. There
were only five men in the little part,
when Bill Fairweather washed" thu
first pan In Alder gulch and made dis
coYery even more wonderful than any
in the palmy days of California OF
even in the later era of the Klondike
Two years later Alder gulch, at ont
of the Bonanza trails two ends, wal
among the most picturesque places II
the country, The world was ransaeket
for men and women to give perform
ances at the theaters, to offer free en-
tertainment to the patrons of the vari
Gus resorts. The gold hunters, gorgeC
with prosperity, wanted emusements
Fine restaurants We're opened and foo'
brought in Mt great expense from be
You'd the seas. The smallest none.
was n twenty-five cent pinch of gol'
less than Il copper cent does in an.
part of the United States today.
Meantime an unendiug stream o
people poured into the new country
1t Is estimated by some that 10000 ii
all took the trail at Fort Laramie.
The days of the trail were those o
frenzied lawlessness, and many are thu
picturesque stories that have come
down. Over the big road dispute
about cards were of daily occurrence
The man who started an argument die
SO with the knowledge that 1t was hi
life or the other mans, for he was call
Ing into question the "honor" of tn,
shark" Swinders sold mines,
fought with their proposed victims nnt
killed without conjunction.
Armed robbers ran off stock, stol,
horses from one class of immigrant
and sold them to another As tn
horse was the sole means of trauspoI
tatlon and valuable beyond human lif,
"hoss stealing was set down by tn
districts" IA a crime punishable b
death. There We're few courts, an
such as there We're We're miles fror
the trail A jury would hence be a
once impaneled among those present
the man tried and If found guilty hans
cd TO a tree without ceremony
Hotels flourlshed and We're prosper
Gus beyond imagining, for every on
spent money, and there was niue
Haunting In the higher grade estal
lishments beverages We're served in Gu
glass; champagne was common. Ever
resort was crowded with people. Th
newcomers frequeuted these places
quest of information. paid % cents fc
glass of beer made from harle
grown by the X-Confederate soldier
at Bozeman and sold to the Nirginl
breweries for s cents pound, and NJ
enough could be received TO supply tl
demand Table board cost 81 da
for the very cheapest, and II one slel
in chair in the hotel lobby ut nigh
when the rooms were all rented, l
paid 81 80 for the privilege.
Gold was the only medium of e.
change. \ pinch of it, between II
forefinger and the thumb, as has bee
said, counted % cents. There woul
be a tendency with some men TO tax
Just n little bit more. When that tel
dency was noticed in a man he wa
given hours to leave town-and It wa
seldom over two hours. The wise ma
did not stand ON ceremony or protest
he "vamoosed," In camp vernacular
The newspapers of the city sold fc
% cents a copy, red hot from the pres
and fun of news of lynchings, new dis
gings, "clean ups" "hold ups" "ha
men" and gossip of breezy chara'
ter. Ham and eggs TO order cost $2.5(
Eggs We're worth 80 cents apiece an
an ordinary meal of deer or buffal
meat, with potatoes or coffee an
bread, was never less than $3.50.
man was very poor to get down to far
80 coarse az That
1t made no difference what a ma
might have been back In 1.-THE states;
IL he was ION the square" in virgini
he was accepted Mt par.--F. ]. Arkir
in Harnar's Weekly.