Buchanan County bulletin. [volume] (Independence, Iowa) 1869-1891, 1870-12-16
A WHOLE ISLAND OF SILVER.
Millions of Silver being Taken Out
The Most Remarkable Discovery of
the Age.

From the Duluth Minnesotian
We have before alluded to the
silver island Of the north
shore of Lake Superior, in the
British possessions, just below
Thunder Cape, and some fifteen
miles beyond Fort William. The
island is quite small in dimensions
say 100 feet by 4O-and the most
of it is submerged at high water
small part at one end is about
eight feet above the lake level.
This island was entered by the
Montreal Mining Company, as part
of n tract embracing los, 900 acres;
and the island was subsequently
purchased of them by Capt. VIM.
B. Frew, formerly Of Portage Lake,
and Superintendent of the South
Pcwaubic Copper Mine, for himself
and associates, including among
them Major Sibley, of New York,
brother, we think, of Gen. Sibley,
of st. Paul. The Montreal Mining
Company first made the discovery
that the island contained silver, and
by their agents sunk Il shaft on tt,le
island; but these knew little or
nothing about mining, but water
coming in upon them, further work
ing of their mine was abandoned as
useless. 1t was only this last sum
mer that Captain +. and his comps
ny completed their bargain with
the Montreal Mining Company for
the island, and secured it by paying,
or agreeing to pay, two hundred and
fifty thousand dollars for the entire
one hundred and eight thousand
acres They went Immediately at
work improving the mine in a
"workmanlikc manner" Their first
step was to surround the island with
cribs of timber filed with stone, to
serve as a break-water and an ice
breaker; and within these cribs a
coffer-dam was built, and puddled
with clay, having the effect of max
ING the whole interior of the island
watcr-tight; at least from the intru-
sions Of the lake. The next step
was to set up two large syphon
pumps, worked by steam, by which
the inside was pumped dry, or
nearly so, and it has since been
found that very little working of
the pumps daily, keeps the island
clear of water entirely. They then
went to'work laying bare the vein;
and now have exposed seventy feet
in length, and find it to be Il true
tissure vein, with perpendicular
walls-the vein or silver matrix be-
ing calcareous spar, with some little
quartz intcrmixed. The vein is
eight feet wide, and eye-witnesses
from there state that, for one-quar-
ter of this width, it will average
seventy per cent. of pure silver.
On the first trial, after the water
was gotten out, six men took out
over $35 900 worth of silver in four
days; and, up to the last accounts,
the working has been continued at
about this rate. Already one hum
dred and twenty-three barrels ofna-
tive silver, estimated to be worth
s75, 900 to $4,000, have been ship
ped. The yield ofthc mine, comput-
ing by the ton, is not less than s. to
the pound! The mine employs now
about forty men, and will increase
their force Immediately.
The "royalty" paid on this to the
English government is quite small
not exceeding one-twentieth.
Eye-witnesscs of intelligence, judg-
ment and experience report that
Capt. Frcw will probably take out,
of silver, up to the opening of navi-
CATION next sprino, from $l,oo0,OO0
to s3,OOO,ooo in money value! The
steamer Meteor conveyed down the
lakes, on her trip before last, sixty
two barrels of silver. The silver
island is no humbug, but bona
fde affair, in which the most Won
derful results have already been OBJ
tanned, and all bids fair to make it
in yield and richness the most re-
markablc mining discovery i'll the
country for many years. Some
masses of silver went down on the
Meteor larger and heavier than a
man could lift. A part of the Island
vein, say two feet of the eight in
width, is wonderfully rich, and it
is from this portion that the large
silver masses were extracted. 9th
er rich mines of silver are reported
as having been found on the main
north shore in the range of the sill
yer island, and Capt. Ilodson, Of
Portage Lake, has gone East to or
ganizc company to work them.
Much excitement exists around the
shores Of Lake Superior over this
wonderful development of argentif-
crous wealth. And doubtless, now
that the mind Of the experienced
mining world in this quarter is di-
rectcd to the subject, much ''pros-