The Salt Lake herald. [volume] (Salt Lake City [Utah]) 1870-1909, 1896-04-10
RICH ORES AT DEADwooD.
Durango Mines DiscOvery-Reser
voirs For Watering Beef Cattle.


voirs For Watering Beef Cattle.
A special from Deadwood, S. D., da-
ted April 6, says: The greatest strike
of the season has been made in the
Durango mine, near Deadwood The
mine now has. three feet of ore and four
assays made from it gave returns of
1850, $50, $418 and 1920 a ton-an aver
age of 1888. A shipping sample (5l0
pounds) showed $3.50 to the ton The
mine has a car of ore ready for ship
ment that will net the owners $4,000
This mine adjoins the Golden Crown
mine, which has made its owners veal
thy, and is the second claim from the
Whale mine, belonging to the Home
stake Mining company, from which
some fabulously rich ore has been ia
ken.
New York men formerly owned the
Durango. They got a patent on it and
worked it awhile, but became discour-
aged and quit. Some persons here
bought 1t in at a tax sale and in turn
sold it to it's present owners, miners,
for $1,000.
RESERVOIRS AND STOCK WATER.
The Fremont, Elkhorn G. Missouri
Valley railroad contractors are getting
together preparatory to the construc-
ton of additional reservoirs along the
route which cattlemen use in driving
their beef cattle to the railroad loading
pens at Belle Fourche.
Up to two years ago the cattlemen
had considerable trouble on their drives
owing to the distance between water
ing places. There was a great album
dance of water in the creeks, but they
rxU-n fS6 En-, IN
the railroad company built two exper-
mental reservoirs in 1894. These were
so successful that more were put in
last year, and now the company is pre-
pairing to put in two more, making
thirteen in all. Little expense is at
tached to the construction of these
reservoirs A site is selected at the
head of some dry ravine and an earth
dam is thrown up. Experience has
demonstrated that these dams are as
permanent as they are inexpensive.
During the spring freshets these res
ervoirs are filled and they retain the
water, clean and pure, owing to the
high altitude, until after the cattle
shipping season closes in November.
The experiences of the railroad
company have encouraged the farmers
in this locality to try this system of
storing water for irrigation purposes.
"A Few maze q beginning last year and
their success was so pronounced that
many are putting them in this year.
1t is thought that the general adoption
of this system would result in loss
from floods along the main streams
and greatly increased returns from
the soil. 1t is urged that were the
general government to take hold of it
all over the watershed of the Mis-
sissippi river the necessity for the ex-
penditure of immense sums of money
for the protection of the low lands in
the south would be obviated and mil
lions of acres of now unproductive and
worthless lands would be made fertile
and valuable.
CATTLE HAVE WINTERED WE'LL.
The winter of 1886 will be recorded
as the best which the cattlemen in
western South Dakota have ever ex-
perienced. Cattle are in splendid con-
dition now when they would be thin
if at all. Grass has an early start and
the indications are that the beef-ship-
ping season will open much earlier
than usual. All of the companies are
buying young stock literally in Texas,
Arizona and New Mexico for ship
ment onto thei1 ranges here, notwith-
standing the fact that they are COM
PEELED to pay about 81 more a head
than was paid q year ago.
Beeves will be shipped from Belle
Fourche and Brennan and southern
cattle unloaded at Orrin Junction,
Moorcroft, Smithwich and Whitewood,
it being the policy of the railroads to