The Salt Lake herald. [volume] (Salt Lake City [Utah]) 1870-1909, 1898-10-17
SELLING A MINE.
The Property Should Be In Coco
Shape to Sell.


In telling of the best methods TO be
employed in the selling of mine Arthur
Lakes has the following to say in Ores
and Metals:
If man has house to let or sell
ne generally puts that house in as gooo
ana attractive shape as he can; ne does
| not allow the rooms to be full OF rubbish
| or dust, or to have broken windows,
| while a demoraliZed looking yard or
| garden is thoroughly put in order. But
pector or miner who has property he is
| deslrous of selling. When sent to eX-
/ anime properties for some outside par
I ties We have been frequently struck with
/ the little trouble often taken TO put tnat
property in as attractive shape as pos
/ sible, or in a proper shape for the eX-
/ pert's examination. More than once we
/ have had to turn down an otherwise
not unpromising property by the remark
that the property was not in proper shape
for examination, or for giving any de-
cided opinion on its merits.
This very often means that ii has not
been opened up sufficiently for an ex-
pert TO form good Judgment OF It's
merits, or If it has been fairly opened IN
the past, at the time of his visit he finds
the workings in such o condition that
proper investigation is practically I'M
possible In the former case there is, per-
hapS, but one small opening on one vein
whose extent on the property is at least
1,5O0 feet; this small opening, perhaps not
over ten feet deep. will give-only very
uncertain lQea OF the Nalue OF the VEN etl
that particular spot On Vein or LUZ
feet in length there should be several
openings at different intervals, and the
deeper these openings the better Little
or nothing is to be obtained by sampling
a mere surface outcrop of oXidiZed rock.
1t commonly occurs that there are sew
eral parallel or cross veins on the same
property, all of which deserve attention,
but as there are no developments on
them. the expert is quite at loss as TO
their value. 1t is in vain for the pros
Dector to say he has had assays or mill
runs, of so much, OF these, proving them
to be very valuable. All that, in point of
law would be called irrelevant, incompe-
tent and inconsequent." and be thrown
out of court. The client for whom the
property is examined would very properly
reject all hearsay matter from so inter
ested party as the owner, though the
expert may, from personal knowledge of
the man, feel great confidence in his
honesty and truthfulness. The client
wants what the expert himself saw and
tested. and nothing else. The results
from the samples taken home and tested
are often sadly at variance with those
given as the owners experience
Another case is where q property has
been at some time opened up enough to
give something to sample. and to enable
some general idea of the merits of the
property to be ascertained. Here especi-
ally if it is in winter time. it is not un-
common to find the prospect holes full
of rubbish. ice or water, and so. inacces-
sible. One principal working tunnel is,
perhaps. kept well open and expected to
do the duty for the whole property. This
tunnel may be all right, and a good clean
face at the end of it may offer oDpor-
tunities for sampling. In this tunnel,
however. there is not unlikely Wine
going down some 80 or 60 feet or more,
from which the owner says he has OBJ
tanned some of the richest ore. You are
particularly DESTROYS to visit this, as it
will show better than anywhere how the
vein acts with depth, but it happens to
be full of water and the ladder is broken.
II is in vain that the owner descants on
the richness of the ore taken out of the
winze, or even shows you samples and
tells you the width of the ore body You
may believe him, or you may not, but
your client viii not; he will say. How
do you know that that ore came from
that hole or mine at all, and what proof
have Won OF its asserted value or size?"
For purposes Of sale the owner of a min
ing prospect or property cannot put it
into too good shape for examination;
there cannot be too much developme emit
on it for this purpose. But it is not neces
sary or advisable always to concentrate
this DEVELOPMENT at one point or on one
tunnel or shaft. but to distribute it over
such points as will best show the salient
points and features of the property.