Pittsburg dispatch. [volume] (Pittsburg [Pa.]) 1880-1923, 1891-10-16
MOUNTAINS OF SILVER.
An Exceeding Rich Find Reported
From Northern Wisconsin.
DETAILS OF THE DISCOVERY.
Ore That Assays Three Hundred Ounces u
White Metal to the Ton.
A GREAT STAMPEDE FOR THE HrGEs

WEST SUPERIOR, WIS, Oct. 15.-Silver,
apparently in great quantities, has been
found within 20 miles of this city, and
already the mining craze has affected the
whole town. Ore has been brought into
town which assays over 300 ounces of silver
to the ton, and the deposits are said to be
very extensive. The find was made by w.
c. Tonken, a practical miner from Nevada
Surrounding this city at distance Oft to
Is miles is a rough range of hills, semi
circular in form, rugged and almost precip-
itous 1t is heavily wooded and indented
by deep gullies that render driving almost
impossible and which have prevented .
thorough exploration of the range The
| lower portion of the elevation is fairly ap-
proachable, and more than 20 years ago
copper was found in such quantities as to
give the range of hills the title by which
| they are now known, Cooper" Range.
| The mineral was found in its native state,
but the top formation convinced miners
that the cost of taking the metal out would
not warrant the putting in of a prospect
plant on large scale.
The increased value of the timber on the
range has recently caused settlers and lum-
| DeIIucH IO push Vic olOpCSJ hnu q
large vein of copper on the surface, which
was discovered by the hunters, attracted the
| attention of miners to the locality, and a
very little prospecting showed the presence
of native silver and sulphurets in such
quantities that an attache of the smelling
works undertook a thorough investigation.
w. c. Tonken, of Nevada, was commits
stoned to undertake the investigation, and q
month ago he disappeared in the foot hills
of the range with orders to settle the ques-
tion. .r..
WHAT LED TO THE FIND.
A few miles from the city be met a wood
man who had in gully picked up piece
of silver weighing over pound and nearly
50 per cent fine. The man was pressed into
service and a thorough prospect of the
place of his find followed. A few days
work convinced Tonken that the silver
found was a part of the washings from the
almost in accessible heights above the ravine,
and proof of the rich minerals in the
Lodges was found in paying quantities.
Tonken packed up hundred pounds
of the washings and brought It into
town. An assay showed results little less
than marvellous, several specimens of the
ore running from 300 to 800 ounces to the
ton. The ''strike'' was kept very dark, and
when Tonken went back he was equipped
was necessarily small. On September %
prospecting was begun on the hillside above
where the first silver had been found. The
indications were fairly good, but the Ne
vada miner was confronted with new geo
logical order and he could not account for
the groupings of the white metal which he
found in trap formation.
When he forced his way to the lower
ledge on the side of the gully the signs
changed and the trap disappeared to give
place to silica and on the first ledge which
gave him foothold the prospector turned
out rich silicate with free silver and sui
phurets in sufficient quantity to thrill him
with the prospect of wealth. He left his
assistants at work on the prospect and came
TO the city under cover, found the owner of
the land on which he had made the strike,
and within "a hours was the owner of an
| option for the purchase of a half interest in
a section of land on the mountain side,
which, unless it is rich in ores, is worth ex-
actly the price of the timber growing on it.
DEVELOPING THE PROSPECT.
With the OPTION in his pocket Mr.. Tonken
became a little more communicative and be-
gan to talk. He was laughed at and went
back to his prospect to develop 1t further.
His men had got out considerable guam
tity of dirt, but the direction of the prscti-
| cal miner ndQ DccH AAlo OoS
gage in tramping back by the range was a
quantity of blasting powder and he put the
men to work drilling. All day Sunday,
October 4, the drilling and blasting went On,
and the last blast after dark Sunday even
ing dislodged an immense pile of the soft
formation, sending tons OF dirt and rock
into the gulch below, and very nearly cost
the adventures their lives.
At dawn Tonken went down himself, and
L,o4 HoH
| laid bare he did not call down the men,
though it cost him an effort to contain him
self About 80 yards of the ledge had
crashed into the rayine through the effects
of the blast and everywhere along the
newly exposed surface the free metal glls-
| tened in its bed of silica He called to the
men to throw down ropes and sacks and as
much dirt and rocks as they could carry ne
| picked out in handfuls at random, along the
whole race of exposed surface, and the party
came in loaded with wealth and presenting
an appearance of having received some
hard knocks. Climbing up and down hill
sides had reduced their clothing to tatters
and bruised them badly.
THE ORE RICH IN METAL.
The result of Is assays made to-day at the
| West Superior Smelter Companvts works
show that the ore ranges from 80 ounces,
the lowest, to 312 ounces of pure silver to
the ton, with an average of over so ounces.
Tonken says there is enough in sight to pay
| for building a railroad and leveling the
range. The peculiar nature of the forma-
ton made experienced men hesitate to ae-
cept as true the reports of the silver find,
but the men brought in the metal, and that
settled it.
When the story was verified there was a
stampede for the hills, and to-day the woods
are full of prospectors, and capitalists are
cultivating Tonkon. Land on the copper
range is worth good deal more tonight
than it was this morning, and hundreds OF
dollars per acre are eontemptuously refused
for hiliv tracts that would not bring as
many cents ten days ago. Tonken's strike
is in town 4S, range 13, but the section is
/