New-York tribune. [volume] (New York [N.Y.]) 1866-1924, 1895-10-27

I'm n southerly direction when the reeis
a :, u.s supposed that this dip. which
nroceeds for a short distance al an ahs'e % az
eighty degrees was so precipitous ina, d" WI"
inys' would have to be started at the o"'''op
1s,. ,a. faIse assumption. but, in consequence
NJ IT, locations Of claims were maze OH 'n"' my
Subsequent Investigations proved that 'ne oe',
not far from the outcrop began 10 ha''en '"'' an,
In some instances described n curve i'Si''e "o"'
10 the surface ten miles southwark III '"'S way
q preat basin is formed In which Deds Oh CON-
glomerate have been reached Wherever po'"e
have been made. This basin may Fought. ="
said to extend thirty miles east and west anu u"
miles north and south.
Is this basin a gold bowl? Spectators ana coi"-
pany promoters assume that 1t is investors "i'
hoping that the expectations OF enthusiasts az
not oversanguine; and certainly there are S''o
reasons for believing that there are oeus Vi 'o"-
glomerate underlying the whole OF ths p"'i'
The earliest Investigations were cohouc'eu ~
means OF borings. which cut into the feeiS d.
varying depths The borings were foHo"e' ~
the sinking Of shafts Of size adapted 10 'iV
.'workings" Several thousands OF claims nave
been pegged along the entire length OF the manu-
at distances ranging from a few feet to severai
miles from the outcrop.
Those mines are called deep levels" although
the reefs worked the same az the oatcroP'
The term Is misleading. since the natural Hiiei-
ence to be drawn from II would be that dirlereh'
reef had been found at lower depth, whereas II
60 tho anne reef: but inasmuch the Rand basin
gradually dips into valley 700 feet oelo" H.
the designation OF deep level Is not without
Significance The shafts have disclosed in many
instances reefs which are deeper and wider thah
the outcrop These deep levels are held ana
"worked" In many instances by powerful corpo-
rations large amount Of capital has been eX-
pended In the preliminary operations and In the
erection Of mills. batteries, cyanide-treatihs
works and other plant. few OF these deep
level companies are already producing gold bur
the majority Of them still have much prepara-
tory work to do.
The characteristic feature Of these godfelds Is
the regularity Of the conformation Of the con-
glomerate beds. 1t is, In reality, new and here
tofore unknown kind Of gold deposit In other re-
gions gold has been discovered either In the beds
Of streams as dust small nuggets, or In veins
Of quartz OF variable and uncertain nature
whereas in the Rand 1t is contained In conglom-
crate OF sandstone quartz and other stone inter
mingled with pebbles. This conglomerate forms
three principal deposits lying almost parallel and
COMPANY promoters and spectators assert that
in consequences OF the uniformity Of these reefs an
estimate OF the probable yield Of each claim is a
simple mathemat teal calculation. While this
proposition remains to be proved. the opinion Is
held so firmly among mining Investors that the
shares Of deep-level undertakings with nominal
value Of s. have comman ded In a buoyant market
q premium Of many hundreds per cent. although
choft hay reached
beds.
NEW PROCESSES OF EXTRACTION.
The ore found is Of such low grade as to render
economy of production most important element
It may safely be asserted that the new cyanide
process Of extraction has practically placed the
Rand In the phenomenal position where II now
stands among the gold regions Of the earth The
ore has been subjected b three processes The
first was crushing and amalgamation Until 1889
this was considered sufficiently effective. but 1t
was an economic failure, since gold was not ex-
tracted in paying quantities and the fortunes OF
the Rand were seriously retarded 1t was we'll
understood that the amagamaton had not ex-
hausted the gold contained in the ore; but the en-
perts did not know how the loss could be avoided
until the discovery OF the Observation-Disclosures pro-
cess After crushing and amalgamation, the
second stage consists of the treatment OF pyritous
ores by concentration and chlorlnaton. The
third process is the treatment of the tailings by
cyanide Of potassium, by which SO per cent of the
gold Is secured. This was previously lost.
In practical mining operations it has been
found that the cost Of production per ton aver
ages Fl lis. and that the gold produced per
ton is worth f2 is. sd. This leaves a profit Of
1ss Sd per ton. As the gold obtained by the cy
lin
the fact is clearly shown that the operating Of
the mines Of the Rand is made profitable thereby.
The product OF the Witwatersrand district was
Ss7 ounces in May. 1887. Month by month year by
year. it has increased until the monthly yield is
now over 200 600 ounces, and it IS confidently as
serted by experts that in the near future. when
the immense plants Of the deep-leve mines are in
full operati the product will exceed 100000
ounces n month.
A QUESTION FOR ECONOMISTS.
The wonderful development. rapidly increasing
production and remarkable features Of the Wit
watersrand goldheds certainly facts Of great
importance The attention OF the commercial
world has already been commanded by the golden
promise OF South Africa. Economists now
dlsputng among themselves in regard to the pos
sble effects of this vast increase of the produc-
ton of gold, both upon the relative value Of sill
and upon prices In general. There Is agree
ment among these wise men al the outset that ex
perlence and financial history have shown that
the relative values Of gold and silver have been
controlled by supply and demand They all re-
member that the market value OF silver rOse )ve
the established and accepted price by reason OF
the sudden increase In the gold supply when the
production In California and Australia assumed
extraordinary proportions forty years ago; nor
has any one forgotten the shrinkage In the mar
ket value Of silver in consequence OF the over
whelming output Of American and Mexican
mines Whether like causes will produce like
suits. and the vast increase in the production Of
gold in South Africa and the new fields in Aus
traa be followed by rise in the relative value
Of silver. is q propOsitOn which econOmIsts