The Wallace miner. [volume] (Wallace, Idaho) 1907-current, 1915-08-19
A LOST NINE FOUND
THE FIRST ON RECORD
SEARCH OF 40 YEARS SAID TO BE
REWARDED WITH SUCCESS
IN CUSTER COUNTY.

/ Rayenel Macbeth, secretary of the
Idaho Mining association who was In
the city recently, gave a brief account
of the reported discovery of the Lost
Swim Mine" near the old camp of Boz
nanza in Custer county A recent
issue of the Mackay Miner gives the
following details
! Forty years ago a prospector by the
name of Swim, rode into the then
thriving gold camp of Bonanza, and
after recording a location unstrapped
his saddle bags and displayed some
marvelously rich gold rock that put
the accustomed gold hunters "in the
air." so to speak.
After cashing some pokes and load l.
ing up with provisions, Swim, it is re-
lated automatically, departed for his
strike, but in fording the Salmon river
his pack train was swept away and he
lost his life and never realized the
vision of luxury and affluence that
came when his pick struck the yellow
sun liidl always mas anu always Nhl
make men mad.
The record of his location in the
county books at Challis described his
location as about Is miles in a south
westerly direction from Bonanza.
Sought for 40 years.
Since that day, 40 years ago, when
gold in Yankee Fork was common,
miners have each year sought his To-
cation, but without success and the
story of the Lost Swim Mine" in
Custer county, Idaho has been told
around camp fires, in lofty office build
ings in the cities and in the humble
lonesome miners cabins throughout
the west.
Last week Clarence Eddy came into
Mackay from Nevada. 1t was not the
same Eddy who has been coming and
going, more or less discouraged ever
since his last big strike, but an Eddy
filed with hope and enthused as only
gold will work man over-a man
who could not sleep nights until he
reached a spot on a high mountain
some Is miles southwest of Bonanza,
Custer county, Idaho.
Written on a slip of brown wrap
ping paper was the message This
pans good-have it assayed-general
sample-don't give to newspapers yet"
The note was penciled by Ralph
Became, a half brother of Eddy, who
was with him when he discovered the
Lost Packer mine.
Samples "Louzy" With Gold.
Eddy relates that he had this sam
pie assayed and it went better than
$40 for the entire ledge and tnat other
samples, "1ouzy" with free gold, taken
from the hanging wall of the ledge.
went $4,000 to $4,000 to the ton.
Beane has staked a lot cf claims on
the high mountains where the gold
was found and Eddy is by this time on
the ground dallying with picture rock
and enjoying the vision of special
trains, theaters, books, yacht life,
plenty to wear and eat, travel educa-
ton and refinement-all that gold
means to a man who has tasted the
sweets and bitterness of life.
The strike is undoubtedly authentic.
Eddy has bad case of gold fever.
His excitement is contagious and back
of it all is this strike and another one
that he refuses to talk about until af-
ter he has gone into his haunts in the
mountains and set up some stakes
Location TaIIies With Record.
The Beane location tallies with the
record of the Swim location. 1t is in
a district where few if any other To-
cations have ever been made. There
are no claim stakes within miles of
the spot and the outcropping is near
the summit of a high peak well con-
cealed with underbrush. The noun
tain rises abruptly and by dropping
down a tunnel 500 feet in length would
give depth of 1000 feet on the vein,
This and other strikes have set the
gold bugs to work and men meet on
the street here in Mackay, 80 miles
from the gold district and discuss the
of big gold boom for
Custer county.
While the Salmon river country Is
by no means virgin field for pros
pector, millions upon millions having
been taken out, yet it is a vast coun-
try, that has not been thoroughly
and offers some startling
possibilities for men who know the
game.