Nashville patriot. [volume] (Nashville, Tenn.) 1858-1860, 1859-01-01
lxMENsE DEPOSITS OF SILVER.

1(ctsc hpIh WYNN IItH
Robert A. Wilson. laie Judge of the
Sacramento District, California. win prove
interesting at the present time. The state
ments Of Mr. Wilson are corroborated by
those of II. G. Ward. Esq. Charge of Great
Britain in Mexico in his work entitled "Mex-
leo, in 1927 an authority" as Mr.. Wilson
justly says, "that can not be disputed be-
cause he acted and wrote under orders and
by authority OF his Government. As will be
perceived. Mr.. Wilson had resided and held a
high position in California. He was, therefore
well acquainted with mining countries, and
not likely to be led into error or attempt to
mislead others. His accounts of chihuahua
and Sonora are clear, full and conclusive, es-
tablished beyond doubt or controversy the
inestimablc value of those mineral and me-
tallic regions which have remained for SO
many years in possession of the es
Of savages, whose incursions have dcpopulat-
ed the northern States of Mexico and left
them a second California. to be taken posses
sion of and made to pour ont their vast trea-
snres into the lap of the commercial world
by race whose energy and enterprise are
equal to the task. At page 1888 Mr. Wilson
sIys:
Chihuahua and Sonora are the States or
departments TO be affected by orr Pacific
Railroad. Sonora is the most valuable of the
two, not only on account Of its inexhaustible
supply Of silver, but also on account of its
delightful climate and agricultural resources.
tits like the'Land of the Blessed in Oriental
story. California does not surpass il in fprti-
lily or in climate. With industry and thrift
il could sustain a population equal TO that of
all Mexico. The table-lands and the valleys
are so near together that the products of all
climates flourish almost side by side. Food
for man and beast was so easily procured
that the defendants of the early settlers
sunk into effeminancy long before the break
ing out of the great Apache war Of the last
century. Drought. however, makes the for
nation Of artificial lakes and reservoirs neces-
.arv to the full development of its agricul-
tural wealth.
But it is the remarkable abundance Of sill
yer which distinguishes it above all other
countries, except Chihuahua. | have de
scrihed in former chapter the long and Ia
borious process by which silver is produced
from the ore in the Southern mines and also
the great depths from which ID is raised In
Sonora, silver is most commonly extracted
from the ore hv the simple process of fusion
But in the district of Baptopilos IL is or
rather was, found pure. If we should adopt
the theory that veins of ore extend through
the rRtire length Of Mexico, then / should
say that they .crop out'' in Sonora. or rather
that the silver tOdes which are here above the
Rurface, dip towards the city of Mexico, and
also nOrthward toward Cali ornia. The
mountain chain which traverses California
under the name of Sierra Nevada. appears To
he only a continuation or Temperance of
the mountain chain here called Sierra Madre.
fNnthgF PanOrn \ ,uhiah ho
between the departments of Sonora and Chi
huahua On the western deciivitv Of this
mountain range. the most remarkable illus
traticn Of this fact Of cropping out is found
at BaptOpilos, already mentioned. This town
is in a deep ravine. The climate is Ike that
Of the California gulches-intensrly hot. hut !
remarkably healthy. Here the Iodes of silver
ore are almost innumrrable,' with crests ee- !
waited above the ground.
The niue of Ell Carmen in times Of the vi |
kings. produced so immensely. that its pro- |
pretor was eBnObied with the name of Mar |
quis of Bustamente. This was the beginning |
at the family Of Bustamente. A piece of
pure silver was found here weighing four |
bundled and twenty-five pounds
| should like to continue in detail to emu |
merate the rich surface mines in the southern !
portions of those two States: but lest should |
weary my reader, must omit them, and re- |
fer thOse who wish to learn more. to the |
translatiOns from the last official reports of |
the Minerva. entitled Chihuahua and Sonora, |
which are iTnbodcd in the appendix - The |
Good Success Mine (Bueno SuccessO) was /
discovered by an Indian, who swan across
the river after great food. On arriving on
the other sid'. he found the crest of an i'm
mense kede laid bare by the force of the water.
The greater part OF this was pure massive
silver, sparkling in the rays of the sun. The
whole town Of Bltopiios wen! tn gaze at the
extraordinary sight as soon as the river was
fordablr. This Indian extracted great wealth
from his mine: but on coming to the depth OF
three Spanish yards (varas) the abundance
Of water Obliged him to abandon 1t, and no
ATTEMPTS have since been made TO resume the
working When the silver is not found in
solid masses. which require to b. cut with the
chisel it is generally finely spriEkled through
the lode and often serves TO nail together tine
particles Of stone through which il is dissent
mated The ores of the Pastiano mine, near
the Carmen. were so rich that the lode was
Worked by bars, with point al one end and
chisei Mt the other, for cutting out the sill
cor The owner of the PastianO used To
bri'y the ores from the mine with flags flying
and the mules adorned with cloths of all col
ors. The same man received reproof from
the Bishop of Durango, when he visited Ia
topilos, for placing bars of silver from the
door of his house TO the great hall (saLa) for
she Bishop to walk upon.
The next mine OF interest in our progress
northwar,i il the Moreios. which was discOv-
-red in 1926 NV two brothers named Aranco.
These two Indian poems were so poor that the
hight before their great discovery, the keeper
If the store had refused to credit one of them
a little corn for his tnrtillae. They eN-
Dgted from their claim 500 00J; yet in De-
? detber. 1926. they were still living in q
tehed howell close 20 the source Of their
n. bare-headed and bare-leggcd. with up
n lie Of 5000 900 in silver locked up in their
'su, But never was the utter worthlessness
~. lie metal, a. such, so clearly demonstrated
A. the case Of the ArancOs-whose only
Z ARE consisted in contemplating their
boards, and occasionally throwing away
horizon of the richest ore, TO Ice Scrambled for
bv their former companions, the workmen.
/ Mar the Morelos is the Jesus Maria
,Tbouph on the western or Sonora slope of the
mountain. il is only eight leagues from Chi
huahua. his. like Morelos, is a modern dis
eoyery. and, of eourse, was not included in
the NUN Der of those Sonora mines which pro-
dueed such an intense excitement about one
hundred years ago in Mexico, aud even in
Spain
ii ,,dred metallic ioies were registered in
The story of the mine of FL Refu-
sas All covered by fellow Of the name OF
.'at the, gave occasion for anecdotes Ike
,lentn of the Arancos, which We have just re-
"a. A dealer had an old cloak which took
ncv of Paeheeo, and 10 purchase this
qn','h- gave ore. fron which the dealer real
e-riitlck-f5. Three twenty -fourths three bars)
,se. rcportidnct OF this mine melted between
s,,.,,s ,t,,.,sll aud 1914, S331.OOo. ON the
de OF the monntain Is santa Ealalia
q ny sun nf this rerl tdistrico are found IN
: Earth. filing immense caverns, ar what
ar. c,lied ..rotten oresp in California, aud are
easjIy srpara.ed by smelling. One shilling
so.rk Was laid aside from the silver which
one OF these cas- erns produced. which shilling