Beyond The Horse

        The mining operation is nearing its end. Gene is chiseling the last of the agate mentioned below out of the host rock and will be returning the machine tomorrow -- or the next day. "Folks often ask about the amount of pink plume," Gene relates, "but the name of the agate, Regency Rose, does not suggest that." Puzzled, I asked him what the name would suggest. Gene explained that the name "Regency Rose" was originally given to the agate by Bill Tulman who mined the agate many years ago. He had named the rock for its many possible colors. One year he hit a deposit of good, pink-plumed agate. This discovery, combined with the suggestive word rose in the name of the agate, led many people to believe the rock was named for its pink plumes. "Our claim, the Beverly Marie -- named after Jake's wife -- rarely has pink plumes," Gene explains. "Pink plumes are maybe one percent of all of the good agate found at Graveyard Point."