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THE SUNSET LEDGE.
Its Story As Told By the Old California
Miner.
THEY DIDN’T HEED THE WARNING.
•Fifteen Years After a Blast Released [a
BOOk [ Pair of Grinning Skeletons On
ten a Pile of Rocks.
( In Bntte county there is a quarts
mine which has been abandoned for
many years. Only the oldest residents
of the vicinity remember the names of
the locators, and scarcely a trace of the
Shaft and buildings remains. The ledge
was discovered away back in the early
days, when quartz first attracted the
notice of prospectors; when many worth
less ledges were worked because the
miners had not yet learned how to read
the value of such ore by the minerals in
it, its location, dip and contact with
other formations. The Sunset ledge .was
small, flinty and absolutely worthless,
but the men who discovered it thought
it worth development. They put down
a shaft 100 feet in depth in wet and
treacherous ground, and they used n<s
timbers. Then they let a contract tc
two men—a Cornish man and an Iris’
man—Wo construct a tunnel 100 feet in
length from the bottom.
Sometimes untimbered ground will
stand apparently firm and safe for a
time, and then, with no perceptible
cause, suddenly get shaky and fall or
close in. This was just what occurred
•at the Sunset mine. The two men in
the tunnel had almost finished their
contract and were “squaring up the
face” of the tunnel when one of the
men employed on the surface was low
ered rapidly, ran to them and told them
to leave the mine instantly -because the
shaft was closing in.
Why the men refused, in the face of
a certain horrible death, to heed the
warning is a mystery. The messenger
begged and threatened, but they were
obdurate. They laughed at him, told
him to sit down and smoke a pipe with
them and said they would leave the
tunnel only when they had “finished
her up in shape. ” Perhaps they imag
ined the man was playing a joke upon
them or that it was a scheme to get
them to leave the mine before their con
tract was fulfilled. At any rate, they
refused to leave the mine, and the man
who warned them returned to the sur
face only just in time to escape the fate
of the men below. The shaft, with a
roar, closed in, and they were entombed.
I No effort was made to rescue the bur
ied men. It was impossible to save
them if they were not killed by the
cave, and it was supposed that the tun
nel had also collapsed. To sink a shaft
100 feet through treacherous ground
would take a long time even in these
days, when all the “modern appliances"
for such work were at our disposal.
I The mine was abandon _d. Fifteen
years went by. The story of the mine
and the buried men became an old one.
Their names were forgotten. They were
like men who go down to the sea in
ships and perish in sight of their homes.
Their friends know that somewhere in
the sea their bones are bleaching, some
where in a great sepulcher upon which
they may look, but into which they can
not see.
. Fifteen years after the caving in of
the mine some prospectors overran the
locality. They were told the story of
the Sunset ledge, and they went to its
croppings and to 'the dump where the
shaft had been and tested the ore they
found there. Whether they found any
gold is not known, but they found
something which encouraged them. Per
haps they were not well versed in
quartz and believed that any ledge
would pay if developed. They resolved
to reopen the mine. It was their opin
■ion, they said, that the Sunset company
had not put their shaft down in the
tight place nor sunk it deep enough.
They (the new company) would choose
a better. spot, sink their shaft much
deeper and tap the ledge on the pay
shoot.
I Old men who heard of it shook their
heads and prophesied failure. They
'said no luck could come from disturb
ing dead men’s bones, but the new com
pany began and finished their shaft.
Then they excavated a tunnel and rais
ed an inclined shaft, hoping and ex
pecting to strike the ledge where their
judgment had led them to believe the
pay shoot was.
| One day, when they fired a blast,
there was a rush of water down the in
cline, and the miners were driven out.
After much trouble and expense a lar
ger pump was put in and the mine
cleared, and the cause of the suddei
flow was explained. The upraise of the
new company had entered the old tun
nel of the Sunset company about 20
feet from its face. And there on a heap
of rock, leaning against the walls, were
two grinning skeletons. The bones of
the dead contractors who had sat there
grinning at their fate and for 15 years
patiently waiting to be found were re
moved from the mine and given decent
burial. The mine was again abandoned
and will probably never be again open
ed. —San Frcncisco Chronicle.
EUCKLEN’S ARNICA SALVE.
The best salve in the wo rid for cuts
raises, sores, ulcers, salt rheum, fever
®ores, tetter, chapped hands, chilblains,
corns and all skin eruptions and posi
tively cures piles, or no pay required. It
guaranteed to give perfect satisfaction,
or money refunded. Price 25 cents per
box. For sale by D. W. Curry, drug
gist,-Rome, Ga.
NOTICE. ’
I want every man and woman in the
United States interested in the Opium
and Whisky habits to have one of my
books on these diseases. Address B. M.
Wolley, Atlanta, Oa., Box 33, and ;
one will be sent you free. d-w6-ly-
Sunset From Shorter Hill.
Vpon thy broad, commanding crest
I watched the dying sunbeams quiver,
Flung from the rare and radiant west
On wood and fl M and winding river!
Far floating through the fragrant dusk,
There came the south wiud softly sighing,
Sweet wildrt e scents and woodsy musk
From bio-dsn-embroider, d vales low lying.
I thought of all the varied dreams, .
Vague, vanished, prospects b ight and golden;
Born of these scenes on myriad themes
Hallowed heart secrets sweet and olden 1
•
How oft br ght eyes wh»re lay the dew
Os God's own ber is»n upon th< m
Have shone on that enchanted view
With all the light that heaven had won them !
While soft the west wind stole along
To breathe upon their shining tresses I
And tauzht them many a mystic eong
With purest, tendereet caresses 1
Old Shorter, may thine honored walls
Long shelter innocent endra or;
And may thy memory.haunted halls
Kciio with their g’ad songs forever!
Wbeu go d Georgians die they go t >
Walker county. Tbat is a settled fact.
Os all rhe bospi’able, clever and generous
p-ople that G d ever made, the folks
who inhabit the valleys of Walker stand
• unsurpassed.
I went up there the other day, and the
train took advantage of the snowstorm,
as usual, and got behind.
When I got off, to snow you ho v ac
commodating they are, Smith, the livery
man, who also carries the mail, took it
upon himself to pilot me up town, and
would have roused up the whole place to
make me welcome if I had have said sc.
The latchstring always hangs out at
the Foster house, and Foster throws an
other log on the fire every time a fellow I
comes in. It is just like him, and if i
there if abetter man in Georgia than Ex- ■
Sheriff Foster it is Mrs. Fosse-. j
I came very near taking up with those
folks, I tell you, and when I listened to
the sweet voices of their lovely daughters
singing below it lightened my labors
while I was trying to write a story for i
Tribune readers in my ro< m ups-airs. I
As .er warming myself well I counted
“one, two and away we go,” and hopped
into a big warm bed aid whispered to
myself, like I used to when I was a bov,
“Now, if the B a Man gets m->, bt’s
we'erme to mi !”
Walker county was once as big as a '
German principality, and even as it is, it
is a lots better place to live in than Baden- ,
Baden, Wuss-and-Wuss or Weiner-Worst,
or any of the rest of those places.
Traversed by three ranges of moun
tains, it is hard to c -me across, but in
the valleys between those hills are some
of the richest agricultural lands in the
South. Take, for instance, the celebrati d
Dougherty farm, McLemore’s cove a d
others that I could mention.; why, starva
tion stands aghast, in the presence of
their plentitude. Then the mountains
are full of valuable minerals of various
kinds and rich veins of coal and even in
dications of petroleum are found there.
The Durham coal mines and the iron
mines are now being operated, and over
on Flintstone is the largest tannery in
the world.
As for LaFayette, it is located on a
gentle eminence, surrounded by Pigeon I
mountain and Taylor’s ridge., with pure
air, delicious water and health that is
unexcelled on the face of the earth.
There are three handsome churches, |
Methodist, Baptist and Presbyterian;
and Capt. J. M. Jackson, the efficient,
principal, has a flourishing school of |
from a hundred to a hundred and twenty
five pupils.
I have done told you about Captain
Steele’s celebrated Union Cotton MiJs, I
and I could mention many more things
that wou'd make you want to go to Li-
Fayette; but you wait till I go b >ck when
•he springtime comes, Gentle Annie, and
I’ll show you a sight to behold.
They treated me mighty well up there;
Sparks, of the big dry good* firm; S iaw,
the grocer; Jackson, on the cornel; Fer
guson, Thurman, Kuby, the enterpris-1
ing liveryman; Col. Glenn, Col. Copeland, \
Cols Lumpkin and Shattuck, the law- '
yers; Capt. Napier, the acjomolished I
editor of the Messenger; Capt. Dicker
sou, clerk of the cour-; Judge Foster,:
the ordinary, and Brown, the attentive I
colored barber, and all of them.
The only thirg that worri* d me was
the last night, when I had Brother
Weaver snoring on one side, and Brother
Harris snoring on the other, and I wished
i hit I might have a Gatling guu for a
pair of minutes.
But the least said about that the bet
ter, as Ya-dwide Kipling would remark, j i
M. M. F. | 1
Ladies, if you want a pure, delica'e ' .
s >ap for the complexion, druggist .
will always recommend Johnson’s Medic
inal Toilet S >ap. For sale by J. T.
Crouch & Co.
C. L. JAMISONI
No. 24 Broad Street, i 1
HAS OPENED UP A CHOICE STOCK OF ‘
FRUITS,
CONFECTIONERIES,
— | ]
NUTS, NIC NACS,
AT HOLIDAY PRICES ]
Housekeepers and people gen
erally of Rome make yoir purchases
here and avoid fancy prices.
TOE HOSIE TtttEtfrfE, THURSDAY. JANUARY 10, 1895.
‘ This I
S Picture >
C and that” C
For a long time Hr. J®
Sa John Barbee, of 117
jgffi Main St., Durham,
Or N. C. was a victim Vjft
w to Dyspepsia He vi
; Jgy was advised to take %|t
C Brown’s I
1 Iron fl
™ Bitters. u
ft On July JO, 1804, he
'wrote a grateful letter in Lj
wk which he said:
Xn “‘I have used Brown’s
Iron Bitters for two fcs
jgV morths for Dyspepsia v?
KF and it has cured me.” O
iMk He does not mind
W it’s being known—
W perhaps his letter Vt
may help YOU to a
cure! This remedy
fei has helped thous- X./-
W andsduring the past
WB 20 yrs. Will you
try it? It does not
constipate and it
WON’T INJURE
g THE TEETH.
Brown Chem. Co. Balto. nd.
J. B. LEWIS CO.'S
Wear Resisters
I
For the Best Shoes for the leastmoney, buy
J. B. LEWIS & CO.’S
WEAR RESISTERS.
For sale by all first-class dealers in
Shoes. Don’t [forget E the trade mark,
Lewis’ Wear Resisters,” and don’t buy
any other. tu sun
CHICAGO
? The
ttlßVl
IwsmjJ/f To
KNorth
HOUTE OF THE
CHICAGO and liiuoTßn
Nashville
, TH£ ONLY
Pullman Vestibuled Train Service wit"
Newest and Finest Day Coaches,
Sleepers and Dining- Cars
_ the SOUTH
—fTOj—
Terre Haute, Indianapolis.
CHICAGO,
Milwaukee, St. Paul,
AND ALL POINTS IN THE
NORTH AND NORTHWEST.
J. B. Cavanaugh.
Gen. F. and P. Ag’t Evansville, Ind.
S. L. Rogers.
Southern Passenger A<t. Chatttnoo Tenn
Railway
IS THE
SHORTEST, BEST and
QUICKEST ROUTE
From Rome to Atlanta Chattanooga
3-THREETRAINSEACHWAY-3
I> A I DY.
For Atlanta and the Southeast:
Lv East Home 745 am Ar Atlanta 10 30 am
*• *• 11 1.5 am “ •• 1 si» lin
“ “ 9Ou pin “ “ 11E0 pm
F.r Chattanoog , East, W<s , No>th:
Lv East Home.*’ 10 nm Ar Chattanooga. 9 “<i am
“ “ ]U2M,m •• “ lOOvm
“ 416 Din “ “ 700 pm
T. C. SMITH, P. & T. A.,
Rome Ga
C. A. BEXSCOTE’I. A G. P. A.,
Knoxville, Tenn
LOWRY BROS
I
AT
C. D. WOOD’S
OLD STAND.
We Lead The
Procession
ON
New Year Presenls
New Stock
t OF
Drv Goods,
Notions
Hats,
Caps,
Trunks,
Valises,
Crockery,
Glass,
Tinware.
SHOES
In any Style and Price Yon Want.
OUR STOCK OF
Stamped Linens
ARE BEAUTIES.
LOWRY BROS.,
413 BROADoS TREET,
ROME, GEORGIA
Rhodes, Snook & Haverty
FURNITURE CO.
2,4, 6, 8 and 10 Peachtree Sr., ATLANTA, GA<
these Columns—Full
FACTS THAT WILL SAVE YOU MONEY!
We buy for 28 stores, We sell Furniture.
We buy cheaper than any competitor. y/ e se || carpets.
We will give you a better article at w .. st ' d R
the same price than any living we 8811 J>lo¥es 311(1 Kanges '
house Southi We sell Mantels
We furnish you HOUSES COMPLETE. We sell Blankets and Comforts.
IN FACT, WE ARE
The Kings of oaseftiraislihig
IN THE SOUTH.
elSwl 1
8 9 I
I
This Suit FURNITURE solid Oak, polish finished j 7jr"nn
or Birch Mahogany finished, French plate glass-/ 40 U J
l Fr't paid
• • < • • L *>y us.
If }ou need anything in House furnish
ings write to us. t
BRASS AND IRON BEDS
$9 and Upwards.
Canopies and Draperies]
Foi Brass Beds, Windows J
and Doors. W lx ~ ”
An expert draper in charge J
our Depart-
“ent.
This is the Colden Opportunity
For Housekeepers
<ee our cuts and prices illustrated Tho.it
sandtof articles that we can’t put i to this
spies. Write us about wbat you wuat—
we’ll Fdnd you illustrations and quote you
lowest prices—we’ll save you money!
■mm book ■ m
AMI WNTI.IG DESK
SraiLVR TO COT, ONLY sn.w.
Y Oar Mantel D-par ment iu a thing of j >». No
m-.re high p-icns.
& OAK MANTEL, with B-v-l G’n«a, Cub
j House Grate, Tile faco.ir. Tile Hearn., \|n
? complete, only VIVI
BUY
dun u viuu i i»u l
Sold by us at a very
cheap price. Wilt.: for
cuts and prices.