Rogue River courier., October 29, 1909, Image 1

lib
XOL. XXV. CHANTS PASS, JOSEPHINE COUNTY, PRECOX, FRIDAY, OCTOBER gP.TtHW. " - NoTaiT"
WEALTH OF THE
GALICE DISTRICT
JUDGE JEWELL TELLS OF MINES
. AND PROSPECTS
VALUES IN THE ALMEDA
An Interesting Discussion in Which
the Present and the Future
Is Discussed.
Judge Stephen Jewell, who holds
J the high and responsible position of
I Judge of Josephine county, in an in-
i terview with a representative of the
t Rogue River Courier spoke of a visit
of the members of the Commercial
i Club to Gallce last summer and the
i Importance of such visits to all parts
of the county by the leading business
j men of Grants Pass. He gave It as
his opinion that such trips would be
?" very much appreciated by those
who had occasion to travel. He said
. the road to Gallce was by no meanB
j; the worst In the county and yet it
badly needed Improving In many
' places. He thought it an important
:'gL thing to improve that road as it
T would assist in developing the num-
erous mines in the camp. From the
' time of his first visit to Galice many
years ago he said he had been lm-
pressed with the values of both the
4 placer and quartz mines of the dis-
trict, but his visit last summer with
I the Commercial Club excursion gave
i him an opportunity to gatn an accur
ate knowledge of the real wealth of
, the district. Quoting his own words,
he spoke as follows:
1 "Of course, those who have known
me for years know what I have said
r liniT written nn" anhlrct tn thp
past, but as many strangers are com
ing into our county, I take it as a
pleasure to say what I know of the
present and what I think of the fu-
.,4 , I'The various mines are entitled to
rreater space tnan me courier wouiu
1 1 likely to permit, and yet I must
.tlon a number of theso. The Al
f,Mdafcthe Gold Road, the Old Chan
rt 41, the Oriole, the Rocky Gulch, the
j'Vjtlice Consolidated, the Sugar Pine
f-nd others. The Almeda will do
f or an illustration. It has been open
ed In a manner that does credit to
jcho management of this really won
derful mine. Great ore bodies have
ftoeen blocked out for thousands of
ifeot, ready for the time when rail-
Pmr A f rannnAotnt tnn will AttnlilA t)i
I ' company to market the ore or bring
xne necessary cone 10 uo me smeu
ing at the mine. Whenever that day
comes the Almeda will take its place
s one of the great producing mines
of the Pacific Const. There are other
properties of great promise In the
Gallce district also deserving of no
tice. "I have been pretty well acquaint
ed with the Gallce country for some
years, but never made a personal
visit to all of the prominent mines
UR new Furni
ture
make
to
will, for the nrxt 10
days, give a discount
of 10 per cent for all
cash purchases.
R. H. O'NEILL -
until the recent pllgrimage of Grants
Pass business men, which has al
ready been mentioned. While our
time was somewhat limited on that
occasion, we, nevertheless, madfe a
tolerably thorough examination of
the properties named above. All of
the best mines are undergoing de
velopment and many of them are of
great promise, and they are each
year adding value to the resources
of Josephine county..
"While I don't claim to be a min
ing expert, I gathered enough in
formation last summer to convince
me that the half had never been told
Not only am I satisfied as to the pos
sibilities of this section, but I am en
thusiastically in favor of such state
and national aid as the Importance of
the country effected may demand.
"The county court of this county Is
more than' willing to help open up
roads into this district. We realize
mat a bridge must soon be built
across Rogue river at Galice, but
our resources are light and our bur
dens very heavy. We are keenly alive
to the fact that the mining, timber
and agricultural industries of the
lower Rogue river will some time in
the near future add millions to our
assessment rolls."
Five Cases of Diphtheria.
Diphtheria, or something that re
sembles It, has appeared in town,
but the children who have been at
tacked have In no instance been very
sick. Dr. Strieker, the health of
ficer of the city, does not reel cer
tain that it is diphtheria, or If it Is,
It is of a very mild type. He has
sent the throat mucous to the state
board of health at Portland for mi
croscopic examination. In the mean
time every care is being taken to
prevent the spread of the disease.
This he regards as the only safe
plan, as he says It may be that later
the cases will be more marked. Much
depends on those who have children
and it Is important that they look
after their health with more than
ordinary enre and have them exam
ined should throat disease of any
kind be manifest. We are glad that
the itTithorltlefl vho have the matter
In hand have resolved to stamp out
the Infection no matter what It
turns out to be. There have been
five cases so far Dr. Strieker said,
and the chances are there will be
no more. There are people who are
always opposed to giving the public
any Information regarding contagi
ous diseases. The Courier does not
think this wise and in proof of this
we will mention that on a certain
occasion the newspapers refrained
from publishing fncts regarding the
presence of a contagious outbreak
In this city and the result wa sthnt
outside papers learned of It as they
always do and published statements
claiming there were hundreds of
cases In this city and that the au
thorities were trying to keep the
facts from becoming known. Pub
lish these things and then people
from near nnd far will know the ex
act truth. Theso things concern the
public nnd the newspapers Bhould
lyibllsh the truth In regard to It.
When you buy Hart Sc'haffner &
Marx clothes from Calhoun you get
more than clothes; satisfaction guar
anteed. The Chnpeau for Fine Millinery.
is arriving;
room we
: - Home Furnisher
WILL BUILD AN
ELECTRIC LINE
FROM GRANTS PASS TO MEDFORD
AND ASHLAND
IT A JIM HILL MOVE?
Whatever It Is It Will Help This,
the Metropolis of Rogue River
Valley.
A company has been formed with
$1,500,000 capital, with John R. Al
len of the Pacific & Eastern at its
head for the ostensible purpose of
building an electric line gf railroad
from Grants Pass through Medford
to Ashland. This is a highly import
ant move and Grants Tass will lend
the enterprise all the assistance in
Its power as such a road will do much
for the development of the Rogue
River valley. It will add greatly to
the value of every acre of land In
the valley and will do much toward
the general improvement of the or
chards and farms along the proposed
line of road. It will be of great serv
ice In marketing fruit and other pro
ducts,, as cars can be loaded at any
point along the line. The construc
tion of such a road has been attempt
ed a number of times in the past few
years, but the enterprise had fallen
through before anything was accom
plished. This time there is more be
hind it and, from present appear
ances, it looks as If a road will be
built. It is learned that John F.
Stevens, a noted railroad engineer,
will look over the country through
which It Is proposed to build the line
and, It Is said, if he gives a favorable
opinion, Mr. Allen will go ahead with
the work.
Application has already been made
to the council of Medford for a city
franchise and the same thing will be
done in this city it is claimed in the
very near future. As soon as the
franchises have been secured from
all the cities along the proposed line
parties will enter the field to secure
the right of way the entire distance
from Grants Pnss to Ashland. This
Is the all Important thing, as such
a right of wny when once secured will
be very valuable and It will add
greatly to the prospects for building
the road. There are people who see
more in this electric road proposition
than appears on the surface. They
point out the fact that some time ago
It was mentioned that the Hill peo
ple were behind Mr, Allen In his
purchase of the Pacific & Eastern.
That gentlemnn promptly denied the
charge, Just what It might bo expect
ed he would do If the Hill Interests
were really In control. Here Is an
other pointer. John F. Stevens has
long been a Hill man and If he has
been employed of late years by any
other company It has not been men
tioned. The bringing of Mr. Stevens
Into this deal certainly points strong
ly toward the conclusion that this is
a Hill move. Hill wants to come. to
Grants Pass.
Just now there Is great activity
in Crescent City. A California lum
ber company is buying p everything
in the way of land around that city.
This points to the fact that a rail
road Is expected and their knowledge
must come from a reliable source or
they would not be investing money in
such deals. Hill would be glad to
get to the coast from Grants Pass as
it would give his line a great advan
tage over any competing line by hav
ing exclusively the vast resources of
the Illinois valley, consisting of tim
ber, minerals and agricultural pro
ducts, and again the immense red
wood forests on the California side
of the mountains. In the light of
what has been said, why may not the
Innocent electric line cover an enter
prise of great magnitude suiji as has
been outlined?
The ludiM.r Cnrnlwil.
Over at the Coliseum rink the la
dles of St. Luke's guild gave an In
door carnival last Friday nlKht.
From the time that Jos. Moss, p!kw
tuan md spleler-ln-ordlnary, bedeck
ed In loud cheeks, announced that
the side show was open until the lust
tamale was eaten, the last weiner
disappeared and the last handful of
confetti was thrown, the evening was
one continuous round of mirth.
The features of the carnival were
sufficient In number and varied in
style to suit all tastes.
In the German garden Teresa and
Katrina kept time with their wooden
shoes to the strains of Fiddling
Felix, while serving customers with
hot welners, coffee and cheese sand
wiches. Doctor Strieker, who look
ed as though he had Just left the
dykes of Holland, watched the cash
register and tried to talk German
at the same time.
The fruit and vegetable display
was doubtless good, but the four
pretty girls who presided over it,
left no room for further admiration
in that department.
The gipsy dancing girls enticed
crowds within their camp and once
there the palmists, card reader and
crystal gazer handed out futures un
til they were paid to stop.
The cider and gingerbread at the
country store tasted Just like it
used to back on the farm, while the
sweets of the candy booth and the
tamales of the Castllllan cafe, the
lntter served by Spanish senors nnd
senoiitas, suited the more fastidious
palates.
The musical ability of the In
dividual members of the little Ger
man band was a revelation to all
their friends. The artistic merits
of the program were,- however, vest
ed in the Jubilee singers and their
numbers were too brief to satisfy
their audience. The music and the
beauty of the Bohemian singers kept
a train of admirers In constant at
tendance.
But sooner or later all feet turn
ed to the side show. There Ira
Blnns, as the prize baby, alternated
spasms and smiles for the benefit of
the crowds. Lester Coburn as the
beautiful Yetta Zook, has a Joke on
half the men about town, his Identity
not being suspected in the disguise
of an opera coat and picture hat.
Miss Huler as Rose, the fat girl, do
ported herself with a grace quite be
fitting excessive adipose.
The Information bureau nnd lost
nnd found department, In charge of
Mrs. J. M. Tumes mado the carnival
street complete.
All in all It was a very enjoyable
affair to the patrons and a profitable
one to the guild, and if the ladles
care to tear off another page out of
the same book of amusements next
year, we think they will have a
house don't you?
WILLIAMS BROTHERS
DISPOSE OF MILL
Williams Brothers last week closed
a deal which conveys their fine mill
property at Reuben, In the Cow
Creek canyon, and some 35,000,000
feet of standing timber tributary, to
the Abaqua Lumber Co., of Wilbur,
Ore., for a consideration of $13,000.
Die mill Is modern and occupies the
only mill slto In a territory which Is
quite extensive. It has a capacity
of 3500 to 4000 feet per day.
The Williams Brothers' lumber
yards at Central Point havo been dis
posed of to W. A. Moon, who has
been In charge of the Central Point
business since the first. They now
offer their Grants Pass factory and
lumber business for sale.
The Williams brothers have been
actively and energetically engaged
In the lumber business In Grants
Pass almost since incorporation of
the town and they have had an Im
portant part in the growth and devel
opment of the city, and they now feel
as though they deserved a rest from
the more active duties of business.
They Got the 'Limit."
Joe Wharton, Fred Cheshire and
M. L. Opdycke went quail bunting
last Sunday and declare Viey got
the "limit." That Is true all right,
but It Is gnlng to keep us guessing
ss to Jut what the "limit" mentis in
this rase no quail in Blunt. While
tramping around the hills Mr. Op
dycke discovered a very peculiar
fungus growth at the foot of an
old oak tree and broiiKht It to town
to try and find a name for It and
found that It was railed "Opdyckl
tussrirefooti'dness." The gentlemen
are very enthusiastic over their
trip. Opdydrn killed a snipe.
Bulbs make fine house plants.
Ieae your orders at Cramer Bros.
THE RICH GROUND
OF BRIGGS STRIKE
ACRES OF GROUND WILL YIELD
$1 A PAN
PROPERTY- BEING WORKED
The Oregon-Cnllfonilii Consolidated
Mines Company Hum Foiyo of
Men at Work.
During the past two weeks, Mr.
George W. Soranson, of Cincinnati,
Ohio, and Mr. W. T. McConnell, of
Washington, Indiana, president and
vice-president of the Oregon-California
Consolidated Mines Company
have been hero engaged In making
an Inspection of tho mining proper
ties of the company! They were ac
companied by Mr. George 13. Sanders,
of this city, who first Induced them
to Invest in Southern Oregon.
They have Informed the Courier
that they are particularly well
pleased with tho showings of tho
properties and the vast nnturnl re
sources of Southern Oregon. It will
probably interest our readers and
especially those engaged In mining,
to know, that tho company with
which these gontlemen are associ
ated, Is now operating the famous
Brlggs Gold Btrlke that Is still fresh
in the memory of most of us; not
withstanding an enforced idleness of
three years. In addition to tho
Brlggs property at Goldenvlew,
which is located on the Oregon
California state line, the company
has a well-developed proporty on
Sardine Creek near Gold Hill and an
other property on Forest Creek near
Jacksonville, which were visited, as
was also MedTord and Ashland with
the result that Grants Pass waB se
lected as headquarters of the com
pany. As the Brlggs was one of tho most
remarkable strikes In the history of
mining In Southern Oregon, the facts
of tho find are worth repetition, es
pecially as the property now prom
ises to mean much toward tho de
velopment of that portion of tho
country, the wealth of which Is now
not even guessed at. The peoplo of
this country Bhould look after the
mineral resources more, oven If the
Innd valued are phenomenal, and not
leave all the plums and rewards for
eastern capital. Any one who Is
energetic nnd persistent can get a
mine in this country, as the forest
reserves offer nn unmnlchnblo rich
field, the richness of which Is proven
beyond a doubt by tho fnct that plac
er gold in large or small quantities
can be found (not occasionally) but
In every gulch. One must expect
hardships and being deprived for a
time of many pleasures, as that is
a part of finding a mine.
The prospector first goes Into the
lonely hills alone, then follows the
mad rush after he has made a rich
discovery. The eternal question Is
where to look where Is an unex
plored country today. Outside of the
deserts, where no human being can
exist for want of water, there is only
left onfr remarkablo as it may seem
the Oregon-California divide, one
of the largest unexplored districts
In the United 8atea, comprising the
Siskiyou Mountains In northern Cali
fornia and Southern Oregon.
Here is a vast solitude of 3000
square miles awaiting the prospector
and miner. Unlike most solitudes,
this one teems with vegetation and
nature Is almost the only guardian of
Its Immense wealth. It Is In this
great wilderness David Brlggs and
his family, consisting of a wife, two
sons and one daughter lived. Tho
fpmlly worked and tolled honestly
and xealously, gaining a livelihood
by days of perseverance and drudg
ery at ranching and hand sluicing In
the gulches for gold. Ray BrlKgs,
one of the boys, was the hunter of
the fiirr.lly. and to blm fell the lot
of supplying meat. One early June
morning. Ray shouldered his rifle
and went after game, He struck a
buck trail and followed It nn Buekr
creek from his father's placer 'claim
nd ranch. Ho followed It over the
dlrldo Into tho head of Thompson
creek. Here, far up on the hillside,
he came upon tho game and fired.
He missed killing the buck, but when
j he clambered down the mountain
! side ho tripped on a stone that was
particularly heavy and when un
covered proved to be gold quarti.
Breaking off a fragment it glittered
bright and yellow. Ho knew it wad
full of gold. When he showed the
rock to the family they went wild
with Joy.1" Supper and all was for
gotten. The hand mortar wad
brought out and the stone gave up
$900.00. A remarkable example of
phenomenal luck la shown, but it's a
fact that Ray Brings did actually
come, across and kill a deer on his
way home. Daylight found Brlggs
and his boy on the way to the place
where the rock was found, and they
were soon on the ground, to find that
Instead of a stray rock, there wad
actually a mammoth ledge of gold
quarts! In place on one of the moun
tains that make up the Slsklyous.
It Is hero that tho greatest gold mine
discovered in recent years Is located.
So was discovered the famous Brlggs
mine, tho glory hole, with a world
wide fame that will lend hundreds
of men Into tho new field tho coming
year. The mountnln side la covered
with heavy pine timber, nt your feet
flows Thompson creek and here to,
within a few hundred yards distant,
Is snowclad Tennnnt Peak and at ltd
base the slto of Goldenvlew camp.
Tho Brlggs family took out $3800
In gold In one day, nnd $34,000 In a
week, and sold the property to local
capitalists for $140,000.00. It is to
the everlasting credit of Ray Brlggs
that ho divided his find equally
among tho five members of tho fami
ly when the riches could havo been
his alone. The local peoplo, shortly
thereafter, sold to an eastern cor
poration. Subsequent developments,
amounting to 1200 feet oftunneli
and drifts, proved the find to bo a
big, permanent ledge of immense
value. Assays and tests show the
gold ore ranging from ordinary mill
dirt to hundreds and even thousands
of dollars per ton In value. Reliable
men who have been at the mine have
pronounced the" tfold ore to be with
out end, nnd all thl tn a lnnd of fer
tile valleys, tlmberj water and game,
A veritable mining paradise.
Georgo K. Snnders inform us
that the mlno would now bo a pro
ducer nnd dividend payer If It had
not been for the mlsmnnngement and
tho greed that developed among
certain stockholders, which was end
ed last spring by a change of man
agement, who, In tho Interest of
harmony, gnve a bond nnd lenso on
the properties to the Oregon-California
Consolidated Mines Co., a new
corporation.
Tho company started work at
Goldenvlew as soon ns the snow wad
off last May, since which time new
trnlls have been built, the ramp re
constructed, enlarged and mado com
modious and sanitary. Tho mine
has been re-tlmbored where necess
ary and put In first-class shape,
drifts on the ore nre being extended
to give a Inrger available supply of
oro for a mill that will built next
spring. A saw mill In now being
taken In for that purpose. Besides
this, two good ditches a mile and a
quarter long, taking In the water of
four creeks, have been dug along the
mountain side, which will give an
ample water supply for a hydraulic
plncer plant now being Installed and
which will bo producing the coming
month.
Last summer numerous and thor
ough tests were mado of the soil and
gravel on the hillside and gulches
below the Brlggs strike and the lodge
in which It wad found, which cropi
out for about S000"feet along the
surface. Many pans of dirt yielded
from $0.25 to $1.00 per pan, and
there are whole acred of this kind
of ground. It Id estimated It will re
quire three years to work the best
of the hillside and the two miles of
rrecks Immediately below the ledge
for which (thn mill will be built. The
gentlemen on holr; recent JrlBof In
sprrtlon;: actually picked '.up small
pieced of gold on top of the ground.
Bo ltd value as a; hydraulic proposl
tlop will bo all that oue could ever
wish for. Thin "comes a. a most
agreeable surprise Upi at Ockhold
r" jr. MX in, jaaJhcjuiaci i j alu ci Jtnl.
It has oponttd up as both quarts and
placer. During the past month the
company mado a very valuable did
eovery,. of, other rare end precious
metals.- the details of which will be
withhold, for the., time ,beln. ThU
. 1 (Cwtle-- n'P-' t ' v.
1