The Anaconda standard. [volume] (Anaconda, Mont.) 1889-1970, 1890-04-16
A MYSTERIOUS TUNNEL.

A Phenomeusn discovered by Miner
while Blastins In the Peabody.
by the Standards Special Wire.
BUTTE, April 15.-A friend writes from
Soap Gulch, near Melrose, 70 the Butte
editor of the STANDARD as follows:
"A phenomenal sight may he seen in
the Peabody mine. The mine Is nj pres
ent being developed by a tunnel which is
more than 400 feet In length. Recently
the owners drilled q hole in the
face Of the tunnel and NJ usual retired 10
the outside to await results Of the shots. I'm
mediateH after the reports of the powder
explosions the owners were dumbfounded
at seeing the smoke driven with great
force through the mouth of the tunnel md
in a very few seconds II q completely
clear as though driven out by the breath
of some Internal monster. II 10 q well
known fact to all n that II takes .
half an hour or even more before the
smoke will clear out Of n 400 foot tunnel
and il was not surprising that the work.
men stood spell bound for some time be-
fore bestirring themselves again. After
considerable bantering they screwed up
courage sufficient to enter the tunnel, along
which they proceeded cautiously for a
short distance, when a strange subter-
ranean noise reached their ears, increas-
ing in volume rs they proceeded. When
within a short distance of b breast n
cold draft OF air struck them and they
had TO exercise the greatest care to keep
their candles from being extinguishcd.
The men then discovered a large crevicc
i'm the rock which had been opened up by
force and noise similar to that experienced
in the vicinity Of q huge blast urnac So
cold In the mir in the vicinity of the crew
ice that the miners still have to wear very
heavy clothing when nj work there. The
place from which b air comes Is still a
mystery. The aperture Is at least 800 feet
from the surface, u is covered with an
alluvial soil which air n penetrate.
The Peab ody was located in 1870 by
William and ]. X. Dickey, Familiarity
known as the Dickey boys. II has been
leased several times and more han S0,-
coo is known to have been taken out by
the leasers i'm addition To $4,000 taken
galena and lead carbonate ore and was
treated in ISL In Argenta by Wash
Stapleton of Butte, afterwards In the
Glendale smelter, and i'm 1893 several ship
ments were made 10 the Omaha and
Grant smelter, which Melted the leasers
q handsome return. This ore runs over
10 per rent In lead, 40 ounces In silver and
IS to so i'm gold. The ore vas found near
the top of the hill, between broken masses
Of the limestone wall rock, which is n
slide from the hill top. All in sight nv
ing beer worked out, the owners con-
cluded to run tunnels below the slide To
tap the ore which undoubtedly exists
there. Two tunnels have been
run, each of more thar 400
feet in length, and i'm the upper
tunnel the formation has changed from
the loose, pebbly formation of the slide To
n hard, blue limestone, which encourages
the belief in the minds of the owners that
| they are not far from the body that the
ore i'm the slide came from.
at will be remembered that John Hele-
han left Butte on March ~ 10 help along
development in the Emma Nevada. Three
days after landing in Soap Gnlch Mr.,
Helehan struck n body of rich chloride
silver ore, which is being extracted as
rapidly as possible. There is 80 mucl
work to be done in grading that Helehar
x Morgan will he unable Ia make theil
first shipment before May 1. The ore ],
to be treated at the Parrot smelter. Tn,
ore is found in the west drift from No.
shaft and is from six inches To one foot il
the roof and from on to three fee I'm tn,
bottom. After this shipment is made
the owners will hire more men to sink thu
shaft, after which stopping will be beguI
and shipments will he made weekly"