News and citizen. [volume] (Morrisville, Vt. ;) 1881-current, 1891-05-07
The Tin Supply.

Free traders of our country have
conceded that we have good enough
iron for tin plate, but have main
tanned that the manufacture cannot
become an important industry be-
cause we have not the tin. Despite
that, the tin is here and is ready for
the taking.
Until our own century the tin sup
ply of the world came mostly from
Cornwall, whence in prehistoric times
the Ph9nician sailors carried it to
the Mediterranean ports: but latter
ly the Cornwall mines, though still
productive, have become less impor-
tant and the supply has been main
tanned by workings in Banka and
Billion of the Dutch Indies, in New
South Wales and to some extent in
Tasmania. The tin-stone of the East
Indies and Australia is obtained
from old streams by placer mining
something like that employed in gold
"diggings Running water origin
ally removed much of the rock mate
rial and left the remaining gravel
comparatively rich. The miner con-
tinues the same process until there
remains only the ore, too heavy to
be carried off by the stream. This is
the "stream tin" or sometimes
"wood tin when the broken pieces
show awood-like structure System
attic vein mining is not resorted to
until stream tin becomes scarce; a
placer mining is much cheaper. In
mense quantities of tin-stone are be-
lieved to exist in the State of Duran
go, Mexico, whence specimens have
been obtained rivaling those sent to
our Centennial by the New South
Wales Government. InCornwall and
Tasmania the ore is obtained in deep
mines, those of the former country
now extending far out under the
ocean. The ore from those mines
yields from 3 to IL per cent. of tin
stone.
Until ten years ago the existence of
tin in workable quantities was I'M
known in our country outside of Cal
lfornia, where it was discovered prior
to 1860 in the Temascal range of
San BernardinO county. The Cajal- |
ca mine was opened in 1860, and |
promised so we'll after comparatively
little development that a long and |
persistent fight against it's title was
begun at once, to end only in 1885. |
Oddly enough, the exploitation made
soon after the title had been quieted
failed to equal expectations of either
winner or loser. Mineral specimens
of tin-stone were found in New Hamp-
shire in 1910 and crystals of the
same mineral were obtained at Win
slow, Me-, in 1869. But no attempt
at systematic exploration was made
until 1880, when the Winslow local
ity proved good enough to Justify
the formation of a company There
was no market at that time for tin
IN this country to induce any one to
spend money enough for thorough
and the work was stop
ped. Mr.. Gesner began systematic
work in 1882 on some tin-bearing
odes near Birmingham, Ala, but the
)re proved to be too much dissemin-
ated, and the project was aban-
1oned
The year 1883 was important.
Early in that year tin-stone was dis
covered on Kings Mountain in North
Carolina ; the locality is tar from
railroad transportation and it has
not been developed. At about the
same time Messrs. McCreath and
Platt made a fairly close examina-
ton of the newly found deposits in
Roxbridge County, Virginia, which
led them to express an opinion so
favorable that those interested in the
went to law without delay
and the property is still locked up
The amount of tin-stone is unques-
Ionably very great, but It's eco {
ionic Importance can be determined /
My by careful and costly explora- 7
ion. This cannot be made until the |
ourts have settled the question of
!
The now celebrated deposits of +
outh Dakota were discovered in T
SS3 within Pennington county at
bout twenty miles southwest from
iapid City and not far east from
1arney Peak. Other discoveries il.
7ere made soon afterward on the 1
Testerly side of that mountain, l
7hich, with the Eta lode, on the
asterly side, passed into the hands j.
# a New York company. Elaborate o
respecting was begun at once and a
ONE of the oar was reduced. A n
Milling plant was erected, which be- P
an work in 1886, but stopped after "
run of two months. Meanwhile the n
rospectors had been abroad and !.
ad made discoveries in other coun- =
les, some of which proved to be val S
able. Ores were found in Idaho and t
lontana.-Mail and Express. Il