40 FOKTYMILE, BIRCH CREEK, AND FAIRBANKS PLACERS, [bull. 251. 
of N. 00° E., was observed about a mile above Robinson Creek. 
Quartz veins are common in the schist and seem more abundant 
toward the head of the creek. Both bed rock and quartz veins con- 
tain in places considerable pyrite. 
The gravels vary from 1 foot to 3 or more feet in thickness and are 
composed of the rocks that are found outcropping in the valley and 
along its slopes, no foreign material being observed. The proportion 
of vein quartz is small. The fragments are more or less angular, owing 
to the schistose and jointed structure of the bed rock, are little worn, 
and are generally less than a foot in diameter. They are found across 
the entire width of the valley and on the low bench-like termination 
of the spurs, perhaps 10 to 20 feet above the valle}^ floor. The gravels 
are covered with a layer of muck up to 20 feet in thickness. 
It is said that gold was discovered on this creek by Jack Wade 
about 1895. Rim prospects were found in the fall of 1898. The gold 
is rarely found more than 1^ feet above the bed rock in the gravels. 
Most of it is on bed rock and extends into it in crevices and along 
joint planes to a depth, in places, of 4 feet. It occurs rather irregu- 
larly, and the creek has the reputation of being spotted. Good pay 
was first struck on the rim at the terminations of the spurs on either 
side, and these became the favorite localities for work. The pay there 
is more accessible and found frequently in greater quantities than on 
the valley floor. 
As much of the gold occurs as nuggets, which are irregularly dis- 
tributed, it is difficult to form an idea of the average value of the 
ground. It is said to average about $100 to the box length of 12 by 
12 feet, but some ground has yielded, by the winter's work, from 50 
cents to $3 per cubic yard, including everything from surface to bed 
rock. 
Much of the gold is picked up during the work, and many nuggets 
have been found. One was found during the winter of 1900 worth 
$216; and in January, 1903, one was picked up which measured 
4J by If by 1J inches and was worth $558. A week later another 
was found worth $437.85 in gold, valued at $17 to the ounce. The 
nuggets are well smoothed, of a bright yellow color, contain very 
little quartz, and are often convex on one side and more or less flat 
and irregular on the other. Some of the prospectors had observed 
that the nuggets found by them were generally rougher on the 
side lying next to bed rock. The larger nuggets have been found 
in the part of the valley which is about midway between the source 
and the mouth. The gold occurs generally as small flat pieces, and a 
large portion of that from the head of the creek is rusty. The 
little gold found in prospecting the side gulches differs in character | 
from that in the main creek in that it is very rough and somewhat 
rusty. Very little fine gold is found, and the proportion of black 
