New-York tribune. [volume] (New York [N.Y.]) 1866-1924, 1879-08-12
AN T,fvFVsE BODY OF ORE.
A p1Fr's-FYE VIEW or THE REGIoN-THE NAMES
OF THE MINES AID THE PROGRESS OF THF

OF THE MINES AND THE PROGRESS OF IhE
WORK or DEVELOPMENT.
fFRoMA STAFF CORRESPONDENT or TIE rRrBuSE.l
DEADWOOD, Dakota, Aug. 1.-The gulch miners
who worked the placers in this vicinity IN 1876
did not overlook the fact that there was gold
bearing quartz IN the hills beneath whose shadows
they tolIed but they failed TO appreciate the value
of the rock which thew often examined and pro
spected. - and into which many of them drove tuu-
mel. and sank shafts in search of pay ore' Il u
a remarkable fact IN the recent history Of mining
for the precious metals that the most valuable dis
cover1es have not consisted in uucovering great
bodies of ore but ir ascertaining the value OF ores
before looked upon with indifference. The car
bouate ores OF LeadviIle were kicked about in
California Gulch for years before MessTs. Stevens
and Wood had a suspicion Of the wealth when
they concealed and the low grade gold ores OF the
Black Hills were universally despised until the
rich capitalists and experienced miners Of Calfor-
ma came here aud proved that the enormous extent
Of the ore-bodIcs and the ease and economy with
which they could be worked more than compen-
stated for the small amount Of gold to be obtained
FROM a single ton Of rock. The early prospecter7
were right ~ supposing that six or ten-do.ar quartz
that is, quartz which contains only SIX OF ten
dollars worth Of gold to a ton-would not pay for
working on a small SCALE such as they coutem-
plated and they passed it over and went in search
of richer rock. Now they see the mines which
they looked upon as worthless valued at Iyllons Of
dollars in the markets Of New-York and San
Francisco, and promising to be among the best
paying gold mines IN the world.
A FRFr-HaND SKETCH OF THE GROUND.
The bonauzas of the Black Hills are at present
all embraced in one great belt extending nearly in
a uorthcrly and s.utherly direction from Central
CITY To- Lead CITY. each of which is from three TO
four mile, west Of Dcadwgod l DO not mean to say
that there are not other good mines in the hills.
There are many others which promise well as far
a. they have been developed, and which, believe,
will Justify the confidence OF their owners in their
future richness, but they are rs yet comparatively
new enterprises and as such their deyelopement is
inevitably attended with certain amount of risk.
The great mines ON the d" belt" have been proved ;
the sides of the hills IN which they are have been
c11t away. exposing enormous lodges OF aurterOus
rock which is broken down aud loaded into cars
ready to 20 INTO the mil at less expense than 1t
costs TO quarry the poorest kind OF building stone
in the East.
The belt. including three OF four mines lying
north and south Of the large ones that have been
most developed, and through which it is believed 20
extend Is about two miles IN length and Of various
widths In several places, where open cuts have been
made IN the sides Of the hills, OF where cross cuts
have been driven from tunnels it is 100 feet wide
and in one or two instances almost twice as wide
Where il pluuhes down 10 smaller width there Is a
pr0portionate increase in the richness OF the rock
Let me see il cannot give the readers OF The
TRIBUNE bird s-eye view of the d" belt " which
VIII enable them to comprehend its general charhc-
terlstics and TO understand the position Of each OF
the great mines upon il. Imagine, then.
mountainous country in which there are no
level places except perhaps, narrow strips here and
there along the guches ca7Ous between the hills
Looking in every direction there are steep noun
taiu- those near by bare 10 their tops, except
for a little uuderbrush, while on some of those
at a distance pine timber still stands.
These mountains rise from 800 to 500
feet above the little brooks that run between
them. and are composed Of slate rock, turned
uugn its edge AT an angle OF about so,
and covered, generally, with a few feet Of drift or
the debris of tue rocks which has been broken Of
bv frost and rains Three Of these hills stand on
line running nearly north and SOUTH and are sep
arated by gulches canOns the sides Of which are
too steep 10 ride mp or down on horseback except
by following a zigzag course. Suppose. now, these
hills 10 have been cleft apart near their SUBMITS,
and an enormous assure to have been formed, 100
feet wide on an average, and extending through all
them. and down into the bowels Of the earth, no
one knows how far aud imagine this assure to have
been filed up with quartz colored red by lie pres
ence Of oxide Of iron and impregnated with free
gold in minute particles. That is the belt" as it
looks TO person standing Oh the middle Of the
hills and following its course by the tunnels aud
omen cuts that have been made in it. Many persons
believe that 1t extends through two other hills, one
living north and the other south of those have de-
scribed. and explorations are now being made IN
accordance with that theory, Of which shall have
something 10 say further on in tins letter.
FEW PeoFTABLE MINES.
beginning ut the north end Of the brlt.' the first
mine is the Father De Smet, owned By Messrs. Ar
chic Borland August Hemme. l.. r. Graves and 4.
J. Bowie, IT,, all Of California. Mr. Bowie Is the
superintendent in charge of the mine. The ground
owned bv these gentlemen consists Of three claims,
the Father De Smet, the Golden Gate and the JUS
tIce. The first two are parallel, making strip 600
feet WIDE and the Justice joins them at angle on
the south and covers the ground between them and
the Deadwood Nine. The stock Of neither Of these
mines has yet been placed on the market for sale,
and any is offered il will be sold in NewYork and
not IN san Francisco. The three mines Low oper-
ated together Ril also be organized separately and
not As one corporation. OF the three mines IN the
Father de Smet combination, two, the Father DE
Smet and the Justice, producing ORE The
Golden Gate is not being worked These two mines
are now supplying ore for three stamp mil.s-the
Father De Smet $50 stampsl. the Elliott 20 stamps.
aud the Pinuey 20 ,tampsl, and are producing from
sol 900 10 $4,000 worth Of gold a month. The
ore averages Sl3 ton. and the total product Of the
Mines including that Of last month only part Of
which has been sent away, has been not far from
100000.
The Father De Smet combination Of mines was
purchased by the present owners for 100000 Of
Messrs. Nichols Flaherty. Coleman and Ravens.
who made the locations in May, 1876 This Is the
largest sum yet paid for any mine combination Of