The Salt Lake herald. [volume] (Salt Lake City [Utah]) 1870-1909, 1897-05-06

to ship his ores to Salt Lake. but in this
matter .-lilse-ether mine owners in-the
region, are at the mercy of the railroads
and they fix the freights so that Pueblo
gets a large share of the ore. The trans
portatiOn facilities in the region of the
mines are Very poor, but are being to
some extent improved.
Mr. McCune has been in England with
his family for three months, and is now
on his way home to Salt Lake, and is
expected TO arrive about May 20.
KOOTENATS GROWTH.
In speaking of the Kootenai and Ross
land districts and their wealth and pro-
ducing properties, the Chicago Chronicle
of May 3 has the following:
The Kootenai mines have developed
wonderfully in the few years iT which
they have been worked. There has been
a rapid and steady increase since 1890.
when the value of the gross product of
the district was s2.66S00 as against $7.146,-
COS in 1896, and the gross tmDortatlons of
ore from the British Columbia mines to
the United States have increase in
about the same ratio. During the year
erding June 4. 1894. the amount was only
$3.50 coo. In the year ending June 30 1885,
the value was 81 467 000. and in the year
ending June so. 1896 II went w TO 81 &c.
600. This year the entire product of the
region is expected to go over So. 900 GOO or
more than half what It has been in all
the "a preceding years in which the mines
up there have been worked.
The richest gold mines in the West
Kootenai district are IN and about Ross
land. the center Of the entire regiCl. The
principals in the group are LIE Roi, War
Eagle the Columbia and Kootenai Iron
Mask. Jumbo. Josie, Red Mountain and
Q. K. OF these LIE Roi is by far the
best paying so far. though the War Eagle
ana some Of the others have returned I'M
usual dividends. All of those named are
shipping ore now on a good paying basis,
and several others will be in condition to
ship as soon as proper transportation IA
cilities reach them.
The ore produced bN these mines IS of
two S2sses, according to the report OF
the dctninion mineralogists. The first
class rus.s on the average 2.6 ounces of
gold, is ounces of silver and small
percentage Of coDner Pc ton. Some of
the shipments out of the district have
averaged as high as &c ounces of gold
in the ton. with a total value running
from $50 to as high as SOS. The. second
class ranges from $50 TO $50 Der ton.
With these values and good transpor-
tdtiOn to the American. SmelterS in Wash
ington, Montana and Idaho, where the
Kootenai miners have struck it rich. In
deed. the rush of prOSDectorS and eX-
plorers into the district would indicate
that there was no end to the rich claims
there TO be found, and the excitement
and activity are now at fever heat.
1t must not be supposed that the claims
in the West kootenai are all taken up
That IS far from true. Indeed except
for the prospecting that was done last
Year, nearly ell of the district of about
200 miles square. is still virgin soil More
than half of the region in which paying
ores are supposed to lie IS as yet un-
explored. When the SHOWS leave in the
sDring a great deal of activity in this
new region IS anticipated and. indeed.
preparations for many new ventures are
now well under way.
The reports Of the experts show the
entire district TO be heavily mineraiized.
which s fortunate. for there is no other
product than the ores. The timber on
the hills IS extremely dense, but 4 is
not Of the sort that can be sawed into
lumber. In fact. ii IS next to worthless
and although forests are cleared TO make
shipped IN from Portland and the coast
towns to build them. II is from those
towns, too. that most of the supplies
for the Kootenai region are obtained.
OWNED BY AMERICANS.
a great majority of ,e mines in the
kootenai are owned by American ciii-
zens: The big smelter at Trail is owned
by Butte. Mon. capitalists. who have
there an investment of Il 600 600 or more.
TIE syndicate that owns this smelter and
the concentrating machinery received n
subsidy from the dominion government
OF 81 Der ton for all the ore smelted in
the mills: this. of course. to keep the in
dustry in The district and prevent ship
lnent 10 American mills. Until more
smeiters are built in the district though
owners of American smelters do not need
10 fea- any let-up in their business with
not handle the product of even one of
the big mines. Indeed. lie. Roi. which
gives the Trail mills all they can handle
ships to smelteFs in the states as we'll
An interesting and comparatively tin-
known quarter of this rich district is the
silver district. known to the miners as
the poor man s country'-.'poor man So
because the mines there are so easily
worked. The silver camps are In the SIo-
car region, some 20 miles to the north of,