James Addison Reavis would be proud

[deducer]

I sincerely hope you guys can get together on the stone maps thing, but not any of my business so I will just wish you all luck.

Very unlikely, especially when the other party is simply grasping at straws under the guise of braggadocio.

Tumlinson is but a footnote in a much bigger story, and even he, himself, knew it as he lamented in the last page of his manuscript.

 

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[nobodie]

Where did the name Peralta come from? What I mean is did JW actually say Peralta when he told his story or did some writer put in the story? Who was the first to use the name Peralta.

 

[coazon de oro]

Where did the name Peralta come from? What I mean is did JW actually say Peralta when he told his story or did some writer put in the story? Who was the first to use the name Peralta.

Howdy nobodie,

I believe it was common knowdlege that the Peralta's used to mine the Superstitions. While I have no idea which writer first made note of it, in Waltz's deathbed confession he did state that the three Mexican's which he killed, told him that the mine used to belong to Don Miguel Peralta.

I keep hearing how good the Spanish were at finding gold, and silver, and how Mexicans were not that smart like to create the PSM's, that they may be Jesuit made. The fact is that a lot of those Mexicans were Spaniards, but not your average Spaniard. They were from Basque Country. The Basque Spaniards were the elite of the elite, all Basque were considered nobles since there blood was pure. Basque Country was never invaded by the Moors or Jews. It was mainly the Basque who conquered the New World. Most ships that sailed the waters were made in the Basque shipyards, and manned by Basque. Columbus is said to have been a Basque, and all his ships were Basque made. The first man to circumnavigate the globe was Juan Sebastian Elcano, a Basque. Diego De Peralta was a crew member on one of those ships, the Trinidad. Peralta is a town in the province of Navarre, Spain. I am not saying that the Peralta's that mined the Superstitions were Basque, but there is a good possibility.

Saint Ignatius of Loyola was a Spanish Basque who founded the Jesuits, so the Basque were very loyal to the Jesuits. The Basque excelled in mathematics, astronomy, science, cosmology, and just about everything. If you study the Basque involvement in the New World, you will have a better understanding of the Spanish, and Jesuit mining. Most of the mines were owned by Basque. La Vizcaina, the richest silver mine in the world, belonged to a Basque.

Francisco Ibarra founded the province of Nueva Vizcaya, and it's capital of Durango, named after his birthplace in Basque land. Pimera Alta also mostly Basque involvement starting with Anza. Arizona is said to be named by the Basque. Anywhere there was gold or silver, the Basque were there supervising the slave labor. Francisco Ibarra had declared that all inhabitants of Nueva Vizcaya were nobles as in Basque Country, and were immune from taxation. This seems to be why there are so many unrecorded mines.

Homar

 

[PotBelly Jim]

Where did the name Peralta come from? What I mean is did JW actually say Peralta when he told his story or did some writer put in the story? Who was the first to use the name Peralta.

The earliest Peralta reference I have found in the mass media (i.e., something the general public had access to, vice information privately held...which in this case is a very important distinction) was the famous P.C. Bicknell article...there was more than one version of it...here is the SF Chronicle (13 JAN 1895) copy of it, courtesy of Jim Hatt.

View attachment 1600977
I'm not saying this is the earliest reference, I'm just saying Bick wrote the earliest reference that I've found in the mass media. Not sure if you know or not, but P.C. Bicknell was very familiar with the Superstitions and lived in AZ...

There's a gap, for lack of a better word, in the mass media until "about" the time the Howlands come on the scene. I guess what I'm trying to say is that there's a disconnect between what people knew and what was being written about in the mass media. So this is only a partial answer to your question...Homar addressed the first part.

 

[sdcfia]

Howdy nobodie,

I believe it was common knowdlege that the Peralta's used to mine the Superstitions. While I have no idea which writer first made note of it, in Waltz's deathbed confession he did state that the three Mexican's which he killed, told him that the mine used to belong to Don Miguel Peralta.

I keep hearing how good the Spanish were at finding gold, and silver, and how Mexicans were not that smart like to create the PSM's, that they may be Jesuit made. The fact is that a lot of those Mexicans were Spaniards, but not your average Spaniard. They were from Basque Country. The Basque Spaniards were the elite of the elite, all Basque were considered nobles since there blood was pure. Basque Country was never invaded by the Moors or Jews. It was mainly the Basque who conquered the New World. Most ships that sailed the waters were made in the Basque shipyards, and manned by Basque. Columbus is said to have been a Basque, and all his ships were Basque made. The first man to circumnavigate the globe was Juan Sebastian Elcano, a Basque. Diego De Peralta was a crew member on one of those ships, the Trinidad. Peralta is a town in the province of Navarre, Spain. I am not saying that the Peralta's that mined the Superstitions were Basque, but there is a good possibility.

Saint Ignatius of Loyola was a Spanish Basque who founded the Jesuits, so the Basque were very loyal to the Jesuits. The Basque excelled in mathematics, astronomy, science, cosmology, and just about everything. If you study the Basque involvement in the New World, you will have a better understanding of the Spanish, and Jesuit mining. Most of the mines were owned by Basque. La Vizcaina, the richest silver mine in the world, belonged to a Basque.

Francisco Ibarra founded the province of Nueva Vizcaya, and it's capital of Durango, named after his birthplace in Basque land. Pimera Alta also mostly Basque involvement starting with Anza. Arizona is said to be named by the Basque. Anywhere there was gold or silver, the Basque were there supervising the slave labor. Francisco Ibarra had declared that all inhabitants of Nueva Vizcaya were nobles as in Basque Country, and were immune from taxation. This seems to be why there are so many unrecorded mines.

Homar

The Basque are perhaps the most intriguing and enigmatic people in the world. Their DNA and language are unique and their known history is amazing. Most people are unaware that they fished the Grand Banks off North America for cod prior to the Columbus voyages - at least a hundred years prior, as I recall. The very first Europeans to reach today's New England were shocked when their interpreters were able to communicate with the natives by using the Basque language. Tales of Basque fishermen were related at that time, but the Basque, like the Norse, have taken a back seat to Columbus in the "history" books.

Franco tried to exterminate the Basque culture in the 1930s and failed. Today they are still actively working towards independence from Spain and France. If the EU finally falls apart, you'll see independent Basque, Catalan and other historical societies resurrected across Europe.

 

[Old]

Very unlikely, especially when the other party is simply grasping at straws under the guise of braggadocio.

Tumlinson is but a footnote in a much bigger story, and even he, himself, knew it as he lamented in the last page of his manuscript.

To my dear friends,

What are you so afraid of?

What we have folks is an unfinished puzzle. We have a bunch of pieces, we don’t know if we have all of the pieces. We don’t know if all the pieces we do have are the same puzzle or two or more different puzzles. And; to make it even more complicated, we don’t even know what the final picture looks like.

Each of us has a vision of the final picture and a method to get there. Until that final piece of the puzzle falls into place we will not know what fits and what doesn’t.

If your version of your puzzle is complete I commend you. Share your victory. Mine is not, and I suspect most of yours isn’t either. To disregard a clue, a nudge, a differing view point is, IMO, very closed minded.

If my pieces of my puzzle don’t fit yours, okay fine. Disregard and move on. It doesn’t hamper you in your pursuits. Tally ho and carry on.

I prefer to listen to everyone and build a base of information that I can evaluate for my purposes. Some works and assists, and some I relegate to different boxes. To each his own. Do what works for you.

Words do matter. Most times, I qualify and note when I’m speculating. Where I get into trouble is when I absolutely know something is out of kilter and tell you why. When you dismiss that out of hand you are valuing style over substance. If that ruffles feathers it’s effect is to miss the greater message. Perhaps that piece or nudge is the singular nugget that turns out will complete your puzzle in a completely different framework than the puzzle I’m working on.

I’ve written you time and again to broaden your horizons. Consider all, evaluate everything, and do your own research. Its not real to you until you have evaluated it to exhaustion and it fits into your accepted framework. But; don’t dismiss it out of hand based solely on the messenger.

Lyn

 

[somehiker]

The Basque are perhaps the most intriguing and enigmatic people in the world. Their DNA and language are unique and their known history is amazing. Most people are unaware that they fished the Grand Banks off North America for cod prior to the Columbus voyages - at least a hundred years prior, as I recall. The very first Europeans to reach today's New England were shocked when their interpreters were able to communicate with the natives by using the Basque language. Tales of Basque fishermen were related at that time, but the Basque, like the Norse, have taken a back seat to Columbus in the "history" books.

Franco tried to exterminate the Basque culture in the 1930s and failed. Today they are still actively working towards independence from Spain and France. If the EU finally falls apart, you'll see independent Basque, Catalan and other historical societies resurrected across Europe.

The Portuguese as well have a long history of fishing the Banks. And, although a separate treasure topic, one of these fish harvesting groups were responsible for the "Treasure of Oak Island" IMO. Boatloads of fish meant for markets across the Atlantic required ample amounts of salt to remain edible, and I suspect Oak Island is where the Sea Salt they used was produced, using methods well known to both nationalities at the time.

 

[PotBelly Jim]

Strangely, this author seems unaware of the correct spelling of Peralta, yet he is writing for the Miami Silver Belt (16JUL1930)...

View attachment 1601364

 

[PotBelly Jim]

And, for people who have never seen it...

The grand-daddy of em all....this article appeared nationwide in many newspapers...the name Peralta seems correct this time...note that it runs nationwide in the beginning of 1931, just months before Adolph Ruth makes his fatal trip to AZ...and also the many similarities to follow-on stories, manuscripts, and even modern tales.

View attachment 1601365

 

[markmar]

From what I have read , the Peralta's land grant in Phoenix ( Globe , Mesa , etc. ) area was mentioned in many articles as fact after the Reavis trial . Seems some folks were not convinced at all about the land scam .

 

[deducer]

To my dear friends,

What are you so afraid of?

What we have folks is an unfinished puzzle. We have a bunch of pieces, we don’t know if we have all of the pieces. We don’t know if all the pieces we do have are the same puzzle or two or more different puzzles. And; to make it even more complicated, we don’t even know what the final picture looks like.

Each of us has a vision of the final picture and a method to get there. Until that final piece of the puzzle falls into place we will not know what fits and what doesn’t.

If your version of your puzzle is complete I commend you. Share your victory. Mine is not, and I suspect most of yours isn’t either. To disregard a clue, a nudge, a differing view point is, IMO, very closed minded.

If my pieces of my puzzle don’t fit yours, okay fine. Disregard and move on. It doesn’t hamper you in your pursuits. Tally ho and carry on.

I prefer to listen to everyone and build a base of information that I can evaluate for my purposes. Some works and assists, and some I relegate to different boxes. To each his own. Do what works for you.

Words do matter. Most times, I qualify and note when I’m speculating. Where I get into trouble is when I absolutely know something is out of kilter and tell you why. When you dismiss that out of hand you are valuing style over substance. If that ruffles feathers it’s effect is to miss the greater message. Perhaps that piece or nudge is the singular nugget that turns out will complete your puzzle in a completely different framework than the puzzle I’m working on.

I’ve written you time and again to broaden your horizons. Consider all, evaluate everything, and do your own research. Its not real to you until you have evaluated it to exhaustion and it fits into your accepted framework. But; don’t dismiss it out of hand based solely on the messenger.

Lyn

Lynda, I’m not going to answer for the other readers but I’m not sure what you think I would be afraid of. I’m certainly not afraid of changing my position or altering my theories as new facts or evidence comes to light, and more importantly, I'm not afraid of admitting error or fault. I do not have a "set framework" of anything- my theories and perceptions are always improving and evolving.

My interest is in compiling as complete and accurate a history of what has transpired within the Superstitions, and I knowingly do this in a field that is full of fiction, deception, and flat out dishonesty. It takes a great deal of patience to separate the wheat grains of truth from the humongous chaff.

My area of interest, and specialty, as most people on here know, are the Stone Maps, and that puzzle to me, is largely complete, and has been filled from the inside out. There are a few peripheral puzzle pieces missing and one of which is: what exactly led Tumlinson to where he found the Stone Map(s)? I know it was not by accident. That is why I was eagerly looking forward to the doc, in the hope that this question may be answered. I noticed that you did not answer my question regarding the doc and I guess this is not a good sign.

I do not claim victory of any sort, nor do I claim to know more than anyone else on here. I am only interested in acquiring knowledge that I know to be true and attempting to match it to what I see out in the field, or vice versa. As they say, it is the journey that matters, not the destination, and this whole enterprise, or mystery, has been nothing short of an absolute enjoyment for me. I love investigating, exploring, and doing research, and hope that I will not run out of things to find, track down, or verify.

And no, you don't get in trouble for telling other people they're out of kilter, but for how you say it. You are otherwise a first-rate researcher, and I've always enjoyed what you've written and shared with us, minus the sly innuendos and whatnots.

 

[azdave35]

Lynda, I’m not going to answer for the other readers but I’m not sure what you think I would be afraid of. I’m certainly not afraid of changing my position or altering my theories as new facts or evidence comes to light, and more importantly, I'm not afraid of admitting error or fault. I do not have a "set framework" of anything- my theories and perceptions are always improving and evolving.

My interest is in compiling as complete and accurate a history of what has transpired within the Superstitions, and I knowingly do this in a field that is full of fiction, deception, and flat out dishonesty. It takes a great deal of patience to separate the wheat grains of truth from the humongous chaff.

My area of interest, and specialty, as most people on here know, are the Stone Maps, and that puzzle to me, is largely complete, and has been filled from the inside out. There are a few peripheral puzzle pieces missing and one of which is: what exactly led Tumlinson to where he found the Stone Map(s)? I know it was not by accident. That is why I was eagerly looking forward to the doc, in the hope that this question may be answered. I noticed that you did not answer my question regarding the doc and I guess this is not a good sign.

I do not claim victory of any sort, nor do I claim to know more than anyone else on here. I am only interested in acquiring knowledge that I know to be true and attempting to match it to what I see out in the field, or vice versa. As they say, it is the journey that matters, not the destination, and this whole enterprise, or mystery, has been nothing short of an absolute enjoyment for me. I love investigating, exploring, and doing research, and hope that I will not run out of things to find, track down, or verify.

And no, you don't get in trouble for telling other people they're out of kilter, but for how you say it. You are otherwise a first-rate researcher, and I've always enjoyed what you've written and shared with us, minus the sly innuendos and whatnots.

i'd say the first thing you all should come to grips with is that hundreds and possibly thousands before you have all tried to solve the mystery and they have all failed...most of them lost their families and fortunes along the way....before you invest any more time trying to figure those silly stone maps out ..you should come to arizona and see what it has done to their lives....

 

[deducer]

i'd say the first thing you all should come to grips with is that hundreds and possibly thousands before you have all tried to solve the mystery and they have all failed...most of them lost their families and fortunes along the way....before you invest any more time trying to figure those silly stone maps out ..you should come to arizona and see what it has done to their lives....

I've put in plenty of miles in the Superstitions, to the point of wearing out the soles on my boots, two times, before I finally settled on Danner desert boots. I ripped out the sole in the picture below, working down Bluff Spring trail towards the Peralta trailhead. With some dramatic hobbling, I barely beat a ferocious thunderstorm sweeping up from the south.




As far as figuring those silly Stone Maps out- in conjunction with someone else, I've taken hundreds, if not thousands of photos of the area to which the Stone Maps pertain to, and in many of those photos are markings that can be seen on the Stone Maps themselves. Ain't no squinting either- whole lotta things line up just right. Very ingenious how it all fits together, if you ask me.

 

[Old]

Arthur,

If you are genuine in admitting fault or changing position then consider this; your frustration with me is premature and misdirected. You know that better than most here.

I don't own or control the answers you seek. You were given an opportunity to see all the evidence, all the documents, and view the footage and recordings to date. All of it. You declined. What a golden opportunity you missed. Yet; you continue to disparage me as you did in your prior statement Based on what? Don't you understand I DON'T own or control that information. Its someone else's property. Period, full stop.

The things I regret most in life are opportunities missed. Those that I miss and those that I see others miss. Whether you feel the information offered to you irrelevant or unworthy of your time, or passed up the opportunity for other reasons, that's your call and you will have to live with that. It was an opportunity lost based on your own decisions. Don't continue to beat on me for what you passed up of your own accord.

And that's all I'm going to say on that issue.......

Lyn

 

[PotBelly Jim]

From what I have read , the Peralta's land grant in Phoenix ( Globe , Mesa , etc. ) area was mentioned in many articles as fact after the Reavis trial . Seems some folks were not convinced at all about the land scam .

Bingo...but I have a little different interpretation...my take on it is that most stories in the media, in that gap between Bick's article and the others written after the Howland's show up, DELIBERATELY omit any reference to the Peraltas. Because the name of Peralta had been tied to a conspicuous fraud. These treasure stories were put in the paper to sell copy, not to anger their readers.

Then, 30+ years pass...unless someone has a shoebox full of old newspapers, not many in the general public remember the fraud...there's a whole new generation of people in the west, and most of them were born or had moved there after the whole Reavis thing...then the Howland's dig up all that old stuff, and we're back off to the races...so my take is that it wasn't so much that folks weren't convinced about the land scam...it was that a new generation of con-men had dug up the grant story, dusted it off, and used it to add meat to their claims and quest for notoriety.

 

[markmar]

Bingo...but I have a little different interpretation...my take on it is that most stories in the media, in that gap between Bick's article and the others written after the Howland's show up, DELIBERATELY omit any reference to the Peraltas. Because the name of Peralta had been tied to a conspicuous fraud. These treasure stories were put in the paper to sell copy, not to anger their readers.

Then, 30+ years pass...unless someone has a shoebox full of old newspapers, not many in the general public remember the fraud...there's a whole new generation of people in the west, and most of them were born or had moved there after the whole Reavis thing...then the Howland's dig up all that old stuff, and we're back off to the races...so my take is that it wasn't so much that folks weren't convinced about the land scam...it was that a new generation of con-men had dug up the grant story, dusted it off, and used it to add meat to their claims and quest for notoriety.

Jim

IΜΟ people believe what they read . From the article that said Dick Holmes was at the Onyx mine in the night of Waltz confession untill the article that said about the Peralta's land grant . We have to take all as fake or all as accurate , and not with the criteria of what fit in our beliefs and theories .

 

[deducer]

Arthur,

If you are genuine in admitting fault or changing position then consider this; your frustration with me is premature and misdirected. You know that better than most here.

I don't own or control the answers you seek. You were given an opportunity to see all the evidence, all the documents, and view the footage and recordings to date. All of it. You declined. What a golden opportunity you missed. Yet; you continue to disparage me as you did in your prior statement Based on what? Don't you understand I DON'T own or control that information. Its someone else's property. Period, full stop.

The things I regret most in life are opportunities missed. Those that I miss and those that I see others miss. Whether you feel the information offered to you irrelevant or unworthy of your time, or passed up the opportunity for other reasons, that's your call and you will have to live with that. It was an opportunity lost based on your own decisions. Don't continue to beat on me for what you passed up of your own accord.

And that's all I'm going to say on that issue.......

Lyn

Oh I know you don’t own any part of or have any control over the doc, but you do know what is going on because of your relationship with RG, so I’m hoping you can enlighten us as to the status of the documentary, or series, or whatever it’s going to be.

As far as regrets, I’m sorry that you have regrets and that you’ve felt that you missed opportunities. I don’t share that sentiment, however. This enterprise has been a blast for me, and very enjoyable from day one. I have long since accepted that I will likely never know the absolute truth about everything, but that doesn’t detract from the things that I’ve enjoyed doing.

And speaking of regrets, I’m not sure why you think I missed a “golden opportunity” since it all will be revealed at some point, won’t it? Or did I get something wrong?

As I’ve mentioned, I am keenly interested in knowing the truth of how Tumlinson discovered the Stone Map(s) but if I never find that out, no harm done because the Tumlinson angle is definitely not the be-all and end-all, for me. It’s a peripheral puzzle piece.

 

[Old]

Oh I know you don’t own any part of or have any control over the doc, but you do know what is going on because of your relationship with RG, so I’m hoping you can enlighten us as to the status of the documentary, or series, or whatever it’s going to be. ..........snipe quote

I can’t speak to your question of the current status. I don’t know. I’m not as deeply involved as you may think. I hope its continuing at some level but I don’t know that as a fact one way or the other. Its too good of a story to just die on the vine. But; stranger things have happened.

Here’s what I know generally. There is a LOT of interest in this story at the network level. And they have expended lots of “holding” money from time to time. The network level is step three in the process. Step one is to gather a viable product in raw form. Step two is to engage a production company to turn that into a cohesive story and film it on behalf of the owner and the network. And; step three is the network to buy and broadcast the product under their flag. There’s a lot more to it but that’s the rough framework. I think you know that.

The production level has been the stumbling block in this process. This is a crazy business far different than any “business logic” I’m used to. It’s a stop/start/hold process that makes no sense to me. But; the creative arts aren’t my forte. Maybe that's normal.

The one thing that has been consistent and hard fast in this process from the owner’s prospective and by contract is this: This project will be based on presentable, available, and documented fact. There will be NO made up BS presented as fact or even subliminal innuendo. That’s non-negotiable. Where there are gaps in the evidence, ALL options of thought and possibilities are on the table and the viewer can pick and choose how the story goes from point C to point D based on their own conclusions (among many).

There are been several production companies that have accepted that provision by contract and gone about their business developing storylines and footage. Late in the process they have produced a demo reel that is 180 degrees from that premise. Their storyline is one I couldn’t recognize based on the factual evidence. It was total BS written in the form of reality TV, not fact. That’s unacceptable. So the process had to start from step two all over again, and again, and again.

Meanwhile the scope of folks “in the know” grows. Greed and wrongful acts come into play and muddy the field.

What’s the upshot of that? Its time and money lost and wasted, disappointment at all levels, and a ticking clock. Meanwhile, life goes on. The rent is still due, groceries have to be bought and the car needs new tires. After a time, reality has to step in and your hopes and dreams have to be put on the shelf while going about the business of living. Regardless of how good your raw story maybe. To my knowledge, that’s where this is.

Lyn

 

[deducer]

Oh I know you don’t own any part of or have any control over the doc, but you do know what is going on because of your relationship with RG, so I’m hoping you can enlighten us as to the status of the documentary, or series, or whatever it’s going to be. ..........snipe quote

I can’t speak to your question of the current status. I don’t know. I’m not as deeply involved as you may think. I hope its continuing at some level but I don’t know that as a fact one way or the other. Its too good of a story to just die on the vine. But; stranger things have happened.

Here’s what I know generally. There is a LOT of interest in this story at the network level. And they have expended lots of “holding” money from time to time. The network level is step three in the process. Step one is to gather a viable product in raw form. Step two is to engage a production company to turn that into a cohesive story and film it on behalf of the owner and the network. And; step three is the network to buy and broadcast the product under their flag. There’s a lot more to it but that’s the rough framework. I think you know that.

The production level has been the stumbling block in this process. This is a crazy business far different than any “business logic” I’m used to. It’s a stop/start/hold process that makes no sense to me. But; the creative arts aren’t my forte. Maybe that's normal.

The one thing that has been consistent and hard fast in this process from the owner’s prospective and by contract is this: This project will be based on presentable, available, and documented fact. There will be NO made up BS presented as fact or even subliminal innuendo. That’s non-negotiable. Where there are gaps in the evidence, ALL options of thought and possibilities are on the table and the viewer can pick and choose how the story goes from point C to point D based on their own conclusions (among many).

There are been several production companies that have accepted that provision by contract and gone about their business developing storylines and footage. Late in the process they have produced a demo reel that is 180 degrees from that premise. Their storyline is one I couldn’t recognize based on the factual evidence. It was total BS written in the form of reality TV, not fact. That’s unacceptable. So the process had to start from step two all over again, and again, and again.

Meanwhile the scope of folks “in the know” grows. Greed and wrongful acts come into play and muddy the field.

What’s the upshot of that? Its time and money lost and wasted, disappointment at all levels, and a ticking clock. Meanwhile, life goes on. The rent is still due, groceries have to be bought and the car needs new tires. After a time, reality has to step in and your hopes and dreams have to be put on the shelf while going about the business of living. Regardless of how good your raw story maybe. To my knowledge, that’s where this is.

Lyn

No, I had no idea it was like that. Thank you for the update. Here's hoping for the best!

 

[Lucky Baldwin]

And, for people who have never seen it...

The grand-daddy of em all....this article appeared nationwide in many newspapers...the name Peralta seems correct this time...note that it runs nationwide in the beginning of 1931, just months before Adolph Ruth makes his fatal trip to AZ...and also the many similarities to follow-on stories, manuscripts, and even modern tales.

View attachment 1601365

Interesting story, thanks for posting it.

Strange how it talks about the Apaches spending a winter to collapse a mountainside over the mine, yet Waltz said when he first came upon the mine years later, Mexicans came out of the shaft. So the mine wasn't covered then. For this to happen, the Mexicans must have cleared the landslide away. A half dozen men with only hand tools? I have my doubts about the Apache landslide story.

Another red flag for me is the story of how the wife's great uncle just happened to be Waltz's partner. And unknown to the family for half a century are letters written by him that provide secret clues to the mine. The only clue they're willing to part with is the revelation that the landmark peak is Weaver's Needle, not Sombrero Butte, like everyone believes (so they claim). Funny how 36 years earlier in 1895, P.C. Bicknell's widely circulated article identified Weaver's Needle as the landmark peak. So I have my doubts about this story, too.

It sure would be nice to know where that "Yellow Medicine spring" is. If anyone has any info on that please post it! The location of a spring full of arsenic should be common knowledge to all who enter those hills.