The Ketchum keystone. [volume] (Ketchum, Idaho) 1885-1899, 1891-01-10
A Valuable Discovery.

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In this issue we venture to make
the, perhaps, startling suggestion
that most OF our Wood River mines
are gold mines and not silver mines,
j. e., that the chief value is in the
gold and that the silver bearing ga
lena bodies are only incidental and
such as may be found in any mine
which is recognized gold mine.
1t is 2 well-known fact that all
our ores which have been sold as
lead-ores carry, besides silver, more
or less gold-from a trace up to
several dollars-and that as gen.
eral thing the gold contents increase
as the percentage of lead decreases.
Investigation has demonstrated
that the pure galena in this section
carries very little gold, and that the
iron pyrites and the arsenical py-
rites contain gold in considerable
but variable quantities. This is the
reason that the ore contains not
much gold when the percentage of
lead is high, as in this case the gold
carrying pyrites has been assorted
out.
We confess that Wood River is
not so prosperous as it might be !;
that in good many cases the
search for galena bodies has become
so wearisome that the mines have
shut down. But have we not mis-
taken the character of our mines?
Where these have started in on the
surface with gold and iron bearing
quartz they have persistently been
called mines, even if they showed
afterwards bodies Of galena, but
where the argentiferous galena
cropped out, who has ever looked
for gold mine? Yet the one is as
reasonable as the other, and it is a
fact that the pure pyrites in our ga
lena mines, as far as has been care
fully investigated, contains from
$12 to $50 in gold per ton, besides
few ounces In silver.
This ought to do away with the
notoriety which our mines have of
being pockety. 1t is true the galena
may give out but the pyrites never
does, and many of our idle mines
having COMMENTATORS will start up
again on their tailings and mine
dumps and go through all their old
workings, this time not for silver
but for gold and on much safer
and more lasting basis than before.
At any rate, we would suggest to
every mine-owner to grind up ore
from different parts of his mine, as
the gold may be spotted, work the
pulp in gold-pan and have test
made for gold of the pure yellow
or white iron, and we predict that
he will find more gold than he ever
suspected there was in the mine.
The next question is what is to
be done with our pyrites running
from $12 to $50 per ton? To answer
this we quote from an article by
Mr.. Charles Buffers in the Engin'
eering and Mining Journal Of De.
cember 20, 1890, as follows:
Il treated by this old fashioned
(Plattner) process nearly 300 tons
of tailings from the Central mine
assaying $3.50 ton, at a cost O
81 40 per ton, including unloading
from the cars on the railroad anc
dumping the tailings; the extrac
ton in this. case was practically
equal to the assay value of the ore.
/ The above has reference to work
done in California /; the cost will b'
greater here, but so is the value o
the product to be treated, and W.
believe that thorough looking W
of the subject will establish Woo
River as a gold camp on prosper
GUS basis, and, while we all hope
for the free coinage of silver, still
we may as we'll keep our powde
dry by becoming large producers Q
the yellow metal. 1t will be odd
but is nearly certain that we shall
have a gold boom.