Vilas County news. [volume] (Eagle River, Vilas County, Wis.) 1896-1927, 1913-11-26
EPISODE
,,otber Case of Good Luck to
the Fellow With
Nerve"
sv ERNEST McGAFFEY.

90, rising over INC AOONAAAA0 anu bc1tA
~ -ritb q mellow glow the scrubby
W % and bleak outlines of the Colo
~ =, carvon. Rocks, timber and lone
. ~ had been his portion for two
Us ~ and he was beginning to feel
,;ra He had taken the chance of
me west as a relief from the
los of office work in New York,
- now. after two years with the
, ,r Gold Mining company, he had
.,,~n TO sigh for Broadway and the
'.5rscraDers" again, the whirl of life
. the streets, the sight of laughing
80 and welI-dressed men and wo.
nj, the dash and go of the great
gr of his boyhood.
Ha wondered what Margaret Floyd
\ -. thinking of that bright Septem-
a, morning. He had been a mere
,.-. in the New York house, but his
,,saroachable ancestry, founded on
no exploits of a thriving fur trader
md trapper. had given him entree
.rar into the charmed circle where
As Floyd's moved, and he had danced
,,i firted and sighed with many a
hnsaI whose furthest thought was
ssy9nd and above the idea of taking
) ,srousv any attentions of Bud
rsadav. as his intimates called him.
Rt as he was young, good-looking,
nrething of a musician, and gifted
Nth an abundance Of that quality
g70vn as nerve" he made his way
nell wherever he went. Ambitious
enough to know that negotiating in a
bFntOwn Office was a slow mode of
referment, he had eagerly accepted
he opportunity of striking out for
the mountains and "roughing it," with
D HE high thoughts Of youth to build for
BIN the AInaschar visions of hope.
He had gone without a word to
Miss Floyd, and without even a note
70 tell her of HIS destination. He
would stand pat" he said to himself,
and not bore anyone about his new
venture. Sympathy he did not want,
but only a chance to rise.
And this morning, with the magnifi-
cent towering vastness of the Rockies
piercing the clouds, with the rare air
Of that great elevation filing his
lgngs he had for a moment rather
yearned for what was not to be, for
he old languid life of the streets and
jaEing rooms. But the mood passed
; quickly as it had come, and F'ara-
tay stretched his athletic figure and
hurled his preparations for break
hst
The Midas Mining company oper-
aei the gold field by means of water.
Hydraulic mining was the technical
term. Huge hose which sent out a
stream of water with terrific force
washed down the gold-bearing side
bills into sluiCes, where the gold sepa-
nled from the earth and rocks by rea-
son Of its specific gravity, and was
caught in rifles or partial obstruc-
TINS placed in the sluices. The power
Clone Of these engines of liquid might
vas simply tremendous. After the
timber had been cut away and re-
moved from a slope or hillside the
great tubes would be turned on to
le earth and rocks, and mountains
'olld melt away like snow before the
SIN
The Giants" was the name the
miners had for the two most formida-
De streams. These would sIuice away
lie hillsides like a woman cutting
Tread, and roar like the thunder
'lIca beloved up and down the path
q such volume of water. At 20
ssj away It would cut a man in two
-a7 a piece of cheese. At 100 feet
cS'ance it would crush him into a
sy. At 200 feet it would toss him
%aLnst the ground, bruised and I'm
luscious done to death most likely,
-l II escaping death, favored almost
0y a miracle. The entire outfit OF
~s Midas Gold Mining company had
most wholesome respect for the
Giants"
i shout from Big Harry" greeted
-aaday as he emerged from the cabin
. --l started for the oHcs.
When are the bosses coming?" was
What bosses?" queried Faraday.
Why, the eastern bunch" was Big
nary $ response.
] hadn't heard of anything" said
Wen said Harry, "the foreman's
:, letter for you" At the office the
sOef was handed Faraday, and, open
= ]. he learned that H. B. Floyd, the
aa5>'aent of the company, and some of
= Cller officers of the company we're
~-ag to Colorado at once to look
81 me mine. He was glad of it, as
~.ae was prospecting, and his own
I'm vas we'll ahead in every respect.
"ad superintendent the cutting of
=: Quantities of timber for new
- .''5s' and cleared away much land
ne" sIuicing, had worked early
'a'e, and was prepared to show a
balance sheet. 1t was like old
NY, %.u TO get up and chase out at a
~aUte's notice.
I, Ie next day the party arrived, and
L. 'dFdday's intense establishment,
,11 ~safet Floyd was one of them. She
sn o'S mad ruled her father with a
~, ,'- rein, and her request to come
:. mad been granted without a mo-
---N MASIIn 1 =