Philip Arnold and James B. Cooper
On November 19, 1870, the Weekly Arizonan reported that “Messrs. Cowper and Arnold” had arrived at Tucson the previous week from the Burro Mines. They were en route to San Francisco and carried with them not only news of the mines at Ralston, which they asserted would “prove to be the best paying speculation ever witnessed upon the Pacific slope”, but also “a large quality of silver bullion which has been taken from the rock by the simplest process of smelting.”
One week later, the Daily Alta California reported that the pair had arrived in San Diego on November 22nd, Arnold bringing with him “fine specimens of silver ore from the claims of the Harpending Co., also some pieces of pure silver from ore roasted on the ground.” The item also refers to the Company as being in the process of building a railroad from their mines in the Virginia Mining District to the Gila River, where a mill would commence operations by the end of January 1871. As we shall see, Harpending and Roberts had no connection to this planned railroad. The article ends with the observation that some of the ore at Ralston was almost pure silver, assaying as high as $25,000 per ton.⁶⁸ From San Diego Arnold and Cooper made their way to San Francisco, arriving there onboard the coastal steamer Orizaba on November 28, 1870.
Before continuing any further, we first shed light on the source of those fine ore specimens and the silver bullion that Arnold and Cooper carried with them to San Francisco, so thoughtfully and carefully displayed along the way.
It has been stated emphatically and repeatedly in this work that there is absolutely no possibility that such high quality specimens could have originated from the claims held by Harpending, Roberts et al in the Virginia Mining District. Indeed, we have presented the words of M. L. Power himself who, only two months earlier, had informed Roberts (who subsequently informed Harpending) that “the best average ore we find here is $16 per ton.” Notwithstanding the fact that he omits to inform us what kind of ore he is referring to, he goes on to implore Roberts “Do not send a mill here for Gods sake.”⁶⁹
We speculated to some extent on the possible true source of the ores which were being displayed and reported on in the press throughout 1870; those ores which were returning such extraordinarily high assay values, and which would be shown to visitors from Pinos Altos in the spring of that year. As far as the true source of those specimens is concerned there is no definitive answer. This is not the case with the samples and the silver bullion carried by Arnold and Cooper in November of 1870; the source of these requires little or no speculation. It is almost certain that they were obtained, somewhat ironically, from no place other than Silver City itself.
At the end of December, 1870, the Daily Alta California published a letter (author unknown) which had been written at Ralston on November 30. The author states that, prior to leaving for San Francisco, “Messrs. Arnold and Cooper … visited the Cieniga [sic], a new district, about 60 miles northeast of here which is called the Silver Flat and Chloride Districts.”⁷⁰
“The Cieniga” refers to Silver City, the location of the mills and smelters which processed the rich silver ores of the Silver Flat and Chloride Flat Mining Districts adjacent to the fledgling town. It is while they were there that Arnold and Cooper undoubtedly procured the fine specimens and bullion displayed at Tucson and San Diego. The letter, which is obviously yet another promotional tool for the claims at Ralston, also states that “like White Pine and Virginia City, Silver Flat (which is the name of the town) will be a city of the past, when Ralston is teeming with life and wealth.” *
Arnold and Cooper, however, carried with them something more than the bullion and ore specimens; something that would have greatly enhanced the value of the stock of the Pyramid Range Silver Mountain Company, and which would ensure that there would be a veritable stampede of investors wanting to buy that stock.
There is one other newspaper report of Arnold and Cooper’s journey from Ralston to San Francisco. It too had appeared in a Tucson newspaper subsequent to their layover there. On November 19, 1870, the Arizona Citizen, under the editorship of Arizona Surveyor General John Wasson, reported that Cooper and Arnold had visited that newspaper’s offices. The item, under the heading “From The Burro Mines”, is a summary of what the pair had told Wasson during their visit. Their report contained essentially the same information as that in the October 18th letter from Ralston. The pair had spoken of the plans to establish stamp-mills, the proposed railroad to the Gila River, and the relative ease with which wood could be obtained in the Burro Mountains. They also informed Wasson that Harpending had already “gone east” in order to procure machinery to begin the construction of the railroad, and that “many wells” had been established both in and near to Ralston town-site, with plenty of good water having been located in each and every one of them at relatively shallow depths. Many of these same “facts” were also reported in the Weekly Arizonan of the same date.
One sentence however stands out as being unique to the Citizen article; unique in that it refers to something mentioned nowhere else in the flurry of correspondences and newspaper items appearing at this time, but one which is of vital relevance to unearthing the origins and original purpose of the Diamond Hoax. Referring to Cooper and Arnold, Wasson writes:
They also bring specimens of crystals which they believe to be diamonds, and which were found at the mines. Mr. Cooper appears to be a man of judgment in this respect, and he is sanguine that they are genuine by comparison with tests made of those found with some Brazilian gems in his possession. He is quite sure that rubies are plentiful, and other precious stones are lying around waiting the gathering.
It is at this point that we need to backtrack on our narrative in order to provide a full account of the origins of and the original purpose behind the first “discovery” of diamonds (crystals) in 1870. to this end, in the next installment will return to “Mr. Morgan”.
*See blog entries “Silver City: Lost History” , parts I – IV (May 10, 16, 21, and 27, 2003) for the early history of Silver City
©2007-2024 Jim & Erica Parson
REFERENCES FOR THIS INSTALLMENT
⁶⁸Daily Alta California. November 28, 1870.
⁶⁹Harpending Papers. M. L. Power to G. D. Roberts, September 7, 1870.
⁷⁰Daily Alta California. December 28, 1870.
Leave a Reply