Eureka daily sentinel. [volume] (Eureka, Nev.) 1871-1887, 1876-10-19
A TRIP TO AUSTIN.

Inc writer noTeOl mas just TetuTIlou
from a visit to Austin, and proposes to
give the readers of the SENTINEL the
benefit of his observations. Leaving
here by Wilson's stage line, last Thurs
day morning, we were landed in Aus.
tin the same evening, after a pleasant
journey of twelve hours, including a
sioppage of about an hour at the Will
lows, for dinner. On our arrival in
town, we found bonfires blazing, bands
playing and anvils booming for a po-
litical meeting. which was held in the
open air under the discouraging in
fuence of a drizzling rain. We didn't
buy any OF this, a warm bed being
more to III notion after the journey
just com pleted, and on which we
shortly laid our weary frame. The
next day was devoted to seeing the
sights and greeting our friends. There
are not many sights to be seen above
ground at Austin-no imposing public
buildings, no art galleries, museums,
theaters, libraries, or public parks;
but there are to be seen the cleanest
streets, contest private residences u
a more general air of industry than in
any mountain town in Nevada. Sun
day was a beautiful day, and the
streets were filled with well-dressed
men, women and children; some out
for a walk and others on their way to
OF from the various places Of worship,
of which there are three, viz: Catholic.
Episcopal and Methodist. There is no
surplus population in Austin and but
very few unemployed men; cOnse-
quently nearly everybody is prosper
Gus and nearly all have a little money
put by tor wet weather, which has
jus. set in in that range of country.
The greater part of Monday was
spent in an inspection OF the mines OF
the Manhattan Company, situated on
Lander Hill, on the southern and
western slope of which a portion of
the town is built. At no time in the
| history of Austin have the mines of
Lander Hill yielded so largely or
looked so promising for the future as
at present. The old workings 81
the surface and in the western portion
of the veins have been given over to
the tribute miners, and the works of
the Manhattan Company moved to the
eastward, where greater depth has
been attained, resulting in a marked
and remarkable increase in the size,
richness and regularity of the ore
chimneys. We do not propose to go
into a detailed description of the va
rious mines, but 10 SIMPLY state two or
three instances going to show the
great improvement these mines have
undergone during the past six months.
The widest vein now being worked by
the Manhattan Company is the Pana-
mint, which shows up in a cross-cut
from the 600 200 level of the Bowman
incline to a thickness of four feet,
which il an extraordinary thickness
for a Lan&sr Hill ledge. On this vein
there is a breast ninety feet in length,
the ore from which during the past
month has yielded by mill process
from $3.50 to $40 per ton. without sort
ing-iust as it is taken from the vein.
The same chimney has been tapped by
y cross-cut from the 5l7-foot level OF
the Curtis shaft, where it shows up as
wide and even richer than in the
workings from the incline n hun
dred feet above, thus giving a stope on
this bonanza of an addional one hun
dred feet i'm depth and of breadth as
yet unknown.
The Paxton ledge is also worked
through the Bowman incline and will
likewise be tapped by workings from
the Curtis shaft. Wherethe ore chimney
Is now being breasted on, it displays
an average width of two feet, carrying
throughout the rich ruby silver ores
peculiar to the district, and which
in value far up into the thou
sands.
The greatest wonder of the Ma nhat.
tan mines, however, is the Independ-
ence ledge. on this vein there is a
chimney of rich ore extending from
the 290-foot level of the Frost shaft-in
which the vein was first cut-down to
the 500 foot level, a depth of 300 feet,
on an angle of AZ degrees. The breadth
Of this breast is 20 feet at the 300 foot
level, gradually increasingly till it reach
as a width of lao feet at the 500-foot
level, with a thickness OF vein ranging
from eighteen inches to three feet, all
ore. The ore from this chimney
yields an average by mill process
of from $3.50 to 800 per ton, and is
taken out and sent to the mill without
sorting.
The production of bullion by the
Manhattan Company is at present
only limited by the milling capacity,
which is o but twenty stamps; but
If the mines further improve in any
thing like the ratio of Improvement
experienced during the last month,
another twenty stamps will be re-
quired. The underground workings
are fairly swarming with men, the
principal work in which they are en-
gagged being the extraction of ore.
When the new connections are com
pleted from the Curtis shaft and the
hosting of ore commenced through
that shaft, the company will be in a po-
sition to bring to the surface a sufficient
amount of ore TO keep the mill run
ing all winter, and still have large re-
serves left.
In view Of these important and re-
msrkable developments in her mines,
it is patent that our sister town of Aus
tin, which has been Flooding along in
an unassuming sort of way for the
past ten years, has a long season of
prosperity before her, and that she is
destined to be at no distant day n OF
the most productive and prominent
mining camps in Nevada.
This article has strung itself II to
too great a length to permit of a de-
,nt;Dn IF tho ipnrnnu hnnla which