Where's That Gold?

[fritz]

The title of an old movie starring Willie Nelson, now I am in pursuit of it also.

 

But unlike Willie and his outlaw buddies, I am looking for it in the ground. Raw, virgin (maybe) gold. Gold that is rumored to be buried on my ranch.

 

The way the story goes is that this was once a main stagecoach road, between the mission on the Guadalupe river and the mission on the San Antonio River at Goliad. The road ran right through my ranch. I can still see the old ruts of the wagons, and the tall liveoaks have a definite space between them (the road).

 

The story goes that a stagecoach was going to be robbed by bandits, and the driver of the coach buried the gold shipment beside the road, then went on his way. It was convincing enough that the previous owner of my ranch spent a large part of his life digging holes alongside the road.

 

When my father bought the land from him, back in the late 30's, he would watch every move my father made. When my father bought a new tractor, a new truck, and a new car, all in the same year----he was convinced that my father had found the gold. How else could he afford all those things?

 

The fact was, of course, that my father had saved up money (hard earned) to be able to buy what he needed to continue farming. My father was never a spendthrift. He was, after all, a German farmer.

 

Over the years, I have used a metal detector to try to locate that gold. On the spot where the old fellow dug a big hole, by shovel) I passed the metal detector over many times. Nothing. But nearby I found numerous artifacts of those days---spent rimfire cases of .40 or .45 caliber ammo. And all kinds of cast iron junk, I assumed that someone had used the spot as a dump.

 

One day I hired a bulldozer to dig a garbage pit over that old hole. I told the operator that I was going to look at each layer of soil that he dozed up. We got down to about 6 feet, and nothing. I made a garbage dump out of it. Now it is filled and covered over, and metal readings are abundant. Time to move over and try again---just like the oil companies do when they strike a dry hole.

 

A few years ago, with an old White's metal detector, I was searching the spot where an oil company had spent an entire year drilling the third deepest hole in the country. I now owned the land where this steam rig drilled down to 13,500' in the 40's. They could not control the pressure at that depth, and it was only gas anyway (worthless in the 40's). So they made a shallow oil well out of it, a stripper.

 

Many bearings in those days were babbited, some with bronze, and they would melt the old bronze out and pour new bearings. Where the melted bronze fell, it got mixed into the dirt, forever to be forgotten. But not forever.

 

I found a few "nuggets" of that molten bronze with my metal detector. They looked just like gold nuggets. I filled my hand with them, and showed them to my sister---with the story that I finally found that gold that everybody was looking for. Well, not everybody, my father always dismissed the story as myth. He was, after all, a German farmer.

 

My sister was taken aback for a moment, but I had to let the cat out of the sack and tell her that it was bronze, not gold.

 

Today I bought a new state-of-the-art White's metal detector. I went back to the spot where I found the "nuggets" and immediately got a reading. But it was just an old piece of oil field junk, and the ground is so hard now with our lack of rainfall, that further digging was fruitless.

 

I did get a reading at another spot and the digging was surprisingly easy. I believe I found the old wellbore. But it's still a dry hole!

 

Someday.

 

 

fritz

[AzRednek]

I'm not much for reading books but if you ever get the chance to read a book called "Those Killer Mountains". I couldn't put it down. It's about a man named Jacob Waltz aka the Lost Dutchman and his legendary gold mine in Arizona's Superstition Mountains. Today there are still people living and dieing in those mountains looking for the Lost Dutchman's Gold Mine. Many legends and myths surrounding the Dutchman and the gold mine but as far as I know it still hasn't been found About once a year some kook will claim they found it but they never bring home the bacon.

 

The author of the book never did find the gold mine but he made his fortune when his book stayed on the best seller list for months.

[fritz]

The Lost Dutchman found a cave, and in the cave were stacks of gold bars. But when he returned, the cave had collapsed.

 

No one has been able to find it again, but I believe it was there. It's enough to keep people looking for it, though I doubt if it will ever be discovered again. The Superstition Mountains still hold their secret.

 

fritz

[AzRednek]

Some legends have the Dutchman finding a cache of Spanish gold as far away as Mexico and he was using the Superstition Mountains to lose the followers. Best I recall he showed up in Phoenix with both crudely cast gold bars and dust. Artifacts from the Spanish Conquistadors have been found in and around the Superstitions. Possibly the Spanish hid gold taken from Indians and the Dutchman found it. Another legend has Indians hiding it after taking it back from the Spanish. After the Dutchamn found it and the Indians learned of it, they moved it. Untill it is discovered the legends and specualtion will continue.

[ken98k]

lots of gold mines here.

Now days gold is located from aircraft, then they drill a lot of core samples to determine how many ounces of gold per hundreds of tons of dirt they'll have to process.

[AzRednek]

lots of gold mines here.

Now days gold is located from aircraft, then they drill a lot of core samples to determine how many ounces of gold per hundreds of tons of dirt they'll have to process.

 

 

There are alot of abandoned gld mines in Arizona. Many were left after the return per ton was to low.

[fritz]

"There are alot of abandoned gld mines in Arizona. Many were left after the return per ton was to low."

 

Well, the price of gold right now is at a record high. Maybe they just mined out all the good stuff, if the return per ton was too low. Maybe they should move over and dig somewhere else (like I am going to do).

 

There is still gold to be found in this country, just as there is oil to be found. The old prospectors missed a lot of gold, when it was only $16/ounce. Last I read, it was over $700/ounce, and gaining because of the weak American dollar (thanks to our administration).

 

No, gold is where you find it. Always has been, always will be.

 

My oil well has a better chance of coming in if the price of crude keeps rising. And it looks like that is happening. I once had a gas well that produced for 12 years (during the '90s). The most I got for an mcf of gas was $3.50, and that was only at the very last when the well was depleting. Talk about being born before the yellow pages, my well depleted itself under low prices.

 

I have a small part of my portifolio in gold, and it still ain't doing what it should. Same thing I hear from friends that have Exon/Mobil stock---the price of oil goes up, but not the dividends on the stock.

 

Who is raking it in?

 

fritz

[AzRednek]

Well, the price of gold right now is at a record high. Maybe they just mined out all the good stuff, if the return per ton was too low.

 

There was a mining operation here that started processing tailings from old mines during the 70's when Jimmy Carter sent our economy into massive inflation and gold peaked I think at 700 + change. One the price crashed they closed up the operation.

 

 

I have a small part of my portifolio in gold, and it still ain't doing what it should.

 

Wish I still did, I sold of my Koogs, Mexican gold and anything else and invested into property. My portfolio kind of went down hill when I had to retire several years earlier than I planned. Wish I had invested heavy into NFA weapons in the 70's. With my excellent 20/20 hindsight I should be filty stinking rich but as luck should have it, I'm simply getting by. Once my recent medical bills catch up to me that may no longer be the case.

 

Who is raking it in?

 

The IRS !!

 

fritz

[fritz]

"Who is raking it in?

 

The IRS !!'

 

Very true. But let me add the scenario where they strike a gold mine (or an oil well) on your property. In this case, the county tax appraisers for the county, the school district (the BIG one), and any other taxing entity you may have in your county, steps in and collects also.

 

And the BIG difference between a county tax appraiser and the IRS is simply this-----you only pay the IRS what you make on this gold mine (or oil well). The county taxing entities will tax you on the appraised value of the gold mine (or oil well).

 

It matters not if the gold mine (or oil well) peters out after a few months, and you do not receive much income from it----the local taxing entities will tax you on the INITIAL POTENTIAL of the gold mine (or oil well).

 

It is not uncommon to pay the county tax entities a bloated appraisal until the gold mine (or oil well) is plugged and abandoned. This sometimes takes years before the mining (or oil) companies decide to abandon it.

 

The IRS only taxes you for what you received in income from the mine (or well). An income tax is always much fairer than a sales tax, a bloated appraisal value on your land, or any other "fee" or whatever they call it in states that do not have state income taxes.

 

If you make it----pay it. Think about it.

 

Or maybe GW Bush should have thought about that before giving the big oil companies the huge tax breaks. I wonder if he gave the gold mining industry the same tax breaks.

 

I believe you know the answer to that. Dick Cheney is only into oil.

 

 

fritz

 

 

[AzRednek]

"Who is raking it in?

 

The IRS !!'

 

The IRS only taxes you for what you received in income from the mine (or well). An income tax is always much fairer than a sales tax, a bloated appraisal value on your land, or any other "fee" or whatever they call it in states that do not have state income taxes.

 

If you make it----pay it. Think about it.

fritz

 

When I had my uniform store nearly every dime I made went right back into the business increasing the inventory. I had to pay both fed and state income taxes on the increased inventory. Even though it wasn't going into my or anybody else's pocket it was considered a profit and is taxable as business income. When the partnership soured and the inventory depleted I was taxed on it again as personal income as I started taking cash draws.