The Opelousas courier., 1896-09-12
NIERCUR
tabs New Ell Dorado. wonderful
Development Of the Camp Floyd
Mining District.

The Camp Floyd Mining District of Utah,
distant but 40 miles from Salt Lake City, Is
now attracting the attention or the mining
world as the only western rival of Cripple
Creek, Colo. The district has had a most re-
markable history. The town of Lewiston rose,
tlourishcd and passed into decay, twenty-five
years , ago ION on the mi, ySrryesrin nst o" "ir Mn,s" m Mrrf"4
1t was renowned as II silver campiln II, ~. tilr
development Of the Sparrow hawk and Last
Chance mines. which produced over 81 600 600
in white metal. At that time there were LOCO
pcOplein Lewiston and the district was very
Ilve,y, but the rich pockets having worked out,
I.ewiSton'S tame began to Wanr Iiic next DIG
strike in the district. one that IS yet talked Oh
| ly old timers, was in the Carrie Steele, from d;
| pocket III which some parties scraptd out sS5,,
600 in about three months time. This caused
great excitement SO much SO, that in - and
'73 the hill was swarlninS with prosptctor5.
Then the camp again declined until ~ ana 80,
when it was abandoned. Iii 1880 attention was
called to the McArthur-Forrest cyanide process
and Il test of the ore was made i'll Denver, with
such elaborate results thar the old Sparrow
hawk OF Marion mine Was brought out OF a
S4O,0 900 or $500 Indebtedness and pat on ii div
Idenu paying basis. The formation at Merrilr
is very similar to the region about Johannes
burg IN South Africa, except that the Camp
Floyd ore bodies are larger and richer. Geoiu-
gists and mineraloyists differ as to the origin
and formation of the ore body, some ciainlug,
three distinct gold bearing veins while others
seem to favor the single blanket Vein theory.
On one point, however. all agree, that no such
1 Solttu CioSl iIS ' u 'tS' 'tcto
LII the Mcrcuf mine, recently bonded for 81 800
600, the ore bodies average $500 in gold to tie
ton, while some assays run INTO the hundreds
mark. With the aid of the cyanide process,
this ore is mined and millcd at an average cost
of -. so to $3 GO per ton, lcaVlDga profit OF ST., 90
or Sl2 SO per ton. On this basis the mine has,
i'll the year just passed, paid dividends TO the
| extent of $500, 900. The adjoining properties,
the Golden Gate, Marion aid Gcyscr are
equally rich. The VEN or veins have already
been traced from the cluster OF mines at Mer-
cur, to Sunshine-a distance of six miles,
where the Sunshine mine and mill, another
large property, Is located, together with M
merOus claims of less magnitude. In the Mer-
cur mine alone 200, 900 tons of ore are now
blocked out with an average value of S14 90 per
ton, making a total value OF $500, eco; the
Golden Gate is able to show 100000 tons OF
higher value than the Mercur, while the sun
shine has i'll sight more ore than either OF the
above but of lower value. Ii the discoveries
recently made, twelve miles west of Mercur
and far to the south, are uncOVerlIgS OF the
same vein, then there is strong evidence that
the great deposit covers an area of from 100 To
$50 square miles. 1t is hardly suppoSable that
all portions of the vein will yield profitable val
ues, although that is the belief Of many, but it
is quite within the range OF possibilities rs no
barren spot has yet been touched. Keeping
in mind the fact that any ore exceeding 300 III
value per ton, can be mined and nlllled at Il
handsome profit, there can he no question hut
that the Camp Floyd district Will yet lie one of
the largest gold producing camps III the world.
Owing to the lnlldnesS OF the climate, pros
pGCtlng can De cnHuNcttu III all seasons OF the
year, and at the present writing, vigorous
work is beng done at many points i'll the dis
trict The result of this work will show Itself
during the coming year i'll the opening OF the
ore bodies ia various localities throughout the
district, and numbers of claims that are now
mere prospects will undoubtedly become pay
ing mines in the near future. Nowhere at the
present time can there's be found ii field for
speculation which will,eSceed that of the Camp
Floyd district.
Mercur or Camp Floyd mining district IS best