Los Angeles daily herald., 1889-09-27
THE BIG BEND FAILURE.

| The Company Has Not Collapsed Hu
merely Suspended Operations.
BUFFALO, September 26 DIR. Pierce
President of the Big Bend Tunnel ant
Mining Company, says the statemen
that the company has collapsed il mis-
leading and uncalled for. "The company
can pay all its debts, if it has any. 1t il
| perfectly solvent. It is true our expec
tations have not been realized in the ven
ture, but we have still valuable prop
erty, some 1000 acres of territory, which
can be utilized to advantage for irriga
ton and other purposes.
Operations were carried out as at first
planned, with every prospect of success
but the unlocked. for presence of great
boulders under the sand changed the
entire tendency of the venture, and in
stead Of producing gold at a profit, il
seems to be- losing operation. We had
favorable opinions of some of the best
mining authorities of the country, and
everything looked favorable for large
return on our Investment, but as stated
in my circular, We did not find enough to
"Any misstatement is entirely unjust
ifiable, as the condition of affairs has
been clearly set forth in the bulletins
which have bean furnished for publica-
ton. If the company is in etste Of
collapse it will be the duty of the Attor-
ney General to close up its AFFAIRS"
DR.. Pierce's circular to the stockhold-
ers announcing the failure of the com.
pany says: "Since the issue of bulletin
No. l, September 20, 1888. there has
been no material change in the pros
poets developed by our mining opera.
tions last year at Big Bend. The vast
quantity Of boulders uncovered com.
pletely handicapped our operations and
made them 80 expensive as to prevent
the realization of any profit.
I'm fact, in view Of the adverse devel
opments of last seasons work, and the
further experience OF this season, it is
doubtful it our mines ever can be worked
at profit; certainly not at the present
prices of labor, nor unless some more
economical method may hereafter be in
voked for handling the vast quantity of
boulders which exist in the river bed.
"Our operations demonstrated the fact
that there is vast amount of gold in our
claims, but in the face of the obstacles
mentioned, it seems impossible to ex-
tract it at profit. The total output from
our mines last season was $17 1872. This
did not pay the cost of actual mining
operations. Some of the ground washed
was quite rich, and gold everywhere was
found to exist in sufficient abundance
to pay largely, but for unexpected OBJ
stacleG."
During August of this year DR.. Pierce
says the output was about 81, 500, but he
adds: ''It is doubtful if we snail do
much better than pay expenses this sea-
son. Everything has been done to oper-
ate cheaply and effectively, and every
thing else likely to facilitate work that
experience could suggest has been done."
In conclusion he says;
"But after all our efforts, and much as
We regret to acknowledge the fact, we
are quite prepared to admit that at pres
ent we see no prospect of realizing our
former expectations with respect to these
mines. Great as is the disappointment
at this unfavorable termination of our
great undertaking, we at least have
the satisfaction of knowing thai we
are not more at fault in our
judgment with these mines than were
the most experienced mining experts of
the Pacific Coast, and that We have been
defeated by no fault in management, but
by the existence Of unfsvorable condi-
tions, which could not have been fore
seen or supposed to exist, and which
were only disclosed when the mines were
fully opened up by our excavations in
the bed of the river"