The semi-weekly tribune. [volume] (Great Falls, Mont.) 1890-1891, 1890-06-07
THAT BARKER EXTENSION.
Irwin Boyd Submits Reasons for Building
the Road Mt Once,

the Road Mt Once.
BARRIER, Mont, June 8. TO the
Editor of the TRIBUNE: In the letter
from President ]. j. Hill, lately publish
ed in the TRIBUNE, he intimates that I'M
I'll the mines at Barkes, Neihart and
other camps are further developed the
railroad will stop at Monarch. In taxing
this view many of the miners here feel
that Mr.. Hill is unjust and is certainly
doing the miners a great injnstice while,
at the same time he is de-
laying the development of the mines.
Many of the claims are owned by men of
small means, who are working at great
disadvantage, yet who are doing all they
possibly can under the circums stances.
They have gone IN on their claims, ex-
posed ore beds and veins, and have a
great deal of ore on the dumps ready for
shipment. The visitor who goes to any
of the camps and does not visit the mines
can form no reliable estimate of the
amount of ore already taken out, nor the
amount that could be taken out daily if
these men could dispose of what is on
the dumps and put the money received
therefrom back into the mines in de-
velopment work. A conservative esti-
mate of the various miners who are now
at work on their claims IN the Barker
camp alone, places the possible daily out
put at more than 100 tons. The May g.
Edna, Pride of the West, Wright g. Ed
wards, Gray Eagle, Barker, Silver Bell
and the Wyandott are sufficiently devel-
oped so that their combined daily out
put would easily reach the 100 ton limit
leaving out the hundreds of less de-
veloped claims which would swell the
aggregate as soon as the ore could be
brought cheaply to market.
But one point which we fail to COM
prehend is this-why do not the capital
lists who own large interests in the vari-
Gus camps, go to work and place their
properties in condition TO produce ole? A
number of the mines are owned
by such men as j. j. Hill, Col. G. A.
Broadwater, Paris Gibson, j. M. Connolly
of Milwaukee, the National banks OF
Helena aud Fort Benton and numerous
capitalists of Helena and other places
who have plenty of money at their com
mand. The mines belonging to these
parties are for the most part standing idle.
Their owners can we'll wait for transpor
tation without sacrifice or hardship, while
the men of small means who are com
PEELED to earn their living as thay go
along suffer much inconvenience and
hardship. Why do not these men, who
would hardly miss the money necessary,
go to work, develop their mines and haul
the ore to Monarch by wagon? Nh. Hills
letter seems to find fault with the small
owners. Are they not already doing
more in proportion to their means than
er, although in Neihart several of the
and taking out ore. But they are not
shipping on account of costly %transporta
ton.
The miners have been asked to guar
antee to the railroad a certain amount of
freight daily as an inducement for its ex
tension on the remaining IL miles. This
seems an unusual request. No miner
can tell when his vein NAV "pinch OUT
nor can he determine exactly the number
of tons which he will be able to take out.
and under such circumstances no practi.
cal miner will sign such a guarantee
with the possibility of losing his proper
ty by so doing. Is 1t the customary way of
doing business! What guarantee of
freight had the Great Northern officials
when they undertook the great extension
from Minot or Grand Forks westward?
What guarantee of freight have they to
induce them to undertake their great ex-
tension from Assinniboine or Great Falls
to the coast? They simply depend on the
undeveloped u of the country for
an increase in freight traffic. No rail-
road ever projected has more favorable
prospects for a large freight traffic than
is found in these mining camps. The
miners will do everything possible in or
der to secure the road, and we believe
that if Mr.. Hill will come here or send a
representative who will visit the mines
and see what has been done and the
amount of freight that Is now waiting for
transportation he will conclude to extend
the road and thus put it at ono on a pay
ing basis. Respectfully,
IRWIN BOYD.