New-York tribune. [volume] (New York [N.Y.]) 1866-1924, 1879-09-27
MINING IN MONTANA.

81 southwest Of Helena. each covering 'r''
torx f,,r or five miles square and separator lt"'"
The other or = range of mountains l'uuo VI
fee, hirh The most important camp III tue w
orado district is Nckes. tins name having I.''n'N
heen gwen 10 the place in honor of W. W. NlcAeS'
,ho ,re.i,l,nt Of the Alta Montana Company, Who
bas inst come out from New-Y0rk to take personal
ob.rr. of the business The road from Helena 10
U,ckcs follows up the canon Of PucklN rear
Creek mot that If tie Little in'AN
Pear. so justly noted for ITS grand scenery
one Of the trbutarics of the Missouri hlNer'
heading through n beautiful country. bounded CD
each side by grassy hills, narrow strip "i Tue o"'
tom heing cultivated in grain or reserved "S
,rcodo,v from which are cut LARGE crops of Wild hay
Tho Alta Montana works themselves are III
p1,lch between high mountains about 1--WE miles
west 81 Jeff, r.on Clty. went to Wlckes tins week
and .n.t Ia, greater part of three days IN visiting
.he most developed mines of the Colorado ana
Ronldcr districts and in famiarzlng myself WIN
the process of reducing the silver ores that are
mined there.
The argeniifcrous rock of this part OF Montana is
generally refractory. that -, the silver "hch II
co,tains is mixed with base metals in such way
fha, the process Of separation is frequently COM
MEX aud expensive one, requiring ingenious ma
chucry and expert knowledge to make 1t success
ful. silver ores generally may be divided INTO two
cla,~es-fhose that may boz reduced by smelling
and thos. that NAV he millcd. Some smelling ores
containing no sulphur, require no previous rrepara
ton bui are pat directly into furnace Win 'h'I-
coal or COKE and. perhaps. some iron ore To form q
aux. and tie b,se bullion consisting Of lead carry
inc silver. is melted out The carbonate ores oi
Ieal,ile are of This character, and ms they contain
in ih.nsciVe- the material for fuN To carry O." me
gaurue or rrcs which Is mixed with the metals
the cost # reducing them is probably less than
80 .flr-
country.
The majority 81 silver ores contain sulphur IN
larrc quantties. and they can neither bee smolted
nor miled economically until tins is removed Inc
amount Of lead nixel with the silver In the ores OF
different mines and also IN different ores OF the
mrniac i- NOT always the sane so that IN order
lo.l,eal' tir precious metal which an ore con-
'aii,. 90. ul Chat handles them economically must
b.nrpir.d 90 separate the ores according 20 their
different characters. and to give each ihe treatment
which ,rii. reduce 70 most thoroughly and ch"opy.
Tho want o., capital requisite for tine erection
of su,h WORKS, and the lack of cXperene"
aud ,>nsrt knowledge necessary 10 op'r-
ate fI.u where they have been erected
have heretofore made 10 impossible, 10 mine
silv.~.oa O. ltr,. scale with profit l1 most of the
dislnci.o OBJ tlus TcIraor. IN t.c Colorado AMI
H.r.l. D.. .r,t.. although There air many mines
o, - .. ..... . ul feb thtl-c.n po longer Bee amy
been used Ip fla.r Developments ticy have not. ON
the ,rlo. returned to their owners the money
srrrf -...l .f,rl. simply lacar., almost every "t-
tc,if to t~.r- fro r.s 300 the Spot has failed for
tltr...I. .unre given, and tire cost oi transport
inc tlc .e, 10 Ga cage. Newark Me- orto Europe,
tob. reduced Els hren Sd gr.,t That the returns
from unac nlI r highest -rauls of ores were suiu-
Gent ol1, expenses.
Let ma illustrate: Suppose there IS a mine in
TIE Colorado district which i~ good VEN OF
c,..rau.. w. g. a.snrtcd into $500 -rlles consist,
oil oue top rlg ag TO contain 100 ounces Of sl-
Yer ia every five toms AVERAGING forty ounces 10
tom. In other words. ig every six tons mined. one
may Poi. elected which viii contain 40 ounces If
si.vor while tire other five VIII produce only forty
ounces each. Now the only way to extract The sll-
vcrfr,m chat ora has herctofoi. been to send 20
Cn.ca.o. Newark y. j., oI Ill.,. ,ge. Germany, o.
bcI,.u.cG. But until within year. tne freight
onat.I of 0it .iom th, uiue in Montana ID New
al, U.. .e,a 500, and t0 Frey borg eu2 OF sos. 1t
will i. seem al once. therefore tAat tae five toms Of
fou,-ouucc ore cannot be- shipped since 10 would
takr ino-e cham the entire poluc. Of it 10 pay
the ncirnt. Hut those five tons have 10
be taken out Of the mine IN order To
get 80 thst which is richer, and thcy
each cost the owner just rs much az the mouth of
The uuuel ile top Of the shat as does the one ton
ofhrl-ladc ore, and IL DE cannot sell them, he
.
minln. nc one tou which Lc can sell. 10 sort the
ore break IT up. rllceitin sacks and transport il
'front.' cminc which s.. generally ON % mountain
top aud difficult Of access. to the point where the
freiph.r. taNe charge of i cost. SO ton, and the
chang ior smoitlDg in Newark were 80 a ton.
Thu makes th. COST 90 the producer of every ton OF
ore sh f.s 100, beside, thr actual cost OF mining
IT, Bat t.c owner Lad 10 wait at least four months
after making q Shipment oi ore before he got any
returns. although an tie meantime Tie cos, OF OPP
Grating the InIo AID the fr, eht ON all the ore
shipped had 10 be paid IN cash and
as very few of The miners were men of large cap
ital they had IL borrow money at the
banks and pay interest on it %; the rate of at
least = per cent a month. There must, therefore
be added TO the cost OF every ton OF ore shipped -
for interest charges. making TlOs. The supcrln-
tendent OF one of the mines which formerly shipped
ore very heavily tells me that adding the cost of mn-
ing TO these expenses lac found that he paid ont for
every Ton Of ore away Sill If the ore carried
$50 ounces of silver to Ton and did not contain
much zinc. its value would be about $40 and the
profit $50. But ont of thls profit must Ice pald the
cost Of mining five tons oi owgrade ore that could
no; bc used al OIL
Does anybody wonder that silver mining In Mon
tana has not generally been profitable when it la
bored uncer such burdens these Not one IA
ten of the paving mines IL other parts of the cOun
try could keep out OF bankruptcy single year If
subjected % similar charges. The only way 10
make the mine, OF the two districts to which
have referred profitable 4 have not yet visited
any OF tho other silver MINING regions OF tits
Territory ia 20 have the ores reduced upon the
spot or in the immediate nclghborh0od This
has long been understood hy the miners them
selves; and a few years ago some New-lork
capitalls.s were induced TO advance the money
e . futl AT 1 liza l