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by the Van Winkle company. It joined the main work shaft (200 feet
above the lower line of the claim) at 60 feet below the platform and 20 feet
from the bottom, and was later continued upstream to, or nearly to, the
deep ground. As a result of these successful engineering feats, fresh
localities were opened for a distance of 5 miles along the creek and gold
began to flow again. In nine months the Van Winkle, Victoria, and Van-
couver mines alone yielded about $500,000, of which $218,262 came from
the Van Winkle. In 1875, the total production from Lightning creek was
$513,527, and that of the rest of Cariboo district, including tributaries
of Lightning creek, was $252,731. The Costello claim, just below the
town of Stanley, was the lowest producing claim (farthest downstream)
in the deep channel of the creek, although the tributaries Davis and Ander-
son below Stanley were found to be gold-bearing and were worked in the
shallow ground. Jawbone, Amador, and Houseman creeks remained
undeveloped, although strenuous efforts were made to reach the bottom of
the latter. The Gladstone and Eleven of England Companies, below the
town of Stanley, put up heavy and costly machinery, but met with little
success in their mining efforts. In 1876, the Eleven of England Company
struck pay in the deep channel. Mining was carried on for several seasons,
but only about $20,000 in gold is said to have been recovered. The Costello
Company expended $37,493 before finding gold. The cost of extracting the
gold up to November 1, 1875, was $33,852 and the gold extracted up to
that date! was worth only $20,476.

In 1876 and 1877 mining by the company is said to have about paid
expenses and when the last work was done beneath the graveyard below
Stanley the ground paid about 3 ounces to the set. The Vulcan Company,
consisting of ten full shares, is said by George Murdock to have paid
$10,000 dividends to the share, the Vancouver, with thirteen interests,
$21,000 to the share, the Victoria, with sixteen interests, $80,000 to the
share, and the Point, with six interests, $13,000 to the share. The Van
Winkle is said to have paid still higher dividends. As there was very
little clay in the bed of Lightning creek above Stanley, considerable diffi-
culty was experienced in draining the ground and keeping the mines clear
of water during the season. The difficulty was overcome by extensive
pumping being done simultaneously by.several companies. G. M. Dawson,
who examined the creek in 1876, stated,? “The whole of the deep workings
are filled with water at the time of the spring floods, and it is sometimes late
in the summer or autumn before the pumps again acquire the mastery.
In October of 1876 the following companies on Lightning creek were
driving their pumps day and night, the Van Winkle being the only mine
clear of water. Costello claim—pump, 12-inch diameter, 9-foot stroke,
making 10 strokes a minute; Vulcan claim—pump, 12-inches diameter,
6-foot stroke, making 18 strokes a minute; Vancouver claim—pump, 12
inches diameter, 9-foot stroke, making 10 strokes a minute (double acting) ;
Van Winkle claim—pump, 10 inches diameter, 14-foot stroke, making 10
strokes a minute (two pumps). The quantity of water being raised at this
time, would, therefore, amount to about 13,870 gallons a minute, or
19,972,000 a day.” In the upper part of the creek paying deposits were

1Evans, John, Ann. Rept., Minister of Mines, B.C., 1875, p. 10.
2Geol. Surv., Canada, Rept. of Prog., 1876-77, p. 111.