The sun. [volume] (New York [N.Y.]) 1833-1916, 1897-12-04
NAMES COPPER MINES.
A View Boom About to 10 Started by = Re-
turned KIoudiLe Miner.

SAReENTvILLE, Me-. Dec. "a native of
this place who won't up the Yukon River three
years ago with an exploring party and left 1t at
Circle City in the hope OF making his fortune in
the gold d~iggings, has just returned to his old
home and is promoting a big company which
| hopes to reopen the old copper mines In this
| town and Bluehill. He has secured the aid Of
three or four capitalists in Boston, who have
| org ,nized n stock company which proposes to
| begin operating early In the spring.
The famous copper. mining craze which Affect
| ed everybody in eastern Maine In 1889 Is well
remembered by nil the older citizens. Owing to
| sharp competition from the copper mines on the
| shores Of Lake Superior. the venture did not
pay; but about a million dollars worth OF good
| copper ore was taken out while the mines werc
| operated. and metallurgists declared that the
works were capable of earning good dividends
| under proper management. The granite hills
from which so many United States buildings
have been quarried in Maine reach from be-
low Bangor to the mouth of the Penobscot
River, and crop out in islands far down
in Penobscot Bay. East Of the granite forma-
tions are black lodges of schist. which gradually
shade off into wrinkled clay slate or else become
crystallizedi into gneiss or flint stones. Wherever
the granite comes In contact with the everything
formations are wide stones of quartz or flint
| rock, which are heavily laden with lead and
copper. They also contain a good quantity Of
silver, and In some cases pockets OF gold have
been found. though these are rare.
and lasted for nearly, two years originated IN
the discovery of z vide seam OF copper ore IN
assayed as high as 80 per cent. of,pure copper.
the remainder being galena and silver, Except
Ing. there were no waste products. Assured
that they had discovered one OF the best copper
in in getting money and startins the work. For
more than q year the Douglass mine WAS operat.
be sein nay about r%% A't Thirty y tons ast's Of cop pD' ORE.
Soon after this the Atlantic mine WINS
p fSs 1iood an Not p cda,e sas%si With T sorki nss tho S ~'Gs
veins. SPECTATORS began to blast holes in tho
Lodges al! the way from b ni to Mount
~'HiR Brook aSiiI" Poor farmers bonded their
ofland vent up a hundred fold inside Of six
months: Every bay and inlet along this coast
come down to carry away the ore. Men who had
been, poor al, their lives made contracts that
involved millions Of doil5s sc . . n. ria. p.,.
haps it WAS h~astened somewhat by the reckless
claims of the prom3ters, bur thn real reason for
copper mines Of Michigan. When tho Douglass
Mine started copper was selling for ~ cents a
iater It !" could ahS Be- bought by The cargo X FOR II
cents a pound. and the seller was willing to wait
which the Calumet and Hecla peoplc sffectsd.
combined with mismsnagemsn and sxtraya:
| gam mffhonB OF renUclng tncOre, DIOuRnC ABOUT
the ruin of the Maine copper mines; After
spending more than 2 million dollars In labor
and as much more In material. the cOmp'nv
started for the insolvency courts. and did not
stop until the last ono had shut down. After
that the farmers went back TO the land and he
gan to pasture sheep and cattle on ground that
had been worth 10000 nh acre. They had re-
ceived good rentals for two, years. and as soon
ms tho abandoned mines had filled nm with water
every farmer. could congratulate himself upon
having n we'll that would never go dry.
Tho present promoter OF the Rold-minlng In
vcstments got his start in life from selling a
worthless hack pasture lot to New York syn.
and then getting his farm back. His money
lasted until three years ago. when he went To
San Francisco and hired out with an expedition
going up the Yukon. Leaving his party at Circle
City. he went mn the Pelly River md was among
the first to strike gold In the Klondike region.
gold dust, and was ready to go home. During
this spring he still owned moro than
$l2,OOO worth OF gold. On the way Out
on board the steamer he again played
reached juneau he didn't haYo 800. to his
name. With this he purchased'a camping ont
nj and began to carry the baggage of ingoinR
miners mn tho steep ascents OF Chilkoot PARs
frequently earning ms much as S25 for n single
days work, when he had saved up about
800 he started for home. reaching here in
October.
He says there Ia more gold in tho towns nj
BluehilL. BroOksville. and Sedgwick thhn there Il
in all OF Alaska. and has put ny, SO good an argu
ment that men with money believe what hi
tells them and are investing heavily.
HIEh-Gra PIumEinE RiHtures.