The Helena independent. [volume] (Helena, Mont.) 1875-1943, 1891-12-01
MADISON COUNTY MINES.
The Placer Season Just Closed the
Most Profitable for Many
Years.
Home and Foreign Capitalists TAX
ing an Interest In the County's
Quartz.
Strike by Henry Elling-Rsported Discov-
cry of tho Channel From Which
Alder Gold Came.

-aH u MUM IA L I u. T..
VIRGINIA CRY, Nov. 2s.-[Special. l-Th
placer season Just over was the best tn
Alder pulch miners have seen for a humble
of years. The season opened early, con
tinued late, and at all times there was a,
ample supply of water for all purposes
Consequently a greater amount of worl
than usual was done. and the yield Of COLE
WAS c~orrespondingly large. This. as a mat
ter OF course, had a tendency to stimulate
trade, hut the effect was not as great nj
might naturally be expected. The placer
mines are in the hands Of a few individuals
and corporations and give employment tc
but a limited number Of mon. The wages
of these men is put into immediate circuln-
ton and helps the business of the county
by Just that much; but the great mass of
gold taken out goes to swell the already
plethoric bank account of tho mine own
ers, md if it ever finds its way into the
channels of trade, it ia through the medium
of business men, ranchmen and wage
earners, who pay for the privilege of put
ting it to is legitimate use in the way Of 4
good, round rate of interest.
Fortunately for Madison county she does
not have to depend on her placer mines for
future prosperity. Within her boundaries
are scores Of quartz mines, any one Of
which, when properly developed, will give
employment to moro men and will entail
greater permanent good upon the commun-
ity at large than all her placer mines put
together. The quartz interests Of this
county have long been under a cloud. but
through lack of enterprise and push on the
part of those who " them. But now,
after the lapse of q quarter of a century
since the mines were discovered, men of the
right stamp have secured a foothold here.
and the dawn of a new era Of prosperity is
clearly d%iscernible in the horizon.
During the week Just past some of the
have been here for the purpose of examin-
ing the Bertha mine, with q view of pur-
chasing that magnificent property. Among
them were Sam Jones, brother OF Senator
Jones of Nevada, and Marcus DAILY. Your
correspondent is reliably informed that
magnitude Of the ore body, while they wsre
more than satisfied wit the character of the
ore. The Bertha is a free gold proposition
of unknown size, At the bottom of a 100
foot shaft drifts have been run both ways
fro a considerable distance, all in ore, and
a forty foot cross-out shows only one wall.
The ore from this cross-cut was run through
an arastra and returned 50 per ton. While
the purchase monsv. said to be $4,000.
has not vet been paid, it surely will be be-
fore the expiration of the bond.
Tho chief promoters of the sale. H. L.
Childs, and Fred w. Day, a competent
assayer and thorough mill man, have been
on the ground several months and have
made practical tests of many of the leading
quartz properties of the district. The re-
suit ia they have decided to erect q twenty
five ton custom mill early in the spring,
the site for which was selected one day last
week.
Another district which is coming to the
front through the enterprise of outside
parties is Browns gulch, about five miles
from Virginia City. Some time ago Messrs.
Dunwoodie & Fine, of Butte, secured a
lease and bon on the Easton Minis in that
district. They have a few miners Mt work
and are taking out shipping ore faster than
the teams at their command can haul it
away. 1 have not visited the mine, but it is
reported on good authority that the lucky ,
owners have four feet of 500 ore in the
tunnel which they are running.
A strike which may prove of unusual inn
portance was made by. Henry Filing in
cleaning bedrock on his placer claim in
Alder gulch this fall. A four-foot lead of
free gold ore was discovered. Assays of the
surface-rock show it carries about $40 gold
to the ton. A contract to sink twenty five
feet on the ledge has been let and the work
of sinking is now in progress.
10 discover the channel whence the gold
found Its way into Alder gulch has long
been the dream of the average prospector
of this vicinity. am not prepared to say
that such channel has been found, but indi-
cations point strongly that way. An old
time Alder gulcn miner named Ed Herein
deem thought he had discovered it many
uoapn auo Rnk afkar tho fochiru ut ~i~aro
Ed spent his ono lavishly and in the
course of time his finances were sorely run
down at tho beel. Unable to develop his
prospect he left the country, but never lost
the hope of some day returning to investi-
gate the matter. Last summer he returned
and after prospecting the ground he To-
Gated 160 acres for himself and others with
whom he was interested. Having secured
all the ground he wished he let one or W
others into the secret. A. B. Kiser and
Fred W. Day went up and examined the
lay of the land. They found Herendoon
Badly" and the supposed channel lay
between sandstone and gneiss and was
capped over with limestone. Securing a
painful of gravel from some old dumps way
up on the hillside, which had been thrown
out SO long ago that they wero covered with
town. The dirt WAS panned and the result
was over half an ounce Of gold, most of
which was imbedded in particles Of quartz.
Mr.. Day observed eome mineral in the pan
which seemed to be too heavy for iron and
a test showed it was a telluride Of gold.
The gold was extracted and the whole
amount obtained from the painful of dirt
was run into Il button which is now in the
possession Of A. b. kissr, and which weighs
over three-fourths of an ounce. It is I'M
necessary TO add that the matter was kept
a profound secret until all the ground in
that vicinity WAS secured. As it was too
late when the discovery was made to do
anything this fall, the parties in interest
are ~anxiously waiting until the return of
warm weather will give them an opportu-
nifty to thoroughly prospect their claims.
Great drive this week in 25c hosiery for ladies.
misses and infants at The Bee Hive.
Best line of neckwear in the city at The Bee
Hive for SOC.
Give Him q Call.