Year: 1878

only for us to determine the charac- ter and value of the original bonanza. Passing through one chamber We find q narrow opening leading to an- other chamber of greater or less dimensions than the first, and so on we continue meandering thousands of feet into the

 VERY HEART OF THE MOUNTAIN, sometimes elevating two or three hun dred feet above the starting point or mouth, again descending five hnn- dred below. Many of these connec- tions have been driven through the solid rock, others were natural open ings, apparently formed in some man. ner as the large caverns and in like manner charged with precious ores. In some the ores were oXidized and decomposed of a dark brown color, and so thoroughly separated that it could be shoveled as easily as a pile of sand; but as a rule the ore is hard brown spar, and in no case can there be found any clay seam or separating matter or gouge of any kind between the orc and country or wall rock. There is no uniformity of depths, an gles or courses. The whole inside of the mountain seems to have been eel lular with all possible irregularity, and subsequently, charged with car bonate of lime, iron, manganese and argentiferous lead. A thorough ex- animation of such a vast labarynth of mines, some of which have remained in unbroken silence dark as eternal night, a habitation for spoOks and bats for

 FULLY FIVE HUNDRED YEARS,

 Was extremely tedious and danger ous. Guides were out of the question, for none were living who ever trod these subterranean halls. However, with natives to carry our canteens, ropes, rope-ladders and hooks, can dies and instruments, swung myself down and into caverns gloomy, soli- tary, and so awfully grand that good sized church might stand their spire and touch neither ssdes nor roof, and when lighted by our re:ectors, pre- sented the most dazzling spectacle The sparkling stalacites and glisten- ing crystals, eclipsing even ones i'm agination of a thousand diamond pal aces. For sixty days we carefully in vestigated these

 SUPPLEMENTARY RELICS,

 Finding three distinct classes of these old mines, showing evidence abund- ant of three distinct epochs in the his tory of this wonderful group. The most interesting of these was no doubt the work of the Aztecs, between the tenth and fifteenth centuries, or pos sibly the Toltecs who fourished more than nine hundred years ago. In one of these subterranean vaults nature has kept a record which man has not defaced, sacred to the memory of the original miner. For nearly thou sand years she has been building a stately pillar of beautiful white spar, twenty feet in diameter and thrice as many feet in height. It evidently formed since the place was mined, for there is abundance of proof that this great chamber was once full of ore-a regular bonanza.

 At another point in this wonderful old mountain we encountered through much labor and expense, our old mine with small round drifts not more than two feet in diameter, ap . parently made through the solid dol omite without the aid of powder or steel, as round and nearly as smooth as the chamber of a shot gun. Here we found cavern that had once been worked out as clean and clever as if done by my friend James G. Fair. Now, however new ore has formed in upon the once clean walls to the depth of one inch and a half and assaying fifty dollars per ton in silver We saw many other districts and many rich and valuable mines during our six months stay in this wonderful and grand old country. The best country in the world if they would let me put flag on it.