Telegram-herald. ([Grand Rapids, Mich.) 18??-1892, 1891-10-29
1ENESCAL And ITS TIN
A Correspondent Describes the
Wonderful Mines
THEY ARE 4 yERIIlBLE BONANZA
AID when Developed Win Prove 60 be
Of 6rsat Commercial Value He = ths
ore L. snseitsd-Attstaas 81
tsae Democrats

A speeial letler from G. T.. Bailey
10 the Chicago intre-ocean, gives the
following facts in regard 10 An.sriean
tin aiming ia California:
so many contradictory reports have
been ia circulation as 10 the status
OF affairs at tiae California TIA mines
that / coeeiuded To go over from Los
Angeles and see what was actually
being done. The mines are on the
great san Jacinto estate, an old Span
ish land grant OF $4,000 acres that
covers a large portion of the country
south OF Riverside, Cal. The section
OF land IA which the present work
centers contains over twenty veins
that can be traced for mile or more
along their length. Between the
boarding. .house and the mill. dis
lance of about 800 feet, five veins
outcrop. These veins are from three
to five feet in width, clearly and sharp
" deliucd. aud are what the miners
call true assures. the kind that he
~ ready 20 stake his money on to con-
tlnue down beyond all practical limits
OF mining. At present only one vein
il being systematically worked In pro-
duca tim; on the rest the work Is that
OF exploration and development. The
tin producer Is known rs the Cataico
Lode, developed sy n main shaft" a
tunnel 400 feet long. and two smaller
shafts All of these points Of work
would furnish vounnious notes to the
scientist and miner: but the general
public would confine their visit 70 the
ma.q. shaft where they can so down
100 feet in depth, and see the vein as
strong ana wide and rich as at the
surtace: then they can follow the bot
tom level east for 2O5 feet. and see that
the vein Is still four feet wide at the
end of their walk; or they can follow
the level west for 40 feet ana ina
IL measuring over three feet wide at
the end of the tunnel or level" as the
miners call 1t. II the visitors VIII
take samples along he viii lind that
they contain from > IL 10 z per cent.
metallic tin. This short trip Is SUI
cicnt to satisfy the most skcptical
that there are large quantities OF ore
already ''in sight" that the vein Is n
strong one, and that 1t is richly and
uniformly impregna ted with tho tin
II will also give good idea OF what
may be expected when the rest OF the
veins ia the estate are developed. and
send the visitor to the surface conf
Dent OF the pcrmanency OF the tin
m5aes as ore producers.
Up to within q few weeks the active
operations were confined TO expert
mental tests, az the machinery used
was wholly American and unfamiliar
TO the English engineers.
Captain Richard Harris. the super
tcndent, Is an old Cornish mine captain.
who knows tin ores from A to z, but
while he likes TO follow the good old
ways. he Is ever ready to adopt any,
thing thar Is proven to be an improve
ment. He was enthusiastic of tho per-
lection of our steam hoists. and wise
and shrewd in his criticisms OF the
Yankee concentra tors he is using.
mention these facts rs some have been
foolish enough to claim that all the
machinery for working tin ore must be
imported, when the fact Is that con-
scrvative. but capable and shrewd Cor
nishman. finds. after long tests. that
American machinery viii. do what is
done by cheap labor in Cornwall. The
papers that tGccrcd and jecred Mt thc
few hundred pounds of tin per day
produced by these mines. were throw
ing mud at q series of competitive
tests and experiments started by for
eiGnere In our country that have re-
suited in establishing the supremacy
of American machinery over the pau
per labor system OF England. and this
IN the Face of the fact that the COM
pany had imported machinery from
England on which they paid $500
duty, and which. when I left the
mines. was still laying at the depot at
Cotton. The work OF reducing the ore
Is as follows: The tin rock Is first
crushed IN an ordinary stamp mill to
the fineness OF flour. The second s.ep
iii TO separate the brown oxide OF tin.
casssterite, Or black tin. ms IL r. called.
from the worthless vein matter COM
posed OF quartz. msca, iron. etc. This
Is done on American concentrntors.
known TO miners as vanncrs. They
CONSIST OF long inclined tables over
which run endless belts of rubber. The
whole table il shaken rapidly side
wise to make the heavy black tin
settle down on the rubber. which il
ever poving mp grade, carrying the
tn with II. The old way used to be
to NIX the black tin with coal or char
coal and some lime and melt IL all
down In a bayb stack furnacek using
an air blast At TcmescaI the charge
% culm and black tin Is heated up by
n sheet OF flame from crude California
petroleum. When we'll hen ted the car.
bon. or coal. unitcs with the oxygen
OF the black tin. forming the com
mon gas carbon,c dioxide. familiar 10
! every school boy. and leaving the tin
free. The ease with which the oil
flame can be regulated enables thn
company 10 avoid overhcatiny waste.
and produces n better article of t,r
than the old methods. The TIN runs
from this furnace In siivery stream
into the dipping pot. where 1t is lad.
led into molds containing the word
''Tcmescal." From the moids n goes
into the markets Of the East 20 re.
ceive the praise OF the manufacture
and customer and the curses az thc
press who are 'forninst IRE govern.
mcnt'' and ''forninst" everything tina,
encourages the use OF the American
stamps. American concentrafors
| American coal, petroleum. AMI tin ore
aud the employment 81 American
miners in American Elm mines. Tin
mining has rome 10 stay 1T Teneeoal
At present the output v $500 pounds
per day, or enough 70 coat abons
forty tons ~ tgn.plste per aav. Tn.
merit step will probably Be che making
Of TN plate and cans on the coast 81
the special benefit ~ ere immenss
seri cs ~ canning Industries that reach
frasn the salmon regions np the eoas,
90 tho fruits around the tin mines
themselves