pkindle.] FORTYMILE REGION. 43 
were observed varying from 50° to 80° to the northeast, and the rocks 
have been closely folded. Quartz seams arc common. 
The material on bed rock varies from. 4 to 12 feet in thickness and 
includes muck, sand, gravel, and sometimes clay. In places there 
is no muck on the gravels, and rarely no gravels are found under the 
muck. The average thickness of the gravels is about 6 feet, gener- 
ally exceeds 4 feet, and the maximum is 10 feet. A small amount 
of clay is sometimes found between the gravels and bed rock. Occa- 
sionally rounded quartz bowlders a foot or more in diameter are 
found, but the greatest proportion is composed of angular schist 
fragments of small size. 
The thickness of the gravels increases gradually downstream, and 
from year to year it has been found profitable to work those of 
greater depth. Unlike Wade Creek, the gold is found not only on 
the bed rock, but in the gravels above bed rock through a distance 
oftentimes of 2 feet or more. In the bed rock it is found to a depth of 
H feet. The pay streak has been worked in places over a width of 
50 feet, but on the outer limits it contains small values. Ground 
has been worked, ranging in values to over $2 per cubic yard, and is 
said to run from $50 to $100 to the box length. The gold is found 
in pieces worth as high as $20, but the general run consists of small, 
flat pieces. Toward the head of the creek it is frequently black. 
Its origin is supposed to be in the small quartz stringers in the 
schist, which have sometimes been found to carry gold. 
As the drainage area is small a dry season quickly affects the water- 
supply, thus making the output of the creek, especially that of the 
upper portion, largely dependent on climatic conditions. The richest 
gravels on these creeks have apparently been worked ont, but there 
is some ground left which could probably be made to pay if water 
were available. On Walker Fork several outfits have been doing 
fairly well during the past few years on ground that was not worked 
in the early days, and the present annual production is probably 
about $20,0*00 to $25,000. 
Most mining has been carried on by the open-cut method. For 
this it has been found necessary, on account of the low grade of the 
stream, to construct bed-rock drains 400 to 1,000 feet in length. A 
horse scraper was in use on one claim to clear away the tailings, and 
on another a steam engine was in operation, running a scraper and 
a bucket conveyor to elevate the dirt to the sluice boxes, handling 
effectively 400 to 500 scrapers of dirt a day (PL VIII, B) . 
In July, 1903, about 40 men were working on Walker Fork and its 
tributaries, and wages were $4 a day with board. 
The country south from Walker Fork on the headwaters of Cherry 
Creek is being prospected. The bed rock and gravels of this area 
are similar in character to those found on Walker Fork. At the 
