Glacier County chief. [volume] (Browning, Mont.) 1931-1940, 1940-10-18

of Montana. Hundreds OF other camps
sprang up.
fame, still opened the gates to more
lasting prosperity. Among these was
| the little camp of Yellowstone City
in Emigrant gulch which first held
men long enough to give them time
| to look over the fertile valley OF the
Yellowstone and later to return and
develop the thriving district OF which
Billings now is the pulsing and grow
| ing heart.
The party which made the first dis
| covery of paying dirt on the fork Of
| the Yellowstone was made up OF Penn
sylvanians and composed OF David 3.
Weaver, Frank Garrett and David R.
Shorthill. Discovery was made Aug
| 30. 1864. They were not, however, the
| first to reach Emigrant gulch as a
party headed by Thomas Curry. an
Irishman who had come overland
/ from California, was there ahead OF
them. The Curry party, however, had
not discovered gold enough to amount
to anything and. to the late Corners
went credit for the first big strike.
When the Pennsylvanians arrived
| they found the Curry men had con-
structed long string of Slulce boxes
and their plan was to run drain
ditch down to bedrock in the eXpec-
tation of finding pay dirt. Their work
was CdIIieu Ol systematically anu ell
ergetically under the direction of an
old California miner named John o.
Laird. In spite of their efforts, how
ever, the best anyone of them was
able to make on this prospecting was
about 81 a day Two dollars a day
was, of course, literally starvation
wages in a region where flour sold at
S28 in gold per sack (about $50 in
greenbacks) and other necessities pro-
portionately expensive, if indeed at all
obtainable. Consequently the attempt
to find pay dirt was abandoned and
even as the Weaver party arrived a.
the gulch many of the prospectors
were already making preparations to
leave.
Hopes Rewarded
Much as they were disappointed, the
newcomers did not lose faith. Weaver,
Shorthil and Garrett composed
little party who went farther up the
gulch, as they reasoned that they
would find gold in larger quantities
farther up and that the bedrock would
be more accessible. They Travelled
along through dangerous and torturous
places for distance of about six
miles, where. they stopped to test the
sands. Shorthill struck his shovel into
the water and scooped up a couple
of shovelfulS OF sand and gravel from
a ledge and commenced to Pan it.
a few moments in silence, they burst
out with cries of joy, for at the bot
toms OF the pans lay the precious
grains in generous quantity.
Their demeanor instantly changed
from a disappointed, dispirited party
to a happy trio, singing and dancing
and huggng each other in joyous ex-
ultation;. as they realized that the
object OF their long and tedious search
was now at hand. Word was immedi-
ately sent to the men down the gulch
and to those who were already on
their way to Virginia City, telling
them of the strike. These men came
back at once and claims were quickly
staked out above and below the Or
iglnal or discovery claim.
Camp Laws Drafted
On Sept. II, 1864, a miners meet
ing, was called and the district for
mally organized. Shorthiu being elect
ed recorder. However, as clerical work
was not to his liking, he appointed
Weaver deputy, which office the latter
held until June, 1865. he then vir-
tualiy having charge OF public affairs
until that time. The meeting drafted
the laws for the district and among
the articles preserved is photo
graphic copy OF these laws which read
as follows:
Bylaws of Emigrant gulch, Short
NIL district.
Resolved. by the miners OF said
district, that the limits of said dis
trict shall be from the second falls of
the main stream UP said gulch to the
forks Of said stream and extending to
summit along said gulch.
Resolved, that no mining claim in
said district shall exceed in length
along said gulch 100 feet, but all
claims shall extend in width from
summit across said gulch.
Resolved, that no person shall hold
more than one claim as before speci-
fled by presumption and but one by
purchase, except discovery claim.
Resolved, that any pre-empted
claim upon which the owner thereof
shall not have performed, or cause to
be performed, actual mining within 10
days next after his pre-emption there
of, shall be liable to be pre-empted
by any person entitled to pre-empt the
same and that after labor shall have
been performed upon claim, If an in
terval OF five days shall elapse with
out additional labor being performed
thereon. said claim shall be liable to
be pre-empted by any. other person
entitled to pre-empt the same-pro-
viding that If any company or part
nership, for the purpose Of mining,
who shall own claim in said district,
shall labor upon any one claim owned
by said company or co-partnershio,
shall labor be deemed to be performed
upon the several claims owned by
them.
Resolved. that there shall be one
recorder elected from the miners of
said district. whose duty it shall be to
record the claims of said district and
for which he shall receive for each
claim so cents.
Resolved. that all disputes arising
concerning claims in this district shall
be settled by the miners Of said dis
trict.
Resolved, that the time of quitting
labor in this district during the COM
ing winter shall be the FIRST day of
October and further. that the time OF
resuming labor the ensuing summer
shall be the first day of June, 1866
providing that claim-holders may re-
SllrnR same Worlc Nnora THAR ou,,,