Be careful what you ask for...

[cordilleran]

Today was a mind-bending day. Dug a 1890s pit seven feet down and broke into an 1870s pit beneath a concrete slab in the adjacent yard: cathedral pickles, key-hole whiskey flasks, cures, embossed beers, turtle inks, even a mint local rare variant druggist, J.H. Day, Walla Walla in cornflower blue (only four known). In the hole for several hours, monsoon-grade rains came. Rolling in the mud and dodging a pit bull in the yard who thought we were interloping ground moles. One member of the privy posse nearly cut his finger off and took leave to get it reattached. Returned to the rapidly filling manhole, water in -- bottles out, jumped in the muck and continued digging. Broke through a third privy pit seven hours into the dig, this one dating from the 1880s. With headlamps we had lent creedence to the canine's supposition we were, indeed, gargantuan moles, now hardly discernable from sapient human beings given our muddied exteriors. Thought about setting square sets and staking a legal lode claim on the terrain for continued underground mining operations when cutfinger's wife called via cellphone complaining of being a privy pit widow. Filled in the crater with the intent of excavating from a different angle this weekend. The remorse of leaving our premature burial was dampened only by the fact that we pulled some real gems from this quagmire and there is the opportunity to return and scour this glory hole. Oh yes, there are still at least eight more privy pit locations indicated by the 1894 Sanborn maps along this block alleyway (all cherry), not to mention those not noted. And yes, I purchased a digital camera (e-Bay) so that I might share the glory with you all in the very near future. Hoi Hoi.

 

[caldigs]

Sounds like a story !!! Have you dug many western 5ths up there ?

 

[beendiggin]

Can't wait to see the pics...sounds like fun !