Show GOUDEN il tj cantons r fascinating by tales of ug editha L watson liaison lost mines STORY OF LAS PLACITAS ta thin 1 1 the were ere sitting on their heels in 1 1 the shade of a corral fence these ti t 0 o one lay day lit in the lie spring of 1880 it was has at a place ilace not fur far from santa fe fc that center of roi romance nanco and excitement for the whole western country As aa they talked about things old and new never neer dreaming what madness was in store for them old jesse martin came riding up all steamed up tit over something look at this boys he said fairly st tittering stuttering ive got I 1 the richest thing on top of this ills t here earth tills this was a handful of ore ore 01 e so rich that the two friends tile Cont contagion aglon and grow grew as excited as martin you get it jess they asked eagerly 1 I aint a coln to tell you 11 was the lie anwer answer not now boys I 1 aint I 1 got a partner in santa fe and im coln to tell him first then when we e git everything hied filed ill let you on in on it all the pleading they could do donld not move martin from this decision ile he rode off ofa finally to ward binl ie fe with alth lila his orp ore and ills hta new s leaving them to wonder where lit in the world lie had found such a bonanza had lie he run the adams diggings or the hatchet mine pshaw those places were too far south for martin to find this roust must be something a lot nearer home nearer home why perhaps they could ask some questions of the mexicans and indians thereabouts and find out where old martin had been that was the ideal hastily they caught up their horses and rode forth and began to take up martins trail they finally came to a claim all regularly staked in the prospect hole was ore ore like that lie he had showed them very rich ore the two men were greatly pleased with their forethought in tracing down the location with businesslike promptness they staked their claims alongside Alar martins tins from these new mines ln in the making they gathered a few samples and then they raced back to the assayer the assayer grew excited with them Ilas tily he prepared for the tit e business ot or aith as they ey watched matched the process with eager eyes at last in the bottom of the crucible lay a button of something now for the add acid test would it prove to be gold with trembling hands the assayer poured in the acid and the button was not eureka I 1 they were orth fortunes fortun esl they rustled rushed back to their claims the news had already spread in anat strange mariner manner with which he word of newfound new found gold always ims uis spread and nien men were ere coming in to stake claims us its near to theirs ns as possible then lame cattle a crowd from san sanan fe at its lead were jesse jcsse marl tin and it tid governor lew wallace 1 so that ft was as the partner part nert 1 the news run ran ahead of thern them jesses samples had assayed 71 to IN to the ton everyone Kur Mine laughed with glop glee every eurl one cheered clipp che pred in three flays las Ila eltaR nc cumulated a or of lon souls everyone wag gold eraz cr iv the lie golden had let led them to fort itne and all they the lul had left their alta behind when they sot set out to follow tier her anil and yet jet some of the nim P hiilei fill 1 I souls begun to quiet down ddn it was sas to more inore assays essays to sor see just how far the gold oil out nut to learn just how rich it would run the ways ns is wart awde they showed rin rill value lit nil jill alip lie shock k as men ilen lit ill first 1111 in ill in lulic lul pc it they argued nii iii ill ily klinl there was soini ini DIM knew kne they lind bound gold cold tile must if tip 21 i fool not to tn kno liann ills ilo clotild not net tind gold ald when lian 1 11 rahi under tinder his nose hell thought of fir looking for mm mill tin 1111 lip HP had tin the rodn I thins thing on in top of till tilts here earth on th did lie well lvell hell hed better himself hut but martin lind vanished from sight and with him film disappeared about fixx liloon in real money money anne that he hall obtained from lew wallace and other prominent men of santa fe ile he hid had lit out nut for parts unknown as soon as the rush sot in ile HP was ton keen an old cod codger er to risk discovery dl winery find and 1 notion isitt tile mine that was still there find and the rich ore had most certainly come from his claim 1 so it had hut but not originally martin had the hole with high grade from another mine and the assay the button of gold which add acid would not it wim MIH merely a crystallization and not gold at all ten days later inter las Pla eltas had again become a desolate spot in tile the bills only thousands of tin cans sparkled and glittered in the new mexican sun just as shining wi a bad been the hopes odthe ten thou baud just as worthya wort htA AA tho tha claims they staked 1 |