Red Lodge picket. [volume] (Red Lodge, Mont.) 1889-1907, 1898-03-12
REPORTS FROM THE MINES
STRIKE ON THE NORTH FORK.

STRIKE ON THE NORTH FORK.
The Purchasers of the Hope Mine at
Basin. Mont.-British Columbia
Properties Bonded-Onyx Mines in
Swauk District.
What in one sense is the most import
ant strike ever made on the North Fork
has Just been made on the jackson. a
claim six miles above Murray, Idaho
owned by Charles Manley and Charles Til
ore from wall to wall. Five feet of this is
almost pure galena, the balance being
good concentrating ore. 1t has long been
known that there is a silver-lead belt
crossing the country towards the head OF
! Prichard creek, but nothing near equal to
this has ever been found there before, and
probably nothing has ben uncovered in
the Couer d Alenes to exceed it. No as
says have been reported from it. but old
miners attending court at Murray are a
unit in pronouncing it similar to the ore
from the Standard on Canyon creek. All
the way from the neighborhood of Raver
over to the Mountain house there have
been discoveries of galena, and there are
not wanting men who predict that the
day is coming when the North Fork will
not only be great gold producer, but will
run the South Fork a close race for SUI
premacy as a silver-lead producer. What
has held development work back in this
district has been the lack of transporta-
! ton. it being evident that d claim must
| be abnormally rich in order to pay for
working under the present conditions,
while nothing but concerted development
work or the discovery of something alb
normally great would ever bring improved
| transportation facilities.
/ The Hope Mine.
The recently organized company which
purchased the Hope mine at Basin, Mont,
the other day has just let the contract for
sinking the shaft 200 feet There will be
no delay in sinking, for the contractor
must employ three shifts and will use a
| Burlev drill in the work. The company
has ordered new machinery for the Hope
MILL which will be practically remodeled,
as new process is to be introduced. The
new machinery is expected to be on the
ground and set up within 40 days. The
new Hope company purchased the mine
/ from the receiver of the First National
bank, who bought it for his trust last
January upon foreclosing lien held
against the property by the bank. The
sale, which was made upon the authority
of the courts, was made on condition that
NJ. L. Hcwett, the general manager of the
company, should pay to the receiver sS34 :
! 600 of receivers certificates against the
bank and give his note for $4,000. Upon
the payment of the note and after compli-
ance with other conditions of the agree
ment, one Of which requires the company
/ tJ sink the shaft down 900 let within q
year from March Is next, the title will
pass into the hands Of the company abso-
| lutely.
Several Properties Bonded.
G. d. Mackay of Trail, B. c., who is
understood to represent the Anglo-Colum-
bian Company of London, is at Boundary
Creek examining the several properties
which his engineer, r. w. Macfarlane, has
secured for him under bond. These are
the Ruby in Smiths camp the c. 0. d.
group, in Long Lake camp; the Snowshoe,
i'll Greenwood camp, and the Republic
! Tha pf
the Snowshoe bond is SG5,O00, payable in
four instalments, covering period of one
year. Work is being pushed on the claim
in order to test as far as possible the
value Of the property before the first pay
ment falls due. The bond Oh the Repub-
lie is for $775O0O of which $4,000 has al
ready been paid and the balance is in
three instalments, extending over period
of Is months. The bond calls for at least
$4,000 worth of development work.
Huge Onyx Blocks.
The development Of the immense depos-
its of onyx and marble in Stevens county
is being watched by mining men with
more than passing interest. Deposits OF
onyx have been opened in the northwest
before, but the product has not proved OF
commercial value in so.ne cases, owing to
the fact that it could not be eXtricated
except in a fragmentary state. The ledges
near Valley station, in Stevens county
are said to be of such character that i'm
mense blocks of the material lie at the
foot of the cliff broken off by the action
of the elements The most important prob
lem that confronted the people who were
developing the quarries, after the question
of market had been settled, was wheth-
er the stuff could be quarried in blocks
large enough to be of use for heavy orna
mental work without piecing and patch
ing. Secretary Nordyke. of the United
States Marble Company. has returned te
Spokane from visit to the quarries with
the news that the experiment has beer
tried and the result exceeded expectations
Mollie Hughes Group.
New Denver, Il. c., reports that another
deal has been consummated on the Molllf
Hughes group This property was bought
three weeks ago by local men for $250O
1t has been held for three years by George
and Felix Hughes, who did great deal o.
work on it. but were unable to sell at
figure suitable to them. At last. thor
oughly discouraged, George Hughes, who
had secured control of the entire prop
erty, sold the group at the small figure
named. The late purchasers put men tf
work at once, and results were so gooe
that capital was at once interested ane
OH February 26 the group was sold to the
English syndicate operating in that sec
. ton for $4,000. The terms of the agree
ment are 10 per cent down, the balance IL
) one year 1t is understood 30 or 40 mel
will be put to work on the property a;
soon as arrangements can be made.
The Trilby Group.
The Trilby group of seven mines, SIT
,,atad in the SWauk district, klttlta