The semi-weekly miner. [volume] (Butte, Mont.) 1882-1886, 1884-09-17
WORK UNDER THEBIa BUTTE
A Tunnel $50 Feet Crosses Ten
Leads.

~A 90 AAAAS LAM ~ 4 4
A Tunnel $50 Feet Crosses Tel
Leads.
It was known two or three year.
ago that Blodgett & Lewis were n
work on 3 lead on the south side O
the Big Butte, west Of town. But al
who heard of 1t did not know Of the
kind of work they were doing. II
seems that while there was q strong
probability of making money by the
work yet that there was almost as
much curiosity as hope of wealth to
prompt them. They had examined
the outcroppings of quartz in several
places on the side of the mountain,
and were satisfied that there were
leads beneath. It was to learn what
there was in these leads that they
undertook the work, and they went
at the work of exploring these leads
IN the cheapest and most expeditions
manner. Beginning at a point some
distance below where the shaft on
the lead taken up had been sunk
they run q tunnel into and under the
butte $50 feet. In running this tun-
mel they cut ten separate and we'll de-
fined leads.
The first lead they struck was
1856 feet between walls. It showed
125 feet of low grade ore running
from three to eight ounces in silver,
with traces of copper. This lead
was cut near the surface. The ore
was of the same quality as the low
grade ore from the Anaconda was
above the water level. The lead was
called the Copper Zone. 1t certainly
is in the copper line. If q person
will stand at the Mountain View and
look west he will see that this claim
is in the line with the large mines
on the Parrot hill, the Gagnon and
Original Butte, ect. 1t is probable
this is q continuation of the same
lead, though it is Sc far away from
the big copper mines already
developed. 1t may be that the Cop
per Zone will some day loom up as a
celebrated copper producer.
The second lead crossed carried
manganese iron and silver. This
lead was about twelve feet wide.
Assays did not show any paying per-
centage of either manganese OF iron
and in silver ran not over ten ounces
to the ton.
The third lead was about three feet
wide. 1t carried q low grade silver
ore. The walls were straight and
well defined.
The fourth was about thirty feet
wide. The walls were Enthusiastically
defined. This lead carried more
manganese than any of the others.
The highest assay of silver was fifteen
ounces.
The fifth was eight feet wide. 1t
only showed a trace of silver, but it
was a well defined lead.
The sixth lead crossed was about
six feet wide. 1t carried iron and
manganese and assayed ten ounces in
silver.
The seventh was Is feet wide. One
assay from this lead showed forty
ounces. The average assay was
about fifteen ounces. MI. Blodgett,
who superintended the work and
who gave the information for this re-
port, regards this lead as a good pros
pect. He thinks that a little sinking
would show a good body of higher
grade ore. Where this lead was
crossed is estimated to be about 80
feet below the surface of the ground.
The eighth lead was between five
and six feet wide. This lead was
principally tale. He had assays made
of this which run three, four and four
and three-quarter ounces in silver.
The ninth was 40 feet wide. This
was nearly all tale, There was q lit
tie silver ore of q low grade. There
was no solid ore body.
The tenth was seven feet wide.
This lead seems TO be composed of .
kind of quartzite, with a little tale on
both walls. Assays run 81 in gold
and five to six ounces of silver.
The owners have had all the
ground embraced in these leads
patented. They doubtless have a
good big fortune in some of these
leads, if they have another fortune or
two to spend in developing them.
Now that the work has been done
and paid for and the patents received,
it will not hurt the gentlemen to
hold on to them until such property
in Butte becomes valuable.