It has been remarked by intelligent prospectors that from the international boundary-line south to Spokane Falls there is a peculiar distribution of rocks on the surface, particularly from Calispel Lake in the Colville country west to Oso-Yoos Lake in the Okanogan country, between which points there is a stream of granite boulders about a mile in width. This stream is the same, no matter what the country rock may be; whether lime, slate, porphyry, or granite, these boulders are present on the surface, some weighing many tons, and others smaller, but distributed in a straight line on the mountains and in the valleys.
Some years ago some prospectors found a large piece of galena ore on a mountain near the town of Marcus. Certain that they had made a valuable discovery they sold the ore, and searched for the vein from which it had come until satisfied that there was none in the vicinity. The theory, of course, is that the granite and other boulders so out of place were dropped from icebergs that were breaking up as they floated over this country, then covered with water. Where the bergs were formed is a query still to be answered.
The Kootenai country in the Pan-Handle of Idaho is east of the Metaline district, and, although belonging to another Commonwealth, is tributary to Washington. It has long been known to be a mineral country, and was prospected for gold placers in the early mining furore following the Fraser River and Colville excitements of thirty or thirty-five years ago. The country is mountainous and picturesque, and contains several of the most beautiful lakes in the Northwest,—the Cceur d'Alene, Pend d'Oreille, Kanisku, and a part of the Kootenai. It has five hundred miles of navigable waters, and vast resources in timber and minerals.
The first mining done in the Kootenai country was in the Cceur d'Alene region, which is drained through the Spokane Kiver. The distance from Spokane Falls to the nearest point on the lake is twenty-five miles. The Cceur d'Alene River has two branches, on both of which placer gold-mining has been carried on for eight or ten years, but most largely on the South Fork. It was not until about 1883 that deep mining was undertaken, and previous to 1886 not much was accomplished. It is
