The San Francisco Call. Newspaper, November 9, 1901, Page 10

10 THE SAi‘I ‘FRANCISCO CALL, SATURDAY, NOVEMBER 9, 1901 RICH DISCOVERIES OF MINERALS IN MANY SECTIONS OF NEVADA LEAD ARMY OF PROSPECTORS OVER SNOWY SIERRA AND RENEW PROSPERITY OF THE STATE | | EDITOR OF THE STATE JOURNAL | PLEASED WITH THE QUTLOOK | EVADA has now a bright prospect. It needs only the foster- ing influence of capital and enterprise to make it again fa- | | mous for its additions to the world’s store of treasures. At | | this time prospectors are afield in many directions and the | | range of their exploitation extends over a vast area. De- posits of great value have recently been discovered and these are yielding very rich ores. The mountains of Nevada have only been scratched, comparatively speaking. They contain enormous wealth, the extent of which ean only be conjectured. i Reno is attracting much attention for many cogent reasons. It is a railroad center with large possibilities. The State Univer- sity, extensive in scope and admirable in its results, holds out al- Jurements that draw to us citizens from all parts of Nevada, Cali- fornia and from other sections, who make their homes here per- manently in the end. Our sheep and cattle men are alive and pro- | gressive. Since the Wedekind discovery prospectors have flocked here from many camps and they are still coming. As a place in which to dwell Reno is perfection. It has a fine climate, delightful surroundings, broad and well-kept streets, active business men, an intelligent and growing population, handsome dwellings and unlimited room in which to expand. New buildings of a good class are continually being added. In my opinion, as a candid observer, this State, and Reno especially, has ? a glorious outlook. JOHN H. DENNIS, Editor Nevada State Journal. i face is made quare jaw. atures of of I masculine g by the autiful Truckee River, with her upon the snow crested sum- | of the Sierra, by a strong, man of force, of characte: man with the Midas touch. h in the song land of s | « dreaming of future greatn Cassel, was born a boy | a boom, in fact. Down _George H. W\ edeking. | and seamed | arned to distinguish between deli- | stinctions of sound with the factl- ity of a skylark. His school days devel- oped a musician. In time he also learned | something of metallurgy and geology. He | s(;rvod“)}is li;ne in the Germanb army; | t £ vater- | then, tiring of it all, turned his back on dropping with sheer welght, as Water- |, . " ive land and cams to the Dnitod of foam. Strong States. ts to turn wheels and 0 | “He funed pianos for the Steinways for se cadences of |a time. Then came the Civil Was. and ing flood also promises fruitful- | Wedekind, afraid that he would once B I mois actes And ke | MOYe Decome b, tomuuliory BORbr Ae] ness to thousands duced only | €ided to go to San Francisco, He was Jands that not long ago Pro ¥ | krown well to musicians, as he worked saget blossom as the rose. | i ores comes Truckee sparkling, flashing, ever | singing; now flecked with white | as it is whirled into eddles, no\\'i over pianos. Then came the White Pine | On the northern hel of Reno the, district mining_excitement. Wedekind Nevada State University, commanding a went to White Pine, speculated and once mcre was penniless. An acquaintance view of the eternal mounta ““j‘ sr\:," | pald his passage to Virginia City when the fortunate Washoe Valley, also £ | there were flush times in that place and | veys a remarkably, pleasing vista of roofs | YWedekind recouped by tuning planos at &nd spires that nestle amid rows of Pop- | §i5 per piano and earning from $45 to $60 Jar and cork elms, whose leafage, touched | per day. by the season and the frost, flames yellow | 0ld Man to the Front. against the blue background of the far| But the speculative spirit in him. was mounta a flame of pure gold. | still strong and, when the Comstock boom | Here are the three sources of Reno's | was over, Wedekind was no better off present prosperity and the basis of her | than before. Nevada and event- He liked his w. 2 reloj t—the | ua 0 Reno. Here he P e giv- | €ked out a scanty living by tuning and wealth giving mo ition of loarming | Tepairing ‘vianos. He was now over. (0 ing river and the institution of years old, but hope and determination | which draws to this center men of all classes. who seek edueation for their chil- dren. The agriculture and stock and sheep raising, that are important factors | were still | conspicuous in his _make-up. When he first appears on his buckboard behind his dismal old white horse, mak- ing daily journeys to and from the hills, | he is just turned 65, the time when al- in the development of Washoe County, |t & Uit thrned @, the time depend upon the ggaters of the Truckee [ “On. ho, say many of Wedekind's and its many ‘tributary streams. This| neighbors. ' ‘‘Wedekind is an old fool.” trinity of favoring causes have made| They have a chance to say this many Reno thriving and charming, but lhe;umv as Wedekind works continuously growth of the community has been steady | for three long years, only stopping long rather than rapid until within the last few months. Wedekind Appears. Now there appears upon the scene a little old man who is sitting on an over- used buckboard and who treads the Reno streets daily, driving a sway-backed end flea bitten old white horse that only just moves when goaded by a green switch from a Lombardy poplar. Day @fter day, month after month, year after year, this little old man has traveled the same road in the morning and has re- turped the same way every night, the | tweather permitting. His clothes are rag- | ged. His old white hat has long been overdue in the refuse pile. But stop a nute and peer under ‘that white hat. ere you shall see frank. blue, German pves, a little faded, but with the glint of pourage in them. The lower part of the enough to tune a piano occasionally to get money for proyisions. One day, Wedekind having found gold | in the very roadway over which practical miners and the general public had been daily passing for ten years, climbed to the top of a hill. He dug and shoveled ami carted dirt in a handbarrow many days and—struck gold! Not one word*of this did he mention to his neighbors or friends. But he sent samples to an assaver and found that he had struck dirt worth about $23 per ton. | That was not rich enough for him. So he began again to select a site to tunnel. Miners from Virginia City chaffed him. One stuck up a derisive placard. ‘‘Vell,” sald Wedekind, looking at this attempt at humor and wearing a placid | expression, “‘dot is goot, t0o."” Vhen Wedekind was 68 years old, two | vears only inside of Yae scriptural ‘limit | So shall you discover the | i -his associates. SCENES IN PLEASANT RENO, WHICH IS ATTRACTING THE ATTENTION OF MINERS, CATTLEMEN, SHEEP RAISERS AND THE YOUNG MEN AND WOMEN OF THREE STATES WHO ARE EAGER TO TAKE AD- VANTAGE OF ITS FACILITIES FOR EDUCATION. ) ihriving Reno Expects Boom by Reason of the Wedekind Fi nd and the Promise of Glittering Treasures. to man’s life, he made it known to his neighbors that he had found ore, some of which_had assayed as high as $10,400 per ton!” He sold the property for $175,000, as the story goes. He then had $:0,000 in bank for ore he had taken out. Now he has retired, and his chief pleasure is in thinking, &s he expressed it to a Call correspondent: “To have my friends find out that I am not an old fool, as they said I was, is as better as the mine.” Prospectors Flock In. ‘Wedekind's discovery, which was un- questionably one of much value, led to wholesale prospecting on the hills and mountains of Washoe County, near Reno. The odd story connected with Wedekind mated with another equally queer con- rning Steamboat Springs, a locality about thirteen miles from Reno. Steamboat Springs has long been known to the tourist. - ¥rom time immemorial from hundreds of crevices in the rocks jets of steam, accompanied by a sulphur- ous smell and subterranean noises re- sembling the violent bubbling of large quantities of water, have given testi- mony to nature’s incessant work in her laboratory. These jets have been visible from far off. During several years they Jjustified the maintenance of a hotel and vapor baths. By and by the partial fallure of the supply of hot medicated water from the springs near the hotel led to boring for wells. Then some metal was discovered. The hotel caught fire and was burned some time ago. The ground formerly familiar to tourists is now staked out in mining claims. There are scores of stakes and other evidences of mining Interest in the view of all visitors to the steam springs. To the casual observer it would em that the entire region had been claimed. 'There is gold at Steamboat | Springs. That fact is certain. How much there is may be another question. The ore that comes to the surface is accom- panied by scalding hot water. “We have tapped,” said a grim miner while the steam from the water made it appear that the ore was smoking hot, “the mother lode of hell.”” Rich Ores in View. The Steamboat Springs exploitation has increased the rush of prospectors. All the | hotels in Reno have been filled during the last year and the hotel men have been reaping a rich harvest. The Riverside is building a large wing and will be replaced by a $40,000 structure. Everybody here is anticipating a boom. There are prospec- tors in the Pea Vine district near Reno, at Tuscarora, at Pyramid, at Olinghouse Canyon, I‘ the Wedekind district and at Steamboat” Springs, all of which are trib- utary to Reno. At each of these places actual mining is progressing. ‘The Wedekind property- was purchased Ly the Sparks Mining Company, in which the principal owner is John Sparks. Ad- Jjoining is the property which was worked for a short time by Bell of Colorado. This is now tied up by litigation to. de- termine the rights of the Sparks Mining Company to the land claimed by Bell and The superlnlend§nt of the Sparks Mining Company is C. L. Crane, who is well known to mining men from California. He came here from Hayden Hill. There are thousands of tons of ore in sight. Crane says that no(hlng ‘worth less than $100 per ton is sacked, Some of the ore assays $1000 per ton. The most striking statement made by Superintendent Crane is that, car for car, the ore at the Wedekin -discovery has | assayed higher than that taken from the fampus discovery in the " Tonopah dis- trict, sixty miles from Candelaria. The company has established its store and of- fice and has bullt cabins for'the miners, S0 that quite a camp is already in exis- tence. The company will build its own mill and put in other plants needed. Ore Which cannot be profitably transported by rail at existing rates will be worked up at the mine. Such ore now in sight is cstimated at $100,000 in value. The great- est depth of the shaft is 140 feet. No one can foresee what this mine may do, but it appears to have a very bright future. The ores contain gold, silver and lead. A short distance southwest from the Wedekind discovery ex-State Senator -D. C. Wheeler and S. H. Wheeler have a claim 1500x600 feet in size, where they are prospecting. ‘Their Jand looks just like ihat where Wedekind made his discovery. ‘The entire district is the same in outward appearance, being covered with small stones, some of which are mineralized. In fact, between the apex of Wedekind's mine on the surface and the bottom of the hill, a distance of about 200 yards, rcughly estimated, a cartload of rock which had been lying in plain sight and close beside the traveled road for many years was picked up, which gave an assay value of $60 per ton. Ex-Senator Wheeler has hopes accordingly. Other Camps Active. There is a gold camp at Olinghouse Canyon, which is about twenty miles cast from Reno. Three mills dre going there. The ores are gold, medium and high grade. Each of the mills running can crush from ten to twenty tons per day. A scarcity of water has retarded ¢perations. Sheriff McGinnis is a leading owner at Olinghouse, having several claims and prospects, In the Pyramid mining district copper and gold ‘mines are being developed. Pyramid is about twenty-seven miles northeast from Reno. The principal work In the district has been performed dur- ing the last year. The existence of min- ¢rals in that section became known meany years ago. A large company is now operating there. ,The Pea Vine-district is on the Pea Vine Mountain, which looms up Jjust north of Reno. The past year has brought a revival “of activity on the mountain and many prospectors are on the ground. Copper, gold and silver ores bave been ?Iscn\‘ered at Pea Vine. The «development work,. however, has not been very extensive. The prospectors think weil of the district. H. A. Batters is. interested in the Steamboat Springs district, having 200 acres under bond. A combination of San Francisco people, organized as the Sena- tor Gold Mining ‘Company, having about 230 acres under bond, Is In the - Steam- toat field, B. A. Ogden is the superintendent of this company. The Ware Company, of which J. F. Littlefield is superintendent, is drilling holes 6n_ the hillside. The Great Western Company has 400 acres and i3 operating under the management of J. W. Hopkins. This company’s shaft is filled with hot mineral water. A large rumping outfit has, been placed at the shaft, which is within a few feet of the railrogd between Reno and Virginia. Whole State Is Alive. Many sections of Nevada now have great prospects for mining development. Tonopah and = the Searchlight districts have an abundance of ore. Virginia City expects great things, as the line of wires extending from Floriston and across the Washoe Mountains and the Washoe Val. ley carrying ,horsepower amply af tests. With this power much is being a complished. Silver City, Dayton and Si Mile Canyon are scenes of present actiy- ity. Silver City and Dayton are live camps. They are developing gold ores principally. Charles Butters has gone to work in Six-Mile Canyon, which is near Virginia City. Work is proceeding at Mason Valley, Golconda and Yerington, all of which are near the C. and C. rail road. Prospecting for copper and also ?five}fipment work are progressing. e dis: ested in one of the camps. pecting for gold, copper livening the entire county of Esmeralda, and there are numerous camps. In the Tuscarora district, which is east from Reno and north from Elko, there is a gold camp in which prospecting and exploiting have produced some exception- ally good results in free milling gold ores. The best known mine in the district, tha Dexter-Tuscarora, is doing well. Ely, in White Pine County 3 an active gold, Active pros- silver and copper carap. There are good mines in Churchill Coun: ty, which are being worked. The prin- cipal producers of Lincoln County are the De La Mar mines, which yield silver and gold. An old-time camp is being re- opened. In the southern part of Lincoin County, at Good Springs, there is a lead camp. Only transportation facilities are required to cause great activity. Th e Cal- ifornia Eastern road will ss through the section. The famous Searchlight dis- trict is about twenty-four miles from Manvel and sixteen miles from the Colo- n;m; Rl\'el".|;l;herehnre two companles ac- vely exploiting the mines. The Quartet Gold and_ Silv b several claims at Searchlight. the best known being the Macready and Dunn claims. The ledge upon which the Quar- tet company is working is a fissure vein, which has outcroppings on the surface for a dirtance of from 1000 to 2000 feet The company claims to have traced the ledge 3000 feet. ' There have been avened up fovr levels, respectively at 100, 200, 300 and 400 feet. All these levels are reported to be in ore which {s being stoned from three level: The ore shoot varies in thickness from s to twelve feet and is sometimes sixteen feet thick. At this time only the high grade. ore is being extracted. The reason the bank of the Colorado River, sixteen miles away. Freightine through the sandy wash to the river is difficult and the cost of havling is reported to average $3 per ton.” The cost of mining and milling is high. The Quartette Companv is bufld- ing a railroad to the Colorado River. The Southern Nevada Mining and Milling Com- pany is operating in the same district and cready mine, the shaft being in a narrow quartz Jedge. carrving coarse gold, which cceurs in very nretty ore. . The Tonopah Mines. Tonopah is the latest big discovery in Nevada. The district has wonderful pos- sibilities for wealth producing if one-haif that is sald here is true. It is a silver and gold camp, the ores of which are of high grade. There are several ledzes that have already been discovered with long and continuous ore shoots. Great predie- tlons are made for the future of Tonopah and there is widespread Interest concern. ing it all over the State of Nevada. Reno is’ characterized by an avpearance of thrift and neatness that would attract the attention of the most casual observer. Its streets are wide and well kent. Its residences are well designed and the own- ers have taken pains to front their prop- erties with shade trees. Wherever there is-a new residence there are newly nlant- ied poplars. or cork elms to beautify the In | trict there are two smelters, Cap- | tain De La Mar is reported to be inter- | and silver is en- | , east from Eureka, s | er Mining Company own. | for this is that the 20-stamv mill is on | is opening un a ledee north of the Ma- | ALLEN C. BRAGG FINDS REASONS FOR ADVANCEMENT OF NEVADA EVADA has awakened from her sleep of nearly twenty years and is now attracting much attention. Not only her agri- cultural possibilities are beginning to be recognized, but her womderful mineral wealth is again being sought after, for her hills contain almost all the minerals known to sciemde. i Her beef, mutton and lamb have always commanded the highest price in the markets of the United States, and those products are by no means a small factor in the commonwealth’s make-up. While the beef supply is not nearly so large as in for- mer years, what Nevada lacks in quantity is more than made ap in price. I say that, take it all in all, Nevada is all right. We of the sagebrush hardly ever hear of dismantled ma- chinery in the erstwhile mining camps, and nobody talks about them any more as being the home of the bat, coyote and snake, so after all the silver agitation of past years is proving to be a blessing in disguise. Reno being a distributing point and the only railroad center in the State is being talked about a good dea Her trade advantages are good and the town is progressive. ALLEN G BRAGG, Editor Reno Gazette. eGual ings of the {nia that are situated at Berkeley, w Is somewhat remarkable, for Nevada only 42000 inhabitants, all counted, university grounds are several ornamental features. of professors and instructors is efficient. There is the usual mil ture of the institutions of lear: are supported in part by States Governmeent by lands to be sold. The soldier boys of brave and pleasin ave a brass band There is great pride in the university, s0, account of the sple: he university footbafl t | pracing and the héalth of the town | costient: ‘There are many good brick | bulldings in the business section and two thriving banks are necessary. Four rail- | roads center at Reno. Several mills are | turned by the Truckee River at this point. | It is significant that those who know the | most about Reno speak in the warmest | praise of it. 26 Pl There is no place like it The ¢ large itary ning the sald State | senator Flanagan. Y | TE. H. Prentice, representing the South- ific Company, thinks so well of | o semunity that he is endeavoring to | form a board of trade, which is a popu- ve. ] lalrz.n{{". Parry declares that Reno has a | great future. He is largely interested in | the shipment of cattle and sheep from the | Washee Valley. s | VD‘r. Stubbs, president .of the State Uni- | versity, declared that the outlook for the made_recently the State University at — onal | %= . Reno being at an elevation | school, is in construction. The educati &el‘g;x‘?c;r:;?o:ppmxXmam)._ the air is pure | plant, so to describe it, actually seems to In_outward appearance the build- te University of Califor- hich has The large, and include orps and fea- that United the bestowal of the university make & show on parade. and orchestra and mdid eam against Berkeley. Unlike The educational interests of Nevada were Nevada University | = who come from ab y brighter than ever. o abroad dwell as one large | Sfxr\'eyor General Matt Kyle dealares | family on the university !ruuml: £3 that the mining outlook for all Nevada is | reputation of _the . exceptionally good. attracts students fro department m the eastern coun- Rosenthal, the statloner, Is sanguine | ties of California, from Soutmer: Oroln that there' will be a great growth in | andgfrom more distant polnts suton ot trat Nevada, as the catalogue shows. essor J. E. Bray, Superintendent of | Pane Bonools, recing. the rapid srowth | of the population during the last year, an- | ticpates many advantages coming to The university o opened March 31, seveg students. is a little more t m_ its present site Rerlo. | W.' J. Westerfleld, four years State | Treasurer of Nevada and for many years | State Senator, predicts a considerabie in- | crease in the industries of Reno in the | near.future. A new ice plant, a new elec- | tric power and light plant and active use plucky feotball full share. The edly conferre, than any ot efits écnferr. d more pro: her single use, for the ed are lasting and the abi was 1386, with only thirty- The present attendance han 300. There is an an- an s players are doing _their university has undoubt- erity upon Reno be: i1y | of the smelting plant located in the town [ to draw new residents to the town is eon- are in view. Westerfield says that woolen Unuoua mills would thrive here. Mr. Gordon of the Southern Pacific| g corcat Livestock Industry. Company reports that there has been a =Senator D. C. Wheeler aptly de- large increase in the railway passenger | S¢ribes the system of flumes that lead business in this locality during the year. [ the Wwaters of the Truckee River. He | This is an unmistakable sign of growth [says they are like a backbone, with i and prosperity. | George Taylor, cashier of the Washoe [ | County Bank, points to the new strue- tures rising in Reno as proof of the esti- | mation in which this place is held. George J. Young, assistant professor of smaller ribs attached down in the val and they have that looked %ipon from above. Through t and blooming the entire year. On Succulent alfalfa many thousands of | metallurgy, whose enthusiasm has taken sheep and cattle thrive. | him to all ‘the mining camps of Nevada, and who is noted In the State University lley, appearance when heir agency thousands of acres are kept fresh the fine r There has been a continual growth in the sheep and cat- 3. tle industry. The names of Senator P. L. of Nevada as a hard and efliclent worker. | Flanagan. Henry Anderson. Jawas Trar says that there ase better opportunities bot, John J. O'Brien, Andrew Frandsen, for a young man in Nevada than many George Hoicomb, Murphy Brothers, Wil ‘othexrte%ocallty with which he is ae- liam Van Buren, E.Htl‘i Cfinpbell. Charles | quainted. Campbell, " Tom 111, artin Pidaro, ‘nTh(e editors of the two daily papers in Geor:e W. Mapes, Ward Brothers, Joh‘:; eno have written signed opinions wl | indichte thelr views fully. - | A Fine University. | The love of the people of Nevada for | higher education is manifested by the < It com. | extent of the State University. | sists of something like a dozen fine build- | ings, all but one being composed of brick | or stone, the exception bein, som. | residencs occupled by Bresgins *ndsome | These structures are two and three stories | high. They are well lighted and well veq. ! tilated, and ample for present purposes, A large stone bullding, Ihg’chemk.l Jim Millet and mentioned here as prominent in this nection. Their ranches He beside kept roads of easy grad ‘Thers fringe of shade owners, no less do buildings in the suburbs as shadow forth the same attemtion to pearances. By common report all ranchers thrive. either in Reno or In the country atly surrounding it Sparks, G. M. Sprague, Joe Blackburn, . . uffaker Brothers are con- well s a e, ° trees by all the roads. If the houses in Reno are well kept up and bespealk care and thrift on the part of the the dwellings and unmistakably ap- the It is a common boast in Reno that there are no poor people Immed: