The Kootenai herald. [volume] (Kootenai, Idaho) 1891-1904, 1898-03-12
REPORTS FROM THE MINES
STRIKE ON THE NORTH FORK.
The Purchasers of the Hope Mine at
Basin, Mont.-British Columbia
Properties Bonded-onyx Mines I'm
stevens County, wnsh.-In the
Swauk District.

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, II
claim six miles above Murray, Idaho,
owned by Charles Manley and Charles Til
den The lead is IA feet wide and carries
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 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 1t, 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 neghborhood 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 silver-lead producer. What
has held development work back in this
district has been the lack of transporta-
ton. it being evident that 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
J must employ three shifts and will use a
; Burley drill in the work. The company
has ordered new machinery for the Hope
mill, which will be practically remodeled,
as a 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
I from the receiver of the First National
, bank, who bought it for his trust last
January upon foreclosing a lien held
against the property by the bank. The
t sale, which was made upon the authority
I of the courts, was made on condition that
: Nj. L. Hewett, the general manager of the
i company, should pay to the receiver 1874,
e 600 of receivers certificates against the
o bank and give his note for $4,000. UpoT
|, the payment of the note and after compli
= ance with other conditions of the agree
n ment, one of which requires the company
to sink the shaft down 200 feet within
t year from March Is next, the title will
e pass into the hands of the company abso
!. lutely.
IS Several Properties Bonded.
G.. ID. Mackay of Trail, B. c., who i
understood to represent the Anglo Colum
bian Company of London, is at Boundar,
Creek examining the several propertie
-, which his engineer, r. W. Macfarlane, ha
secured for him under bond These ar
the Ruby, in Smiths camp; the C. o. I
> group, in Long Lake camp; the Snowshot
: in Greenwood camp, and the Republi
- group, in Smiths camp. The amount O
:, the Snowshoe bond is sos, 900, payable i
% four instruments, covering a period of on
: year. Work is being pushed on the clair
-. in order to test far as possible tn
70 value of the property before the first pay
- ment falls due The bond on the Reput
- lie is for $4,000, of which $4,000 has a
= ready been paid, and the balance is i
three instruments, extending over perio
nc of Is months. The bond calls for at leas
. $4,000 worth of development work.
\ Huge Onyx Blocks.
=. The development of the immense depo
its of onyx and marble in Stevens count
is being watched by mining men wit
A more than passing interest. Deposits {
A. onyx have been opened in the northwes
IN before, but the product has not proved {
commercial value in some cases, owing
~ the fact that it could not be eXtricate
70 except in fragmentary state. The ledge
an near Valley station, in Stevens count,
~, are said to be of such character that in
-, mense blocks of the material lie at tt
Ia foot of the cliff broken off by the actio
~, of the elements The most important pro
h. lem that confronted the people who we
at developing the quarries, after the questic
40 of a market had been settled, was whet
cd er the stuff could be quarried in blocl
10. large enough to be of use for heavy orn
mental work without piecing and pate
no ing. Secretary Nordyke, of the Unite
States Marble Company, has returned
Spokane from visit TO the quarries wit
the news that the experiment has bee
mt tried and the result exceeded expectation