The Helena independent. [volume] (Helena, Mont.) 1875-1943, 1892-02-27
TO CROSS THE RANGE.
The Work Of Gen. Haven in Con-
nection With the Meagher
County Road.

If He Finds q Feasible Pass Con-
struction Will Begin This
Summer.
the Helena, white Sulphur Springs
y Castle Railroad WAN Run.
THE formal closing OF tbs contract yes
tarday with Gen. Haven" said H. n.
Parshen, "for she survey Of 4 route fer a
railroad from Helena to White Sulphur
Springs and Castle, should be IN Indication
that the project is \ straight business prop.
ofition." MIR. Parchen il 4 member of the
Helena committee on the building Of this
road, and therefore speaks with authority.
''The survey" he continued, will cost
somewhere between So, 900 and $1O.O 900. Gen.
Haven will not 10 over the line to tbs Mis-
souri, just now, because he has been over it,
and knows a road can be built. What he il
to do il to find out whether there is a feas-
ible route over the Belt Mountains. He will
have two corps Of surveyors in the field, one
working in Confederate aulch and tho other
in White's eulch. Whichever . fthese passes
provea to be the beat will be selected. We
have little doubt but that a two per cont
grads can be secured, and that there will be
very little tunrelinR. If I feasible route ID
found, and as I say, there il littls doubt of
this, a railroad from Helena to White Sui
phur Springs and Castle will surely be
built, and work began this summer 1t
will not take tho engineers, we believe,
moro than six weeks to complete their work.
At any rate tho contract calls for its COM
pletion by May /. BY the time it is finished
the Helena subscription will amount
to at least $500, 900. II after tho
survey the parties who are now consider
ing tho project should not be able
to push II ahead. then We will build it our
selves. There are men interested in this
project who have built other lines in Mon
tans, and they are ready to bnild through
to Castle. While we stand ready to DO
the work, it necessary, At thu same time we
intend to give all those gentlemen who
are nov working on the enterprise \ chance
at it, bat we will be prepared for any
failure on their part to avail themselves of
the opportunities offered. just as soon as
the survey is completed we want the work
of construction to be begun. There will be
no difficulty in iaising the money to build
the road"
President Davidson, of tho Commercial
club, D. A. Cory. A. M. Hotter, l.. II.
Hershheld, and Secretary W. j. Fuchs all
talk as positively, as doos Mr.. Psrohen. A
laajot ity Of these gcntlemon have invssti-
gated tho resosrces Of the section tho pro
posed road would open up. and as a result
know that it would develop a e ,eat busi-
hess. Az bearing out these opinions of the
business to be secured the Rocky Noun
tain H~usbandman furnishes the following:
There is y good carrying trade to-day for
ons road, and ths development the building
OF a railroad would inspire would readily
furnish traffic for two, and the building OF
the second would 30 redoubls the activity
Ms to even furnish \ fairly remunsrative
trade for three railroads. There are eight
or nine promising mining camps within the
Smith river watershed, aud they arc within
q radius of twenty miles from White Sui
phur sprlngs.. lhs nsRreEt of these on the
west in Birch creek. This camp contains
over fifty locations and has some very
promising prospects. The Birch Creek
Mining company " soma four or five
promising leads and has one shaft down
sixty feet and several tunnels and cross
cuts that show mp lsrgs bodies of excellent
ore. But tho principal mine OF the camp
is tho Bourbon. This mine is developed
to a depth of 100 feet and has
had 100 feet Of levels run. 1t has
ore, but it il safe to say that it contains a
twontJ-two inoh pay streak that will aver
aRe throughout forty ounces in silver and
forty dollars in gold per ton, while the
entire width of the vein which is ten feet
will We are assured by good authority, aver
q M fNNk- l11I 1n ~ -r1l >nI .;J,,- At-..I-
$4,000 has been taken from this mine, but
work had to be suspended owing to the
cost of wagon transportation of tho orc.
Cammas creek is ouly about six miles from
Birch crock and also has somo very promis-
ing undeysloped leads. Southwest Of the
large copper producing field of Murray.
There has been q great deal Of work dono
in this district, ana there ara hundreds Of
tons OF sore on the dump and the leads are
strong n large and can be made to pro-
duee . large tonnage. Only three miles
from the Springs il the Alabama, a very
promising carbonate mine, while Willow
creek. lying five miles distant, ia 4 splen-
did camp. The leads on Willow creek
are from two to thrae fest in width and tho
o . avsraRss about $50 per ton. Work has
bsen progressing steadily there for the past
two years and the nines would produce ore
if there was any cheap means of transpor-
tation. Two miles further east brings u.
to another group of promising properties.
1t is here the first ore OF the Castle noun
tains WAS discovered and the first bullion
produced. Tbs Grasshopper is the best de-
vslopsd property of this camp and has
shipped considerable high grade ore and
nhowI from four TO seven feet in tho work
ing Of the mine at the ninety fost level.
Censidsrabls rock that assaysd $1,000 per
ton has been found in this property and it
would bseoms an ore producer wore it not
for tho embargo Of tbs wagon haul. Next
to the Grasnhopper is the Granite Noun
tain. This has q shaft down 100 feet and a
of thirty feet ia twenty-five foet in
ore. Arrangements are being madot to com
rnence ore shipments from the mine at once
and should it stand the heavy cost of wagon
freight she niue bids far to rival the far
famed Cumberland mine on the south side
the hill in tho near future. There are
also = dozen othor good prospects at this
point that could easily be made TO produce
ore. Three miles fn thor east 10 another
group, tho Annie O., Anne s.,
one or two others that are being e1ten-
slvaly developed. But the oldest and We
believe Rreatsst group of mines in his sec
ton Of Montana ~ C~oppalopolis, fifteen
miles due east of White Sulphur Springs.
This canp contains five patentsu claims
and q host of others. II WAS discovered in
1855, worked considerably and ors shipped
the Missouri river III 1874 and 1875.
1t was also worked about three ysats ngo
orc shipped to Butte. But tho expense
aas too great, although the last shipment
n warn II oH ,xSE worth NE ,Nu,~u - ia