THE SUMPTER MINER.
vol r.
SUMPTER, OREGON, APRIL 25, 1900.
NO. 33.
J-
SUMPTER VALLEY RY.
WILL EXTEND TRACK SEVERAL
MILES TO TIMBER LANDS.
New Steel Rails to be Laid Between Sump
ter and Baker City. Possible Change! to
be Made la Local Yard and Depot Site.
Engineering Feats Will Determine
These. Claims to Own Auburn Street.
Officials of the Sumpter Valley railroad
have been surveying in the vicinity of the
depot and along its tracks to the south
half a mile, for a week or more past. Of
course, they look wise and say nothing,
knowing that to be the accepted method
of giving a con game support to that kind
of look.
To let people know they were In town,
getting ready to carve a fleshy swine in
the other end, several people have been
notified to get off what the company
claims to be its right of way. Among
these are said to be the officers of the
Sumpter Transportation company, who
have been informed, so the story goes,
that about half of their barn, corner of
Sumpter and Auburn street, is on railroad
property. According to this claim, Au
burn street, for more than a block, also
belongs to this slim gauge railroad com
pany. As a matter of fact, people in
Sumpter are uncertain as to whether they
own their souls.
J. R. Stoddard was In Raker City
Monday and had a talk with Presi
dent Eccles, who informed him that the
road is soon to be extended beyond this
point. He stated further that twenty car
loads of steel rails have arrived, which
will be used to replace the two streaks of
rust between here and Raker City; that
rails for the extension will be shipped as
needed.
Regarding local changes, all that Mr.
Stoddard would reveal concerning his
talk with Mr. Eccles is that some en
gineering difficulty is anticipated In cross
ing the divide to the west; that If this can
be overcome, the depot and yards will be
removed to the twenty acre tract about
half a mile south of the present site. Rut
if this can not be accomplished, then the
track will be extended across Powder
river from its present terminus on Cracker
street, and the obstructing hill "switch
backed." According to the best Information THE
MINER can secure, the road will do just
what its officials announced last fall
would be done; a logging road ten or a
dozen miles in length will be constructed
this season. Some months since, the
Oregon Lumber company, which is about
the same thing as the Sumpter Valley
railroad, through its employes, gobbled
up"a large tract of timber land out Clifford
way. The road, which was originally
built as an adjunct of the Oregon Lum
ber company's saw mills, and has been
operated primarily as a logging road ever
since, being run not only on narrow
guage tracks, but narrow guage policy as
well, will merely be extended to this
recently acquired timber.
The idea of the rood, under Its present
management, entering the field for general
traffic in territory to the west and south
of here, where broad guage railroad men
are contesting for supremacy, is redicu
lous. Shirt Sleeves Yesterday Fur Coats Today.
Yesterday was summer weather; the
temperature was pleasant, the sun shone
warm and bright, enticing the prospector
to the hills, the lazy man to the trout
streams. This morning the ground was
covered with two Inches of snow and the
alleged beautiful has been falling all day.
Mercury stands below the freezing point;
overcoats, furs and arctics have been
called into service again and the fuel
dealer Is giving the ice man the horse
laugh. The sooners who put on their
new soda water and Ice cream suits weeks
ago, are sewing buttons on last winter's
corduroy pants and the lining In the
sleeves of their -discarded -heavy coats'.
It may not be exictly a case of Time
turned back in its flight, but surely the
seasons have somehow slipped a few
cogs backwards.
Utah Capital Looking for Investments.
G. W. Hall, who represents a syndi
cate of Utah capitalists, came here some
days sliKe for the purpose of buying the
elbctrlc light plant; but found that he was
too late, that others had secured it. He Is
so favorably impressed with the town and
country, however, that he is determined
to get In on the proposition someway, and
is looking for other Investments. He
would like to buy the water works, but It
is not known whether or not it can be
bought.
GROWING INSTITUTION.
Columbia Brewing and Malting Company's
Business Rapidly Expanding.
One of the most successful enterprises
In Sumpter today Is the Columbia Brew
ing and Malting company's plant on Mill
street, where the management has recent
ly been making large additions to and im
provements In the buildings, machinery
and apparatus for the manufacture of the
popular beverage.
A new two story building for fomenting
quarters and tank rooms, has been com
pleted, in which is being placed six 40
barrel, the same number of loo-barrel
vats, known as storage tanks, in addition
to the former spacious ones which had be
come too small for the large business this
company has built up since John Arm
bruster has been at the helm. Another
building will be added at once, for the Ice
plant, which will when completed make a
continuous structure covering $0x100 feet
of ground, three stories high. Still
another building has just been erected on
the opposite side of the alley, In which the
bottling works with modern machinery,
which has been ordered and Is on the
road, will be installed. It will also be
used as a keg house, in which four car
loads of various sized new beer kegs and
barrels have been unloaded. Here also Is
room for six horses, as the company will
put on its own wagons for the delivery of
its product in Sumpter and the towns west
of here, where it Is now supplying nearly
the entile trade.
The output of this model Institution
will be 600 to 800 barrels of beer ptr
month and if the demand is greater, the
capacity will be again enlarged.
The progress made by the Columbia
people since John Armbruster assumed
charge, is little short of wonderful and
shows him to be a master of the business,
in which lie has had a long and extensive
experience, but there is probably no reason
why, with intelligent application, together
willi amele capital with which to put in
modern appliances and secure the best of
materials, the Columbia beer will not
make a name ror Its self equal to any
other in the market.
The City Green house, at Raker City,
furnishes choice cut flowers.
Don't forget to register.
LIGHT PLANT
TRANSFERRED.
Scrap For the Possession of
Machinery.
The electric plant has been transferred
to the new owners and they have organ
ized the Sumpter Light and Power com
pany, the Incorporators of which are A.
C. Little, S. H. Hell and Edward Can
non. I lie first namea two are rugei
Sound neonle. while Mr. Cannon is con-!
nected with an electric machinery house ,
In Portland, which put in the plant here.
His connection with the company means
something, exactly what THE MlNISR
doesn't know, and about which It will
not make a guess today.
There was quite a disturbance created
yesterday when these men started to
move Into the power house, the engine,
fly wheel and other machinery belong
ing to the plant which has been out on the
sidetrack for months past. The marshal
appeared with attachment papers gotten
out by A. P. Goss, for over 1 1000 ad
vanced the former management, and for
bade the removal of the stuff. No atten
tion was paid either to the legal document
or the official warning. Then Attorney
McColloch took a hand and tried to per
suade them to "ring off," but he, too, was
ignored.
Attorney Richards says this attachment
will not hold, that all the property of the
company was transferred to him more
than a month ago and that he, in turn,
executed a transfer to the new owners
several days since,
Attorney McColloch stated last evening
that he had not decided what course to . (he dearf maWnB a K,)od( comfortable
pursue, as other attorneys were Interested j lome for U)e mn eK.,r development
In the case, who would have to be con-1 wor(( ,IS niel,tonei ,,P nsX Mle of
suited. Till: MlNI-H, was Commenced last week
The new dynamo has arrived; but has nilJ wm be ,,rSKuted In earnest all sum
not yet been moved from the car. When ., A cross-cut tunnel is heine driven
the plant will be in operation Till: MINER
will not venture another prediction.
General and Mrs. Warren Return Home.
General and Mrs. Warren returned
Saturday from Portland, where the former
had been for a couple of weeks. He says
the people of the Webfoot metropolis are
slowly learning how to recognize a good
j thing when they see it and are 'therefore
becoming Interested In the bumpter Uls -
trlct. The general says the outlook here
is better than It was two months since,
that the correspondence of the Townslle
company Indicates that a large number of
people all over the Ueion are conlemplat-
ing coming Here to reside and Invest. W.
C. Calder has not yet returned from the
coast, but will probably arrive at an
early day.
Internal Evidence of Fraud.
The second number of the Mining
Herald and Investors Guide, published at
Minneapolis, has reached this oltice. The
publication seems to he issued largely in
the interest of the American Mines De
velopment Company, Limited, a concern
whkh the Republic Miner has been de
nouncing for mouths past as a rank fraud.
It formally claimed to own rich gold
mines, towusites etc In that district. Its
gold quartz properties have now been
transferred to this district, of which the
advertisement says: "The gold quartz
claims in northeastern Oregon. The
Hlue Mountain King and Queen, two
claims located in one of the rich camps
tributary to the now famous Sumpter
mining district. These claims carry a
great ledge of base gold bearing ores their
entire length and when developed will
make one of the companies most valuable
holdings." Who in this vicinity ever
heard of the Hlue Mountain King and
Queen? This confident prediction of what
future development will do for these un
heard of claims, In itself, contains internal
evidence of either the company's ignorance
of mining matters, or its intention to de
ceive the public. The front cover of the
Herald is adorned with the old Telegram
cut of this camp and the first page of read
ing matter Is an uncredited rehash of an
old write up of the district. The paper
claims to have a special correspondent 011
c Rround. Who Is tie? The whole
thing heirs the Imprint of fake and fraud
in eltort to trade on the lame of the
Sumpter district in an attempt to gull the
public.
Salt Lake Capitallits Want Mines.
P. J. Donohue, who bonded a com
pany of Salt Lake capitalists on Saturday
to take the Rlue Itohbin mine at 70,000,
is understood to be desirous of obtaining
similar contracts on other pieces of min
ing property owned by Pendleton parties.
The company Mr. Donohue represents Is
said to possess large capital and to be In
vesting heavily in Eastern Oregon min
ing claims. The Hlue Robbin property
comprised three claims, and the company
bonding It will at once begin development
work to ascertain the value of the ore
body, which is supposed by mining men
to be large and of good average values.
Pendleton East Oregonlan.
Gold Bug-GrUxly Development.
J. J. Henuessy, general manager of the
Gold Hug-Grizzly Mining company, came
down from its property last evening and
reports the quarters for the miners all
. cmMej. The hiiildliiK u ifixiX fret in
. , cul tlt. e:id at a depth of about 75 feet,
at which point it Is the Intention to sink
on the lead and do whatever necessary
drifting is required to test the lead, bef.ue
machinery is installed.
Many Coming From Montana.
J. K. Pardee returned srveral davs
1 silice frolll .. ,rm ,,, Montana, his former
, ,olne, e j,ays that many mining men
1 from ,,at scc, wm come , Sumpter
' jutu,g the present season, but that they
ufe ll0 uirry , ,.,,,, lvlllR .,
1 snmv coantry themselves they know how
U(.ry j,npr;,ctkal it is to try to form any
( (eKet opinion of a mining region
w,c .,y snow mains on the ground.
They also know that, In lis uncertainty
as to when and where it will be encoun
tered, snow very much resembles gold.
Notice to the Public.
All consumers of city water must make
application to the ollice of the Sumpter
Water company before the mains are
tapped or any residence or business house
supplied with water.
SUMPTER WATER COMPANY
Potatoes for Sale.
Lew Hros., of Baker City, have a car
load of line Early Rose and White Star
potatoes for sale. Enquire at Sumpter
Porwarding company.
Quartz and placer location blanks of
the most approved form for sale at Till:
MINER office.
Don't forget to register.