The Topeka state journal. [volume] (Topeka, Kansas) 1892-1980, 1897-06-09

trail City and other Colorado places. Tre-
go and Ellis counties were once a sea.
The rivers that flowed into this sea car
| ried gold and silver. and distributed these
| metals quite evenly over a large area,
| according to recent developments Zinc
is also found in great abundance, diffused
| quite evenly throughout this sedimentary
rock and must at one time have been
| held in solution in the waters.
| AN interesting feature of the history
| of this locality is that it has undergone
| an experience with experts, geoIogists
and mining engineers, similar to that of
| the South African gold fields, for mining
| experts, geolOgists and scientists had
| constantly declared, until a few years
| ago, that those South African sands were
| barren of gold and worthless because
! they said gold had never been found un-
| der such conditions Men reputed to be
| the best experts and assayers in Colo
RADIO and other places, for a quarter of
century, pronounced Cripple Creek ores,
worthless. Experts. mining engineers and
! scientists, have also declared for years
| that there is nothing of value in the
| rocks of Smoky Hill River, probably be-
cause neither gold silver nor zinc had
| ever been found under such conditions.
TT is a fact, that several years ago, a
{ geological professor brought his class,
| and actually camped for many days, in
| the same stone cabin which was used by
our people while made our explora-
tions and sunk our shaft zoo feet. Yet,
| that professor reported there was 'noth>
ing of value in that region, and it is
supposed because gold, silver nor zinc
had never been found under such con-
ditions.'
THE interest that has been taken in
this rich find is not confined to Topeka
people; number of gentlemen in Kansas
City, No, also Kansas City, Kan, Wells>
vile, EIdorado, SaIina and other Kansas
towns, also number of wealthy men in
Toledo and Cleveland, o., are interested
in these mines and are enthusiastic over
the prospects of the early developments
of this new field of mineral wealth.
Kansas will show at an early date.
that even in her gold fields, she is second
to none, and will stand at the head OF
the procession in the vastness of her ore
deposits which in this district have al
ready been tested to a depth of 200 feet.
At every stage of development, assays
and milI-runs were made proving the
value and richness of these deposits.
Mr.. F. Burleigh Johnson said: "One re-
narkabIe feature about it is pay ore be-
gins at the grass roots. Surface ore that
assayed S11.2O in gold; produced by actual
miIl-run, $11.OS in gold per ton. The first
surface ore that was tested, carried gold
the shaft, 14O feet deep, carried $1135 per
ton of gold and silver. The average OF
the many assays and mill-runs made in
procuring gold and silver. nine-tenths of
which ore was taken from the surface, is
$6.35 per ton. Some may think that this
grade of ore would not pay to work, but
it has been fully demonstrated that the
cost of mining and extracting gold and
silver, in working this ore, will not cost
to exceed 40 per cent of the cost of work.
ing the average gold and silver ores This
is important factor. 1t must be borne
in mind. that the low grade ores are the
most profitable, as a rule, because of the
cheapness of working them. The South At
rican gold ores average only about 81 per
ton, and yet, they are the best paying
ores in the world. In one instance in
Ellis county surface ore was found to
produce $92.26 in gold and silver, which
was not counted in the above average, in
the tables which we show you.
I'm reference to zinc. it is sufficient to
say, that the many tests made, both by
assays and mill-runs-some forty or fifty
tests-showing the average production of
commercial zinc to be at least one-third
the weight of ore, that is, SO 1-3 per cent
in other words, every three tons of rock
mined. will give one ton of common zinc.
This is the same ore that produced the
gold and silver as above. The state OF
Kansas already produces one-third of the
entire output of zinc in the United States,
showing that mineral production is not
new to Kansas, as you are aware.
The Beam Process company of Denver,
has erected a sample mill of ten tons ca
pacity, especially adapted to test and
treat the ores of central northwest Kan
sas. Mr.. Beam claims that he ex-
tract the gold and silver from Kansas
ores at a cost, to the mine owners, of less
than 81 per ton, and the process leaves
the quantity of zinc in the ore undimin-
ished and its quality unaffected
Should the expectations of the Beam
company be only partially realized, CEN
trail northwestern Kansas will come
grandly to the front and become the
"Shebe' of North America"
Samples of Kansas ore taken from
their mines, also pure zinc of several
pounds weight, and large number of
original certificates of assays and mill
runs are on exhibition at the company's
office.