The San Francisco call., 1896-09-20
IS A WOMAN MINER
Arriva! of Mrs. Mary King, Who
Has Made a Fortune in
Kern County.
The Lsdy a Skilled Assayer and
Knows Mining in All It's
Details.

Mrs. Mary King, owner and manager OF
the noted Tale gold mines at Kings Camp,
forty miles northeast of Bakersfield, is at
the Russ. Mrs. King is practical assayer
and has the active superintendency OF these
mines. The properties are paying hand
somely.
The lady learned mining thoroughly
from her husband, George w. King. He
taught her all about making practical
tests of the different kinds of ores, running
the engines, mill and other machinery
and .imbering the mine. There is moth
ing appertaining to that kind of gold min
ing of which she has not good scientific
knowledge.
Since her husbands death several
months ago she has had the sole super
vision of the property, and her ability is
shown by the fact that she is reaping rich
dividends every month.
~ would not exchange mining for any
other business that / know of, because 1t
is so independent and so profitable, pro-
vided one understands it," said the lady
to CALL representative yesterday. "There
Is no reason why woman cannot carry
on the work of mining and make money
the same as man. a woman can acquire
the knowledge as readily as anybody else.
lone beauty about mining is that YOU
possible 10 get. 1t is unlike business,
where you have to use all kinds of schemes
to make sales, and perhaps take advan-
tage OF customers. You get out your
balls of amalgam from the mill, and any
time you want money you can take your
gold and get it. Mining is so independent
! that l count 1t the best of all things in
which anybody can engage.
During the years that my husband and
l lived at the mine he taught me assaying,
how to follow the veins and run all the
machinery. To-day l can make fire or
other tests of the ore as good as anybody.
can make horn tests, and if the ANAL
gamator is away can do as / did for sew
eTal days awhile ago when he was sick.
take his place. [ know by the sound of
the machinery if everything is running
right, even when l am at home in my
| house above the mine.
"The reason why these are called the
Tale mines is because just inside the gran
ite walls of the quartz, and next to it on
each side, is layer OF tale about foot
thick. This tale is as rich in gold as the
quartz is. Both run on the average q
little over so in gold to the ton. The
quartz vein is from twelve inches to two
and half feet in thickness. 1t has been
opened for distance OF 750 feet. There
are in all four tunnels, one above the
other, and all on the vein.
"Ihere are sixteen claims in all in the
Tale property. The machinery is located
on the Saginaw claim. I had a man ex-
anime the upper workings a few days ago,
and he estimated that there were from
$4,000 to 20, 600 tons of this average rich
ore In sight. There is a great deal more
ore besides what is in the upper part,
may say there are thousands of tons.
''Dr. Hatch of the State Insane Asylum
owns an interest in the mine, but he leaves
everything to me, and says that whatever
do that in my judgment is best for the
mine IS all right. We are working a force
OF eleven men now, and are running a six
foot Huntington crusher, which handles
about twenty tons of ore day.
Il have no. reason to complain of the
showing we are making in any way. In
fact | am delighted with it. have got all
the money that shall want. It is a clean
dry mine. 1t is so clean that I can 90
down there any day with white dress and
slippers and not get it soiled in the least.
Yes, mining is certainly very nice busi-
ness. wonder why more people don't go
into it.
''A woman as well as man, who really
understands mining, can 20 out and
locate a mine and make it paw. There is
nothing about it that is not based on good
sense. 1t is simply case of mystery Civ
ing way to knowledge OF the work in
hand"
Mrs. King is here for a few days on
matters pertaining to the mine. She is a
lady naturally disinclined to talk for pub
lication, but II was explained to her that
her success would interest thousands of
people with whom the achievements of q
woman in mining is novelty.