The photograph was taken in early spring. The men are seen shoveling the pay dirt into the sluice boxes. They have worked during the winter, picking out the frozen pay dirt, fifty feet down a shaft. Now the warm weather has set in, thawing out the ground and they are working hard, as they have to depend on the melted snow from the mountain side for water to sluice with. In the background Bonanza Creek is distinctly seen at the bottom of the mountain, giving a fine view of this noted creek. The snow is still clinging to the mountain side and the whole scene is one of animation and beauty.
—Edison Catalog