Image provided by: University of Oregon Libraries; Eugene, OR
About The Oregon scout. (Union, Union County, Or.) 188?-1918 | View Entire Issue (May 23, 1889)
Orego VOL. V. UNION. OREGON, THURSDAY, MAY 23, 1881). NO. 4$. The N CORNUCOPIA. Tangible Proof of Immense De posits of Gold. FORMATION OF VARIOUS MINES "Might as Well Assay a $20 Gold Piece"--A Merited llebukc. May 20, 1SSS). Editou Okiioo.v Scout: 1 have not, in any of my communi cations to Tin: Scot'T, made mention of other than actual, visible and meri torious deposits of mineral. I have discarded mere paper locations. You can traverse tho hills and find each location by my description. You can sec the Slate from my door on Main street in the town. By the extensive works you will know the Buckeye, Pino Creek and Checkmate, and the Last Chance by its peculiarly mctal ized rock and the ar.astra which in testing surrounding properties has done good work. What 1 mean to say, and the idea I want to convey is, that the owners and locators of this district do not belong to that class of miners which does its mining by word of mouth. I will refer you to proper tics which seem to be under the es pecial care of Mr. .1. N. Osborne. THK IIONANIA IJASIX lies northwest of the Red Jacket and about two and a half miles from Cor nucopia. This district is, as recorded, ten miles wide from east to west, and thirty miles from north to south, and it all constitutes one largo mineral belt, made up of smaller belts, having slightly different features. The slates which seem to have taken possession of this portion of Union county have a sufficient infusion of other elements to make the groups of mines easily classi fied, dividing it into three and perhaps four different or smaller belts, and on the lines contact veins appear. This adds to the extent of tho district 01 rather the number of districts united in one. The famous Comstock, according to tho theory of Professor Stuart and Judge Bryant, consists of one contact vein. There it was slate and porphy ry. Here it is slate, granite and ter pentine of varied casts, Miflicient to make them distinguishable. The walls are as follows: Black slate and granite; slate and porphyry; slate and tiurpuntiue; and in the Ronanza group a slate and mica schist. Tho leading mine in tho latter belt is tub m:i hoy. The departure from tho goneral rule in this group is, that tho product is principally free gold. On this mine is a shaft lifty-five feet, showing on tho top a ledge of three feet and at the bottom of tho fifty-iivo foot shaft a 'ledge seven feet wide. The assays show from forty to fifty dollars per ton, mostly free gold. Tho rock hero has been subjected to greater heat than in other bolts, leaving the ore porous or honey-combed containing coarse gold. One of those nuggets was bought yes terday of Mr. Osbornd by Mr. R. Brown, for which ho paid seven dol lars. The gold in the nugget was hold together by a kind of veneering of tel lurium and formed a beautiful cabinet specimen, besides being of intrinsic value. There is now, Mr. Osborne claims, in sight in tho Bed Boy two hundred tons which placed at low fig ures will mill thirty dollars in free gold. Ono singularly favorablo condi tion of this ledgo is that tho oro is soft and easily mined, while tho walls are solid and require no timbering. Thoro is not a foot of timbering or logging about tho shaft which has been sunk for three years. A joint tunnel could bo run, which is already proposed, which would tap different ledges at ! great dopth tho Mountain Chiof at , sovon hundred and Red Boy at eleven j hundred feot, while the tunnel would j be but about fifteon hundred feot long. THK .MOUNTAIN' ('JUKI-'. O This is a patallol lodge to Red Boy and owned by tho same parties, and, liko it, it held by walU of slato and sohist. The slate had a strong look of iron rook and is highly inineralizod. Froo gold upjKutrti in juices, but tho gouoral condition U -iilphurets. At tlio base of the mountain is Pino creek ami iU ciii"s water 'Wer and mill JgdgrGuns, Ammunition, Field Glasses, F sites, one-half a mile from the dump. Three hundivd feet from the line of the Chief is a spring creek of forty iuclu's with two hundred feet fall in forty yards run. Between the Chief anil Red Boy crops out another vein, the Little Giant, which might serve as a sole rock for tho one and hanging lock for the other. There is a shaft of twenty-live feet showing a vein twenty two inches, carrying a largo body of iron sulphurets with occasional nug gets of tellurium and free gold. I asked Mr. Osborne what it assayed. His reply was: "I have no assay. Might as well assay a twenty dollar gold piece." Another vein or spur is north of the Bed Boy, which is rich in free gold. The owners of these three mines, Mountain Chief, Greenhorn and Hed Boy, with the two smaller veins or spurs, are Fred S. Lieppe, George Denney, Mr. Updyko and J. X. Osborne. This property with ad joining water power will be placed on the market as a whole, at what figures I have not learned, but of this fact I can safely make mention it is a prop erty that will be considered cheapest when worked most and deepest. There is no danger of any mines in this district "petering out." Out of the five thousand feet of tunnel, shaft and incline run in Cornucopia, theie appears to be 110 diminution cither in volume or quality of ore. OUK 1IAKKU CITY KK1KNDS. Inasmuch as your contemporary of Baker City, the Democrat, has very kindly reproduced every one of "Bau din's" letters, 1 do not think it more than fair that ono of his editorials about mining men and capitalists from the east, who visited Raker, there by taking in, by looking at that town, the whole of Eastern Oregon, should receive at tho hands of your mountain scribbler a slight recognition. It is true the display heads in the Democrat cairy the idea that Cornucopia is ono of Baker's feeders, as our small streams are to tho ocean, but that is natural to claim it all, and Cornucopia will not growl about that polite way of robbing Union county of her natural geograph ical merits. The Democrat of the Mth inst. says : "The party of prominent mining men and capitalists consisting of Col. R. II. Lavney, Judge Abe C. Looncy, Chas. U. Grovenor, W. l Donovan, Martin Kelly and Sain Tate, Jr., of Tenn.; Win. Buchanan, of Texarkana, Texas, and IS. P. Cowin, of St. Louis, who were mentioned in last Saturday's issue of the Democrat as having ar rived to visit tho mines of Cracker Creek, returned from their tour yester day morning after a very pleasant trip." Tho Democrat further says that the excursionists were "surprised at tho amount and richness of the mineral resources of Baker City," to all of which wo at Cornucopia take no exceptions. If, however, Cornucopia and tho bal ance of this mountain mineral region is part and parcel of Baker's possessions, why not allow visitors to now and then get beyond Cracker Creek in the direction of Cornuocpia and Sanger? They shall bo well received, and al lowed to return by way of Baker with out hostage for a renewed visit to us. It makes no difference whether our citizens do their trading at ono rail road town or the other. What wo want is a town of our own, right hero in tho mountains, and we have as rich mines as on the other sido of tho coun ty lino to build it up and sustain it. Wo (tho town people, not the editorial we) do not think it either fair or poli tic to ignore Cornucopia, or fail to give its mines the notoriety which their merit will surely force, at no dis tant day, upon the public. I learned this morning that tho tun nel in the Bed Jacket had reached tho ledge five hundred feet below tho sur face. Where struck it was four feet wide, and shows tho same richness as at tho cropping. On hearing tho above, "three, with a tiger" was sen t up into the midnight air. Wo know now there is no pinch out. Will tell you more in my next. Baudin. l!nKl t'oojmr Shop. S. l. AyluK, proprietor, btittur barrels and kitg. alwtivi 011 IiuiiiI. bliup liuiuo, Cnioii, Oregon. .Manufacturer of A good "upjily bOUtll of fcohool CINCINNATI. A Characteristic Letter From H. S. MeConias. THE LIVING CURIOSITIES OF OHIO. Mac. Pumps Some of the "Totem of Health" Into "Jim" Blaine. Editou Scout: Do you want to bite a special cor respondent for your really excellent paper to keep your readers informed of what is transpiring in the great state of Ohio? If so my services can be commanded for about ten thousand a year, and I will find myself, for if T keep on rambling around as I have for the past few years it would be ask ing too much of you to try to find me. Anotlier thing your "great head" will no doubt have observed, and that is that you must have a correspondent in this great state of Ohio, for it is the "Hub." From here eminates the great statesmen ; from here come the office-holders ; from here go forth the foreign ministers, although 1 presuino in this last statement I may meet with some dissenting views from Murat Ilalstead, who it is said docs not in dorse the old adago that "Every man has his mission." But nevertheless, j Ohio, on account of the knock-out of 1 her great editor, may be said to bo "a little disfigured but still in the ring." She can proudly point to the red ban danna of the noble old Roman to rally hor democratic hosts, and who so base as to forget for ono moment that Ohio republicans have Rutherford B. Hayes and his great hen ranch and "Forcak crs" of other living curiosities to inspire them to push on in their work. I love to dwell among tho biography of Ohio's great men, for I myself was born and got my start within sixty miles of tho sound of my pen. Cincinnatus was a great man and was the founder of a great city, or at least the little village that was named after him has grown to be a giant in j tho land. The principal features I have so far been able to "take in" is the fertility of tho soil that is mixed with Ohio river water. I pronounce it rich, as soil, but a horrible mixture as to water, but 1 think 1 can improve it by proper filteration and by adding a sufficient solution of "Totem of Health" to wean the people back to temperate ways from the inordinate use of beer. This should bo a great field for "God's medicine." And we too arc still in the ring. I have secured an order from the army for our medical soap for use in the hospitals at Washington, and have Jas. G. Blaine drinking "Totem of Health" and that is something to accomplish, and the end is not yet. Tho city fountain hero is something that attracts the attention of every visitor, and tho massive bronze statu ary, from four corners of which flows constant streams of that they hero call water, actually induces people sometimes to tasto what a well bred Oregon hog would disdain to wallow in. The zoological gardens hero arc the prido of tho city and the collection of animals is said to surpass anything in tho United States, not excepting the valuable collection in New York Cen tral Park, and the suspension bridge leading over the Ohio river to Coving ton, Ky., is one of the great master pieces of engineering skill that cannot bo excelled anywhero. Cincinnati is built in a lovely val ley on tho Ohio river and is surrounded on all sides by lofty broken hills which aro covered with palatial residences, and the city is noted for tho wealth of many of its inhabitants. Its location puts me very much in mind of Port land, Oregon. I spent last summer and a portion of the winter in Canada, and I guess I have gravitated as far south as I care to go at this season of tho year, al though I have learned ono thing and that is, that tho place to do business with a mineral water is further south than I htivo boon operating : where tho water is bad and malaria abounds, And I think in this respect I have "struck it rich." If I had a gallon I jug, yes even a glass full of Catherine ! creek water that is to-day running to I waste, I would bo tempted to say, ; "Hero's luck." By this time you will have learned that I am worth a good salary, for I ishing Tackle, etc., at have at least demonstrated my ability to fill up your columns when 1 have nothing to say. I have spent two weeks superintend ing the fitting up of an office and place to manufacture our "Totem of Health" remedies, and to-morrow morning it is ready to occupy, and already our mail begins to come. Wo have been sending out one thousand circulars a day during the past week, and our catalogue to agents will be ready early the coining week. Our salts are hero and with oceans of work before nicand a will to do it. I am as ever yours, 15. S. McCOMAS. THE COVE. I New of tln Murder of. !. Duncan lie. I 't'lv(Ml-"Il!iiM'iilii;;s of tin" HViik. , Covi:, May 22, 1880. j Sheep shearing is in full blast since I the rain. The crop will bo a very good ' one this season. 1 I A literary society will bo organized I at Ascension hall. It is reported that it will not be a cemetery affair. Mr. George Edgar came up from Portland Saturday, and intends to re main in the valley some time. Tho directors of Cove school district No. .r), aro ready to receive applications from those desiring situations this fall as teachers. Tho smile that C. G. Olson wears this week fairly illuminates the street. It is a boy and one that any father might feel poud of. Found, near the residence of L. B. Stearns on tho night of the 10th inst., a shawl. Owner can receive tho same by calling at the postollice. A neat fence is being built around the Ascension school grounds. It will greatly improve the appearance of tho premises, also of the main street of our village. The Ilulick boys have been award ed the contract for hauling lumber to the Cracker Creek mines for the now quartz mill, and will commence work in a few davs. 'fhe Misses Inez and Carrie Fisher arrived from Atkinson, Kansas, last week, and joined their mother and brother at this place. They expect to make this valley their home. The church fair to have been hold lust Thursday was postponed until Fri day evoning of this week, on account, 01 tho excessive moisture. Many at tractions are offered. They will draw a large crowd. In Justico Sanborn's court two ar rests were made last week for violating the stallion law by neglecting to take out the necessary license. Ono ease was settled by tho defendant pleading guilty and paying fine, and the other was dismissed on account of error in papers. Your correspondent had the pleasure of a visit to H. J. Geer it Son's fruit farm this week anil was shown over tho orchards by the hospitable proprietors. Tho prima trees, especially, aro fairly loaded down with young fruit. Evory tree, unless the branches aro supported by props, will Miller much damage by breaking limbs. They will also have an unusually largo crop of ebonies, which will begin ripening in about ton days. Tho sad news of tho death of Win. G. Duncan, in Dakota, on tho lfith inst. has been received. Ho was foully murdered while traveling with a con siderable amount of money on his pur son, and tho body was found soon af ter near Fort Bennett. Tho supposed murderer, 0110 Redmond, was arrostod in tho Black hills by a United States marshal last Saturday. Charles Dun can has departed for tho scene of tho crime. Married, in Union, May 20, Kdward A. Robinson and Miss Laura A. Fos ter, Rev. L. J. Boothe, officiating. Tho happy pair returned homo tho same day and were warmly congratulated by a host of friends. Tho Covo cornet baud serenaded them the samu ovuu- I ing. Tuesday evening thoy woio at j homo to callers and rcfreshmonUi wore ) served. Among those present to con gratulato was, perhaps, tho only ludio' baud in tho valley. Tlio musio was 1 pronounced though some of tho in struments woio slightly out uf tune. A groat rmltiutluii In luillcs' Juruy-wUU ut Mr. Kiiiuliurt's inllllimry ktoro. Greatly Reduced Pri TUB COVE. Its Various Resources and At tractions, A BEAUTIFUL AND FERTILE SPOT. Its Fruits, Dairies, Schools, Mills Timk-r and other Advantages. The following interesting description of the Cove, in Union county, i taken from the letter of ilr. 15. R. lturke, traveling correspondent fot tho Jiast Oii'uonian. Numerous errors ap jwared in It as published in that paper, which have been corrected hero : "'fhe lovlicst valley in the North west!" i univer-faUy tho expression of tho tourist, as he emerges fiom moun tain, canyon, or a; plain, into view of tho valley of the Grande Rondo. Later, having traversed either of tho level highways, through continuous, straight lanes, with "hog-tight" rail fouces, i.eat farm houses, productive iioldo, and evergreen pastures, eaoh presenting an nir of thrift, content ment and refinement on either side, ho arrives at the point of a low, grass oovorcd spur of tho foothills which pro jects into the eastern edge of tho val ley, seven miles north of Union, seven teen miles soulh of Summerville, and twelve miles east of La Grando. Ho looks westward and exclaim: "'fhe most beautiful landscapo 1 ever be held!" THIS IS THK COVK. Sheltered from tho prevailing winds by tho ridges or foothills just inon tionod, on tho south; and tho curving, timber-clad mountain range to the east, and northeastward. Tho land slopingat the rate of a hundred feet to tho milo, and through which comes Mill creek along the base of tho spur, ami numerous hush-lined spring biooks which descend at almost icgu lor intervals and in parallel lines from tho baso of the mountain toward him. Neatly painted farm houses glistening out of the many dumps of unit and ornamental trees that dot tho rectan gular fields; and -the Bpiros and house tops rising out of the avenued grove of oveigreon and other handsome shade and ornamental trees in the village itself, over which Mount Fanny, rear ing her crest into tho rogion of almost eternal snow, stands, a muto guardian. A view of tho Covo from Hcndcrshott's point would cause any one but u blind man to u'ter 11 similar ejaculation. thk son. is a rich black loam, over which tho streams divcrgo and spread out, mak ing it possible to irrigato nearly every aero of tho whole area; but it is a very exceptional season when tho land re quires any irrigation to produce mar volously of any of tho fruits, vegeta bles or eeieals. The few timothy patches aro irrigated, but tho woslom boundary of tho Cove proper being nuUical hay land, little is raised on the slope. THK 01,1 MATH is, of course, similar to that of itiost of the valleys of Eastern Oregon, though in this favored nook strong winds aro not piovalont; and tho swift running waters aro not breeders of miasma. Tho only druggist and tho only physi cian includo other vocations for profit. ITU Fill KTWUV HUH. '' Although actually cottled in I802-I5.'l, tho productiveness and susceptibilities of tho soil wont not ascertained till some years later. Now tho Cove is nokowlcdgfd to Iih the host and surest fruit producing section between tho Bltios and (ho Rockies. Kruits, largo anil small, of evory variety except tropical and all varietios of vegeta bles, including vines and tomatoes, aro a certain success. Thoy yield as tonishingly and are finely flavored. Yields of CO bushels of wheat, 100 of oats and 80 of hurley to the aoro aro reported. Orchards urn numerous and as a rule of advanced ago. Nearly every fimnor has from two to ten acres hear ing fruit, both large and small. These all find a ready sale, ut fair prices, right at homo. Jlr. II. J. Geer, tho pioneer nursery man, ft 0111 whoso lemitiful grounds at the timber line, the grand panoramic view may be had of the Covo, with tho vnnt hlrcteh of hay lands through cos at A. N. Gardner which meander the Gtando Rondo river and Catherine creek, forming a variegakd background, endorses tho last sentence and adds that his tcn nero hoplield has proved a bonanza for seveial years. DAIIiYINIi THK CKISAMKRY AND (MIKKSK l.UTOIiV. Nearly every farmer at the Cove keeps milch cows from 10 to 100 each. These they are takiug pains to grade up with either llolstcins, Short- ! horns or Jerseys; and tho result of J their enterprise is already becoming j manifest in the Cove creamery and i cheese factory, where liguiesshow that I the average yield of a fair milch cow 1 is seventeen pounds of butter por week I for nine months in the year, if she is j properly cared for. i This cieamery was built by a local ' joint stock company at a cost of about :?10U0. It is provided with a steam I engine and all the latest, appliances, ( and has a capaiity of 10,000 pounds of mill; per day. Mr. .1. M. Seldor, tho secretary of company, and a fanner and milkman states that they aro now receiving an average of 0200 pounds of milk per day, which jields about 12") pounds of butter and IRK) pounds of "half-cream" cheese. He says a well graded cow ought, to yield forty pounds of milk per day off these fields. Mr. .las. Payne, who owns a very costly residence and 100 good cows, has for several years conducted a water power dairy and cheese factory with satisfactory results. Ho has sus pended operations for tho present, ow ing to the pressure of other business. .MININd AND THK I.U.M IIUKINCJ III'SINKSS. Mill cicck, which flows through tho village and carries a good volume of water, with an average fall of ISO feet to tho mile, has its sourco in tho mountains to the northeast, and Hows through u body of lino saw timber, which could supply tho whole country for years to come. It has but one saw mill upon it. A shinglo mill and planing mill aro also located at tho edge of tho timber. Thero are oppor tunities hero for lumbermen who can command capital. Tho development of this section has only commenced; the O. it W. T. road is an assured fact, and will pass neai tho Covo; and it is only four miles to tho head of tho sand ridge, so widely celebrated for its vast production of grain. Mill creek would furnish ' the necessary power, and at little oxponso, to propel a hun dred different factories, mills, etc., of largo dimensions. But tho men of tho Covo, though by no means poor, have their money invested in other indus tries, and to acquiro these .things, money must bo had from abroad. Tho enterprising citizens hero offer great inducements to men of means, who would embark in any of the many manufacturing enterprises which a careful examination of tho surround ings could but convince almost any one, would prove successful. Corres pondence is already being had with Eastern parties looking to tho erection of a woolen mill here. thi: "town" is more liko a Now England village than anything I have seen in the Northwest. Yet it possesses no "ha'ntcd houses," or dilapidated wid ows' homes. Within a squaro milo aro fi(5 residences; many of them make quite an attempt at eleganco, for a now country. Some of them aro well embowered with ornamental trees, flowering shrubs and rare (lowers. The population to tho squaro milo is 27ft. Tho main street is fringed with various ornamental trees. Hero also wo find a rollor Homing mill with a capacity of fifty barrels per day; a furniture factory, a sash and door factory, a chop mill and a tan nery; two church edifices, a combined Masonio and Odd Follows hall, a pub lio hall and throe school buildings, Tho creamery and nursery aro also in cluded. Tho business row consists of two largo, well-stocked mercantile estab lishments, which curry nearly every thing in tho way of goneral merchan dise; ono drug and variety store, ono blacksmith shop, one livery stable, two boarding houses, 0110 butcher shop, ono carpenter shop and ono shoemak er shop. There aro two billiard halls, but no liquor licenses aro granted by Cunt tutted on tail piy. & Go's Jewelry Store