Free trader-journal. (Ottawa, Ill.) 1916-1920, 1918-01-18
LOST FORTUNES OF
OZARK MOUNTAINS
MISSOURI HIDES MARY RICH Dc,
POSTS or METAL.
Thousands Of Dollars ~ Ore Have
aeen taken From Veins Care
fully Concealed b. Owners.

tA'fE @SfteN'f~1 ~
st. Louis, No Missouri tradition
Is repleie with stories of lost mines.
hidden treasures of silver. copper and
other metals. but there is one lost
mine in the state. the existence al
which has been partly verified. II has
been the object of search more than
f,ny years since its disgrunllcd opcf
ator buried it TO prevent It from
passing out OF his possession
In the search OF fifty years hun
dreds of proSpectors have "gophr7cd
its supposed whereabouts and thou
sands OF dollars have been spent IN
trying 10 reclaim il, but il Remains
concealed
The mine is known as the Old Sla
t.r Mine and is supposed to b. situated
ON the Jacks Fork branch Of the Cur
rent river. near Eminence, the coua
~ seat of Shannon county. Years OF
LITIGATION have been responsible 10
some extent for the lack of more cN
haustiye search. but this has been set
lied. and J. ". Mcclellan, a former
State legislator has begun the search
anew.
The history ol the lost mine dates
from pre-Ci1il war days before the ere.
alton by the legislature of shannon
county. The story of the lost mine
has been retold 80 often by the old
settlers OF the Current river hills thai
several versions have been evolved
from the original facts.
However divergent the stories, the
Tact that the mine once produced cop
per in paying quantities to the sum Of
more than 100000 Is history.
As the story is related. Joseph Sla'
ter an Englishmau and a practical
miner, explored the Current river IN
1880, and some time thereafter a snort
distance from Emnoncc discovered
rich veins OF copper ore. He lmmedi'
ately sunk a shaft and set up MIA.
operated by water power. His EN-
ployes numbered six.
Slater shippsd his ore overland TO
the Iron Mountain railroad. some SIXTY
miles distant. or tloaied it down the
Current river and the Mississippi to
Now Orleans
About $50 square miles Of land EN-
braced by shannon county wer" re-
served by he government as "coppe'
lands
Slater il known to have been opel.
aling bis mine al the time the lana
was thrown open 10 entry. The story
ia that one OF the Chiltons pioneers
OF southeastern Missouri went to the
tand office and filed ON he land winch
embraced Slatcr'.i mine. Slater heard
Of Chiton's plan and hurried oil IN
pursuit. Realizing that Chilton's nd
vantage could not be overcome. Sla-
ter returned and ordered his employees
10 bur, the mine.
The shaft was filled with debris and
the veins. said 10 have run neal the
surface, were covered with sod ana
trees. The employees are said to have
taken oath that they would never re-
veal the location of the ore deposits
His mine "lost.' Slater awaited Chll
lou's action. The fight for POSSESSION
Of the property followed and TINS M
cation continued several year@ when
Slater died
II was during the Civil war that tate
came near removing Chiffon n IN OBJ
stacle IN Skaters path Bands Of guef-
rllas ovcrran the country, 5'callA&
aud numbering They had destroyed
the town Of Eminoncc and were moving
in thr direction OF Chilion'S farm. I he
hitter saw them coming and tried 10
llcr on horseback, but WAS detected
he was pursued into dense forest.
and there he abandoned his horse ana
concealed himself in an iyy-coregnd
tree. From his place Of concealmeni
he could hear tie bandits planning bis
murder, bit they failed to find him
and gave ny the search That tree
which saved Chiffon from death still
stands on the Cation estate.
With the death of Slater an attempt
was made TO obtain from his iolm|
employees the secrets OF the mines 10
cation. but persuasion failed The old
prospectors used the 'divinins rod
and later mining engineers were sent
to Eminence to make reports on thu
old mine. All agreed that there Wa.
evidence of abundant quantities Of
ore.
The old 5cttlers of the Ozaiks cluna
long 20 the belief that precious metals
could be found in paying quantities
They cherished the traditions that tle
Indians and Spaniard3 mined sIlNol
and concealed the sources MSStc3
ous markings on the rocks wclc care
Tally preserved in the confidence that
they indicated the neighborhood oI
SILVER ore,