The weekly miner. [volume] (Butte, Mont.) 1878-1881, 1881-01-04
The Gold and Steer quartz in
the BannacH;, MafysciIIe,
Bald Mountain,
Blue Wing, Argenta, Chase and
Elkhorn Mining Districts.
A Condensed Report OF an Extensiv We
Mining section.
by J. r. WILSON.

r.
vince of a mining correspondent to re-
view the mining operations of the dy-
ing year, and present the prospecting
outlook for the unborn year to come.
Your correspondent will endeavor to say
something of the mines of southwestern
iously observe that golden newspaper
shop commandment, "be brief in COM
municatiOns."
The Holiday MINER promises to be a
superior paper for the dissemination of
reliable mining intelligence. Contribu-
tors to its columns by studiously avoid
ing eXaggeration can aid much in draw
ing the attention of capitalists and eX-
perts to the broad mining field of Mon
tana, which is as yet but in a state of in
cipient development.
The Bannack and contiguous mining
camps are situated in the southwestern
portion of Montana and are the most ac-
cessible to completed railroad facilities of
any mines in the territory. Within the
year now closing, mining operations and
tIlcI pIlSSS Ill ullS ScCGlOll Vi NlOIlUdllu
have been prosperous and to a great ex-
tent remunerative. No million dollar
strikes have been made in the camps
or districts herein reviewed, but in many
of our great mines large bodies of pay
ing quartz and ores have been found that
will in the future prove to be a source of
wealth to the mine owners. Some of
these valuable properties will be briefly
described, space %forbidding lengthy no.
tees.
THE BANNACK-MARYSVILLE GOLD DIS
TRICT.
In this district the gold quartz mines
have been partially idle for several
months. Two orthree causes have been
operating to produce this effect. Messrs.J
: P.Ostrom & Co. have a large number
of the most valuable mines in this dis
trict, under a bond which runs by speci-
fled limitation for ashort time yet is one
cause why work of extracting ore is
t stopped. Another cause is of a purely
local character. These mines mostly are
in the hands of men ''well up'' in money.
They do not work together smoothly,
and being "heeled' financially, the
mine-owners are enjoying a set-to at that
game familiarity known as ~"freeze OUT
| This, of course, has a paralyzing effect
upon the production of gold in this dis.
= trict. When the causes are removed the
old-time yield of the precious metal in
l the district will be resumed, and lively
E times will come again. The Bannack
E mines have been successfully and contin.
l uously operated by different owners fol
the past eighteen years. Big money has
been taken out of them and the large de
f posits of gold quartz exposed in tn,
t mines in question is the best evidence O
a their worth.
Notwithstanding heprostrating cause
t herein mentioned, the prospect ahead il
n fair. Mr.. Phil Shenon has resumed
g work on two of his mines. The tunne
to tap the Excelsior is being pushed t
e completion. When the tunnel reache
e the vein it will open a body of ore assay
n ing from SOS to $s5 in gold per ton.
e On the Pioneer tunnel work has com
menced again. This tunnels termina
n ton is the famous Dakota lode, out O
e which many hundreds of thousands Q
dollars have been taken in years past
These two enterprises, when completed
If will make trebly valuable the mine
e they will open.
Messrs. Trask & Graves propose to de
velop their mines and extract quart
shortly. Their mines are under the ten
porary bond alluded to. If the propert
IS fails to pass into the hands of the CON
pany proposing to purchase, Messrs. S
It & G. will push mining operations i'm
1t mediately.
e Recently the Bannack gold lodes WEI