Santa Fe daily New Mexican., 1897-10-05

a permanent camp. Properties having
very high valuation are apt to be
pockety and broken, consequently of the
most unreliable character, but body of
low grade mineral ore with well defined
lead can generally be relied upon as
steady and consistent. The Red River
rock is for the most part free milling. A
good deal of refractory ore exists beyond
doubt, but the general character is as
above stated.
What is needed at present is plants for
the treatment of this low grade ore which
will not sustain the cost of transporting
distance of 65 miles by wagon and
thence by rail for distance of several
hundred miles more and add to this the
smelter charges of from 81 to $40 per
ton.
There is now in course of erection at
the Midnight mine plant known as the
"Kinkaid" system, which includes 25-
stamp mill.
At the same property il being erected
an 80-horse power steam hoist and pump,
all of which will have been completed
and in operation during the present
month.
Cleveland, o., parties, all of whom visited
the plant during the past summer and
agreed upon the large outlay necessary to
bring about these Improvements
Almost within a stones throw from the
Midnight is the Edison, owned by Dillon
Bros. of La Belle, who leased it last spring
to party of adventurers, who made one
shipment, pocketed the proceeds and dis
organized the company. 1t is not known
exactly what the shipment netted bat
from numerous mill runs which had been
made from time to time, it can safely be
surmised that profit of not less than
$l00 per ton was realized over and above
all necessary expenses, and, had this
property been in the proper hands and
the result of this shipment been applied
on the first payment according to the
terms of the lease, it would no doubt be
one of the foremost properties in the dis
trict today.
Another company has now gotten con-
troll and is receiving bids for mill to be
erected on the property. 1t may be too
late to erect the plant this fall, unless the
work is started at once, as the altitude is
considerably higher than that of Red
River and the snowfall much greater and
earlier.
Following on down Bitter Greek to
within four miles of the town of Red
River is the Memphis, owned by Mr..
T, Pooler of Taos, a prosperous farmer of
that thriving valley and here the same
conditions exist as at the Edison, the
property being absolutely tied up and
rendered valueless until the courts can
see their way clear to restore the prop.
erty to it's owner, another case of an adven-
turer incorporating property, getting
possession without paying 81 and rely
ing upon the sale of stock to defray ex-
| penses.
This company shipped ore to Denver
at the same time as the Edison and no re-
port of the net profit has ever been made,
nor hae the indebtedness of the company
been lisuidated to any extent. At pres
ent heavy door covers the mouth of the
tunnel and a large paddock prevents one
from taking out the precious mineral.
The average mill runs at this mine we're
$50, and the development work about
$50 feet, including upper and lower
drifts.
/ short distance further is the La Belle
Tunnel company's property which is in
active operation and producing some ex-
cellent ore.
The Thos. Richardson group and few
other properties of more or less import
ance exist on Bitter Greek and are
strung out to within short distance of
the town.
In Pioneer gulch the Stella, owned by
the Red River Mining company, which
company, by the way, had sixty claims
under course of development in the dis
trict, is being cleaned out preparatory to
a renewal of operations. The company
has been reorganized and work will be
pushed vigorously. The Stella has been
bonanza for her owners and improves
steadily as depth is gained. There is q
drift of about 200 feet and an S0-foot
shaft on the property. At the time of
closing down, the shipping ore was being
taken from the shaft.
The Tom Boy in which pocket was
found last spring which assayed &87, 900
is being worked and pay dirt of a far
more moderate character is being taken
ont and piled up on the dump awaiting
the advent of the coming plant for treat.
ing.
Further up on Gold Hill is the Sho-
shone owned by the Gusdorf Brothers
of Taos, which is one among the most
valuable properties In northern New Mex
loo. A carload of ore was shipped from
Tres Piedras to Denver for treatment
during the past month and yielded a
handsome return.
The average value for mill run of this
dirt is 1925 per ton, the cost Of shipping,
including smelter charges is $45 per ton,
leaving the handsome balance to the own.
ers credit Of $50 per ton, and an i'm.
mense dump containing handsome sum,
ready to be treated and converted into
cash.
An experimental test of few tons OF
this ore was recently made at the fve.
stamp mill at Amizett, under the super.
intendency of j. J. Smith of Cripple
Greek, which resulted in extracting the
sum OF $18 from the ore. The tailings
were then tested and showed the remarka
BILE Gum Of $50. II is needless to add
that no more ore was treated there.
A new process known as the Ste
phens process will probably be erected al
Hematite early in the fall, in fact the time
limit Of the contract has about expired
already, but from some unavoidable
cause.
| II is cleimed for this process that 81
per cent Of the Hematite ore values car