The Manitowoc pilot. [volume] (Manitowoc, Wis.) 1859-1932, 1870-11-17
The Most Remarkable Discovery OF the
. Age. HE- ,r-r. r.rrr

Axe
From the Duluth Minpesotian.
We have before alluded to the Silver
Island of the north shore Of Lake Supe-
rior, 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-a small part at one end is
about eight feet above the lake level
This island was entered by the Montreal
Mining Company as part ola tract EN-,
bracing $50 900 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 miue) for himself ard
Sibley, of New York, a brother, we think,
of Gen Sibley of ST Paul. The Mon
treal mining company first made the dis.
coyery that the island contained silver and
by their agents sunk shaft on the island
but these knew little or nothing about
mining, and The water coming in upon
them, further working of their mine was
abandoned as useless. 1t was only this
last summer that Capt f. and his CON-
pany completed their bargain, with the
Montreal company for the island aud Sc
cured it by paying or agree
ing to pay s256O0o for the entire
100, 600 acres They went Immediately to
work at improving the mine in work
man like manner" Their first step was
to surrounded the island with cribs of tim
Der, filed with stone to serve as a break
water and ice breaker and within these
cribs cofce-dam was built, and pudlled
with clay. having the effect of making
the whole interior OF the island nearly
water tight, at least from the intrusions
Of the lake. The next step was to set
up large syphon pump worked by dry,
or nearly SO aud it has since been founu
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 20
feet in length and find it to be a true tis-
sure vein, with perpendicular wall-thc
vein OF silver matrlx being a.crrous spar
with some little quartz intermlxcd The
vein i, eight feet vile, and eye
witnesses from there state that for one
| quarter of this width it will average 10
per cent. of pure silver. On the first
| trial, after the water was first gotten out,
six men took out over 50 900 worth OF
silver in four days; and up to tho latest &C
counts inc working mas Dccn coHlHucu at
about this rate. Already l23 barrels of
native silver, estimated to lie worth SO,
600 to 500, coo have been shipped. The
yield of the nine-computcd by the ton,
il uot less tnan a dollar 10 round !!
The mlcc employs now about farty meu,
| and will increase their force immediately
The royalty paid on this to the Eng
llsh government is quite smaii-n0t cx-
ceeding one Goth Eye. witnesses OF intel>
ligenee, Judgment and experience report
hat Cant. Frew will probably take out of
silver, up to the opening of navigation
next spring, from 81 100000 to 50 600, 900
in money value ! The steamer Meteor
conveyed down the lakes on her trip before
last, 62 barrels Of silver. This Silver Is
land is no humbug, but an actual b0Ha fdc
affair, in which the most wonderful results
have already been obtained, and all bids
fair to make in yield and richness the most
remarkable mining discovery in this coun-
try for many years. Some masses of silver
went down on the Meteor larger and
heavier than man could lift. a part Of
the Island Vein, say two feet of the eight
feet in width, is wonderfully rich; and it is
from this portion that the large silver
masses are extracted. Other rich mines of
silver are reported as having been found on
the main north shore in the range Of TIE
Silver Island, and Captain Hodson, of
Portage Lake, has gone east to organize
company to work them.