The Anaconda standard. [volume] (Anaconda, Mont.) 1889-1970, 1896-12-25
BLACK HILLS BOOM
The Strike at Ragged Top Proves
Of Great Richness.
OLD MINERS GETTING RICH
There Is Plenty OF Other Valuable
Ore In the District and once
Poor Men Are Now
Opulent.

Chicago. Dec GA special To
the Chronicle from Deadwood. $. D.,
says Secure in the possession ~ the
greatest mine the world llhc Hume-
stake, conceded so by all mining ex-
peftsl, and having demonstrated in the
Lost l. months that we have the rich
% 100 miles square on top of the firm
st earth. the old timers. miners and
pfospcctors here, view with grim
smile the frantic efforts ut rival west
ern states In advertise their mining re-
sources TO the world. ours needs no
cnlogy, they speak for themselves.
Wars ago when the Black Hills at
tfacted the attention vt such veteran
California mining men as ex-senator
George Hearst, J. Il. Haggin, General
Gashwilder and \. G.. Bolnnd, the lat
! ters prophetic expression that the
/ Black Hills was the "higgest little min
| ing country In the world" has long
since been realized aud the foundation
Of the fortunes of most of these mill
lionaires was laid in the Black Hills.
| TNenty-tWo years have passed since
mining was begun here, and many
| changes have taken place. What was
thcu an unknown wilderness Is now
one Of the Richest and most prosperous
| sections ON the western hemisphere.
! The ores of all mining districts are
easy ol access. being intcrlaCcd with
/ n network of railroads reaching To all
nIiucs Of Importance. Reduction works
Of all classes are increasing their
I plants and are In shape 10 handle a
/ larger output uf ore than In any past
I years, New ones are being construct
| ed, and daily shipments are made 10
7 II, a. l,.
smeltCrs According TO the state mine
| Inspectors report the product in gold
/ for this year is s6,l1s61l.
/ The mining excitement at Ragged
| Top. n district that was unknown a
few months ago, has developed every
symptom of a ilrst-cl boom, and II
has been gaining In magnitude until II
has assumed the proportions Of an
/ avalanche imparting to everyone with
in its sweep AN infectious frenzy. The
daily discovery of rich siliceous ore In
the district intensilies the prospectors.
and the gold fever has become epidem-
&c. The camp stands without paral-
lei In the annals of Black Hills mining
history so far as its magnitude and pc
cullar formation are concerned.
There are already discovered not less
than n dozen large lodges OF ore crop
ping out At tnt SuIft'f w N Fdufur VI
two miles at n grade that pays from
the grass roots down. Nature has made
this the Poor mans camp. for the ore
has been thrown up with "A providen-
tla regard for him who has not the
means To make an elaborate outlay In
sinking a shaft with expensive ma
chinery From the time the camp was
first discovered hugh powders of rich
ore were found on the surface, and
ledges of the same material were found
protruding or cropping out through the
limestone. something heretofore un-
known to miners in the Black Hills
Predictions have been made that they
would eventually pinch out, and some
Of the oldest miners passed I'm con-
tempt what proved TO be the cream of
this region. because II did not accord
with their theories. But Instead of
pinching out II has been expanding.
and in the Dacy shaft. that is now
down 1876 feet. In running drift from
that level in distance of ten feet an
enormous body of ore superior In rich
ness to any that has been shipped frgm
the shaft, was struck. The average of
the ore in the shaft Is $3.50 per ton. In
| other discoveries and workings that
have been made the ore In sight actu-
ally dehes d. description, Old miners
who got I'm there first are now opulent.
The original discovery Of rich iloat In
this region was made last June At
point west of Elk mountain about sew
en- miles from this city, ON table land
between Long Valley and Spearfish
creek. the largest stream, and the
greatest water power In the Black
Hills. But Ragged Top now embraces
an area at least of FIVE miles square
extending along both sides of Spcarilsh
creek CANYON, where the Burlington AZ
Missouri railroad built Its picturesque
aud now celebrated high line The re-
gion is the most broken and ragged OF
any I'm the Hills with the exception of
The Harney tangc. hence the name of
Ragged Top. The scenery wild and
magnificent
ON the east side Of Long valley
across from Ragged Top and reaching
far below 10 the mouth of squaw creek
a tributary ~ Speariish. Is "A large acre
age of mining property equally as val
liable as any on the opposite side ~ the
valley. II extends down Ia Maurice
station on the Burlington 4 Missouri
River railroad. Great powders ~ or"
Weighing from two to % tons are strung
along the brink of the cliffs, having
been broken from the main ledge whose
locality they plainly heiray. To nnd
the main ledge ufedtu IH fAl'Elt ~ u
was plainly disoernihls Ia some pros
pectors who are now there developing.
Al the face ~ a Z0-fnut tunn"l the ore
,hey encountered IL four feet thick and
dipping into the mountain averaged
S9g per ton. The ore resembles that ~
Ragged Top. hiEhly erys'1lll2r1
quartz So prominently does tho ore
crop out that n strikes one as singular
that II had not been discovered before.
This same ground was iocatrl by Pete
Hand, who died a paupcr uhout live
years ago and was buried by cnntribu-
tions uf miners His administrators
allowed the property Ia ~ by default
and revert back 10 the government do
main.
Across Spearfish To- tn" west the same
formation and ore are found and now
being worked. Every section ~ the
muuntains in that vicinity Ia lp"ntcd.
Directly opposite Ragged Top across
the Spearfish creek pr" has been dis
covered that assays 500 per ton. There
a-e rival towns started at the camp,
Baim1tal and Nerve rit'rg. separated
by about 1900 feet. and considerable
building is being done Boarding
houses ard stores have been established
and from every pam % the Hllls. Wyo-
ming and Colorado the rush trends to-
ward Ragged Top