Daily camera., 1897-08-21
GOLD PRODUCTION.
A Conservative Estimate Places the
Output of the Yellow Metal at
R21 900. 900.

An effort was made by the publishers
Of this edition to obtain the figures for
the total production of gold, silver, cop
per and lead for the first six months CT
the year 1897. The smelters, reduction
works, mints and assay offices through
out Colorado and the United States
were communicated with and asked to
send in their returns, but only small
proportion Of them responded. Some
of the establishments were unable 20
spare the time to go over their books
and foot up the totals, others believed
1t unwise to publish the returns until
the end of the var while there were a
number who could not furnish the fg
ures in time for this edition. From the
most reliable sources outside Of the
ones mentioned, which include several
OF the most prominent mining and
smelling men In the state, and who are
persons who would have no personal or
public object in exaggerating or over
drawing the conditions, this paper IS
prepared to make an estima!e on the
gold output, which it is confidently te-
lieved will prove within s1,000,000 Of the
total sor the year. For the first half
Of the year the production of gold was
$10,500,000. This is the estimate. 1t is
based on the authenticated report that
Cripple Creek alone has produced IN the
first six months between $4,000 900 and
$7,000,OO0. This would leave s3,5OO,Ooo or
$4,500000 for the Leadville, Boulder,
Gilpin, the San Juan country and other
camps. At this rate the total for the
whole state for the year would reach
S21, 100000 at the lowest, or over S5,000-
900 in excess Of the year 1896. The mines
and mining committee of the chamber
Of commerce has concluded that $0,C64,-
181 Is fair estimate for the first half
Of 1897. At the gold mining convention
recently held in Denver a report was
made by special committee based on
estimates furnished by every camp, fig
uring the total gold output of the state
for the first six months as $11, 100000.
The returns so far received by this pa
per, from several of the smelters, mints,
etc, of the amount Of gold, silver and
lead handled during the first half CT
the year are given as follows:
Silverton Smelling and Refining COM
pany, Silverton, Colorado-30O ounces
gold, $1,000 ounces silver, 115,000 pounds
Of copper, no lead. This smelter only
started in May.
Philadelphia Mint-Gold exclusive of
smelter bullion), 10S ounces, valued at
$2,O20.
Consolidated Kansas City Smelling
and Refining company, Kansas City,
Mo.-Silver 1,733,905 ounces, gold 44,775
ounces, lead S,Se0,S0O pounds, copper
1,050,759 pounds.
Observation-Disclosures Reduction COM
pany. Colorado City-3S,36 ounces of
gold. valued at s762,5S6.
United States assay office, New York
9ss.
United States assay office at St. Louis
rs ounces gold, valued at $1,397.
Metallic Extraction company (cya-
nide), Florence, Colo.-31, ,331 ounces Of
gold, valued at $647,6
American Zinc Lead Smelter, Canon
City, Colo.-25S ounces gold, valued at
s5.o74; S1,sse ounces of silver, valued at
$51, ,279; 1,090,597 pounds of lead, valued
at $Ss,2S1, and 270,242 pounds of copper,
valued at s2S,375.
Denver Mint, gold exclusive Of smell
ter bullion) 51.553 ounces, valued at
1859, 1875
1t will be observed in reading the list
that nearly all the large smelters, In
cluding the Omaha & Grant, Boston &
Colorado and their branches, besides
numerous others, do not appear. There
fore it would be useless to attempt to
make any estimate for the year from
the above figures.
The average quotations for the year
were, gold $40 per ounce, silver 63 cents
per ounce, lead 31-2 cents per pound,
copper 10 1-2 cents per pound.
Colorado has produced and deposited
with the local branch mint during the
first six months of 1897 gold bullion to
the total value Of s6,417, 1882. In this
the records of all previous years are
exceeded. The conditions are favorable
furthermore for the states gold pro-
duction during the last six months of
the year being larger than that Of the
first, for the reason that the placers did
not operate in January, February and
March, those months being too cold for
the work The great placers of the San
Miguel section, and the hundreds of
miners who are working gold-beariEg
streams in small ways, and will con-
tinue to so operate until December, will
add an element to the net product for
the last half of the year sufficient, 1t
is estimated, to make the receipts OF
this mint close to $14,000,00 900 and many
good judges Of the conditions hazard
the prediction that they will reach $15,-
100000. This figure in money repre-
sents almost one-third of the total gold
production Of the United States for
1896, which United States Mint Director
Preston estimated at $53,000,0O0. He
classed Colorado second in gold produc-
ton for that year. and in recent an
nouncement predicted that it will this
year take the front rank by excelling
the production Of California