The morning call., 1894-07-10


to the Zambesi. and though most of these
will turn out to be miners yarns. there is
no reason why some of them should not
he followed by the opening of many mines.
At one place wide vein of quartz has
been exposed, from which specimens have
been taken assaying twenty-five penny
weights. The mineral seems to be dis
tributed throughout The whole body of the
vein.
At the present time the chief difficulty
with :he new camp is transportation.
Everything has to be hauled by OK teams,
aud. OF course. prices are exOrbitant.
The Government controls the transporta-
ton business, and San Francisco dynamite
which can De laid down at $40 is a case Is
selling at S23 rs. and cannot be had for
less. Two lines of railroad are heading
for Johannesburg. One is al English line
which starts from Natal, and the other a
Dutch Portuguese line which strikes the
SEA at Delagoa Bay. Both are expected to
reach Johannesburg within year. TIE
Dslagoa line is the shortest. and when it is
opened it is expected that 1t will carry the
bulk of the heavy freight to the mines.
II is feared by the miners that the English
will get possession of it in order to protect
the colonial lines which run south; but
between the Dutch of the Transvaal and
the English not the best feeling prevails.
The world is not paying to the African
discoveries as much attention as they de-
serve. The total worlds production OF
gold in 1898 was about $3.50. 600, 600. ana on
the strength of this production the gold
value of the silver dollar declined below ~
cents. Now comes new gold field which
promises to add over one-third to the
annual supply of gold. while the produc-
ton of silver. in consequence OF the decline
in its value, is steadily falling OIL. In
Colorado, for instance. which has been
leading silver State, the metals are chang
ing places in regard to production; the
product of gold in 1894 will exceed the
product of silver by as large sum as the
product of silver used to exceed the
product of gold. 1t would seem inevitable
that this change of place must be followed
by a reaction in the decline in the market
price of silver, which was nothing more
than an advance in the price of gold, and
that the tendency OF silver to accumulate
in minis and treasures must be checked.
The practical effect would be to impart
mo0lllty 10 silver as an Instrument Oh eA-
change. and so to increase the current
volume of circulating money; thus tend
ing to aid legislation and international
agreement in rehabilitatIng silver.
1t is possible, of course. that the accounts
we are receiving of the yield of the Trans
vaal mines may be exaggerated. A wild
speculation in mining shares is going on
there, with the same ups and downs as we
witnessed when the Comstock was in
bonanza; and the operators are naturally
anxious 10 advertise their Dorado as widely
as possible. But the official reports of ex-
perts who have a reputation at stake are
very positive, and the returns of the ac-
tual yield are official The wider our
knowledge of geology spreads the more
certain it appears that the liberal supplies
of gold which were possessed by the
Egyptians, Assyrians. the Babylonians
and the Phenicians must have been derived
at least mainly from South Africa. and
now for some years enterprise has been
turned to the rediscovery of those ancient
sources of the precious metal.