Year: 1859

EDITOR NATIONAL DEMOCRAT For the last
few days we have been relieved from the
dense cold fog in which this vicinity has been
enveloped for two weeks past the nights
being SO cold as to completely close up the
small water courses, and the various ditch
companies furnishing not more than one
fourth their usual supply of water.


There are some twenty mining companies
In this place, employing in the aggregate,
over two hundred men, three. e.fourths of whom
have been idle for more than month past,
In consequence of the short supply of water,
which will be remedied in short time by
the completion of the Excelsior Ditch, which
conveys the water from the South Yuba.


The first company of Importance is the
Blue Gravel Co., Thos. B. Simpson, President,
and |. Price, Manager. This company own
some ten acres of the best mining ground in
the vicinity, which, through the energy and
perseverance of Mr.. Price, is being made very
valuable. The mode of working heretofore
has been to drift into the face of the bank
some twelve feet, then cross drift the entire
bank, leaving the only support in front,
which is washed out with hydraulic pipe.
This mode of getting down the bank was
found to be very expensive, requiring the
labor of twenty men at drifting, besides be
ing very dangerous, one man having been
recently killed by the falling of the bank
To remedy these defects, Mr. Price has tried
what virtue there was in powder. The ex
pertinent was tried 10y running an open cut
in the hill (where he wished to make face, :
thi ty feet deep and two wide, and about
eighty feet long, leading out into that portion
of the claim already open; then thirty feet
back from the face of the cut, and two-thirds
from the lower end of ita shaft is sunk on a
level with the bottom of the cut; drift is
then run at right angles with the cut abou Z
ten feet, in which is placed barrel contain
ing one hundred and thirty-fve pounds of
powder, in which is inserted a half inch
leaden pipe which contains three strands of
blasting fuse; this is run out of the top of the
shaft the drift containing the powder is then
well tamred with clay. and the shaft filled
with water; then the torch is applied it re-
quires five minutes to burn the fuse down to
the powder, when rumbling noise is heard
at the same instant the water is forced from
the shaft into the air as much as a hundred
feet, resembling water spout at sea. The
experiment was entirely successful, CO m ,lete-
ly breaking up the earth the entire length of
the cut and back to the shaft thereby reduc-
ing the expense of working the claim full
sixty per cent.


Some four years since, this company com
menced running tunnel for the purpose of
draining the Flat down to the bed rock.
which has never been prospected on account
of water. The tunnel, when completed, will
bring them eighty feet deeper than the low
est point ever gained The entire length of
The tunnel is sixteen hundred feet, eight hun
dred of which is row completed, at q cost of
$4,000. The work is through solid rock.
For the last year double gang of men have
been employed making at times not more
than six inches in twenty-four hours Mr..
Price thinks that in two years more he can
com, lete it.


The next operation of Importance is the
Bed Rock Tunnel of Kerrigan & Early. This
is being run for the purpose of giving the
miners on Squaw Creek an opportunity of





working these claims as deep as possible. The
length of the tunnel will be some 600 feet and
eight feet high and six feet wide About
four hundred feet Of this work is finished,
three shifts of men are now ut work. The
rock not being very hard, they expect to com.
plete it in about three months. This tunnel
is timbered, lined and ceiled in the most sub
stantial manner, and is said to be one of the
best pieces of work in the country costing
over $4,000


AT the head of Kerrigan's ground COM
mence the works of l.. b. Clark & Co. Their
ground is very extensive. They have been.
for some months past, taking out their old
fumes and replacing them with new ones of
larger dimensions and in short time they
will commence washing, employing about
thirty men. JEFF.