The Salt Lake herald. [volume] (Salt Lake City [Utah]) 1870-1909, 1897-04-10

| to let it remain idle, as far as ship
ments are concerned, until such a time
as there is an advance in the quotation
on this metal.
| The property alluded to is the Petro
mine, on Petro HILL Carr Fork, Bing-
ham. and it is a well-known fact that
! if desired, the company could furnish
! all Of the fiuxing ore needed by the
western smelters for an indefinite
! period; but rather than to make the
| sacrifice that present figures would re-
! quire, the management is content to
keep a small force employed at the
mine in blocking out ore, with the be-
lief and expectation that the time will
come eventually when the market for
lead ores viii justify the extraction and
sale of the same. They are satisfied,
however, that this period will not ar
rive until the importation of lead ores
practically free of duty is given a
death blow.
The fame of the Petro is known to
almost every mining man in this west
ern country, and it is a well-known
fact that it is in shape to appear on
the shipping list at any time with the
ability to maintain heavy and regular
consignments of first-class mineral.
In speaking with the officers of the
company yesterday relative to the
Petro, The Herald representative was
informed that it is estimated that in
this property at the present time there
is all of 10000 tons of ore blocked out
ready for extraction and shipment;
that this mineral would carry average
values of 30 per cent lead, from to L
ounces in silver and so cents in gold to
ton, which would bring the value of
the mineral in sight in this property
up to the handsome sum of 81, 100000
The above figures are based on work
that has been actually performed in
the development of the mine, and as
the property has virtually been barely
prospected as yet and the ore bodies
give every evidence and indication of
continuity and permanency, there is
every reason to believe that in this
ground there is a much larger value
in mineral yet TO be uncovered than
the sum above mentioned; and the
same can be said of a number of lead
producers in the same locality, which
have been closed down for several
years on account of the depreciation
of lead values. In fact there are any
number of mines in Bingham, as we'll
as in many other mining camps of the
west, which are idle for the patent
fact that they cannot be worked to adj
vantage and profit at the price that
has been paid for lead during the past
few years.
In the Dee Creek country there are
any number of mines that would now
be in active operation were it not that
the prices paid have been so meagre
that il was impossible to keep up work
and shipments and at the same time
pay expenses; and ii is more than
likely that with lead where it was six
or eight years ago a railroad would
now be doing business in this rich
mineral section.
The closing down of the Petro mine
has worked a hardship to the stock
holders of the company as well as to
the laboring classes.
The company is capitalized at 10000
shares of par value of 500 share.
and with the ore now in sight in this
property, the stock would be worth
more than par but for the fact that
it would be a sacrifice TO ship al pres
ent prices: consequently the stock is
not earning penny and can be
bought at Sc a share.
The company is satisfied, however,
that with the restoration of the tariff
it will be able to resume ore shipments
as well as the payment of dividends.