The Anaconda standard. [volume] (Anaconda, Mont.) 1889-1970, 1898-11-20

through various stages until To-Day IL
10 ~ much of a science as digging for
the gold The professional swinaIer
lurgists and ne plays for stakes 30
high that one transaction VIII net him
q fortune.
There In plenty OF capital ready for
Investment in mines. but capital every
where In cautious. IL sends out ez-
perts now to find out whether an In
vestment il good. Mining experts are
sent from New York every week to tie
various mining regions OF the world to
make reports upon the possible output
OF claims that are put on the market for
sale. These experts have large salaries.
but their services are well worth h
money given to them. Every year they
reveal frauds TO their employers
frauds which the public never hears
about. Quite recently a mining expert
returned from Mexico to report to a
large company OF capitalists that a
mine offered to IL for a large sum had
been sailed and was not worth SIC.
Another man, who has returned from
the Klondfke, reports similar swindies
In that Northern country. sometimes
the mines appear on the surface to IN
dictate great deposits OF gold, but FUR
Their down the soil does not a out.
This Is no fault of the owner. nor Is
II the result of sailing. II is for such
mines that the expert r1etallurgist
must be on the lookout. At the lest
the value of a gold mine Is n or the
most uncertain and tricky things en-
the face of the earth.
The present-day mine salter comes
to New York, London, Paris. or other
large city, to finish his swindle. He
plays for high stakes and he does his
work scientifically. The work of s,lt-
ing his claim is not performed In a
day; IL Is probably the result OF weeks
and months OF continuous labor. He
knows what to expect-the careful ex-
animation of the rocks and soil by a
trained expert-and IL he can not de-
ceive him his labors are all In vain.
| After the work is all completed he
takes samples of the dirt with him to
show to the capitalists with whom he
tries to negotiate a sale. This dirt. or
course. is rich in fine particles of gold,
and not ever the best metallurgist in
the world could tell whether it had
been deposited there by nature or ly
some shrewd swindler.
IL was a common practice once upon
a time. according to old stories. to load
a shotgun with tiny pieces Of gold. and
then to shoot them into the vein or
ore. This gives the appearance OF Di-
mute particles Of gold in the rocks, but
only the credulous miner on the scene
during an intense excitement would be
swindled by such a process. The train
ed scientific expert would laugh at such
clumsy sailing, and pity rather than
hate the man who attempted the SWIM
die. 1t Is the rule now for metallur-
gists to maks a great number OF bor-
ings at various places along the line
OF the vein of ore. From each boring
samples are taken and shipped to
some trustworthy assay office. The
- - - - -@oL that
these samples produce generally indi-
Gates the worth of the mine.
For some time after the experts
adopted this system the mine salters
were at n loss how to get even With
them. They could not salt every part
of the vein n they could not foretell
at what places the experts would make
their borings. The samples of ore were
usually packed in bags under the eye
of the expert and each bag was mark
ed to show on a diagram from what
place the ore came. TIL bags were
finally sealed up and shipped away.
But one day a shrevsd mine salter took
an ordinary hypodermic syringe ana,
thrusting the needle through the bag
ging. injected a strong solution of
chloride Of gold over the samples of
rock and dirt. The operation was so
simple and easy that II was not de-
tected. When the samples were as
sayed the ore showed that the mine
would yield several hundred dollars to
the short ton. The expert metallur-
gist was deceived, the mine vas pur-
chased for a big sum and the inventor
of the most recent methods of sailing
mines got safely away to parts I'M
known before the fraud was discov-
cred.
Since the the chloride of gold method
OF sailing mines has varied somewhat,
but experts are always on the lookout
for the trick in some of its many forms.
At an expense of $50 one could paint
the faces of ore with chloride OF gold
and make a poor mine produce an
excellent showing at the assaying Of
fee. Many a man and company have
been swindled by this process. The as
sayer's laboratory on the spot, whose
services are freely offered to h exam
lining expert. has deceived others time
and again. II was some time before a
bright metallurgist discovered that gold
a been introduced in the bottles con-
tanning such reagents as borax, hth-
arge and soda. Ore obtained from rich
mines Is sometimes dumped into worth
less mines for sailing purposes. but the
experts are not deceived by this trick.
They insist upon securing their SAM
Piles by blasting under their own eyes.
II the miners engaged In blasting are
easily bribed to work in the interests
Of the mine owner. II is not a difficult
thing to salt the mine under the very
nose of the metallurgist. Holes are
drilled into the rocks at places mark
ed out by the expert. When the dy-
Mantle stick is inserted into the mole
the mud taken from the hole Is often
used to lamp IL. II a swindle Is in
tended small particles of gold are mix
ed with this mud when h expert IL
not looking. and after the explosion
the gold is distributed through the
rock and quartz in such quantities that
the expert is amazed. The explosion
drives the gold into the rocks and
makes II appear for all the world k
a natural deposit. Usually this gold
Is obtained from some rich mine. lust
as mature put II in the earth. so that
under the microscope IL shows no marks
that will suggest its coming from gold
coins. There are scores of swindles